Items ranging from a Barry Bonds autographed bat, a picture signed by Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and several pieces of autographed memorabilia from Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim and former basketball player Carmelo Anthony, will be made available in the new online portion of the Charity Sports Auction.

The event, organized by the Sport Management Club, will hold the annual public auction next Tuesday in the Carrier Dome in addition to the online sale.

The Internet auction began Friday and runs through April 10. The site is managed in conjunction with an online auction house, Steiner Sports Memorabilia.

‘This event will be available to anyone,’ Brooks Cowan, the Steiner Sports representative coordinating the event, said while commenting on the benefits of using an online auction. ‘We receive more than 10,000 unique hits a day.’

The Sport Management Club and memorabilia company Steiner Sports said the increased customer base from the online sales will hopefully increase the overall funds. Proceeds will go to the American Diabetes Association.

Cowan said he has high hopes for this event. He emphasized the items available online are physically different than the ones offered in the Dome.

‘We’re expecting that these items will appeal to a more traditional clientele,’ Cowan said.

These items are the ‘higher end’ merchandise, said Julie Nemeroff, president of the Sport Management Club. Countless pieces of signed memorabilia are auctioned off each year, she said.

In the past, some of the most popular items have been ‘experiences,’ said Michael Veley, director of the Sport Management Program and faculty adviser to the Sport Management Club.

Last year, Bill Walton, a University of California at Los Angeles alumnus and former National Basketball Association star, auctioned off four season tickets for a game of the winner’s choice, including the chance for the winner to go into the locker room and meet his favorite player. Two of these packages were sold for $2,200 each.

Veley also told the story of two students in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications who bid on the chance to go to New York City and sit in with Mike and the Mad Dog, a popular New York sports talk show.

Many people, including students, are willing to jump at the experience of a lifetime, Veley said.

Veley said he expects to raise a total of $50,000 between the two auctions – more than the $30,000 raised last year.

The items for both auctions were collected primarily by the Sport Management Club. Each student was challenged to contribute three items, and with more than 400 items in the auctions and only 90 students, many achieved and surpassed this goal.

‘This event took eight months of hard work and dedication,’ Veley said.

The students have met every week since August in order to properly prepare. Both Nemeroff and Veley praised the hard work of Kate Futrell, an administrative specialist in the Sport Management Department who also helped coordinate the event.

Veley estimated that Futrell alone brought in 85 of the items. Prospective bidders can participate in both the online and regular auctions at the Dome.

In addition to the increased sales the online auction will garner, the Syracuse community is eagerly awaiting the return of Donovan McNabb, former Syracuse University football star and All-Pro quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles. McNabb will deliver the keynote address.

Veley said McNabb’s return is sure to draw increased attendance.

‘We’re hoping for our biggest crowd ever with Donovan coming back. His popularity will draw a record crowd,’ said Veley, who is responsible for bringing the quarterback to campus.

Many students may come just to see McNabb. But students looking to purchase items shouldn’t be daunted by the event.

Nemeroff said there are many items that were well within a student’s price range, starting at approximately $50.

Tickets for the Dome auction are $10 for the public, and $5 for

students. The online auction will run through April 10.

adbrow03@syr.edu

Published on March 31, 2008 at 12:00 pm