MACON, Ga. — This report has been contributed by Samantha Homcy, a student from Mercer University’s Center for Collaborative Journalism.
If you’ve ever watched a Mercer athletic event -- either in the stands or on TV -- then you’ve also seen the work of Mercer’s ESPN crew.
The crew operates out of the WMUB studio behind Francar’s in Mercer Village. They produce live broadcasts for NCAA games that take place at Mercer; including football, volleyball, and men’s and women’s basketball.
Brian Yohe is currently in his first year as Mercer’s Director of Video Services.
“My day-to-day is really organization, planning and scheduling of our broadcasts and all of our people," said Yohe.
On game days he oversees the crew, who work hard before, during and after the game to get the broadcast ready for air.
Some crew members operate cameras at the school’s athletic facilities, including Five Star Stadium, Hawkins Arena and Betts Stadium.
In the studio, crew members work on production, replay, graphics and audio.
Many crew members are Mercer students, including senior John Pittman, who is an ESPN student leader and sometimes serves as a producer.
“What I do to produce is I basically plan out the broadcast, what the announcers will talk about, what kind of replays we want to see, and what kind of graphics the viewers will see," said Pittman.
But how did he get into it?
“I’ve always kind of had a passion for sports, it’s just been how I’ve spent a lot of my free time ever since I was a kid,” Pittman said. "I saw the opportunity to get involved in this my freshman year, and get involved pretty heavily pretty early on.”
Although the job is busy, Yohe and Pittman have enjoyed their time on the crew.
“You know, I like it. It’s fast-paced and it’s crazy and hectic," said Yohe.
“I enjoy it," Pittman said. “I really enjoy it, and I wouldn’t mind doing this in the future.”
Yohe is happy to serve the Mercer community in his role.
“I like putting something out there that people want to watch and are going to have fun watching.”