1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: College football is a game of sights and sounds, west 2 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:25,159 Speaker 1: touchdown credible, from screaming fans to marching bands. It's the 3 00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:30,560 Speaker 1: raucous atmosphere that sets college football apart from everything else. 4 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:40,520 Speaker 1: Except during a pandemic last fall, media partners and broadcasters 5 00:00:40,760 --> 00:00:45,160 Speaker 1: were forced to adapt on the fly to unprecedented circumstances. 6 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:50,800 Speaker 1: This is how they made it work from the solid verbal. 7 00:00:51,000 --> 00:01:02,280 Speaker 1: This is a special production. So now what welcome back? 8 00:01:02,360 --> 00:01:05,720 Speaker 1: My name is Ty Hildenbrandt, joining me as always over 9 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:08,760 Speaker 1: there in Chicago, the one and only Dan Ruvenstein, Sir, 10 00:01:08,800 --> 00:01:10,319 Speaker 1: how you doing. I'm good. 11 00:01:10,400 --> 00:01:13,000 Speaker 2: I'm licking my proverbial chops. I don't know if that's 12 00:01:13,040 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 2: too evocative over this episode, because we have done already 13 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 2: a couple episodes looking at the twenty twenty season in 14 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 2: the twenty twenty year from a college football perspective as 15 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:28,679 Speaker 2: a whole, and this episode is all about how you 16 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 2: and I and I think a majority of people consume 17 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:35,640 Speaker 2: the twenty twenty season. Obviously a lot of people went 18 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:38,800 Speaker 2: to games, but not nearly as many as normally do, 19 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 2: and not nearly as many people socialized in the way 20 00:01:42,120 --> 00:01:44,400 Speaker 2: that they normally do around college football. So This is 21 00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:47,120 Speaker 2: an episode that I think we are going to dedicate 22 00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:52,400 Speaker 2: to the broadcast and fan, the home fan experience and 23 00:01:52,440 --> 00:01:55,640 Speaker 2: how different it was in twenty twenty, and hopefully how 24 00:01:55,680 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 2: it will never happen again, but just sort of debrief 25 00:02:00,360 --> 00:02:05,520 Speaker 2: on what it was like consuming college football only as 26 00:02:06,120 --> 00:02:09,040 Speaker 2: a TV product, which I know you and I did. 27 00:02:09,080 --> 00:02:10,639 Speaker 2: I know a lot of people also went to games 28 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:13,760 Speaker 2: once again, but it was more than it ever was 29 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:18,440 Speaker 2: a TV product, So debriefing essentially that product itself. 30 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 1: What amazed me the most in watching from home last 31 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 1: year was how much, for the most part it felt 32 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:29,040 Speaker 1: the same. There were a lot of elements, as we'll 33 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 1: find out here shortly, that needed to be made up 34 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:35,280 Speaker 1: on the fly. They were very much shooting from the 35 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,640 Speaker 1: hip b DSPN or CBS or anybody broadcasting a game. 36 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:41,800 Speaker 1: But I think for the home viewer, by and large, 37 00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:44,160 Speaker 1: the product mostly felt the same. 38 00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:47,360 Speaker 2: Yeah, yes and no for me, just because I didn't 39 00:02:47,360 --> 00:02:50,920 Speaker 2: watch it with anybody. My wife feigned interest at times 40 00:02:51,040 --> 00:02:53,640 Speaker 2: during Michigan games that we watched a little bit of 41 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:55,520 Speaker 2: because that's where she went. But even it was not 42 00:02:55,560 --> 00:02:58,440 Speaker 2: a fun year to watch Michigan football for Michigan fans 43 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:01,480 Speaker 2: and there was just, you know, the lack of electricity 44 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:04,280 Speaker 2: watching the TV product. Even when stadiums were empty and 45 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:06,880 Speaker 2: they piped in sound, it didn't feel the same. There 46 00:03:06,880 --> 00:03:09,560 Speaker 2: would be those big wide shots after a touchdown and 47 00:03:09,600 --> 00:03:12,320 Speaker 2: you wouldn't see anybody or