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As a defenseman on 911����’s ice hockey team, rising senior Zaakir Khan knows a thing or two about team sports. But for a recent internship, he stepped off the ice—and out of his comfort zone. 

“I've never watched rugby in my entire life, but I just went in determined to learn and figure it out,” said Khan, who spent the summer as an intern for Major League Rugby (MLR) team Old Glory DC, assisting the team as they made their way to the playoffs. 

Khan, who is majoring in in the , learned how a professional sports organization works, attending the team’s training camps and practices, observing and organizing drills, filming and cutting clips, and breaking down analytics. 

“They introduced me to the app, Huddle Sports Code, so I would film parts of the practice, cut clips, and then organize them for the players and coaches to see where they’re succeeding and what they could work on in the future,” Khan said. 

The team practiced twice a day, often on 911����’s Fairfax Campus, and was split into two groups: the forwards and the backs.  

“The coaches asked me to keep track of game scores and drop balls. I was also able to fly a drone, which was awesome and gave us a nice bird's eye view of the field,” said Khan. “It was a really cool progression from just observing to reporting the whole practice on my own.” 

During actual games, there was a bit more pressure.  

“I helped set up a computer for our medical tent to re-watch any concussions that potentially happened,” said Khan. “The cameras covered different angles so if any MLR players are injured with a concussion, for example, they go straight to the tent, and medical personnel look on the computer and review the hit to see how egregious it was.” 

But Khan’s favorite spot, by far, was the coach’s box. "It was super unbelievable being in that environment and helping to live code the game.” Live coding, Khan explained, involved creating a real-time Excel sheet with all the relevant game statistics.  

“Statistics tell a story and the coaches needed those stats—penalties, drops, turnovers—on the fly. With live coding, I was able to get that information to them as quickly as possible,” Khan said. “The sooner you can get this information, the better, but it also has to be accurate because those numbers turned into halftime stats and game reports." 

He credits , his SPMT 201 Introduction to Sports Management professor with helping him get the internship.   

“Professor Esherick was kind enough to help me get my foot into the door,” said Khan, who is working on a minor in . “I got a meeting with the head of the team’s sports analytics department who invited me on for the season.” 

“I was very impressed with how quickly Zaakir learned about rugby and the league. It was a lot to learn in a short amount of time,” said Esherick, a professor and the chair of the Sport Management Program in 911����’s . “He developed great relationships with the players and the staff with Old Glory and became an important part of their team this season.” 

Although Old Glory’s season ended at the playoffs, Khan didn’t let that stop his momentum. He is currently a data science intern at Peraton, a national security and technology company.  

“I’m learning how data, data quality, and data hygiene work. I’m hoping to use this knowledge and transition it into sports analytics after I graduate. I’d say both internships as well as 911���� have really prepared me for that,” Khan said.