Category Archives: Tech of Sports

From the shoes we wear on our feet to the high definition televisions in our living room, wearable devices, the sports universe is a breeding ground for technology. Writer and Photographer Rick Limpert will examine this each week on The Tech of Sports – With guests which include athletes, inventors and journalists that cover the intersection of sports and technology.

Morgan Wrublik, Illinois State Hammer Thrower and More



Caught on with Morgan Wrublik at the NIL Summit in Atlanta back in June.

Morgan throws the hammer and shot put for the Illinois State Redbirds and is big on social media.

She competed in seven meets during the outdoor season where she finished third in the hammer throw with 48.35m (158′ 7″) at the 2023 EIU Big Blue…Set a personal-best in the hammer throw with 55.16m (181′ 0″) at the Wisconsin Classic and competed in the 2023 MVC Outdoor Track & Field Championship in the hammer throw and shot put.

2022-2023 INDOOR (Jr.) Competed in four meets during the indoor season where she finished third in the weight throw with 15.37m (50′ 5.25″) and finished third in the shot put with 12.68m (41′ 7.25″) at the John Couglan Invite. She set a personal-best in the weight throw with 16.27m (53′ 5.25″) while finishing fourth…Finished second at the 2023 EIU Friday Night Special in the shot put with 13.42m (44′ 0.5″)…

Morgan has aspirations of going to medical school to become a doctor…Member of NHS, 4.0 GPA Award Recipient, 4.5 GPA Award Recipient, four-year Honor Roll member, Illinois State Scholar and AP Scholar at Lemont HS

 

 


Kaimon Rucker, University of North Carolina Linebacker



Rick is joined by a linebacker from the North Carolina Tar Heels Football Team, Kaimon Rucker.

They talk NIL, football and how he approaches life as a student athlete.

He appeared in 13 games and made 10 starts on the defensive line in 2023. Tied for second on the team with four sacks and tied third with 5.5 TFL. Had 31 total tackles, three hurries and one forced fumble. Had a single tackle and a half sack in season opener at Virginia Tech. Had a pair of stops and one TFL against Georgia State. Had a monster night against Virginia with five tackles, two sacks, two TFL and a forced fumble. Registered five stops and a half TFL at Georgia Tech. Made three tackles against Duke. Had three tackles against Florida State. He had a sack and two tackles at Notre Dame. Registered one tackle and one hurry against Wake Forest. Had three tackles, a half sack and a hurry at Pittsburgh. Made a pair of tackles against Wofford. Made three tackles in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl against South Carolina.

Position
Jack

Height
6-1.5

Weight
260

Class
Senior

Hometown
Hartwell, Ga.

High School
Hart County

Twitter
_kruck75_

Instagram
ruckthebutcher

TikTok
_krucker1_


Rich Mueller, Sports Collectors Daily, The National and More



Rich Mueller, the publisher of Sports Collectors Daily joins Rick this week to talk about the upcoming National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago, the sports collecting industry and more.

For over 17 years, Sports Collectors Daily gives readers a heaping helping of sports collecting news daily. They publish completely original sports collecting news stories you won’t see anywhere else.

At least 20 fresh pieces of content are added over the course of one week alone thanks in part to some talented writers, contacts inside and outside the industry and a good old fashioned nose for news. No other site can match the professional experience and journalistic quality of Sports Collectors Daily. We set the standard. As one reader put it, SC Daily is “the Wall Street Journal for our industry.”

Rich Mueller, who spent nearly 30 years as a television sports anchor and reporter and online journalist is President of Sports Collectors Daily Incorporated and the editor of SportsCollectorsDaily.com. He has earned numerous honors throughout his career including several prestigious Edward R. Murrow awards for sports reporting.

The National Sports Collectors Convention is an annual gathering of collectors, dealers and any other groups interested in collecting trading cards, autographs and other related memorabilia.

In 1980 a group of collectors gathered in a small hotel ballroom at the Los Angeles International Airport Marriott for what became the 1st National Sports Collectors Convention. From that, The National has grown into a once a year extravaganza that is the premier showcase event of the collectibles industry. Seeking to involve collectors from around the country, founders of the National stipulated that the event should move around the country to insure all collectors and exhibitors could participate. Early Nationals were held in St Louis, Chicago, Detroit as well as the NY metropolitan area.

Chicago is the site for NSCC 2023.

 

 


Klarke Sconiers, Delaware Women’s Basketball Player



Rick is joined by Delaware Basketball Team member, Klarke Sconiers.

A fun talk, discussing her career, NIL and more with the Blue Hens senior center.

For the 2022-23 season: 12.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game
• Third-Team All-CAA
• CAA Player of the Week (Jan. 16)
• Put together four 20+ point performances this season (29 at Lehigh, 21 vs. Hofstra); scored in double figures in 20 games
• Had a career-best 29 points and tied her career-high 11 rebounds in UD’s 79-67 road win at Lehigh
• Poured in 18 points in Delaware’s B1G win over Illinois on Nov. 26

WHY DELAWARE?
“I chose Delaware because of the amazing environment and great people that surround this university. I have a great relationship with Coach Sarah and I trust in her vision for this program.”

