Shockers basketball to participate in Wichita's Downtown Get-Down

The Wichita State Shockers men’s basketball team will be participating in “Downtown Get-Down,” during Wichita’s Riverfest on June 5, 2022.

This will serve as an opportunity for fans to meet players and for the players to get closer with the local community. There will be a skill session for kids, HORSE games and a Q&A, among other events. Along with that, players will also be taking part in events to raise awareness for the importance of and issues surrounding children’s literacy.

Armchair Strategies the new NIL collective that works to support Wichita State athletics, will be sponsoring the event. The collective raises money through fan donations, which can be one-time or made monthly. That money then goes into career development, brand management, financial guidance and helps secure transactions. They call their monthly contributors part of the ‘Armchair Army.’

This will be Wichita’s 50th Riverfest celebration. It runs from June 3 to June 11. Along with meeting the Shockers, it includes live music, fireworks, and races, among plenty of other activities.

Wichita State and NIL

Wichita State has worked hard to be an active player in the new NIL era of college athletics. The university even fired athletic director Darron Boatright for not doing enough to compete in the NIL market. Sarah Adams took over as interim athletic director. She had previously been the school’s senior associate athletic director and senior women’s administrator.

“There were significant, ongoing concerns that became acute in recent weeks, ones that I did not believe could be addressed,” school president Rick Muma said of the firing in a press release.

Armchair Strategies are using events like Riverfest as a way for the Shockers to embrace NIL. For a school that takes pride in its basketball program, competing in the new era is incredibly important.