For the first time in our history, Uncommon Sports Group created an award that honors the many hard-working sports management professors across the country. The 2023 Uncommon Sports Management Professor Award had four nominees and over one thousand total votes submitted between the four professors! The nominees consisted of Josh Greer of Bethel University (McKenzie, Tennessee), Karen Boleska of the University of Missouri- Saint Louis, Dr. Amy Stucky of Taylor University (Upland, IN), and Jess Stainbrook of Colorado Christian University. We are excited to announce that the winner of the first-ever Uncommon Sports Management Professor Award is Dr. Amy Stucky of Taylor University! Dr. Stucky has been at Taylor University for 28 years in various roles, including Associate Athletic Director and Assistant Professor of Sports Management. Below are some of the kind words that Dr. Stucky's students and colleagues had to share about her: "A true woman of faith! She is passionate about her student’s success and is always your biggest supporter. She pushes her students to be their best and guides them to be as successful as possible. When I think of her, I think of a Christ-centered leader!" "Professor Stucky always has time for her students, but she is also constantly looking for new opportunities for her students. Taylor doesn't have the blessing of being a big-time college with partnerships with big athletic departments and professional sports teams, but she persists in finding her students professional development opportunities. I have also never seen her with a bad attitude." "Professor Stucky has been one of if not the most impactful people in my life. She encouraged me when I thought I may never be able to succeed academically, gave me a platform to use sport management as a way to impact our students, and pushed me to strive for things I never thought would be attainable. Her heart for her students and the Lord is unparalleled, and her approach to education as a ministry was life-changing for me. There is no one that is more deserving of such an award as Amy Stucky." Amy Stucky has always given 100% effort into growing the Sport Management department. She teaches most all of the Sport Management classes, helps to run the Sport Management club, and tries to help every student with their life after college as well. She'll send any relevant career opportunities to us, and she found the internship opportunity that I did. She also is committed to growing and becoming better, as she is in the middle of getting her doctorate." "Amy goes does everything in her power to help every student in our major. She has had a great impact on my life and has been a tremendous help when I’ve needed advice or direction. I’ll be forever grateful for everything she’s done for me and the improvement of our program at Taylor!" Congratulations Dr. Stucky, and we are grateful for all that you are doing to develop Christ-centered leaders of the sport industry!

USG hosted the first-ever Super Bowl Sports Management Volunteers Networking Event in Phoenix, AZ, alongside the Super Bowl festivities & events happening this week. The event brought in over 200 sports management students from across the country and was held at the beautiful Chase Field in downtown Phoenix. The event provided an opportunity for the attendees to grow in their professional development and build their network within the sport industry. We began the event with a panel discussion that featured some reputable leaders within the sport industry. On the panel was the V.P of Government Affairs with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Amilyn Pierce, the Director of Player Engagement with the Arizona Cardinals, Josh Marriner, the Director of Minor League Operations with the Oakland Athletics, Manny Colon, the Director of Activation with the Phoenix Suns & Phoenix Mercury, Stephanie Lovingood, and the Founder & President at KMM Sports, Kelli Masters! The panel was moderated by Rob Maadai, who is an NFL writer with the Associated Press (AP). During the panel discussion, students in attendance were able to learn more about the career journeys of each individual, some of the challenges they face in the industry, advice for getting their 'foot in the door' within the sport industry, as well as having time to ask questions of their own to the panel! After the panel discussion, students were able to receive a tour of Chase Field from some of the Chase Field staff, as well as taking some time to do some speed networking with one another! This was a great time for students to develop relationships with one another and learn how to develop their personal networks in an authentic fashion! We are grateful for the time that all of the students, professors, and panel members took to make this event possible! We especially want to thank Amilyn Pierce of the Arizona Diamondbacks for opening up Chase Field for us to host the event there! Looking for ways to develop as a young professional in the sport industry, while also growing in your walk with Christ? Look no further than our USG Academy opportunity. Our Academy is an eight-week virtual program that trains you to become a Christ-centered leader within the sport industry. Our next Academy team begins on April 17th, and the deadline to get your application link is March 15th! You can apply now by clicking here!

