For many sportscasters, travel comes with calling games. Whether it’s a quick trip down the road to the high school gym, or a cross continental flight, you’re going to be spending a lot of time packing gear into bags and around the county, state, country or world. So that makes WHAT you bring on those…
There is a huge difference between calling games on your own and having a colour analyst in the booth with you. Chances are throughout a season you’ll have to do both in order to cover your full schedule of games, and both setups require a bit of a different approach from a prep and execution…
Late August and early September mean many hockey, football and basketball teams are holding their annual training camp. It’s an opportunity to shift back into “game mode” for sportscasters as the players are put through their paces and sportscasters get to shake off some ‘ring rust’ via some exhibition games and scrimmages. Training Camp can…
If you’re like me, August means two things. Hot temperatures with plenty of time in the area lake/river/ocean. And secondly, having one eye on the impending season. For me, hockey is right around the corner with puck drop on another season in early September. With a new season around the corner comes the challenging but…
If you’re a fall/winter sportscaster like me, you may be smack in the middle of a much-deserved off-season. If you’re a spring and summer sportscaster who’s season is in full swing, well, let me thank you for taking time out to read the articles on sportscasterlife.com and assure you, it won’t be much longer until…
Today we’re talking preparation, specifically basketball prep. Prep is arguably the single most important aspects of sportscasting. You can be an average play-caller and have good prep and churn out a good broadcast. But a stellar play-caller with poor prep will execute a bad broadcast every single time. Knowing your stuff will not only make…
So I want to tell a story. This happened to me a few years back where I ran into a coach who didn’t see eye to eye with me. In the interests of fairness and unity, I’ve removed the names of those involved. This isn’t so much of a “how to handle a coach” post, rather…
A year and a half out of school, my life in the broadcasting world has been a blur. The same can be said for friends and classmates. When I started working up in Prince George, someone at the TV station said “This is an industry where you either shine, or burn out.” I’ve seen that…
The pre-game interview. It can be a fantastic addition to a pre-game show or like trying to extract your own wisdom teeth with a pair of pliers. While most coaches have realised in this day and age that the media is an essential part of the job, you’ll still get the odd dinosaur who will…
Every broadcast should start with one, and every broadcast should end with one. It’s not a whistle, or a buzzer or a gun….it’s a ‘show’, a pre or post-game show. Life reader @jayramadan17 tweeted at us recently to ask about any tips or advice we had for getting the most from pre and post-game shows…