Year: 2025

By Griffin Barfield

As the spring semester continues to pick up, so do the actions of the students of Clemson Formula SAE (CUFSAE), who are preparing for important events in April and May. 

CUFSAE is a student race team that focuses on design, fabrication and competition of an open-wheeled, formula style race car. The team competes in the Society of Automotive Engineers student design competition.

In addition to the formulation of a race car, students have to work in all other facets of the racing business, including team management, public relations and sponsor procurement. The Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute is proud to sponsor CUFSAE for another year. 

For Clemson’s team, their sights are on the Michigan FSAE Competition in May for the planning and the creation of the racecar, called Tiger 25, where they will race at the Michigan International Speedway. 

Student members of CUFSAE can join five different divisions: aerodynamics, business, chassis, electrical, powertrain and suspension. 

The team lead of the group is Grant Harley, who is studying Electrical and Computer Engineering in his first year of graduate school at Clemson. One of Harley’s main focuses is to keep the team focused on the design timeline for the car. In doing so, he sets weekly meetings with the leadership team and remains in contact with the Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty advisor. 

“The biggest thing I have to do before our car release is make sure the car is following the necessary production timeline and keeping the entire team on the same page about what needs to be done and when it needs to be done,” Harley said. 

A Charleston native, Harley is also a part of the electrical team, where he helps design the brake system plausibility device (BSPD) – a safety component that shuts the car off if the throttle position or brake pressure stop reading. 

“This helps protect the driver in the case of a malfunction in the car and protects the car from dangerous operating procedures,” Harley said. 

Harley works closely with Vehicle Operations Manager, Cameron Boerst, a Mechanical Engineering junior with an Electrical Engineering minor. Boerst’s job focuses on test-day operations, planning when the car will run, whether on or off campus.

“This requires communication and planning between divisions to make sure the rear and front wings are ready, the electronics are working, the powertrain is running, and the suspension is tuned for a day of running,” Boerst said. 

Another Charleston native, Boerst is also designing the drivetrain of the car, which is what he looks forward to the most out of this project.

“The drivetrain is responsible for delivering power from the engine to the hubs of the rear wheels,” Boerst explained. “This includes a lot of CAD modeling in SolidWorks paired with Finite Element Analysis (FEA) on the forces experienced by the drivetrain.”

No matter how strong the engine may be, suspension is incredibly important to the car’s success. This is led by fellow junior mechanical engineer and recent Brooks Scholar, Peter Gaspich, an inaugural member of the new class of automotive engineers at Clemson. Gaspich and his team focus on manufacturing and testing of the car’s suspension system ahead of the May event.

“In other words, my goal is to ensure that the driver can get optimal performance from the tires and maximize grip throughout each lap, as maintaining grip to the road is the most essential part of a fast lap time,” Gaspich said. “No matter how powerful the engine is, it won’t be going anywhere very fast if it’s just spinning tires.”

The Greenville native also has one of the most important tasks on race day: constantly studying the car’s responses and making needed changes to the car to help the driver with the ride. 

At this point in the semester, the suspension team is working on manufacturing all of the suspension parts, something that Gaspich heavily takes part in.

“This includes outlining manufacturing plans, training new members on shop equipment, coordinating with sponsors to outsource the manufacturing of more complex components and spending late nights at the shop with my closest friends!” he said. 

With a project as big as designing and building a formula race car, it’s the little steps that count. For Harley, he is most looking forward to seeing the car run on its own for the first time. 

“I am most looking forward to the first time the car runs under its own power,” he said. “It’s an extremely fulfilling moment watching this project that you’ve spent almost a year designing and building culminate into this one moment.”

Every week means the team is one step closer to the first race. With March beginning, it’s crunch time for CUFSAE. The team hopes to see successes similar to, or greater than, last year’s Tiger 24 design.

From Gaspich’s perspective, as well as many others on the team, the opportunity to work on an ongoing project to present it in front of 119 other schools is something that the classroom doesn’t provide. 

“I cannot express enough how important being involved in Formula SAE is to anyone interested in a career in motorsports, or even engineering in-general, as engineering is so much more than what you learn in the classroom,” Gaspich said. 

