Dr. Matt Bowers is a faculty member in the Sport Management program within the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education. He earned his doctoral degree in Sport Management from the University of Texas at Austin in 2011. Prior to coming to UT-Austin, he graduated with a B.S. and an M.S. in Sport Management from the University of Florida in 2005/2007, where he also worked with the Gators football and women's basketball programs. Foregoing a career coaching collegiate basketball, he instead pursued studying the systems we use to develop athletes, with an emphasis on understanding how to re-imagine the youth sports experience.
Bowers works extensively in the field with a range of sport organizations in both research and consulting capacities. He has been intricately involved with the Aspen Institute's Project Play and has served on the Science Board for the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition. He has published research studies related to the impact of sport participation on creativity and the value of sandlot/unstructured sports for children. His work has been featured in Sports Illustrated, SXSW, Wired, The Atlantic, and Wall Street Journal. He lives in Austin with his wife, Lauren, and son, Samson.
Ph.D.
in Kinesiology, University of Texas at Austin, 2011
M.S.
in Exercise & Sports Science/ Sports Management, University of Florida, 2007
B.S.
in Exercise & Sports Science/ Sports Management, University of Florida, 2005
Examines the management of systems for athlete development, including how different sport settings influence performance and participation over the lifespan. Focuses on re-imagining the youth sport experience, with a specific interest in the developmental role that playing in unstructured sports settings like sandlot/pickup sports or sports video games can have on shaping experiences and outcomes.
Appointed Member,
Science Board, President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition (2019 - 2021)
Advisory Board Member,
Healthy Sport Index, Aspen Institute's Project Play (2016 - Present)
Bowers, M. & Dixon, M. (2015). Sport management: An exploration of the field and its value. Urbana, IL: Sagamore Publishing.
Bowers, M., Green, B. & Seifried, C. (2014). 'Let the marketplace be the judge': Founders reflect on the origins and trajectory of NASSM. Journal of Sports Management.
Bowers, M., Green, B., Hemme, F. & Chaplin, L. (2014). Assessing the relationship between youth sport participation settings and creativity in adulthood. Creativity Research Journal(26), 314-327.
Bowers, M. & Green, B. (2013). Reconstructing the youth sport experience: How children derive meaning from unstructured and organized settings. Journal of Sports Management, 27, 422-438.
Bowers, M. (2011). Playing video games as a supplement to identity: Insights on former college athlete transitions. Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics, 4, 289-308.
Bowers, M. & Hunt, T. (2011). The President's Council on Physical Fitness and the systemization of children's play in America. International Journal of the History of Sport, 28, 1496-1511.
Bowers, M., Chalip, L. & Green, B. (2011). Beyond the façade: Youth sport development in the United States and the illusion of synergy.. Routledge Handbook of Sports Development (, pp. 173-183). Oxfordshire, UK: Routledge.
Research Fellow
- North American Society for Sport Management (2020)
Undergraduate Teacher of the Year
- Department of Kinesiology and Health Education (2014 - 2015)
Faculty/ Teacher of the Year
- University of Texas Kinesiology Club (2012)
