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Thursday, November 1, 2007
How to Call a Game
Eastern Oklahoma, OK
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"Facing third and 12 from the Muskogee 29 yard line, the Roughers lineup in the shotgun with an empty backfield...three receivers are set to the right and Jameel Owens is flanked on the short side of the field....
...Surveying the Union defense, quarterback Trey Cook calls for the snap from center Matt Flusche...oh, there’s a safety blitz, Cook side steps the Redskins’ defender, he scrambles to his right, looking down-field he spots Owens on a post between two defenders...the pass is high, but Owens makes one of his patented leaping catches over the middle for what appears to be another Roughers’ first down and 10...."
That description of a single play in a high school football game covers about 30 seconds of air time and it may sound like an easy thing to do.
Wrong!
The preparation to make that call goes well beyond the time frame of the play; and like teams preparing for a game, the preparation a radio broadcaster does is essential if the broadcast is to be a success.
But it’s also a profession that requires an extensive amount of work before kickoff. Sportscasters are word-smiths. Their mission is simple. Using their eyes and voice they describe a game to an audience that can’t see it.
If done well, that listening audience can paint a word-picture in their minds as to what is happening.
The single constant that’s remained unchanged in all my years of radio broadcasting is preparation. During my tenure as a sports broadcaster I’ve learned there is no substitute for detailed preparation in both general and specific efforts to be ready to go on the air.
In comparison, a good sportscaster mentally prepares for a game broadcast with the same intensity players prepare for the game. And like the players, announcers "will play" like they practice (or prepare).
Aside from the electronic equipment needed to air a game, the single-most important tool the broadcaster has is a spotting card. Coaches have their play cards that tell them what they might call in certain situations. The announcer’s play chart is their spotting card.
And what are these spotting cards?
They are boards of information that contain every detail imaginable about every player –home and visiting – who might play in the particular game. These spotting cards require countless hours to prepare.
They are filled with more than just names and numbers, heights and weights.
That detailed information is the soul of my spotting card. It allows me the opportunity to be prepared for whatever situation might develop during a broadcast.
My football charts will include players’ names and numbers in a color matching the school’s uniforms, while height-weight-and class might be in black.
A player’s personal statistics will be in a third contrasting color, for example season long numbers in one color and last week’s stats in another and last year’s numbers in a third color.
Coaches’ comments about the player are included with the coaches’ initials to remind me who made the statement.
Team statistics, schedules and scores, coaches’ history, series records between the two competing teams are included.
The spotting card preparation for football includes the same information for both teams that results in two detailed "flip charts" with offense on one side…defense on the other.
Boy Scouts recognize this process…and know it as the motto…"be prepared."
Game day preparation includes an early arrival to the stadium to make a final check of equipment, press box facilities and more.
I always "double check" name pronunciation with the coaches or players, because correctly announcing a player’s name is almost as important as the actual play on the field.
The listener will never see the "notes" at your fingertips…but the real fan will recognize when your knowledge of the players, teams, and game plan are absent the same way they’ll know when the player makes a mistake on the field.
"And that's the final score. Until next time, this is Bill Huddleston."
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