Team Effort

Millers

Noyes

Contributing to Phil Brown Field’s spectacular scoreboard project were donor Pat Noyes (ME, 1976), Daktronics’ Spike Miller (ME, 2007) and Kimberly Miller (MA, 2006), and graphics designer Craig Pohlman (CS, 2000).

Pohlman

ALUMNI SCORE BIG WITH NEW BROWN FIELD SCOREBOARD “This is more than a

At 40½ feet long and 22½ feet high, the new scoreboard keeping track of how the Fightin’ Engineers are doing on the gridiron and track is BIG—the largest electronic display at a NCAA Division III stadium east of the Mississippi River and third largest in DIII. And the effort that made it all possible also was a massive undertaking, involving alumni from start to finish. A $1 million gift from 1976 mechanical engineering alumnus Pat Noyes and his wife, Cindy, covered the expenses of acquiring the scoreboard and its installation this fall at Cook Stadium’s Phil Brown Field. It’s the latest improvement to the institute’s athletic facilities, while also being used for other student activities, like outdoor movie nights. “With such a large percentage of the Rose-Hulman student body participating in extracurricular activities, my hope is that more students will find their overall college experience to be more fulfilling and meaningful,” says Noyes, a former Rose football and baseball student-athlete who has found career success in the energy sector across Texas. Working on the technical side to produce Daktronics’ large-format video display were alumni Kimberly and Spike Miller. Kimberly, a 2006 mathematics alumna, is a data analyst with the company, and Spike, a 2007 mechanical engineering graduate, is a production manager. Both have been Daktronics employees since 2007. During a past Rose-Hulman Homecoming visit, Kimberly noticed a Daktronics competitors’ name on a scoreboard in the Hulbert Arena gymnasium and vowed to make sure Daktronics would produce the next video display for the institute. That wish became a reality when Noyes assisted in providing the financial support for the project and started working with Spike Miller on technical specifications for production. “It was really fun working with Pat, learning what he wanted for Rose, and then working together to come up with options that we thought would hit the sweet spot,” remarks Spike. “I was able to look up information on other schools Daktronics had previously provided videoboards for to make sure that Rose would get a solution that really stood out as a cut above the rest. And then working with the Daktronics sales team to make sure that Rose got the best deal possible ... It’s so amazing to see our work on display at Rose, and we are proud that we were able to help make it happen.” Besides keeping track of the score of athletic events, the scoreboard showcases live in-game action video, displays game information and graphics, and highlights corporate and alumni sponsors. All of those displays were custom-built by 2000 computer science alumnus Craig Pohlman, who has programmed scoreboards for professional sports teams in Arizona. “I was able to bring the new modern video board and speakers to life with special scripting to automate the pre-game intro all into one button, for which I designed graphics to go with the video,” states Pohlman, who works for Raytheon Technologies Corporation. “The key is to not just make it work, but to create an experience and feeling that ties together the new system with the Rose-Hulman community naturally and seamlessly.” Pohlman enhanced graphic displays to feature student-athletes’ profile photos, recognizing significant plays during a game, along with various in-game graphics that replicate the game-day experience at major college intercollegiate events. “It is more than a scoreboard. It’s a showpiece for Rose-Hulman,” says Pohlman. “Anyone can make a scoreboard that can relay the (game’s) score. But it takes a lot of care and passion from everyone involved with this project to create something so special.” (See story on Pages 47-48)

scoreboard, it’s a showpiece for Rose-Hulman.” CRAIG POHLMAN (CS, 2000)

Learn more about this project on Pages 46-47.