Grady students create campaign for Athens Rock Lobsters

During the fall semester of 2025, Grady College students in two of Professor David Clementson’s ADPR 5950 classes were tasked with developing a comprehensive public relations campaign for the Athens Rock Lobsters.

Over the course of the semester, the students in one of two groups assigned to the Rock Lobsters worked directly with Britton Briley, chief marketing officer for the Athens Rock Lobsters. Briley owns Ghost Brands, the marketing agency that manages the Athens Rock Lobsters. The other group of students partnered with Lindsey Bornhorst (AB ’24), director of community relations for the Athens Rock Lobsters.

Throughout the course of the semester, the students created an extensive public relations campaign for the Rock Lobsters, outlining specific tactics and objectives for the brand to complete. From social media activations to collaborations with brands like Jittery Joe’s, students created tangible actions, tactics, and objectives to strengthen the Rock Lobsters’ brand.

Emphasizing experiential learning, Clementson tasked the students to operate independently, replicating the structure of a professional public relations agency.

“The Public Relations Campaigns is the capstone course for public relations majors. After they take my class, my aspiration is that [students] are set to enter the “real world” of the public relations industry,” said Clementson, an associate professor of public relations.

Within the class, students were assigned to smaller groups to focus on client work and collaboratively selected team roles. Emily Williams, a December 2025 Grady graduate, assumed the role of team leader for one of the groups. Williams worked directly with Briley to coordinate tactics and ensure the needs of the brand were met. 

Speaking on the experience, Williams said, “Working on a campaign for The Rock Lobsters taught me so much about collaboration and teamwork. Every one of us, even when we were stressed, knew there was someone we could count on to help us and laugh with, and it made me really appreciate the camaraderie Grady fosters in its students!”

The goal of Williams’ group’s campaign was to expand the Rock Lobsters’ fan base beyond Athens and into surrounding counties ahead of the 2026-2027 season. Some of the group’s objectives included hosting a raffle at a Clarke Central High School football game, creating a collaboration drink with Jittery Joe’s, and posting a tour of the stadium on social media. 

“It was a thrill to see how the students tackled the project admirably, and the client was thrilled with the work that our class did,” Clementson said. “The Rock Lobsters gained some nice help from us, and we are forever indebted to them for allowing us to play a role in their successful trajectory.”

The campaign also delivered measurable value for the client, who cited the students’ work as a catalyst for strategic change. Briley, on serving as the client contact for the campaign, said the student’s work was eye-opening. 

“They took our strategy and found micro-holes for us to improve upon going into 2026,” said Briley. “They made us think outside the box in a granular way.” 

As the students moved on to graduation and the Rock Lobsters looked into their next season, both found immeasurable value in the campaign and attribute the hands-on experiences that Grady provides to their continued growth and success.

Authors: Lily Alarcon, lilyalarcon040@gmail.com and Sarah Kate Maher, skm01341@uga.edu