Brigham Young University is exploring how statistics coincide with sports in their newest data class taught by Zach Knowlton, a Senior Data Scientist at Progressive Leasing and now an Adjunct Professor at the university.

Sports fans hearts got crushed while others jumped with glee this past Sunday as they rooted for their favorite football players across the nation. Those who joined fantasy football leagues prior to the season starting were no exception. Thoughts raced through everyone’s heads as the games progressed. Did they pick the right players? What happens if their quarterback was benched for an injury? Did they do enough to ensure they picked the winning team?

The Toronto Raptors announced that they have promoted data analyst Brittni Donaldson to assistant coach following the Raptors’ first ever NBA championship in 2019. This makes Donaldson one of ten women to join the NBA coaching staff and a growing number of data analysts to take a forefront position in the sport. In a phone interview with the Sioux City Journal, Donaldson states, ““My role is to help the coaching staff make better decisions with the data we have available. It’s been really fun. I help out with scouting reports, player evaluations and roster construction. I’ve also had opportunities to be on court a little bit to help out with player development.” Blake Murphy commends this decision. Upon hearing the news the Raptors reporter tweeted, “Brittni is incredibly smart and was already working directly with players a lot. Important to have extension of analytics department in versatile connector role.”