Clemson University’s Robert H. Brooks Sports Science Institute is pleased to announce the recipients of four multidisciplinary research grants. The awards, totaling over $100,000, will support projects during the 2027 fiscal year and include principal investigators from the College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences (CECAS), the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences (CBSHS), the College of Education (COE) and the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences (CAFLS).
Funding for these projects begins August, 2026, and continues through July, 2027. Each research team will provide outcome reports and present its findings at the conclusion of the funding period.
The four funded projects are:
Improving Fitness with Optimal Prescription of Exercise Based on Individualized Models of Fatigue and Recovery
This project will develop personalized exercise strategies to improve fitness and support overall well-being. Building on ongoing research at Clemson and Furman, the team will model athletes’ fatigue and recovery to create individualized training plans. Using real-time data from cycling tests, researchers will estimate an athlete’s remaining energy capacity and determine the most effective pace for achieving fitness goals.
Principal Investigator: Ardalan Vahidi, Ph.D., Department of Mechanical Engineering, CECAS
Co-investigators and advisors include collaborators from Furman University Health Sciences and Clemson Athletics.
Award: $27,000
SYSTEMS IN PLAY: Understanding the Multilevel Impact of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) on College Athletics
This study will examine how Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) opportunities affect student-athletes in the broader college athletics environment. Drawing on perspectives from researchers, athletics professionals and student-athletes, the team will use a systems-based approach to better understand NIL’s impact on the college sports landscape in which they are embedded. The findings will help inform evidence-based resources that support student-athletes, coaches and athletics administrators.
Principal Investigator: Marissa Shuffler-Porter, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, CBSHS
Co-investigators and consultants include collaborators from Industrial-Organizational Psychology and Clemson Athletics.
Award: $27,000
From the Locker Room to the Classroom: Student-Athletes Choosing Education as a Major and Teaching as a Career
This study will improve awareness of, and opportunities for, student-athletes to choose education as a major and teaching as a career. The objectives of this project are to investigate athletic academic advisors’ guidance about education majors and the teaching profession at NCAA Division I institutions, document through a systematic literature review the extent to which student-athlete identity characteristics intersect with teacher identity characteristics, and better understand student-athletes’ motivations and barriers to majoring in education and entering the teaching profession.
Principal Investigator: Sarah Stokowski, Ph.D., Department of Educational and Organizational Leadership Development (Athletic Leadership program), COE
Co-investigators and advisory board members include collaborators from the College of Education, Clemson Athletics and colleagues across the field.
Award: $23,400
The Sound of the Game: Investigating the Effects of Helmet Design on Stadium Noise, Player Communication and Helmet Impact Attenuation
This study will examine how football helmet design affects the sounds athletes hear during play and whether impact-generated noise reaches levels that could pose health risks. Using specialized equipment to measure sound inside different helmet models upon impact. Researchers will compare noise levels against established safety guidelines to possibly help inform future helmet designs that better protect athletes.
Principal Investigator: Greg Batt, Ph.D., Department of Food, Nutrition and Packaging Sciences, CAFLS
Co-investigators include researchers from the Clemson Headgear Impact Performance Lab and the Department of Bioengineering.
Award: $25,808
These awards are made possible through a generous endowment from Mr. Bob Brooks (Clemson ’60). The Institute’s collaboration seed grant program supports faculty partnerships that advance research on significant scientific and societal challenges in sport while improving the human condition through sport.
The program is designed to help research teams build momentum for larger external funding opportunities, strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration and increase research productivity through competitive grant proposals, sponsored research awards, scientific publications and other scholarly outcomes.