Whether participating as a passion project or looking for experience for a future job in the motorsports industry, all eyes look to May where Tiger 25 will be racing on asphalt that has hosted NASCAR and IndyCar events. 

Since 2013, World Tennis Day has been celebrated the first Monday of March each year, kicking off tennis season in North America.

At Clemson, Dr. Angeline Scheinbaum, Dan Duncan Professor of Sports Marketing, has partnered with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) since 2021 to study the perceptions of tennis league play and pandemic impact. Her research explains and predicts linkages among consumer attitude, affect, cognition, behavioral intent and consumer behavior.

Her work with the USTA, which engages students at the University, is ongoing. Dr. Scheinbaum is now working with Dr. Sarah Stokowski in the College of Education to study similarities between the USTA’s and USA Ultimate’s post-pandemic concerns about female participation in their respective sports.

“It appears that there may have been a similar decline in the participation among young female athletes in both tennis and Ultimate Frisbee after the COVID-19 pandemic,” noted Scheinbaum. “We have just begun to compare data sets from these national associations to see if we can glean any important information on the decline, and how to reinvigorate participation from this demographic across the nation.”

Celebrate World Tennis Day with the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute this week by picking up a racket and hitting the court, learning about the history of tennis, and staying tuned on Clemson’s research with the USTA.

Click here to learn more about Dr. Scheinbaum.

By Griffin Barfield

Most sports fans own at least one t-shirt donning the brand of their favorite team or jersey representing their favorite athlete. When they are preparing to join the crowd at a field, rink or stadium, sports fans expect their regalia to look on-brand.

According to Drs. Erica Walker and Amanda Bridges, Clemson faculty in the Department of Graphic Communications, “Branded athletic apparel is a multi-billion dollar business expanding year over year. Sports teams and their fans expect brand accuracy and durability across all types of textile-based products from clothing to home decor. Color is a vital part of a brand’s identity and printing consistent, durable and accurate brand colors across different materials can be challenging for manufacturers.”

Walker shared some of the challenges their research aimed to address.

“Orange is an especially difficult color to match in any medium,” she said. “Our eyes are pretty sensitive to variations in this color range so branded content creators have to be especially vigilant to ensure a consistent visual match. 

Another challenge is the variety of materials and places that the color appears. We see Clemson Orange on the TV screen, on printed t-shirts, painted on the grass on the athletic fields, on the plastic seat backs, on metal decorative art outside, and so many other surfaces. Each backing material and process must be carefully chosen and controlled to ensure accurate brand color.”

During their investigation, the two provided opportunities for freshmen-level experiential learning with a direct-to-garment (DTG) printer and worked closely with Clemson Athletics to assess how the University’s brand colors are affected by commercial washing processes, looking at color degradation. 

Walker shared advice for printers and manufacturers to achieve color accuracy and durability. 

“You can never have too much quality control throughout the process. Everyone who touches the artwork or product from the beginning design to manufacturing to the sales floor has a role in ensuring brand accurate colors,” she said. “This even includes fans! How we launder brand-color products can help the colors stay accurate for longer. 

There are definitely some combinations of textiles and processes that will provide more accurate colors both initially and after multiple washes, so manufacturers take that into consideration when developing new products and deciding how to manufacture them.”

At the end of the day, one question remains above all in Walker’s and Bridges’ research: How can the University engage with textile manufacturers, printers and launderers to ensure the brand stays true on apparel and other products? 

Walker has been a faculty fellow at the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute for many years. The proposals she submitted for ‘director’s funding’ were reviewed and approved by RHBSSI leadership, and the Institute was pleased to fund the purchase of the DTG printer and offer financial assistance to participate in the conferences. 

“It was a very [special] international conference and the first time either of us had attended it,” Walker said about CIC. “[It] would definitely be a valuable event to visit again and we really appreciate the support which allowed us to go to both CIC and TAGA this academic year.”