 


Carter Hogg, G8R Skin



Rick is joined by Carter Hogg this week on Tech of Sports.

Carter Hogg of G8R Skin explains how their technology will prevent life-threatening injuries in not just football but contact sports overall and completely change the way we prevent concussions moving forward. This invention will save lives, extend careers, and reduce the negative perception of football so kids can play safely.

Having completed rigorous testing at Virginia Tech, a college football player, sophomore Carter Hogg, has successfully developed a solution that reduces concussions in contact sports by over 60%. After his older brother was beset by a career-ending concussion during a college championship game in 2022, Carter was inspired to invent “G8R Skin PPE,” a balaclava-like shell used under helmets— and proven to prevent concussions.

Carter noted a sharp decline in interest for contact sports amongst his age group due to fears of serious injury. Today he sees G8R Skin as a viable path to save full contact sports. And the scientists at VT concur. Testing at the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab demonstrated up to 61.57% reduction in concussion risk based on reductions in both peak linear acceleration and peak rotational acceleration.

Carter is the third generation of inventors in his family. His father, Jason Hogg—serial inventor, corporate leader, much-admired entrepreneur, ex-FBI Special Agent, and Cornell professor—holds more than 60 technology patents for payment processing and cybersecurity products used today by Dunkin’ Donuts, American Express, and Walmart, among dozens of others. Carter’s grandfather, Russell Hogg, invented the debit card when he ran MasterCharge (now MasterCard).

“When a car comes to a sudden stop, passengers get thrown forward in their seats,” Carter says. “Similarly, if your body throws the brakes on too fast, the brain will collide with the skull’s interior. G8R Skin reduces concussions by hastening the movement of the skull and neck during impact, protecting your brain from a serious internal collision.”

Next steps include closing deals with professional and college athletes to wear G8R Skin next season—and an expansion into shoulder pads and cleats. Carter and Jason Hogg are in talks with several pro players in addition to teams and league officials (managers, coaches, et al).


Kimberly Beaudin, CEO of College Football Hall of Fame



As the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta gets ready to celebrate 10 years, Rick talks with the CEO, Kimberly Beaudin. Great insight and inside look at the Hall with Kimberly.

The College Football Hall of Fame was established by the National Football Foundation in 1951.

The Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame, which opened on Aug. 23, 2014, is a 94,256-square-foot attraction located in the heart of Atlanta’s sports, entertainment and tourism district.

When the 2022 Hall of Fame Class is officially inducted in December, only 1,056 players and 226 coaches will have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame from the nearly 5.54 million who have played or coached the game over the past 152 years. In other words, only two one-hundredths of a percent (.02%) of those who have played the game have earned the distinction.

Inaugural Hall of Fame Class in 1951 included 32 players and 22 coaches, including notables Red Grange (Illinois), George Gipp (Notre Dame), Knute Rockne(Notre Dame), Amos Alonzo Stagg (as a coach and player) and Jim Thorpe (Carlisle [PA]).

317 schools are represented with at least one College Football Hall of Fame player or coach.

The College Football Hall of Fame Class is officially inducted each December during the NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas.

The Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame opened its doors in Atlanta on Aug. 23, 2014. Redefining the concept of a traditional museum with cutting-edge technology, the building has drawn universal praise for creating a venue that rises to the occasion of paying tribute to the game’s greatest legends while engaging fans with a unique range of compelling exhibits.

“We knew that downtown Atlanta offered the perfect setting for the Hall, and the city, as well as people from all over the country, have embraced our home in Atlanta as a major epicenter for college football,” said Archie Manning, the chairman of the NFF, which launched the Hall in 1951 and partnered with the city of Atlanta to raise the money and open the Hall in 2014. “We knew we had something special in the proposal and planning stages, and it has been even better in reality.”

The Hall, built at a cost of approximately $68.5 million, measures 94,256 square feet, including 50,000 square feet of exhibit space and a 45-yard indoor football field. The attraction offers a total “Fan Experience” matching traditional, museum-quality memorabilia with interactive, multimedia exhibits that invite fans and visitors to engage with their favorite college football team or Hall of Famer.

Fans are given an RFID-enabled All-Access Pass as they enter the building and are immediately greeted by the three-story helmet wall representing all 771 U.S. colleges and universities with football teams. When fans register their RFID All-Access Pass, their school’s helmet actually lights up. As fans explore the rest of the building, the RFID badge continues to pull and display information about their school throughout their tour.

The Hall has been a prime space for private events in Atlanta, hosting more than 250 annually. Visit cfbhall.com for more information and to purchase tickets.