nearly anybody, depending on the 48 00:03:12,360 --> 00:03:15,919 Speaker 2: conference you were watching in the stands. I think there 49 00:03:16,040 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 2: was a certain amount of energy that was extremely hard 50 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:24,320 Speaker 2: to replicate that. I'm sure broadcasters and broadcast teams and 51 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:28,280 Speaker 2: networks tried to do their very best, but it was 52 00:03:28,680 --> 00:03:30,880 Speaker 2: it was very different from me. But also my personal 53 00:03:30,919 --> 00:03:33,280 Speaker 2: life was very different and moving around the country and such, 54 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:35,640 Speaker 2: So maybe my experience was unique. 55 00:03:35,320 --> 00:03:38,280 Speaker 1: But it was different to me. It definitely was different. 56 00:03:38,320 --> 00:03:40,440 Speaker 1: It was still good to have the product on TV 57 00:03:41,000 --> 00:03:43,720 Speaker 1: and to help us unpack a little bit more about 58 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,200 Speaker 1: what that was like, we brought on a Niche Shroff 59 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:50,040 Speaker 1: from espno broadcaster has called college football games for a 60 00:03:50,080 --> 00:03:53,080 Speaker 1: good long time now, A niche longtime friend of the show. 61 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:57,480 Speaker 1: We asked him, what were your thoughts when all hell 62 00:03:57,600 --> 00:04:01,240 Speaker 1: was breaking loose in March, taking a longer view on 63 00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:03,880 Speaker 1: what it could mean for a college football season. 64 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:07,320 Speaker 3: I had as busy of a month as I can 65 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:11,120 Speaker 3: remember in March of twenty twenty, and I remember when 66 00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 3: I got done, I had done three games in three 67 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:18,320 Speaker 3: cities on three consecutive nights, and I thought, wow, March 68 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 3: is just getting started. And then the next week everything 69 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:28,320 Speaker 3: goes away, everything shuts down. Realistically, at the time, I 70 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:31,800 Speaker 3: felt kind of how I think a lot of people felt, Okay, 71 00:04:31,839 --> 00:04:34,839 Speaker 3: there's no way this is going to stretch into the fall, right. 72 00:04:35,320 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 3: I thought we would be okay or close to okay. 73 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 3: And then as the news kept on trickling in and 74 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 3: every week would copine, things got worse and worse. You're like, oh, man, 75 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:47,200 Speaker 3: are we. 76 00:04:47,200 --> 00:04:50,240 Speaker 1: Going to have a season that rings so true? I 77 00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:53,440 Speaker 1: remember doing our live streams, we were yeah, in the 78 00:04:53,560 --> 00:04:57,200 Speaker 1: very beginning, alarmed, as we all were alarmed that this 79 00:04:57,240 --> 00:05:00,520 Speaker 1: could have some impact not just on society but on 80 00:05:00,760 --> 00:05:02,760 Speaker 1: the sport we know and love. And then yeah, as 81 00:05:02,839 --> 00:05:05,400 Speaker 1: the summer wore on, as we got closer to the season, 82 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:09,039 Speaker 1: as we detailed in our first episode of So Now, 83 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:11,840 Speaker 1: when we talked through the big ten decision making, it 84 00:05:11,880 --> 00:05:15,280 Speaker 1: became very apparent that this was going to be a 85 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:18,240 Speaker 1: different kind of year. I'd imagine if you're a broadcaster, 86 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:24,600 Speaker 1: this being your livelihood and all, it's rather concerning. We 87 00:05:24,680 --> 00:05:28,960 Speaker 1: asked a niche, what were your thoughts as we got 88 00:05:29,000 --> 00:05:32,200 Speaker 1: a little bit deeper into this thing, and it became 89 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:34,800 Speaker 1: a parent that, yeah, you might not be able to 90 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:37,839 Speaker 1: go to games. You actually might have to call them from, 91 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:41,440 Speaker 1: say a remote studio somewhere in Charlotte. 