Design for the Big Game
Faculty Mentor Name
Zoya Laskowski
Research or Creativity Area
Other
Abstract
Design for the Big Game is a project in which students develop advertising concepts for the fascia ribbons at Levi’s Stadium. While the university already uses these ribbons for institutional promotion, this project provides students with the opportunity to create advertisements that convey and represent the core values of their university, integrating real-world design practice with strategic communication objectives. The project engages students in hands-on digital advertising design, enabling them to apply creativity, branding, and marketing principles within an authentic professional context.
Initially implemented in Arts 81, this project is envisioned as an annual initiative, with concepts evaluated for potential use by the university. Students’ work highlights key institutional themes such as student success, experiential learning, and real-world readiness, while reflecting the potential partnership between the university and the San Francisco 49ers. A simulated stadium environment allows for assessment of visual impact, messaging, and audience engagement, providing a professional context for feedback and reflection.
This initiative bridges classroom learning with practical experience, emphasizing creativity, collaboration, and professional presentation skills. By offering a high-profile, tangible design challenge, Design for the Big Game demonstrates how academic projects can produce work of relevance to both university branding and sports marketing, while fostering meaningful experiential learning for students.
Purpose
The purpose of Design for the Big Game is to engage students in creating professional advertising concepts for the fascia ribbons at Levi’s Stadium, providing a real-world context to apply design, branding, and marketing principles. The project investigates how student-generated designs can effectively communicate the core values of their university while aligning with institutional promotion goals and potential partnerships, such as with the San Francisco 49ers. The approach involves hands-on digital advertising design, iterative development, and evaluation within a simulated stadium environment to assess visual impact, messaging clarity, and audience engagement. This project demonstrates how experiential learning and creative practice can bridge classroom instruction with tangible professional outcomes, highlighting both student learning and potential contributions to university branding.
Results
Results:
Students in Arts 81 produced a series of advertising concepts for the fascia ribbons at Levi’s Stadium, including digital mockups and visual presentations. The designs effectively highlighted key university themes such as student success, experiential learning, and real-world readiness. Work was evaluated in a simulated stadium environment to assess visual impact, messaging clarity, and audience engagement. The project generated multiple high-quality design concepts, some of which were deemed suitable for potential use by the university. Feedback from peers, instructors, and simulated audience assessment provided evidence of strengths in creativity, branding, and professional presentation, as well as areas for refinement in visual hierarchy and messaging emphasis.
Significance
Rationale / Significance:
Design for the Big Game is important because it provides students with authentic, real-world design experience while supporting the university’s branding and outreach objectives. The project bridges classroom learning with professional practice, enabling students to develop skills in digital advertising, branding, and visual communication. By creating designs that convey the university’s values and potentially appear in a high-profile venue like Levi’s Stadium, the project demonstrates how academic work can have tangible impact beyond the classroom. The outcomes may inform future university marketing strategies, serve as a model for experiential learning in higher education, and inspire similar partnerships between educational institutions and professional organizations. The project also contributes to broader knowledge in design education by illustrating effective methods for integrating experiential, student-driven projects into curricula. Findings and student work could be shared with university stakeholders, design educators, and the broader academic community to showcase innovative approaches to teaching and professional preparation.
Design for the Big Game
Design for the Big Game is a project in which students develop advertising concepts for the fascia ribbons at Levi’s Stadium. While the university already uses these ribbons for institutional promotion, this project provides students with the opportunity to create advertisements that convey and represent the core values of their university, integrating real-world design practice with strategic communication objectives. The project engages students in hands-on digital advertising design, enabling them to apply creativity, branding, and marketing principles within an authentic professional context.
Initially implemented in Arts 81, this project is envisioned as an annual initiative, with concepts evaluated for potential use by the university. Students’ work highlights key institutional themes such as student success, experiential learning, and real-world readiness, while reflecting the potential partnership between the university and the San Francisco 49ers. A simulated stadium environment allows for assessment of visual impact, messaging, and audience engagement, providing a professional context for feedback and reflection.
This initiative bridges classroom learning with practical experience, emphasizing creativity, collaboration, and professional presentation skills. By offering a high-profile, tangible design challenge, Design for the Big Game demonstrates how academic projects can produce work of relevance to both university branding and sports marketing, while fostering meaningful experiential learning for students.