On February 21, Clemson University held an engaging event for Tigers of all backgrounds to join the launch of the University’s new capital campaign, Fiercely Forward, the driving force to achieve the bold initiatives of the University’s strategic plan, Clemson Elevate.

Partners of the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute showcased their sports science technologies, research and creative endeavors in a fun-filled display of helmet-hitting, off-road vehicle exploring and exoskeleton viewing.

Bioengineers, packaging scientists, and automotive and industrial engineers from the Institute’s fellows cohort participated in the event, engaging with guests and explaining how their lines of inquiry and new innovations are making an impact in the greater Clemson community and across the globe.

For the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute, this campaign is a launching ground for new initiatives in support of the University’s strategic plan, positioning RHBSSI to become a national leader in sports science and equipping students with the skills, experiences and connections to thrive in a dynamic industry of sports enthusiasts of all backgrounds.

Click here to learn more about RHBSSI. When you Make a Gift on the home page, you directly support the work of faculty and students studying sport at Clemson University through RHBSSI programs and initiatives. Contact us to learn more.

By: Griffin Barfield

It’s not only the varsity sports on Clemson’s campus that leave lasting impacts on students. Even before stepping foot on campus as a student, senior Psychology major, Sydney Lavin, wanted collegiate swimming to be a part of her Tiger tenure. 

While Clemson does not hold a varsity program for swimming, Lavin knew about Clemson Club Swim – a team that would come to have a lasting impact on her life.

As a freshman looking for things to do outside of class, swim club was the first thing on her mind. From a recreational standpoint, she would be able to continue a passion of hers while connecting with other students on campus.

“I always knew that I wanted to swim during college, but not varsity since it’s so

competitive, so Clemson Club Swim was perfect!” Lavin said. “I remember at Tiger Prowl freshman year, my only goal was to find the club swim table, and I’m so glad I did because it’s seriously been one of the best decisions I’ve made.”

Immediately, she was plugged in. Not even a year into swimming with the club, Lavin found the opportunity to do more: coaching a local club team in the area. 

Now, she serves as the assistant coach for the Foothills Area YMCA’s (FAY) club team, coaching young swimmers in Seneca, South Carolina, where she has been for the last three years. 

“I’ve always thought that coaching would be fun, so it’s been the best job for me!” Lavin said.  “There’s definitely been a learning curve because I had never coached before, but it’s taught me so many lessons and life skills.”

When she first began with FAY, Lavin taught the youngest group, ranging from 6-10 years old. Now, she teaches the level above, ranging from ages 9-13. She describes the job as a “learning experience.”

Her work off campus has translated to the pool at Clemson’s Fike Recreation Center, where she has coached various practices over the years for the club team. In addition to coaching, Lavin has served as Clemson Club Swim’s treasurer for the past two years, managing the club’s budget and finances. 

However, her biggest takeaway from her four years with the team has been the interpersonal skills that she has developed with these positions. 

“I have the best group of friends from this club,” Lavin said, “but I’ve also had to learn how to communicate with University staff and others outside of the University on things like space reservations, banking, and equipment rentals for our home meet.”

These skills are important to Lavin, who is graduating this spring but plans to continue her education. She intends on pursuing a graduate degree in psychology with an Industrial-Organizational (I/O) Psychology concentration. She would like to go into I/O psychology consulting with collegiate athletic programs or institutions. 

Lavin also hopes to continue to coach if her post-graduate studies allow. Nevertheless, this recreational sport has provided her with a skillset that will translate into the real world, and for Lavin, the field of psychology.

“I love club sports because it’s that perfect middle ground of recreation and competition, another reason why Clemson Club Swim has been so good!” Lavin said. “This position has also been helpful in pursuing a career in consulting because of the communication and analytical skills required for the job.”

As part of undergraduate studies in psychology, Lavin works on a Creative Inquiry team with RHBSSI fellow, Marissa Shuffler, Ph.D., on her Institute-funded grant work developing teams in the context of NCAA sports.

By Griffin Barfield

Coming into the new year of 2025, the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute welcomes four new and one returning student intern for the spring 2025 semester. The five come with outstanding backgrounds, looking to bring new ideas and advances to the Institute. 