92 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:46,960 Speaker 3: And I'd done some games remotely from studio, but football 93 00:05:48,040 --> 00:05:51,080 Speaker 3: is a different animal altogether. There's so many moving parts, 94 00:05:51,120 --> 00:05:54,040 Speaker 3: so many things to see, and all of a sudden 95 00:05:54,040 --> 00:05:57,400 Speaker 3: it was, oh, Okay, this will be challenging. This is 96 00:05:57,440 --> 00:06:00,280 Speaker 3: going to be a piece of the puzzle. And then 97 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:03,159 Speaker 3: you're sort of formulating a game plan. What do you 98 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:05,640 Speaker 3: need to see? Where are your eyes going? Well, we 99 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:09,280 Speaker 3: have cameras for this, who's going to be or liaison 100 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:14,120 Speaker 3: on site? And it really became this collaborative process on 101 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:17,400 Speaker 3: essentially trying to put together a jigsaw puzzle. 102 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:22,080 Speaker 1: I did not know until just this past year that 103 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:24,040 Speaker 1: they could pull this off in terms of. 104 00:06:23,960 --> 00:06:28,800 Speaker 2: Remote broadcasts, having the play by play and analyst in 105 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:32,920 Speaker 2: a studio in Charlotte or Connecticut or Los Angeles or something. 106 00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:37,680 Speaker 1: Not to this extent, I had visited the Big ten studios, 107 00:06:37,720 --> 00:06:41,599 Speaker 1: Big ten Network studios at some point, and I saw 108 00:06:41,680 --> 00:06:45,360 Speaker 1: the closet where they, I guess, would do remote broadcasts 109 00:06:45,440 --> 00:06:48,840 Speaker 1: of other events, but sure in none of those cases 110 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:53,080 Speaker 1: was it ever something as robust as a football broadcast, 111 00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:55,320 Speaker 1: where you've got so many different moving pieces, so much 112 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:59,200 Speaker 1: to account for different camera angles, what have you. When 113 00:06:59,200 --> 00:07:01,479 Speaker 1: it became a pair that this is a direction they 114 00:07:01,520 --> 00:07:04,560 Speaker 1: were headed, my ears perked up. I'm not in the 115 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:08,839 Speaker 1: broadcasting business to the same extent and niches, but I 116 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:11,880 Speaker 1: was wondering at that point, how the hell are they 117 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:12,800 Speaker 1: going to pull this off? 118 00:07:13,160 --> 00:07:17,440 Speaker 2: Same and I knew that football had been called remotely, 119 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:21,960 Speaker 2: but those generally, those remote broadcasts, from what I know, 120 00:07:22,680 --> 00:07:26,280 Speaker 2: are the quote unquote smaller games, fewer cameras, fewer graphics, 121 00:07:26,320 --> 00:07:29,240 Speaker 2: fewer replays, stuff like that. So there was not a 122 00:07:29,320 --> 00:07:33,760 Speaker 2: huge need to have a big, robust remote situation. But 123 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:35,320 Speaker 2: the thing is with the networks, they had the lead 124 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:38,320 Speaker 2: up time. This wasn't something that snuck up on them, 125 00:07:38,360 --> 00:07:40,160 Speaker 2: so they were able to get their ducks in a 126 00:07:40,280 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 2: row for weeks, months whatever to say, Okay, this is 127 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:44,960 Speaker 2: how we're going to operate with this, This is how 128 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:46,440 Speaker 2: we're gonna operate with that, this is how we're going 129 00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:48,920 Speaker 2: to do this remotely, so they were at least able 130 00:07:48,960 --> 00:07:52,800 Speaker 2: to plan for a different kind of broadcast year, so 131 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:55,360 Speaker 2: it would feel normal too idiots like you and me, 132 00:07:56,680 --> 00:08:01,000 Speaker 2: and so I I think I noticed certain elements. Obviously, 133 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:06,280 Speaker 2: it's hard not to notice the announcers not reacting to 134 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:10,080 Speaker 2: things happening with crowd energy in the same way. That's 135 00:08:10,120 --> 00:08:11,920 Speaker 2: easy to see that, like, okay, this is a little 136 00:08:11,920 --> 00:08:14,040 Speaker 2: bit different when you're calling a Boston college game and 137 00:08:14,080 --> 00:08:16,240 Speaker 2: it's just a bunch of cardboard cutouts, it's hard to 138 00:08:16,240 --> 00:08:20,640 Speaker 2: sort of match the energy of the moment. But largely technologically, 139 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:24,160 Speaker 2: you know, graphics would come in, replays would come in, 140 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:27,040 Speaker 2: there were different camera angles, and I maybe there were 141 00:08:27,080 --> 00:08:30,640 Speaker 2: fewer games where you had the zipline cam whatever that's called. 