Our Spring 2023 Reflection Scholarship Application officially opens up today! It has been a continual blessing for our organization to provide funding each semester to thirteen deserving winners. This semester, we are excited to see applicants be challenged by the essay questions, as well as have the opportunity to receive funding that can be used for paying off student loans, tuition, job board memberships, conference fees, and more! How To Apply You might be wondering how you can apply for the scholarship, as well as what is required on the application. The application for USG’s Spring 2023 Reflection Scholarship can be found on our website (see this link) under the scholarship tab. From there, the page provides instructions on what is required within the application. For this year’s application, you will be required to listen to one of the two podcast episodes provided on the application and write a 500-800 word reflection in response to the podcast episode you listened to. If you have any questions about the application process or if you are experiencing issues with the application, please contact us here! What Can I Receive? USG is awarding a total of $15,000 this semester in scholarship funding to thirteen winners. The first-place winner receives $3,000 in scholarship funds, the second-place winner receives $2,500 in scholarship funds, the third-place winner receives $2,000 in funds, and finally, ten honorable mention winners will receive $750 in scholarship funds. Our staff carefully reviews each application and essay response to determine the deserving scholarship winners. If you would like to learn more about the application review process, please contact a staff member here. How Is Our Scholarship Funded? Our scholarship is funded through Clean Out For A Cause®, which is Uncommon Sports Group’s initiative to maximize the impact of used and excess sports apparel and equipment. Over half of all professional sports organizations and hundreds of college teams have donated their excess team apparel and equipment to Clean Out For A Cause®. Our operations team carefully handles these items and sells them on our e-commerce website, Authentic Athletic Apparel. Over the course of USG’s existence, Clean Out For A Cause® has collected over 500,000 pounds in donations, and 100% of sales from those donations have been poured back into our ministry efforts, including the scholarship! We are incredibly grateful for each and every one of our Clean Out For A Cause® donors, as they are the engine behind USG. If you would like to donate to Clean Out For A Cause® or learn more about the initiative, please visit our Clean Out For A Cause® webpage here. We would also like to highlight this spring's scholarship sponsor, Helmet Tracker. USG is grateful for its commitment to sponsorship and for helping make this scholarship opportunity possible! How Can I Stay Involved? Are you new to USG and desire to stay involved beyond the scholarship? We are proud to be the largest community of Christian future leaders of the college and pro sport industry, and you can join by applying for the USG Academy at this link! The USG Academy is an eight-week virtual training program that will provide you with the necessary tools and information to become a Christ-centered leader within the sport industry. Completion of the USG Academy will grant you membership access to the USG community of over 300 young professionals in sports. If you are interested in learning more about our Academy, click here!

In the busyness of a career in the sport industry, it is easy to lack discipline in our daily walks with Jesus. In this episode of the Uncommon Podcast, Noah discusses the spiritual disciplines of sabbath and fasting and how they can be applied to your life in the sport industry. A new episode of the Uncommon Podcast is released every two weeks. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, right here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. Check out this week's episode, and be sure to subscribe to our podcast to get alerts when new episodes are released! Curious about Uncommon Sports Group and what our ministry has to offer? Contact us to learn more here! Do you want to join the largest community of future Christian leaders of the college and pro sport industry? Apply to join here!