Griffin Barfield 

Griffin Barfield is a junior Communication major and Spanish minor from Oceanport, NJ. He is the lead writer and editing intern for the Institute for the spring semester. This role involves providing the University with content about breakthroughs in the sports science community that are occurring at Clemson, interviewing students and faculty about the endeavors. 

“I’m excited to get going with the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute,” Barfield said. “I’m looking forward to writing about unique advances that are occurring right here on campus and the people behind them.”

In addition to writing with RHBSSI this semester, Barfield is the current sports editor of The Tiger, Clemson student newspaper. While managing a newsroom of over 23 reporters, his experience in this role will help look deeper into the people behind the advances in the sport science world, hoping to tell a one-of-a-kind story. 

Evelyn Lane

Evelyn Lane is from Piedmont, SC and is a junior Marketing major with a minor in Spanish. She is the Institute’s communications lead, creating content for the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute’s social media handles. 

“I am so excited to work with RHBSSI to help promote the Institute and all of the amazing things they do for the faculty, students, and university as a whole,” Lane said. “I am looking forward to continuing to improve my skills in marketing communications and social media strategy, as well as work with my fellow interns and see all the things we will be able to accomplish together.”

Lane previously worked with Cadency, Clemson University’s student-led brand agency, for the last two years. While working with the agency’s social media account and brand strategy, she will look to bring that experience to the Institute in the spring semester. 

Natalie Bell

Natalie Bell is a senior Graphic Communications major with a minor in Brand Communications from Greenville, SC. Returning from the fall semester, she will continue her work as the lead graphic design intern in the spring with the Institute, creating visual media to benefit sports science efforts at Clemson. 

“I am excited to return as the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute graphic design lead!” Bell said. “I loved my experience as a RHBSSI intern last fall. I look forward to seeing how I can further apply my graphic design skills to our events and promotional materials.”

Bell returns with the skills gained from the Institute a semester ago, where she will build off of her work from the fall. She is also currently the creative director in Cadency, looking to continue to use experience from her work there to enhance the Institute. 

Nicole Souza

Nicole Souza is a senior Bioengineering major from Duxbury, MA. She will serve as the technical communications specialist, acting as the technical knowledge base for concepts and technologies related to the events in sports science. She will also help with getting a firsthand look at the hard work that happens behind the scenes of these endeavors. 

“I’m really looking forward to working with the Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute,” Souza said. “It’s just a unique opportunity to collaborate with students from across campus and help share the Institute’s mission.”

Previously, Souza spent time in the industry through valuable internship experiences, working with medical devices and pharmaceutical companies. It has allowed her to receive a strong, technical foundation in science and engineering, which will help recognize the actions that are being done in the field of sports science. 

Keeleigh Bush

Keeleigh Bush is from Rutherfordton, NC and is a senior Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management major with an emphasis in Tourism and Event Management. She is the events lead intern for the spring semester, arranging events over the course of the upcoming months. 

“I am extremely excited to get started this semester as the Events lead for the RHBSSI!” Bush said. “This is such an incredible opportunity to expand my network, and apply the skills and experience I have learned over the past three years. I’m looking forward to working with the team and being hands-on this semester.” 

Bush also serves as the public relations chair for the Clemson Event Planners Association. With this role, she will use her experience to help plan exciting events for RHBSSI to hold over the course of the spring semester. 

The Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute is thrilled to welcome six new Clemson faculty and staff members to its cohort of fellows beginning Spring 2025.

Marissa Shuffler

Associate Professor, Psychology

Shuffler has over a decade of experience conducting basic and applied research in the areas of team development, leadership and organizational effectiveness. Shuffler is director of Clemson’s DIGITAL (Deriving Innovative & riGorous scIence for Teaming And Leading) Research Lab, supervising a team of graduate and undergraduate students. Her research focuses on the study of scientifically derived, innovative interventions needed to develop, sustain and maximize inter- and intra-team functioning and wellbeing. Shuffler’s work also addresses the challenges of leading and leadership development in high risk and complex environments, including healthcare systems, the military and spaceflight. To date, Shuffler has served as Principal Investigator or Co-Investigator for more than two dozen research projects totaling over $23 million in funding from federal and private entities. In 2017, Shuffler was awarded a prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER grant for her research exploring team development interventions and the use of latent profile analysis as a mechanism for better designing interventions for team effectiveness.