142 00:08:31,320 --> 00:08:33,960 Speaker 2: But I don't know if I fully noticed it. So 143 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:37,480 Speaker 2: I by and large thought, you know, ESPN, CBS, Fox, 144 00:08:37,559 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 2: the regional networks, the conference networks did as good a 145 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:46,800 Speaker 2: job as expected. So I came away very impressed because essentially, ty, 146 00:08:46,920 --> 00:08:51,520 Speaker 2: they're you and me, right, they're better versions, but they're 147 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:56,600 Speaker 2: at home or they're in a studio just podcasting games live. 148 00:08:57,600 --> 00:08:59,040 Speaker 2: That's what it kind of is. 149 00:08:59,559 --> 00:09:05,760 Speaker 1: I didn't really notice the small details right, that might 150 00:09:05,800 --> 00:09:09,160 Speaker 1: have been off with a broadcast. Obviously, you look out 151 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:12,280 Speaker 1: in the stands, there are no people there, yet you 152 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:15,480 Speaker 1: hear crowd noise, which we will talk about momentarily, right. 153 00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:18,439 Speaker 1: You know that that's fabricated, and you can sense that 154 00:09:18,559 --> 00:09:21,120 Speaker 1: maybe announcers are a bit disconnected from the moment. But 155 00:09:21,679 --> 00:09:23,240 Speaker 1: a lot of the little stuff I thought they did 156 00:09:23,280 --> 00:09:26,160 Speaker 1: a pretty good job of papering over. And that's a 157 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:29,200 Speaker 1: credit to everybody involved in these productions. You know, you 158 00:09:29,240 --> 00:09:32,280 Speaker 1: talk to somebody like a niche again, whose livelihood is 159 00:09:32,280 --> 00:09:37,160 Speaker 1: broadcasting games, and you don't necessarily have a level of 160 00:09:37,440 --> 00:09:39,760 Speaker 1: understanding of the nuance that goes into it. These guys 161 00:09:39,800 --> 00:09:43,600 Speaker 1: take it very seriously. Every little inch of the football field. 162 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:46,080 Speaker 1: They're trying to get a description of what's going on 163 00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:49,440 Speaker 1: out there. Little things like context that you might be 164 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:50,800 Speaker 1: able to pick up before a game. 165 00:09:51,200 --> 00:09:53,839 Speaker 3: It's just different. You know, there's something about game day 166 00:09:53,920 --> 00:09:56,679 Speaker 3: at a stadium. There's something about that game day environment. 167 00:09:57,559 --> 00:09:59,439 Speaker 3: One of the things that I usually like to do 168 00:09:59,480 --> 00:10:03,480 Speaker 3: when I get there just survey my surroundings. What do 169 00:10:03,559 --> 00:10:06,959 Speaker 3: you pick up using your eyes and ears to ask questions? 170 00:10:07,320 --> 00:10:09,720 Speaker 3: You don't get that anymore. You're at the mercity in 171 00:10:09,760 --> 00:10:13,160 Speaker 3: a lot of ways of the school providing you with information, 172 00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:16,800 Speaker 3: and as we all know, schools will provide information to 173 00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:19,840 Speaker 3: make them look as good as possible. 174 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:26,240 Speaker 1: And even little things like building rapport with the broadcasting team. 175 00:10:25,520 --> 00:10:29,400 Speaker 3: Just being on the road with your colleagues and going 176 00:10:29,440 --> 00:10:33,760 Speaker 3: out the night before the game and grabbing dinner, having 177 00:10:33,760 --> 00:10:38,680 Speaker 3: a glass of wine, just building chemistry and camaraderie. You 178 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:42,760 Speaker 3: just don't have that. Everybody's masked up. We are all 179 00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:45,760 Speaker 3: socially distant. They're very careful about where you can sit 180 00:10:45,800 --> 00:10:47,040 Speaker 3: and how far you can stand. 181 00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:50,920 Speaker 1: Now, in a Niche's case, he broadcasted games remotely from 182 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:55,480 Speaker 1: a studio in Charlotte, and thankfully Tom lougan Bill was 183 00:10:56,040 --> 00:10:58,240 Speaker 1: in the same studio as him, so at least he 184 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:03,160 Speaker 1: had some report or being so he had his announcing 185 00:11:03,200 --> 00:11:06,240 Speaker 1: partner physically there with him. You and I can speak 186 00:11:06,240 --> 00:11:09,360 Speaker 1: a lot to what it's like when your co host 187 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:12,240 Speaker 1: is not with you. Correct. It has taken us the 188 00:11:12,280 --> 00:11:14,920 Speaker 1: better part of a decade to build up this rapport, 189 00:11:15,400 --> 00:11:19,440 Speaker 1: So you can imagine, especially going