Each year, Uncommon Sports Group is able to fund a trip to Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA, for a group of our members. This year, we sent seven USG members to Passion 2023 at State Farm Arena. The goal of sending a group to Passion each year is to provide an opportunity for our members to step away from the busyness of an athletics schedule to rest in the Lord in worship, exhortation, and prayer. Dawit Cronin, a USG member and Sports Management student at Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, was able to join us at Passion earlier this month. Below is a testimonial of Dawit's experience at Passion Conference 2023 with USG! "My experience at Passion was amazing and it impacted me in several ways. Even before the conference started, I was super grateful to USG for booking our flights and having an Airbnb ready for us. This showed me that they wanted us to have a safe place to rest and reset as we come back and forth from passion. This environment also created a space where the guys can relax and fellowship. For example, one of the nights, we made pancakes and hung out after the conference. This allowed time for us to talk and get to know each other better. Moving on from where we stayed, that conference overall was amazing. Each speaker brought the word in a way that impacted me. The worship was personal and touching, and it created an environment where the presence of God was there. I really enjoyed Passion City's worship music because all their songs seemed to always have Jesus in the center of them. I know that all worship songs are supposed to be like that, but there was something about their songs. It was so Christ-centered and they never brought attention to themselves when they worshiped. This impacted me so much because I don't always have Christ at the center of my life. The worship overall was impactful and was for sure one of my favorite parts of the conference and thought to be more Christ-centered. Even though the worship was amazing, there were also a lot of amazing pastors that brought the word. One theme that seemed to be present in all of the messages is the idea of going to Jesus when life hits you rather than returning to the word. This theme seemed to hit me hard throughout the messages. Throughout the messages, I kept turning to John 4, which is the passage when Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman. The passage impacted me a lot because Jesus knew what was going on in her life, and he told her to stop returning to her sins and start to drink the water that God provides because it will quench her thirst. I turned to this passage after the first night because I felt like it was something that was going to be important throughout the conference. The idea of being grounded in God's word and presence when life tempts you is so important because it's how we grow our faith and relationship with God. Each message, in a way, added to my understanding this passage in a better way. Even though the speakers did not talk about this passage, they added a bit of wisdom to understand the passage in a better way. I was super grateful for all the messages that were taught, and it really did impact me to have a firmer stance in my relationship with God. This conference was amazing, and it truly impacted my heart and the way I thought about my relationship with God. I just want to say thank you to Mikey and Noah, and the Uncommon Sports Group staff for giving us this opportunity. Without your leadership, this trip would not have been possible, and I am grateful for you guys." Uncommon Sports Group is committed to coming alongside young professionals in the sport industry, like Dawit, who desire to grow in their relationship with Christ. We are amazed at the many ways God worked in the hearts and minds of our group at Passion Conference 2023! Are you desiring to grow in your faith and your career in sports? Get involved with Uncommon Sports Group by clicking the link here! Do you have questions for our staff? Click the link here to contact us!

USG member, Alexis Conaway, was the winner of USG's 2022 Fall Reflection Scholarship. This blog will feature Alexis' winning essay! Winning Fall 2022 Essay by: Alexis Conaway - Graduate Assistant Director of Volleyball Operations at Louisiana State University "“Create environments for people to thrive.” These six words describe how Chelsea Mangino operates as a men’s basketball chief of staff. They provide a powerful mission for every person working in athletic operations. They also taught me what God does for us every day because of His love for us. He creates environments for us to thrive, and I am grateful for the wisdom of Chelsea to help me realize this. Chelsea’s story taught me that thriving does not always mean feeling comfortable. Throughout her career, God presented her with multiple challenging positions. From student manager to graduate assistant to director of operations, every single opportunity required faith and courage to step into, regardless of how qualified she felt. God did not force her to accept any of them, but He invited her to trust Him and follow His lead. Every yes enabled her to experience more of Him and develop into who He created her to be. I believe the same is true for all people. God constantly provides moments for us to grow. These moments are not always easy. He may open a door to the unknown and ask us to take a step of faith we feel completely unprepared for. As Chelsea stated, this is actually the sweet spot where we can be used by God the most. It causes us to rely on Him to guide us and provide what we need, when we need it. It really forces us out of the way and places God at the center. Only when He is the center of our lives can we truly thrive. God recently opened the door for me to be a director of operations graduate assistant. As I embrace this opportunity to learn and grow and develop my gifts, Chelsea’s story encouraged me to pursue creating a similar environment of helping people thrive. Athletic operations really is all about service. Not only do I support the coaches and athletes on the team, I also connect them with people in many different departments across campus. My natural instinct pushes me towards attempting to fulfill everyone’s role on top of mine. Her story reminded me that it is not about me at all. God does not expect me to perform all of their jobs. Rather, when God is at the center, I get to provide the space for them to step into their positions to the best of their abilities. Chelsea provided many specific examples of how to do this well. She acknowledged the importance of bigger tasks like communicating clearly to build unity and keeping my word to build trust. She also recognized how basic tasks like completing expense reports and planning team travel free up the staff to step into their callings more. Even the small and seemingly insignificant acts such as ordering a player’s favorite food or supplying gum for the team can be Godly acts of service. They are opportunities for people to feel seen and known and experience the love of their Heavenly Father. I am so thankful for Chelsea’s story. She embraced the opportunities God gave her and now thrives in her giftings while helping others do the same. I cannot wait to continue my own journey through athletics with a similar mindset. It is easy to get caught up in endless checklists and lose sight of the bigger picture. My job is to serve, but I am not simply serving people. I am serving the Creator of the world. Every task I complete is a chance to glorify God and draw people to Him. That is my true calling as a follower of Christ - to help others know Jesus and enjoy abundant life on earth and ultimately in heaven one day. That is a job worth waking up for!" Thank you, Alexis, for participating in the Fall 2022 USG Reflection Scholarship! We are also thankful to our sponsor, Texon Athletic Towel, for making this scholarship opportunity possible for all thirteen of our winners! If you have an interest in taking part in USG's Reflection Scholarship program, be sure to apply for our Spring 2023 Reflection Scholarship, which goes live on February 1st!

