1. What's All The Madness?
Each fall, the NCAA sets a date before which a collegiate basketball team may not officially practice. As a result, when the clock strikes Midnight on that date —like magic, teams may have their first practice.
Midnight Madness started as a simple idea: Show your eagerness to get the season started by having the first practice as soon as possible. Former Maryland coach Lefty Driesell is credited with creating what has now become a tradition.
In 1971, Driesell wanted to hype what he felt was a talented team. Since he usually had his players run a mile around the football field to start practice, he figured, "Why not run it as a team as soon as legally possible?"
Just after 12:00 AM on Oct. 15, 1971, (or 1970, there are conflicting reports), the Terrapins ran their first mile of the season on the football field, with an assist from car lights. Several hundred students and fans turned out for the spectacle.
Schools now use the event to dazzle potential recruits, get the fans fired up, and generate revenue from corporate partners. It is usually one big party — with shooting and dunking contests, scrimmages, fan fun events, and great prizes.
The event is now so big that the actual phrase "Midnight Madness" is copyrighted. Want more evidence of its stature? In 1997, the NCAA even changed the season's starting date to make room for the madness, with additional changes made in 2013 ( https://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/calendar-moves-forward-midnight-madness ) The traditional start date was Oct. 15. It is now a bit more flexible and changes to allow Midnight Madness to be held on a weekend.
It might even go beyond basketball. According to NBC Sports' Peter King, the NFL is considering a "Midnight Madness"-style opening to training camps in late July. The league is attempting to have 28 teams open on the same date with some fanfare for each opening, similar to how college basketball programs host their first practice in October(of 2021).
At first glance, getting fans to come out to watch a practice at Midnight seems a bit unrealistic. But remember, we're talking about a college campus. Offer food and fun, and the time of the event is almost irrelevant. Besides, many college students are just getting back to the dorm at Midnight!
Over the years, the celebration of the beginning of the college basketball season has grown considerably. Packed arenas, camping overnight for tickets, participation by the blue-blood programs, and live coverage by ESPN has made Midnight Madness a mainstay of the collegiate sports calendar.
In the mid-'90s, students in Sportainment (a sports marketing class) at Bradford High School in Kenosha, Wisconsin, decided the best way to experience marketing, promotion, and event management was to "do" these things. Not just read or learn about them—but do them. Also, they discovered that the best event to run is one you own. If you own an event, you have total control over the decisions.
As a result, they decided to have their own version of Midnight Madness. As you might expect, there were a lot of decisions that had to be made. Where to have it? Who to involve? Activities? Entertainment? Marketing? The list of considerations seemed to never end!
The Tip-Off is intended to provide insight into the decisions made by Sportainment. These are the same decisions your program will face when attempting to stage a version of Midnight Madness, or, as it has become known in Kenosha, The K-Town Tip-Off. Keep in mind; Sportainment didn't necessarily do it the "right" way because there is no "right" way. They did what worked for them. Whenever possible, in addition to discussing what worked for Sportainment, additional options or different approaches will be offered. The key is to take whatever you can from this book and use it. Throw some ideas away. Modify others. Use some suggestions to get your creative juices flowing and come up with your own ideas. Do whatever it takes to make it work.
Enjoy your reading and accept the challenge to plan, organize and implement your own Tip-Off!
