I love listening to sports on the radio. It may seem obvious, as someone who aspires to be a high level play-by-play broadcaster. I talk frequently about how to get better as a sportscaster and a big part of that is, of course, listening to and learning from other great broadcasters. But sometimes I get so focused on being critical and trying to learn that I forget to enjoy the simple pleasure of the big-voiced guy telling the story of the game. After all, I fell in love with listening to a radio my parents didn’t know I had stashed under the covers, not trying to figure out a new way to describe a touchdown.
Hosting the SayTheDamnScore Podcast has given me the unique opportunity to converse with some of the top broadcasters in the industry, but I’ve never actually listened to most of them on the air. Radio is of course local/regional, so if you wanted to listen to someone outside of your geographic area you had to travel. Now with the advent of satellite radio, smart phones, and online apps, it’s easier than it’s ever been to listen to broadcasters all over the country!
With that in mind, I’m setting a goal to listen to at least one quarter of football from every broadcaster in the Big 10 by the end of football season. Why the Big 10? First, because I’m a Nebraska fan and I’m interested in what happens in the league. Second, I’ve been fortunate enough to talk with seven Big 10 broadcasters on my podcast, and to me, tuning into their broadcasts feels like a small way of showing appreciation.
I’ve chosen to purchase the Tune In Radio Premium service, which will allow me to listen to just about any college or pro game at any time for less than $10 a month. I will take notes of my thoughts, observations, and things I learned from each Big 10 broadcaster and share them all at the end of football season.
A few more random notes:
- This weekend I called a Vermillion High School game on Friday and traveled six hours to Hillsboro, Kansas to cover Morningside College vs Tabor College on Saturday. Vermillion lost and Morningside won big in a game that was never really competitive. Since Labor Day Weekend is one of the last chances to have any sort of weekend getaway, I met my wife after the six hour drive home from Kansas at a local state park. I left my laptop in the trunk and for the first time in far too long, turned my phone off and went completely off the grid. We went kayaking, rode horses, and sat around the campfire until the wee hours of the morning. I didn’t check my email, send a text, or put anything on social media for two full says. It was a great way to wind down and refresh after a long week.
- My friend Jay Sanderson has developed a line of products designed to help sportscasters. I’m trying out his scorebook and am especially excited for his down dial, which will allow me to quickly calculate yardage on long plays, which is a major weakness for me. After I’ve used both tools for a few weeks I will give a full review of how they worked.
- Finally, congratulations to a friend of SayTheDamnScore and new voice of the Washington Huskies, Tony Castricone! He has been on the podcast, critiqued my work, and given me life/career advice. He is one of the good dudes in the business and I’m happy that he landed a big time gig!
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