Saad Alshamari

Saad Alshamari, from Doha, Qatar, received a B.S. in physical education from Qatar University and an M.S. in sport management from the University of Florida. His research areas of interest are in ticket sales, consumer behavior and the impact of hosting sport mega-events. While at UF, he worked as a student assistant at the department of TRSM and an assistant coordinator at the UF Athletic Association. Alshamari has worked in commercial banking, earned a Diploma of Refereeing (UEFA) from Nylon, Switzerland, and worked at the Asian Football Confederation and FIFA as an international referee. He also received an Executive Certificate in Marketing and Sales at Hautes etudes commerciales de Paris and a Postgraduate Certificate in Educational Leadership at the University College of London.

Deukmook Bae

From Seoul, Republic of Korea, Deukmook Bae received both his B.S. in physical education and M.S. in global sport management from Seoul National University. Bae's research areas of interest are in consumer behavior, consumer emotions and ticket pricing. In his spare time, Bae enjoys playing basketball and tennis, watching movies and time with friends.

Storm Blitz

Storm Blitz joined the sport and entertainment management Ph.D. program in fall 2023. Blitz works full-time in the University of South Carolina Athletics Department as an academic advisor for the baseball, equestrian and men's soccer programs. Before joining the Gamecocks, she worked in the same capacity for Florida Gulf Coast University for over four years. A native of Fort Myers, Florida, Blitz attended Louisiana State University for her undergraduate studies, earning a Bachelor of Science in sport administration. She went on to receive a Master of Education from the University of Minnesota in applied kinesiology. Her research interests include college athletics, college baseball, the transfer portal and athletic academic advising. Her hobbies include supporting all the athletics teams at South Carolina, traveling for concerts and everything pop culture.

Grace Kazmierski Davie

Grace Kazmierski Davie is a two-time University of South Carolina graduate having earned her Bachelor of Arts in public health and a Master of Education in higher education. Originally from Southlake, Texas, Davie was recruited to the Gamecocks' swimming and diving team as a springboard diver. She taught University 101 at USC for five years after earning her bachelor’s and was also an academic advisor and the assistant director for student engagement in the Office of Sustainability. Davie currently coaches the South Carolina Dive Club teaching youth lessons and coaching a national-level competitive team, and she accepted a position with the Gamecock athletics' swimming and diving team as an assistant coach in 2023. As a doctoral student, she researches athlete identity and transition. Davie examines how athletes' multifaceted identities influence their experiences and the quality of their transitions at all levels, from youth sport to college athletics to Olympic-level competition. In her spare time, Davie enjoys traveling, hiking with her dog, listening to pop culture podcasts, and watching any and all sports with her husband.

Courses Taught

SPTE 101 – The Student-Athlete Experience
SPTE 310 – Collegiate Athletics

Colleen Dibble

Colleen Dibble entered the Ph.D. program in the Department of Sport and Entertainment Management in 2023. It was a natural fit for Dibble having already earned her Master of Sport and Entertainment Management from USC. Dibble also has a Master of Arts in administrative leadership from the University of Oklahoma in addition to a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Purdue University. Originally from Avon, New Jersey, Dibble served in the United States Navy in Misawa, Japan, in support of the humanitarian mission Operation Tomodachi, and she acted in a relief support role following the September 16, 2013, Washington Navy Yard tragedy. She deployed aboard the USS NIMITZ (CVN 68) in support of Operation Inherent Resolve in 2017 as well. Dibble's research interests lie in diversity, equity, inclusion, leadership and player development in women's athletics, specifically in NCAA women's basketball. In her spare time, Dibble enjoys anything on the water to include wake surfing, swimming and surfing all over the world.

Rodrigo Feller

Rodrigo Feller is from São Paulo, Brazil. He received a B.S. in international business from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and an M.S. in sport administration from Ball State University. In 2016, Rodrigo worked at the Olympic Games as an NOC assistant, which led to his research interest in examining legacies left to host cities / nations after hosting the Summer Olympic Games. Rodrigo's research interests are also in the areas of international student-athletes' experiences and transitional challenges — interests he acquired due to his background as a former collegiate student-athlete.

William Fisackerly

Wil Fisackerly is from Englewood, Fla., and earned his Bachelor Science in sport communications and marketing, multimedia journalism and film studies from Florida Southern College and his Master of Science in collegiate athletic administration from Coker University. Additionally, he earned an undergraduate degree in film studies and a minor in economics as an undergraduate. His research interest is in collegiate esports with a focus on the development of competition infrastructure and the effect on higher education.

Courses Taught

SPTE 101 – The Student-Athlete Experience
SPTE 440 – SPTE Business and Finance
SPTE 550 – The Business of Esports

Rich Hart

Rich Hart joined the Ph.D. program in sport and entertainment management after first earning his B.S. in sport management from Hampton University and then a master's in sport business from Temple University. His professional work experience includes working in marketing and public relations with Comcast-Spectacor in Philadelphia (concerts, family shows, sporting events); boxing promotion at Philadelphia's legendary Blue Horizon; and sales/marketing with the Carolina Panthers. His research interests lie in socio cultural issues in sport, the intersection of race and sport, and the effects of stadium building on communities of color. With a love of all things Philadelphia sports, Hart also has musical talents that landed him a scholarship as an undergraduate at Hampton. Hart is the father to an incredible son, Elijah.

