TAMPA, Fla. (May 21, 2025) – University of South Florida Athletics has earned national recognition as a recipient of the 2025 College Sports Communicators (CSC) ChangeMaker Innovation Award, honoring their creative and collaborative efforts in launching the USF's women's lacrosse program during its inaugural season.

Presented annually to up to three institutions, the award recognizes excellence in content strategy and storytelling that exemplifies out-of-the-box thinking in a rapidly evolving college athletics landscape.

As USF introduced women's lacrosse as its newest varsity sport, the athletics communications and creative teams, led by Assistant Director of Communications, Micah Banks, and Associate Athletic Director for Branding & Digital Strategy, Carl Schmid, seized the opportunity to not only promote the program but to educate and welcome fans to the game still gaining traction in many regions. Guided by head coach Mindy McCord's mission to grow the sport "one stick at a time, one player at a time," the team crafted a multifaceted campaign designed to build awareness, excitement, and understanding of lacrosse.

The centerpiece was a two-minute "Lacrosse 101" video featuring USF student-athletes teaching mascot Rocky D. Bull the basic rules of the game. The produced video was distributed across social media and shown in-venue on game days to ensure fans could follow the action on the field. A companion series of short-form videos was launched during the season to explain more intricate rules, using insights from social analytics to guide length, structure, and presentation.

"As we launched women's lacrosse at USF, we recognized an exciting opportunity — to help grow awareness and appreciation for a fast-paced, dynamic sport still gaining traction in many parts of the country," said USF Vice President for Athletics Michael Kelly. "Our content team embraced that moment. They didn't just introduce a new program — they brought the game to life in a way that was clear, engaging, and welcoming."

To ensure accuracy and authenticity, the communications and creative teams collaborated with coaches and student-athletes on scripting and filming. Athletes were mic'd up, and elements such as captions, animations, and visual indicators were added to enhance clarity — all optimized for mobile viewing. The campaign also included contributions from the marketing and ticketing departments, extending its reach through in-venue activation and digital ticket sales support.

"This project extended beyond just our communications and creative content departments," said Schmid. "It ultimately pushed the program onto a national stage, as the videos were shared well beyond the team's following."

The campaign generated impressive engagement metrics, including approximately 1.1 million impressions, more than 1.16 million video views, and over 38,000 total engagements — a strong response that reflected both the campaign's creativity and its resonance with new and existing fans.

Fans can catch the full "Lacrosse 101" video — featuring Rocky D. Bull and the lacrosse team — now on the USF Athletics YouTube channel.