USG is able to provide all of its Academy participants with a fully-funded Impact Weekend trip. These weekends are aimed at being an opportunity for the participants to put into action everything they have been learning throughout the USG Academy, as well as providing opportunities to grow both in Christ and professionally. This month, USG was able to fund seventeen Academy participants to travel to Atlanta, GA, for an Impact Weekend experience. Colby Pepper was one of the participants on the trip. Colby went through Team 33 of the USG Academy and is presently working at the Pro Football Hall Village of Fame as a Partnership Activation Manager. Below is Colby's testimonial from the Atlanta Impact Weekend: "My favorite highlight from the USG Impact Weekend was the local outreach that we did in downtown Atlanta. On Saturday evening we split into small groups and delivered care package bags to homeless people in the city in an effort to start a conversation about the gospel. I was very skeptical at first not having participated in this type of outreach before and unsure of who the Lord would lead us to meet. My small group and I ended up meeting a few men and had some really fruitful conversations about their backgrounds and faith. I got to pray with a young man we met named Devonta after learning a bit about his background and the challenges going on in his life. It was incredible to see how starting the conversation with a common love for football opened the door to a discussion about faith. Throughout the weekend I was greatly encouraged to share my faith with more boldness. Through spending time with other academy participants and participating in events like the outreach session as a group I was filled with encouragement. Oftentimes I get discouraged in the workplace believing the lie that I am pursuing Christ by myself, however it was super uplifting to spend a weekend with other believers passionate about serving Christ. The weekend inspired me to continue to share the gospel in every aspect of my life, but especially through my work in the sport industry and to do it with confidence, trusting that the Lord will continue to work through my interactions with others." Uncommon Sports Group provides faith-based training and resources to future leaders of the sport industry. We believe you shouldn't have to compromise your values to be successful. If you want an experience like Colby's, apply to join our community of Christ-centered future leaders of the sport industry here. Do you have questions about our ministry? Contact a staff member here!

