AMERICUS — In high school, Dan Everett was more focused on academics than sports. Although he was a superstar in the classroom, Everett also had a very impressive athletic career at Tri County and Schley County high schools, where he played baseball for four years and earned All-Region honors his senior year. He proved that his academics came first when he was chosen as the valedictorian of Schley County High School in 2002, but his love for sports eventually played a larger role in his future than he had ever dreamed of.

Everett grew up on a farm in nearby Buena Vista. His father ran six chicken houses and his mother worked at the local flower shop. In his early high school years Everett attended Tri County High School in Buena Vista before transferring to Schley County High School his junior year. Everett pursued his baseball career at Schley and became an All-Region player while also achieving the highest academic honor possible by becoming valedictorian of his class.

Everett’s dedication would earn him an academic scholarship to Georgia Southwestern, where he would again graduate at the top of his class with a degree in chemistry. His plan to attend optometry school took a turn when he received a lucrative job offer, and it was the beginning of a very exciting time for Everett. “I had planned on attending optometry school at Pennsylvania College of Optometry but was offered a job in the electrical engineering field by Power Partners in Athens, GA upon graduating. I had attended UGA for my sophomore and junior summers and loved the town so I took the job.”

Athens would become a second home to Everett and some key friendships that he would make in the Classic City set the course for him to follow a dream that many sports fans would envy.

“When I attended UGA during those two summers I became close friends with UGA football players Danny Ware (now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Des Williams. The idea of a memorabilia business came from being constantly asked to get items signed by Danny, Des, or some of the other guys who were just arriving at UGA like Matt Stafford and Knowshon Moreno,” said Everett. “After Des graduated we decided to start SicUm Dog Signatures (sicumdogsignatures.com) which specializes in public autograph signings with former UGA greats.”

The business quickly took off, and before he knew it Everett was organizing events and signings for many UGA football greats such as Herschel Walker, Vince Dooley, Larry Munson, Lindsay Scott, Buck Belue, David Pollock, David Greene and many more. Everett took a big step in 2011 when SicUm Dog Signatures received a contract to provide all the memorabilia inside UGA football, baseball and basketball games, and the company quickly grew into the largest UGA memorabilia company in the state.

After forming many great friendships through SicUm Dog Signatures, Everett decided to pursue another dream of his. “From all the great relationships I had through SicUm, I decided I wanted to expand into the sports marketing and management side,” Everett said. “I partnered with Florida State graduate Rachel Rudolf to start Everett Sports Marketing (ESM).”

Everett Sports Marketing specializes in hosting youth football/baseball camps and scheduling/conducting paid appearances for athletes in the state of Georgia and throughout the southeast. They search for opportunities for clients based on their desires, and athlete appearances include autograph signings, meet-and-greet events, camps/clinics, grand openings, radio-television appearances, speaking engagements and private events. Everett already has big plans for the future, and the company will take a huge step next year. “In 2013, ESM will become a sports management firm where we do player representation for active NFL players as well as marketing.”

Another large part of Everett Sports Marketing is their wide variety of non-profit sports camps. “The MVP Baseball and Football Camps were a combination idea from Rachel and I,” Everett explained. “I had always wanted to do the sports camps with UGA, Falcons, and Braves players and she had  always wanted to be involved in non-profits. We partner each camp with a local little league and they get a portion of each players registration. Furthermore, we provide five to 10 spots per camp for underprivileged players.”

These affordable camps offer a rare opportunity for small town children to learn from stars such as Brandon Beachy, Ryan Klesko, David Greene, D.J. Shockley, Lindsay Scott, Alex Wood, and Orson Charles among others.

This weekend our local youth baseball players will have the amazing chance to learn baseball from some very talented players including Atlanta Braves top draft pick and former UGA star Alex Wood among other college players at the MVP Baseball Clinic in Americus. The camp offers the chance for local baseball players ages six to 15 to learn pitching and hitting mechanics, agility drills, and participate in simulated game situations while learning role modeling and leadership.  

The camp is very affordable for the amazing amount of information that campers will receive. Campers will get a four hour clinic, one-on-one lessons from Alex, and an autograph from Alex and other star college players for only $45. These opportunities do not come to our area very often, and Everett brings the rare opportunity to learn from the best to our local area.

Everett is not into camps for the money, and his camps actually give back to the community in a major way. “We want all children to have equal opportunities to experience our camps. We also have the opportunity to do camps as complete charity events,” said Everett. “The Americus Camp with Rome Braves pitcher Alex Wood on Nov. 10th is a complete non-profit camp. The proceeds go to the Sumter Parks and Recreation Department and Thanksgiving Feast For All which feeds the homeless and needy. We have spots left available for those who would like to register for a good cause on our website, everettsm.com.”

From growing up on a farm in Beuna Vista, Everett has built the largest UGA sports memorabilia company in the state while also building an impressive sports marketing company. Everett attempts to provide rare opportunities to children that normally would not have them, and he gets great joy out of his work. “ESM is fun. It's really a dream job. On Saturday, I'm coaching with an Atlanta Braves star and by Monday we have a private event with former UGA legends. The most rewarding part for me is getting out there and playing with the kids at the MVP camps! Every camp has a different story and it really is an awesome experience.”

For those interested in the camp you can also call Everett Sports Marketing at 864-350-1222 to register, as well as on the website at everettsm.com. Don’t miss this opportunity to support a local entrepreneur while also giving back to the community and receiving some of the best baseball lessons you can find in the local area!