Jessica Aviles

Assistant Professor, Industrial Engineering

Avilés specializes in understanding how people move, why they move the way they move and how to help them move better. Her passions lie in improving mobility by applying innovative training interventions and assistive devices. Her research interests cover industrial athlete rehabilitation, fall prevention and human factors and ergonomics in healthcare. At Clemson, her work revolves are exoskeletal research. With a doctorate in Biomedical Engineering, Avilés has taught senior-level occupational biomechanics and also the design and analysis of work systems. Avilés is a Brooks grant awardee and principal investigator in the PHASE (Pursuing Health through Adaptation, Sports and Ergonomics) Lab at Clemson.

Tyler Harvey

Senior Lecturer, Bioengineering

Harvey received his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from Clemson in 2018. Since then, he has taught undergraduate courses in sports engineering, bioengineering design theory, applied biomedical design, bioengineering ethics and entrepreneurship and more. His research interests involve cognitive impacts of virtual reality sports training, sports biomechanics, computational modeling of living systems and more. Harvey is passionate about increasing access to STEM for underserved and underrepresented groups.

Amy Pope

Principal Lecturer, Physics and Astronomy

Pope combines her passion for physics and sports to create engaging learning experiences for students. She teaches Physics of Sports, a course that uses real-world athletic scenarios to illustrate core physics principles. Her contributions to The Conversation on the physics of breakdancing and ski jumping highlight the physical processes behind these Olympic sports, making complex concepts relatable to a broader audience. As a faculty member in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Pope leverages the universal appeal of sports to make physics more accessible, relevant and engaging for all learners.

Leona Ransdell

4-H Equine Program Leader

Ransdell received her B.S. in Animal Science with an Equine Business concentration from Clemson in 2012. She has served as a 4-H Agent with both the Clemson Cooperative Extension and Virginia Cooperative Extension as the 4-H Equine Program Director. In Virginia, Leona led educational teams to multiple wins at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Championships and managed one of the largest youth-only horse shows on the East Coast. She also coached the Virginia Tech Western and Horse Judging teams and taught equine science and biomechanics courses. Additionally, she earned her AQHA Level 1 Judging Card. Returning to Clemson in 2024, Leona hopes to build on the past successes of the 4-H program in South Carolina with a special focus on the educational events and programs to help mitigate the lack of large animal veterinarians. She is excited to further the interests of the equine industry and bring together stakeholders to address and build a strong future for the equine industry in South Carolina. 

Christopher Chouinard

Assistant Professor, Chemistry

After briefly working as a project manager for a contract research lab in Massachusetts, Chouinard received Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Florida. There, he worked under world-renowned mass spectrometrist Rick Yost and was responsible for integrating drift tube-ion mobility spectrometry (DTIMS) into the Yost lab. Chris’ interests at UF involved IM-MS studies of clinical molecules (steroids, Vitamin D metabolites) and he received grant funding through the Partnership for Clean Competition to develop novel IM-MS methods for improved identification of anabolic androgenic steroids in athletes. Chouinard then engaged in a prestigious post-doctoral position at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, WA where he worked with Dick Smith, another world leader in mass spectrometry, designing and developing a Structures for Lossless Ion Manipulations (SLIM) platform that enabled the first integration of LC into the SLIM IM-MS pipeline for improved analysis in phosphoproteomics. Chouinard joined Clemson in 2022 and continues his work in ion mobility-mass spectrometry.

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Any Clemson faculty or staff making contributions to the sports field, broadly defined, are invited to apply to become members of the Institute. Fellows meet twice annually, collaborate on multi-disciplinary projects and are eligible to receive additional funding from RHBSSI for their work. Click here to view the full list of fellows and click here to learn more about becoming a Brooks Fellow.