At USG, we have been leading Impact Weekends since the spring of 2021. These weekend events are the culmination of the USG Training Academy through encapsulating and building off of how God worked in the hearts of our Training Academy participants during those eight weeks of the Academy. No two Impact Weekends have looked the same, but something that I am continually in awe about with these weekends is how God continually weaves our participants together in how He builds strong fellowship and community within our network of participants. Our group of Team 33 participants arrived in Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday, January 6th. After checking in at the hotel and initiating introductions, we moved towards a “Strengths Activity” rooted in the Gallup CliftonStrengths Assessment. Each Academy participant has gone through and been coached by one of our staff members in this assessment, and at each Impact Weekend, we try to build off of that coaching so that our participants can see how they have been gifted, how others have been gifted and in how they can use those giftings for God’s glory! These activities really helped our group grow in unity through prioritizing relationship-building with each other. Later that night, building off of the “Strengths Activity,” our group spent some time at “Throw Inc.” an axe-throwing company. This event was planned so that our group could continue to get to know one another and have some fellowship together. Whether it was throwing axes, playing darts, or enjoying Jenga, the Lord really helped connect our team in an authentic and deeper way that night. After our time at “Throw Inc.”, we headed back to our hotel in downtown Atlanta and rested up in preparation for a busy Saturday. After having some breakfast, our group of participants dove deep into Acts 2:42-47, which each student walked through during the Training Academy with their coach. This passage of Scripture really prioritizes “being” the Church as opposed to “going” to Church, and it really encapsulates what Christ designed His bride, the Church, to be! The people of the early Church movement in Acts also knew God, in knowing Him, subsequently enjoyed Him, and through knowing and enjoying Him, subsequently glorified Him! After some great discussion on this section of scripture with our groups, we headed to State Farm Arena to experience a tour of the facility and hear from three Atlanta Hawks staffers on their experiences in life, both professionally and spiritually. The tour was very eye-opening as State Farm Arena has set the standard on arena experience that several teams are now following. After the tour of the facility, Chelsea, Olivia, and Rachael, who all are in full-time roles with the Atlanta Hawks, did an incredible job of sharing their life journeys and answering any questions that our group had. They also shared their faith journeys and how they kept Christ as their firm foundation and operated as staffers on integrity. Soon after lunch at CNN World Headquarters, a panel of present USG members shared their experiences with the ministry and encouraged our group of Team 33 participants to make the most of the opportunities that they have within the ministry as a whole. After the panel, Justin Gibbons, an FSU graduate who presently serves as the Coordinator for Entertainment & Live Events for Mercedes Benz Stadium, swung by our hotel and connected with our group about his path and story of how he got to where is today, being a present leader in the sports industry. He also answered questions that our group had about his background and day-to-day responsibilities. After Justin left, our group participated in three different breakout rotations that were each led by someone on our USG staff. The three breakout sessions of corporate prayer, outreach training, and a handwritten notes exercise were meant to build off areas emphasized during the Training Academy. After those breakouts, our team of 20 was broken up into five groups to serve those in need in downtown Atlanta. Our group packed “blessing bags” with items often requested by homeless shelters, and our group was able to distribute those bags, pray for, and encourage those in need with the hope of Christ. After returning from outreach, our group was able to have some pizza together, celebrate how the Lord worked during outreach, hear a message from our Executive Director Drew Boe on the Parable of the Sower, and close the night with some fellowship, exploring downtown Atlanta, which for some included a Ferris Wheel excursion. On Sunday, our group had intentional time to reflect on what the Lord did in their hearts during the Training Academy, and we as a staff had time to celebrate them, presenting them with certificates of completion for the Academy, and we also touched on what being a USG member will look like for them in the future. After this session, our group attended Passion City Church together, building off of one of our Academy pillars of being rooted with your local body of Christ, and after that with some airport drop-offs, the individuals of our group were heading back home, all over the country, to be lights for Christ, wherever He has planted them! Another Impact Weekend in the books and another reminder of the Lord’s continued provision and faithfulness every step of the way and especially in regard to building depth within the community and relationships of our network!

