Stats Perform, Urban Edge Network to Spotlight HBCUs

The Analyst’s 2024 FCS coverage will include both a weekly HBCU+ Player and Team of the Week before leading to a season-ending Player of the Year Award as part of a newly announced partnership between Stats Perform and Urban Edge Network LLC.

Stats Perform, the sports tech leader in data and AI, and Urban Edge Network LLC have announced a comprehensive partnership to enhance coverage of athletes at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

The partnership aims to celebrate and elevate the profile of athletes, students and stories from HBCUs and their surrounding communities while also providing the institutions with new commercial opportunities across UEN’s streaming channels and media platforms.

UEN, based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is known for its popular streaming platform HBCU Plus, which offers 24/7 access to live and on-demand HBCU sports events, original sports shows, curated films, podcasts and more. The HBCU Plus app is available on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Samsung TV, iOS and Android.

The Stats Perform/UEN partnership will create attractive new options for sponsors and advertisers to associate their brands with HBCUs and their athletes’ stories, including across Stats Perform’s Football Championship Subdivision media channels and initiatives. The Analyst serves as the hub of that coverage.

Stats Perform will select both an HBCU+ FCS Player and Team of the Week throughout the 2024 season, leading to an HBCU+ FCS National Player of the Year Award to be presented at the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Banquet, planned for Jan. 4 in Frisco, Texas.

UEN will launch a new show on HBCU+ that celebrates HBCU athlete achievements. In addition, its direct-to-consumer platforms will benefit from the integration of Stats Perform’s captivating live sports data and incisive, expert research.

Hardy L. Pelt, founding member and chief revenue officer at UEN, said, “Stats Perform brings us a unique blend of long-term pedigree and cutting-edge sports data and AI that is proven both to grow fans and unlock new monetization opportunities. It was the first name mentioned by every sports broadcast exec I spoke to. Stats Perform also brings a genuine commitment to raising the profile of college athletes through its extensive FCS coverage and initiatives. We couldn’t have hoped for a better fit as we strive to hit new heights of audience and revenue growth for our platforms and partners.”

Said Steve Xeller, chief revenue officer at Stats Perform: “Urban Edge Network is known as a trailblazer in the sports broadcast industry. We’re very proud that our deep and broad sports data services and FCS platforms meet their needs, both to enrich their coverage and provide new monetization opportunities, as well to expand awareness of the fantastic achievements of the HBCU teams and athletes. Our missions align closely and it’s an honor to be selected as their partner.”

There are 21 HBCUs that have football programs on the 129-school Division I FCS level. Stats Perform’s FCS coverage, which includes the Top 25 national media poll, weekly and season-ending awards, a weekly podcast and on-campus visits, was recently nominated for Best College Sports Partnership with FedEx at the 2024 Hashtag Sports Awards in New York.

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