Marketing Class Helps Cal Poly Rodeo Athletes Land Promotional Deals

Leading up to the annual Poly Royal Rodeo, three members of Cal Poly’s rodeo team have partnered with national brand Boot Barn for promotional opportunities thanks to the Athlete Lab, a business course that acts as a mini-marketing agency for student athletes.

The partnership marks the first time the Athlete Lab has worked with rodeo students since lecturer Randy Rovegno launched the program in the fall of 2023.

Cal Poly’s Rodeo program is one of the strongest in the country, ranked first in the West Coast region and 20th in the country. The Poly Royal Rodeo held each year at Cal Poly is the biggest rodeo west of the Mississippi and holds massive popularity among the San Luis Obispo community, with all four nights selling out in a record-breaking thirty seconds this year.

Randy Rovegno, left, a lecturer in the Marketing Area, gets footage of rodeo athlete Quintin McWhorter as part of a promotional campaign in Rovegno’s BUS 454 class. Students in the class help college athletes land promotional deals. (Photo/Elizabeth Boland)

The three award-winning athletes working with Boot Barn include NIRA Womens Rookie of the Year Haleigh Grant, professional saddle bronc rider Quintin McWhorter, and tie-down roper Daniel Miranda, who is currently ranked top ten in the nation.

Following the NCAA ruling that first allowed student athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL), Cal Poly’s Athlete Lab was founded with the goal of getting the community involved and bringing profit and attention to the athletes.

“Everything we do, 100% of all revenue or trade or compensation from the brands goes to the player,” Rovegno said.
Establishing the partnership with Boot Barn is just one piece of the full-fledged marketing plan put together by the BUS 454 students. During the class, the marketing students designed social media content and promotional events for the rodeo athletes.

“Partnering with Boot Barn helps to reach my goals in and out of the arena,” McWhorter wrote in an Instagram caption on Feb 21. “It’s great to have a company who supports me and shares the same values and goals as I do in life and in rodeo.”

The Cal Poly rodeo team is primarily funded by donations, sponsorships, fundraising and ticket sales for Poly Royal. The Athlete Lab helping the individual athletes profit and land substantial brand deals to support their athletic careers is a step toward ensuring the rodeo program continues to thrive.

Daniel Miranda talks to a student passerby about his horse on Dexter Lawn. (Photo/Marley Logan)

On March 13, the team took to Dexter Lawn, where they drew crowds by bringing along Miranda’s horse, Princess. Miranda and McWhorter posed for photos and chatted with students as the marketing team handed out Boot Barn coupons and flyers advertising the chance to win two free tickets to the sold out rodeo– under the condition that they follow the athletes and the Athlete Lab on social media.
The marketing team helped to develop content for Miranda’s social media, including “A Day in My Life” and “Mic’d Up With Miranda,” videos that follow the nationally ranked athlete through the arena, and a short reel where McWhorter shares how he first fell in love with rodeo. The content is all in partnership with Boot Barn and created by the student marketers.

Whether it be working as an account executive, talent relations, creative director or a general project manager– each Athlete Lab student has a hands-on role that stretches outside of the classroom setting.

“I tell my students on the first day of my class, I’m not here to grade you. I’m here to hire you,” Rovegno said.

Josephine Kelly, an experience industry management senior, heard about the marketing class through friends and was immediately drawn in due to her focus in sports management. As the project’s account executive for Boot Barn and Cal Poly Rodeo, she acted as a liaison between the brand’s head of sponsorship and the student athletes.

“For these athletes it’s very special for them because they get to identify with a national brand that has such an establishment in Western culture, and I think that only boosts their confidence and their likelihood to just want to continue exploring NIL opportunities,” Kelly said.

Working with specialized marketing teams builds a foundation for the athletes as they gain a better understanding of the NIL possibilities ahead and having support from a large brand such as Boot Barn is a first step in making those connections.

The marketing endeavor may take place over just one quarter, but the real-world implications of the course carry on for the students involved. The viable, hands-on experience keeps students coming back for more.

It is not uncommon for students to voluntarily stay in the class for multiple consecutive quarters to continue their involvement purely because of the Learn by Doing application of sports marketing the class provides.

“I have more kids in my class than I do on the roster because they want to,” Rovegno said. “They believe in the program, and they really like to learn and the experience they get from doing sports marketing.”

Most of the work is done outside of the classroom, as students meet with their athletes, correspond with brands, film content, and host events such as the Horse on Dexter, benefiting both the athletes and the student’s learning.

“You really get to experience what it would be like working in an actual agency in the world, with real clients, with real athletes,” Kelly said. “And so you really feel like the work you’re doing is having an impact, which I think is so special.”

Our marketing students apply Cal Poly’s Learn by Doing approach in the classroom. Your support helps prepare our students to be Day One Ready for their careers once they graduate.

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