Each year, Uncommon Sports Group is able to fund a trip to Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA for a group of our members. This year, we sent seven USG members to Passion 2023 at State Farm Arena. The goal of sending a group to Passion each year is to provide an opportunity for our members to step away from the busyness of an athletics schedule to rest in the Lord in worship, exhortation, and prayer. Thomas Biddle, a USG member and student at Huntington University in Huntington, Indiana, was able to join us at Passion earlier this month. Below is a testimonial of Thomas' experience at Passion Conference 2023 with USG! "Throughout my short trip to Atlanta or Passion 2023 with USG, I was blessed with the opportunity to meet lots of new people, worship the lord with thousands of other Christian leaders, and was lucky enough to receive a tour of the Overtime Elite facilities in downtown Atlanta. It’s always a pleasure getting together with USG because, so far, every trip, I have been able to meet a lot of people within the organization and develop a relationship with them in some way. With this event specifically, I was able to meet other Christian leaders eager to worship the Lord and grow in their spiritual walk with Christ. It’s always motivating to me to see others come together the way we all did at Passion and put our faith ahead of the journey we are on in the sports industry. I always say this and continue to live by the fact USG helps guide individuals like myself down a path to keep faith at the forefront of our journey in an industry in which it is so easy to lose sight of the true mission we are on. Not only was I inspired by meeting other great individuals in USG, but to be in an area and look around in see thousands of others worshiping with us was beyond amazing. Seeing the impact Christ has had on this many people and rounding them up into one place left me speechless. On top of the spiritual development we were able to do on this trip, we were also able to have some professional development as well as we were fortunate enough to connect with a fellow USG member at Overtime Elite and tour the facility, learn about the company, and their mission. We even happened to be there during one of the practices where we go to see a couple of the teams practice, which included some projected NBA draft picks. Being able to pick the brain of the USG member that works for Overtime Elite was an awesome experience in itself as I was able to ask about how he got set up into the position he was in as well as ask advice on how to be successful in the sports industry. Overall going to Atlanta with my brothers in Christ was an amazing experience, and I love to continuously grow in my faith with USG and also grow in my journey for my career as well. Being able to implement those two things is something I’ll always be grateful for and something I never could’ve imagined being so easy until I was able to join USG. I look forward to being able to go on more trips like this one, to network, and grow closer to the lord." Uncommon Sports Group is committed to coming alongside young professionals in the sport industry, like Thomas, who desire to grow in their relationship with Christ. We are amazed at the many ways God worked in the hearts and minds of our group at Passion Conference 2023! Are you desiring to grow in your faith and your career in sports? Get involved with Uncommon Sports Group by clicking the link here! Do you have questions for our staff? Click the link here to contact us!

Uncommon Sports Group hosted its first Impact Weekend of 2023 this past weekend in Atlanta, GA, following Passion Conference. Eighteen USG Academy graduates joined the USG staff in Atlanta for the weekend experience this past Friday! Our Impact Weekends are an in-person opportunity that follows our eight-week USG Academy program. The goal of these weekend events is to challenge our Academy graduates to put all they have learned in the Academy into action through the various events and opportunities throughout the weekend. We began our Impact Weekend with a Gallup CliftonStrengths activity to allow the group to connect with one another. Each of our Academy students is required to complete the Gallup CliftonStrengths assessment, which allows up to challenge them to grow in their gifts and abilities in both their careers and personal lives. Once we completed the strengths activities, our group was able to fellowship with one another at a local axe-throwing place. We kicked off Saturday with a group Bible study through Acts 2:42-47. Our hope in studying this text is that our students would be encouraged to pursue Christ-centered community and a local church body to be a part of. After we wrapped up Bible study, we headed over to State Farm Arena for a tour from some of the Atlanta Hawks front office staff members. Our group was able to receive an awesome tour from Rachael Starr, who is the Senior Manager of New Membership Sales; Chelsea Gandy, who is the Manager of Suite Sales; and Olivia Torres, who is an Account Executive. Each of these staff members with the Hawks took some time at the end of our tour to do some Q&A with our group, which was a great opportunity for our students to grow as young professionals in the sport industry. Our group then headed back to the hotel for another professional development session with Justin Gibbons, who is currently the Coordinator of Entertainment and Live Events with the Atlanta Falcons. Justin was able to share on his career journey and various aspects of his current role with the Falcons. We capped off the afternoon with community outreach in the surrounding area outside of our hotel, in which our students were challenged to share their faith and serve the impoverished individuals of the community. We closed Saturday with some reflection and a commissioning message from our staff to encourage our students to continue seeking Christ as they transition back into normal day to day life. We closed out the Impact Weekend in Atlanta on Sunday with a trip to Passion City Church with the group and a team lunch downtown. It is important for us to ensure that our students know the importance of a local church body and the importance of being involved. It is incredible to see God working in the hearts and minds of the young professionals within the college and professional sport industry that attend these Impact Weekends. This past weekend was another reminder of what God is doing in the sport industry! Do you want to be a part of Uncommon Sports Group’s community of Christ-centered future leaders of the college and professional sport industry? Apply to join our community here! Do you have questions? Contact our staff here!

