The chance to appear on “Shark Tank” is the realization of a dream come true for Martin Dell’Arciprete.

“Growing up, every kid wanted to be like Mike,” said the Fox School of Business alumnus, referencing Hall of Fame basketball player Michael Jordan. “After I arrived at Fox and Temple University, and got a taste of entrepreneurship, it became, ‘I want to be like Mark (Cuban).’”

Dell’Arciprete will appear on “Shark Tank,” the popular ABC reality show, Friday, Feb. 12, to pitch SmartPlate, the signature product from Philadelphia-based company Fitly.

Believed to be the world’s first intelligent plate, SmartPlate uses load sensors and three digital cameras for image and weight recognition of the food a person is preparing to consume. SmartPlate analyzes the food on its surface, provides nutritional information, and logs calories with 99-percent accuracy.

Dell’Arciprete, Fitly’s former head of marketing, has left the company since representing the product during a September taping of the show. Dell’Arciprete, a Lansdowne, Pa., native who earned his Marketing degree from the Fox School in 2010, said it was “a gut-wrenching experience” to stand before the show’s five sharks.

“Preparing for the show was like studying for a final exam. You may have a general idea of the subject matter, but until you see that test, you just don’t know the direction your professors – or in this case, the sharks – are going to take,” said Dell’Arciprete, a senior account executive for Moroch Partners, a national marketing firm with an office located in Conshohocken, Pa.

“I can honestly say that I wouldn’t have been able to perform at such a high level in front of the sharks if not for the professors, public-speaking training, and diverse platform of opportunities I had at Fox.”