Marketing students from Drake University and Creighton University met in Omaha recently for the fifth annual Murphy Cup, a marketing student case competition. Students worked in teams to develop strategies for marketing a new wholly-owned subsidiary of Union Pacific, a railroad franchise that operates in 23 U.S. states.

The Murphy Cup is the vision of Drake University alumnus Chris Murphy, a member of Creighton’s Board of Trustees and owner of the Ameriwest Corp holding company and First Westroads bank in Omaha, to hold an annual marketing strategy competition featuring top marketing major seniors from Creighton and Drake. Murphy made a substantial donation to make this event possible, covering all event expenses and accommodations.

Each year, twelve students are chosen by the marketing faculty to represent each school. This year’s students from Drake included Haley Morris, Hannah Hoefft, Emily Furlow, Maddy Gildersleeve, Taylor Monkman, Erin Hirter, Rebecca Crepeau, Ben Danile, Dustin Casey, Max Raecker, Louis LaFeve, and Cort McElmury. The competition was held from Nov. 16–18.

On this year’s winning team were Crepeau, who also was honored as the year’s Most Knowledgeable Contributor, and Max Raecker. Casey was named Most Creative Contributor. All students received keepsake items commemorating the event.

“The skills that students need to learn to prepare themselves for the real world can’t always be learned within the classroom,” Casey said. “But Drake and its College of Business and Public Administration do a great job of giving students opportunities to gain these skills through competitions and internships.”

For more information about the Murphy Cup, contact:
Andrew Norman, professor of marketing, at atnorman@drake.edu.

Kailee Springer, College of Business & Public Administration