By Reilly Cahill

The Ohio State University Sports and Society Institute honored six leaders whose work has expanded opportunities for students, advanced research and shaped the sports industry at its inaugural SSI Awards celebration Oct. 11.

Held at the WOSU Ross Community Studio Theatre, the celebration recognized contributions to basketball, journalism, athletics communications, research and education. 

The awards, presented y SSI director Nicole Kraft, reflected SSI’s values of excellence, curiosity, integrity, leadership and commitment.

The event marked another milestone for SSI, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2025 and became an institute in July.

Katie Smith Impact Award: Katie Smith

Katie Smith’s influence on basketball extends well beyond her on-court accomplishments.

The former Buckeye and current Ohio State women’s basketball assistant coach is a two-time WNBA champion, three-time Olympic gold medalist and member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

The award named in her honor recognizes someone whose influence extends beyond athletic accolades. For Smith, its significance rested in the word “impact.”

“It really hit me that it’s a powerful word; impact isn’t measured by points scored, or games won, or trophies earned, or even records broken; impact is measured in people,” Smith said. “It’s measured in the lives we touch, the opportunities we create, the standards we set and the doors we help open for others.”

Smith credited the people who supported her throughout her college, professional and Olympic careers. She also emphasized the responsibility leaders have to the next generation.

“The next generation is watching; they’re watching how we treat people, how we handle adversity, watching whether our actions match our words, and that responsibility should inspire all of us to lead with integrity, kindness, courage, accountability, and consistency,” Smith said.

Smith will select future recipients of the Katie Smith Impact Award.

Dru Hancock Career Champion of the Year: Dru Hancock

Dru Hancock’s career has combined leadership in college athletics with a commitment to helping others find their place in sports.

A former Ohio State basketball and tennis student-athlete, Hancock held leadership roles at Tennessee and the Big 12 Conference and served as chair of the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee.

SSI Director Nicole Kraft said the award recognized Hancock’s investment in people, particularly women and young professionals.

“She’s opened doors, shared her experiences and helped others see the possibility of their own careers, this is exactly what we mean by a career champion,” Kraft said.

Hancock said her career experiences inspired her to establish a scholarship in her name to help students gain access to opportunities such as the Final Four.

“I now know how important SSI is, I didn’t know that before I came here this weekend and I am enlightened and thankful to be in this room with all these great people and I hope to be able to contribute in the future,” Hancock said.

SSI Distinguished Alumni Award: Vince Doria

Ohio State graduate Vince Doria built a distinguished sports journalism career, including 23 years at ESPN, where he served as senior vice president and director of news. He also worked at The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Boston Globe and The National Sports Daily.

Doria became involved with SSI during its inaugural year in 2015 and served five years as advisory board chair. His interest grew from his reporting on the intersection of sports and society and the opportunity to help prepare aspiring journalists.

“Much of my work had involved reporting on this intersection of sports and society, so this SSI thing sounded kind of interesting and it suggested to me a potential training ground for aspiring young journalists who were interested in sports, but had a particular curiosity about this intersection of sports and society,” Doria said.

He expressed pride in SSI’s growth and optimism about its future.

“I’m very proud and quite grateful to have had the opportunity to play a small role in SSI’s growth, I can’t wait to see what the next decade is going to bring,” Doria said.

SSI Leadership Development Award: Gary Petit

Gary Petit, Ohio State’s associate athletics director for communications, works with the men’s basketball and men’s and women’s golf programs and leads the athletics communications office.

The award recognized his role in strengthening the partnership between SSI and Ohio State Athletics and helping students prepare for careers in sports.

Kraft said Petit has helped SSI prepare students to become capable employees and thoughtful leaders.

Petit emphasized the value students bring to athletics communications, including fresh perspectives and ideas. Even as artificial intelligence becomes more central to the workplace, he said, students remain essential.

“We absolutely need our students,” Petit said.

“How do we stay young? How do we stay on the cutting edge? It’s investing in our students.”

Sports & Society Research Award: Chris Knoester

Chris Knoester, SSI’s research director and principal investigator of the National Sports and Society Survey, received the research award for his work examining the connections between sports and society.

Knoester said SSI opened new opportunities for research and collaboration. He credited the students, faculty, staff and broader sociology of sport community who contributed to that work.

“It truly has been a collaborative effort from the jump, essentially, all the hundreds of students who’ve been involved, the dozens of SSI faculty and staff members, the broader sociology of sport community,” Knoester said.

He described the recognition as a shared achievement.

SSI Sports Partnership Award: Brian Turner

Brian Turner, a professor of sport management in Ohio State’s College of Education and Human Ecology, received the partnership award for his collaboration with SSI and commitment to creating opportunities for students.

“SSI works in no small part because of the partnerships that we enjoy, people who are willing to cross disciplines, share expertise and help build opportunities that none of us could create alone, and Brian Turner has been exactly that partner,” Kraft said.

Turner said he has taught more than 1,700 undergraduate students and 500 master’s students, served on 46 doctoral dissertation committees and advised 23 doctoral students to completion.

“This is my 23rd year at Ohio State, and I can honestly say I have the best job in the world,” Turner said. “I get to interact with our future sport leaders every single day I come to work.”