Happy First Week of Fall to everyone. It's that time of year where college and university sports are in full swing across the United States, and there is much news to share in that regard. But first we are going to start with a look back at World University Games history in America.

On Thursday, September 21, at Bay 7 in the American Tobacco complex in Durham, the Triangle Business Journal recognized its regional Corporate Leadership Award Winners. In accepting his award, Hill Carrow, who led North Carolina USA's bid for the World University Games cited the tremendous team effort that involved 5 cities, 5 counties, 13 colleges and universities, 29 individual contributors, 53 corporate sponsors, 57 national and regional supporting organizations, and more than 1000 individuals who came together to successfully land the bid for the Games. In his remarks, Hill emphasized the critical importance of continued teamwork: "You may have seen recently that Cary came in second to Atlanta for the new US Soccer Headquarters. Had Cary used the regional team approach, which we used in beating Atlanta for the USA Baseball Headquarters, now located in Cary, the result may have been different. It is critically important, therefor, to always keep in mind that in order to have the greatest opportunity for success in securing truly once-in-a lifetime, transformative projects for our region and state, we need to all come together as a significant and very powerful team."

College Game Day Comes to Duke University

Many collegiate sports fans see the arrival of ESPN's College Game Day on campus as a defining moment in their school's sports history. While Duke University has hosted College Game Day for its Men's Basketball Team more than any university in America (12 times), Duke has never hosted College Game Day for its football program. That will change this Saturday, when ESPN College Game Day, hosted by Rece Davis and featuring analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, and Pat McAfee, will air from 9am to noon at Duke prior to the Duke-Notre Dame football game scheduled to kick off later that day at 7:30pm. This marks the third time that ESPN's College Game Day for football has been in the Triangle, with a 1997 November appearance at UNC Chapel Hill and a 2004 October appearance at NC State.

Beginning this Saturday, September 30, and continuing through Sunday, October 8, the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), the governing body for men's and women's varsity tennis at all collegiate levels, brings its ITA Women's All-American Championships to Cary Tennis Park, a 2029 World University Games venue. The Championships will feature the top Women's NCAA Division I players in the country and is being hosted by the Town of Cary, a 2029 World University Games Host City, and our three largest local D-I universities: Duke, NC State, and UNC Chapel Hill. Considering that UNC Chapel Hill and NC State finished 1-2 in the nation respectively during the NCAA Tennis Championships earlier this year, it promises to be a highly competitive and exciting event. Pre-qualifying matches take place this Saturday and Sunday, followed by two days of qualifying matches. Matches of the main draw, 32 singles and 32 doubles, begin on Wednesday, October 4 and run through Sunday the 8^th. 

The first person to commit their company to be a sponsor of the North Carolina USA Bid for the World University Games was Anthony Blackman, owner of Atlantic Tire and Service. Unfortunately, Anthony passed away on September 15. On Thursday, September 21 a Celebration of Life for Anthony was held to an overflow crowd at White Memorial Presbyterian Church in Raleigh. Anthony was a well-respected business leader and an amazingly kind and giving individual, but what set him apart was his deep and very generous commitment to the community – including business, charity, and even sports (such as the Atlantic Tire Tennis Championships). He was an incredible person and wonderful sponsor. The 2029 World University Games owes Anthony a special debt of gratitude, and he will be sorely missed.