Courses Taught

SPTE 380 – Sport Marketing

Xiaoan Huang

Xiaoan Huang is originally from Beijing, China. Huang received his bachelor's degree in finance from Georgetown University and his master of finance degree from Johns Hopkins University. Huang has lived in more than six states and ten cities in the U.S. His research areas of interest include professional sport leagues, sport management in developing countries, college athletics, sport finance and sport economics. In his free time, Huang enjoys playing basketball, working out and listening to podcasts. His favorite food is Kung Pao chicken and Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

Chan Hyeon Hur

Chan Hyeon, from South Korea, received his Bachelor of Physical Education in Sports and Leisure Studies from Korea University and his Master of Sport Management in Global Sport Management from Seoul National University. His research areas of interest include sports economics (economic impact / legacy of mega sports events and others) and big data and analytics. He received Best Conference Presentation Award of "The 2019 Sport Issue Forum & The 31st Seoul International Sport Conference in Commemoration of the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games" from Korean Society for Sport Management in 2019. He also served as a secretary at Korean Society for Sport Management (KSSM). Outside of academia, Chan Hyeon enjoys playing golf.

Jesse Kasser

Jesse Kasser is from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Kasser received his Bachelor of Science in marketing from Hofstra University and his Master of Science in sport administration from the University of Miami. His research area of interest is in fundraising and is currently working on his dissertation. Kasser has lived in five different states, has worked for four higher educational institutions, obtained his real estate license, and is a partner in an early stage start up venture. He enjoys raising money, professional development, learning about our history’s great Founders, mentorship and spending quality time with family and friends.

Suji Kim

Suji Kim joined the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management in fall 2022. Originally from Chungju, South Korea, Kim received her bachelor’s in exercise, sports and leisure science from Ewha Womans University and later a bachelor’s in law from Korean National Open University. She also owns a master’s in civil law from Chung-Ang University and another master’s in law from the University of Minnesota. Her research interests consist of sports law pertaining to intellectual property, professional athlete contracts, sponsorships and mega sporting events. Kim is also interested in comparative research between American and South Korean governing sports bodies. In her spare time, she enjoys skiing, water skiing, golf, running, yoga and volunteering with animal organizations.

Mateo Marquez

Mateo Marquez joined the Ph.D. program in sport and entertainment management in fall 2023, but he is no stranger to USC having previously earned his Master of Sport and Entertainment Management from the College of HRSM. Marquez, a native of Bogotá D.C., Colombia, received his Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering from Universidad de los Andes. His primary research interest is the economic impact new facilities have on communities and the resulting financial implications for a sport organization's bottom line. Marquez's hobbies include reading, writing, running, playing golf, listening to music, and watching European soccer and movies.

Deokkyung Ock

Deokkyung Ock is from Busan, South Korea. He received his B.S. in sport science and M.S. in sport management from Seoul National University, where he received a lecture and research scholarship in 2019. While there, he was also a member of the Handball Athletic Team. Ock's research interests include e-sport consumer behavior, sport marketing strategy and new technology-based sport. In his free time, Ock enjoys playing soccer.

Jiayao Chee Qi

Jiayao Chee Qi, from Hangzhou, China, earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration - Finance from Northern Arizona University and his Master of Science in Education - Sport Management from Baylor University. His research interests include organizational behavior and human resource management in sport. Chee also has experiences in mentoring at-risk undergraduate students from various backgrounds. He enjoys automobile track events and performance driving.

Christopher Scroggins

Chris Scroggins, from Waynesboro, Virginia, received both his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology / Exercise Science and Master of Science in Kinesiology / Sport and Recreation Leadership from James Madison University. Scroggins' research areas of interest are esports, underrepresented populations in sport, disability / adaptive sport, and social connectedness through sport. In his free time, Scroggins enjoys fishing and hiking. 

Kemardo Tyrell

Kemardo Tyrell, from Enfield, Saint Mary, Jamaica, received his B.A. in management information systems from Notre Dame College, and his M.S. degree in operations management from the University of Arkansas. Tyrell also obtained an MBA in business administration with a focus on finance and athletic administration from Idaho State University. His research is aligned to technology innovation and entrepreneurial engineering in the sport industry at the intersection of strategy, innovation and entrepreneurship, with special focus on the diffusion and adoption of innovation, psychological influences on consumer behavior and decision-making, entrepreneurial finance, and strategic analysis.

Courses Taught

SPTE 580 – Business Principles in Sport Management

Ziqiang (Mavis) Wang

Ziqiang (Mavis) Wang enrolled in the Department of Sport and Entertainment Management's Ph.D. program in 2023. It was a natural progression for Wang, as she previously earned her Master of Sport and Entertainment Management from the University of South Carolina. Before coming to USC, Wang earned a Bachelor of Arts from Shanghai Normal University. Her research interests include cross cultural comparison between sports and relevant topics, and social inequalities in sporting events. Wang is also a member of the Sport Media and Cultural Studies Laboratory at USC. In her spare time, Wang enjoys hiking and training her dog, cooking and binge watching Friends.

Yutong Xu

Yutong Xu joined the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management in 2022. No stranger to the University of South Carolina, Xu received her Master of Sport and Entertainment Management from USC. A native of Feicheng, China, Xu earned her bachelor’s in international economics and trade from Zhejiang University City College prior to joining the graduate school. Her research focuses on the representations and discourses of females on esports social media. In her spare time, Xu enjoys cooking, baking, hiking, fishing and being around her five cats.