This past week, Uncommon Sports Group was able to host seven USG members in Atlanta, GA, for Passion Conference 2023. If you are unfamiliar with Passion, it is a conference hosted by Passion City Church in the Atlanta metro that seeks to glorify God by uniting students in worship, prayer, and justice for spiritual awakening in this generation. This year, the conference was held in both Dallas, TX, and Atlanta, GA. Our group attended in Atlanta at the State Farm Arena, home of the Atlanta Hawks. Throughout the three days, our members were able to lay aside the tasks and responsibilities that are usually required in their busy athletics schedules and focus on resting in the Lord. The conference kicked off on January 3rd and began with worship from Passion City Music, Kari Jobe, and Cody Carnes. It is always such a joy to worship the Lord with 18,000 other believers! The first night was capped off by a powerful message from Christine Caine, as she taught on the book of Exodus. The second day of Passion consisted of some worship from Elevation Worship, Passion City Music, Sean Curran, and Crowder! Our group was encouraged and challenged by some incredible speakers, including Jackie Hill Perry, Jonathan Pokluda, and Louie Giglio. We also had the opportunity to visit Overtime Elite’s facilities in downtown Atlanta. Overtime Elite (OTE) is a basketball prep program for high school athletes. One of our USG members, Justin Wrenn, works full-time with OTE as a Data Scientist. Justin gave our Passion group a tour of the OTE facilities and answered questions regarding his faith and career journey. Opportunities such as these are very eye-opening for our members who desire to pursue a career in sports, as it shows them the ins and outs of various sectors of the sport industry. Our final day at Passion Conference was quick but powerful! We worshiped one final time with Passion City Music and heard from two incredible and well-known speakers, Tim Tebow and Sadie Robertson. As inspiring as it is to see our members grow in their careers, it is doubly as inspiring to see them grow in their relationships with Christ. Passion Conference is an incredible opportunity to be challenged, encouraged, and equipped by some of the most influential leaders within the faith community. If you desire to receive funding for events like Passion Conference with Uncommon Sports Group, apply to join our community of Christians in sports here! Do you have questions for our staff? Contact us here!

For the first Founders Friday of 2023, I wanted to take a moment to share some of the ‘why’ behind our recent announcement of the new Christians Working in Sports (CWS) Conference. Uncommon Sports Group’s primary focus continues to be raising up uncommon future leaders of the college and pro sports industry. We believe that the sports industry is one of the most influential platforms in our country, and we desire to see sports leaders using this platform for God’s glory. We also recognize that it is a career filled with unique challenges, pressures, and temptations. For these reasons and more, we are committed to helping future leaders of college and pro sports grow in both their faith and careers. However, throughout our pursuit of this mission for nearly 10 years now, the Lord has slowly opened our hearts as a ministry to the following two realities. There are so many Christians working throughout college and pro sports who often feel like they are the only Christian working in this industry. A career in the sports industry is way too challenging to do alone. One of the many joys of coming alongside young individuals throughout college and pro sports has been continuing to meet more and more existing professionals who are already seeking to glorify God in their careers. Unfortunately, we have realized that many of these individuals often feel like they are alone as Christians in such a challenging industry. This is especially sad because many of these individuals do not have as much opportunity to develop a local Christian community due to their work schedules or how frequently they’ve relocated for new jobs. It’s no secret throughout Scripture that we are not meant to do life alone. God has created us not only for a relationship with Himself but also with each other. This is why there has perhaps been no greater joy these last few years than seeing what happens when a Christian working in sports suddenly gets connected to another brother or sister in Christ within their city, conference, league, or department in the sports industry. The CWS Conference will be headlined by Jonathan Isaac of the Orlando Magic, alongside several other leaders throughout all areas of college and professional sports. While CWS is focused on individuals working full-time in college and pro sports, CWS will also bring together leaders and staff from 10+ different sports ministries active throughout various areas of college and pro sports. Our goals for each CWS attendee are simple: Get Connected. Build relationships with other Christians working throughout college and pro sports. Be Encouraged. Be reminded of how great God is, and hear testimonies of how others are glorifying him throughout college and pro sports. Leave Equipped. Learn how to live out your faith as a Christ follower in college and pro sports. You can watch a video overview and register to join us at CWS here! 'As Iron Sharpens Iron, So One Person Sharpens Another.' - Proverbs 27:17