Everything is better with pictures, right?
This post is going to be about giving you some insight as to what goes on before and during a broadcast. All of the photos in this post are from the game between Cypress Falls and Westfield at the Berry Center in Cypress.
If you’ve never seen the Berry Center or been to a game there, you’ve missed an absolutely gorgeous facility. I have said numerous times–because I firmly believe it–this multipurpose facility (for athletics/fine arts/conferences, etc.) built by the Cy-Fair ISD is nicer than many college stadia around the country.
So, as you look at these photos, try not to be so awe-stricken by the stadium in the background that you lose the appreciation for OUR awesomeness!
PS–Thanks to the new Legacy Sports staff photographer, who also happens to be my beautiful wife Dawn, for all of the photos in this post.
Here are my co-conspirators, Brett Mills (left) and Jim Wolfinger (right). ‘Wolfie’ is our new stat man for this season. We hope to have him knee-deep in numbers before he has time to regret his decision to take on that responsibility.
Brett has become, in a short period of time, my favorite guy to work a game with. He’s got a great sense of humor, as well as knowledge of the game, and we seem to dislike the same things and people. And know matter what experts tell you, it is a common dislike for things that builds strong bonds.
The man with the chagrined look on his face is Michael Silvers, the engine behind the broadcasts. That look in the first photo is probably him cringing at something I just said that makes no sense. The second photo is Michael furiously scribbling something to rectify the mistake! I’m sure he loves his job!
You always get down to field level before the game. There are multiple things you want, or need, to do to enhance the broadcast…little things that add up to big points with listeners.
In these photos, I am going over pronunciations of players’ names with coaches. One of the first things I was taught is that the most important thing you can do as a broadcaster is to get a person’s name right. If your listeners know that you can’t pronounce a player’s name properly, it doesn’t matter to them how intelligent you try to make yourself sound.
There are basically two reasons a broadcaster gets a name wrong and neither of them is excusable. First, the broadcaster is too lazy to ask someone to confirm the pronunciation. Second, the broadcaster is so arrogant that he thinks no one really cares about the players, only his description of the game.
The Katy Tigers have a QB named Michael Stojkovic. His surname is pronounced STAH-KO-VICH. In a recent radio broadcast, I listened to a seasoned play-by-play guy continuously refer to him as STOY-YO-DO-VICH. How he ever arrived at that pronunciation is beyond me, but it tells me he is either lazy or too arrogant to care about that player. (Actually, I know the guy and know which it is, but I won’t tell you!)
Some names are flat-out hard to pronounce. With the influx of players whose families are from foreign countries, that list is becoming larger. So, there are times when mispronouncing those names is somewhat excusable. But, even then, it should only be a slip of the tongue once or twice and not because you haven’t taken the time or effort to find out how the player pronounces his name.
You also use the time down on the field to really get a good perspective of the athletes and how they prepare for a game. Some teams just look like they know what they’re doing in pregame warm-ups. Some don’t. You match up faces and uniform numbers to the names you’ve heard about. Frankly, you soak up the unique ambience of a game night.
And Brett likes to make friends with the guys he will spend the rest of the evening trash-talking!
You visit with both head coaches. I always try to have 4-5 questions ready to ask each coach. Sometimes their responses to your questions can lead to others, but it’s always good to be prepared to have the questions ready beforehand.
And the trick to a successful interview is to ignore the funny looks they give you from the previous dumb question you asked.
Memo to self: wear the cool shades next week!
Back in the booth, I have found that you look smarter and more intense when biting your lips while using a laptop. Notice the example here. I look smart AND intense. I can’t explain why. It just is what it is.
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