into a new football season, 190 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:23,280 Speaker 1: sometimes teams are mixed and matched on the broadcasting front 191 00:11:23,720 --> 00:11:27,080 Speaker 1: to try and build up that level of understanding with 192 00:11:27,160 --> 00:11:31,080 Speaker 1: your co hosts so quickly. In a new setting, everything 193 00:11:31,120 --> 00:11:34,360 Speaker 1: is completely new. There are new inputs, new outputs. I 194 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:37,600 Speaker 1: again am really surprised and quite impressed that it all 195 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:38,600 Speaker 1: went as well as it did. 196 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:42,079 Speaker 2: Yeah, and it's not just the on air people, right, 197 00:11:42,200 --> 00:11:44,760 Speaker 2: it's the people that are spotting who's tackling who, or 198 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:49,440 Speaker 2: who's substituting in for whom. There's the producer in the 199 00:11:49,480 --> 00:11:52,800 Speaker 2: broadcaster's ear. And you know, certain broadcasters work better with 200 00:11:52,840 --> 00:11:55,720 Speaker 2: certain producers. They understand what they like. They understand like, okay, 201 00:11:55,720 --> 00:11:57,800 Speaker 2: this is when I like the replays coming in. This 202 00:11:57,840 --> 00:11:59,640 Speaker 2: is how quickly I want to see the replays in 203 00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:01,320 Speaker 2: a step display or whatever. 204 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:02,560 Speaker 1: I think. 205 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:05,080 Speaker 2: There's a lot of nuance behind the scenes that and 206 00:12:05,120 --> 00:12:08,880 Speaker 2: even in times when things are quote unquote normal. We 207 00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:12,280 Speaker 2: all remember those games where all of a sudden, there 208 00:12:12,520 --> 00:12:16,200 Speaker 2: is no wide cam available because it's foggy, and we 209 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:18,320 Speaker 2: need only the cameras on the field, or all the 210 00:12:18,320 --> 00:12:20,439 Speaker 2: other cameras go out except for one main one, and 211 00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:22,439 Speaker 2: the one main one's trying to track all the action. 212 00:12:22,520 --> 00:12:26,080 Speaker 2: And that's normal times. And so in terms of communication 213 00:12:26,200 --> 00:12:29,200 Speaker 2: behind the scenes, it is that element of you know, 214 00:12:29,640 --> 00:12:33,079 Speaker 2: the duck looks common, serene above the surface, but underneath 215 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:36,040 Speaker 2: it's paddling like all hell. And so I think there 216 00:12:36,120 --> 00:12:39,520 Speaker 2: was more of an element this fall than ever before, 217 00:12:39,600 --> 00:12:43,720 Speaker 2: and the better broadcast just masked everything a lot better. 218 00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:47,200 Speaker 2: But no, it was fascinating to hear him talk about 219 00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:50,120 Speaker 2: the different elements that needed to come together. 220 00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:55,320 Speaker 1: Just so, how do you overcompensate for the situation not 221 00:12:55,480 --> 00:12:58,640 Speaker 1: having the crowd noise, not being there on site? 222 00:12:59,040 --> 00:13:01,679 Speaker 3: You're trained depending on where you're calling the game, if 223 00:13:01,679 --> 00:13:05,000 Speaker 3: you're at a Clemson or an LSU or Virginia Tech 224 00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:09,120 Speaker 3: one of these raucous environments. A lot of times, the 225 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:12,120 Speaker 3: best thing you can do on third and one is 226 00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:15,760 Speaker 3: shut the hell up and just let that crowd roar, 227 00:13:15,920 --> 00:13:19,000 Speaker 3: especially if it's the defense looking for a stand or whatever. 228 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:22,119 Speaker 3: You just let the crowd go, and the crowd becomes 229 00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:26,040 Speaker 3: that extra person in the broadcast, and that amplifies the 230 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:29,200 Speaker 3: moment more than anything that you can say, Well, that's 231 00:13:29,240 --> 00:13:33,920 Speaker 3: not there now, And you always worry about over talking 232 00:13:33,960 --> 00:13:37,880 Speaker 3: and saying too much, And in some of these cases, 233 00:13:37,960 --> 00:13:40,839 Speaker 3: when you scale it back a little bit, all of 234 00:13:40,880 --> 00:13:45,120 Speaker 3: a sudden, it's sound of silence. Right where is everybody? 235 00:13:45,559 --> 00:13:47,360 Speaker 3: And you almost feel, all right, do I need to 236 00:13:47,440 --> 00:13:49,600 Speaker 3: jump in a little bit? So you almost have to 237 00:13:49,640 --> 00:13:51,480 Speaker 3: recalibrate your process a little bit. 238 00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:53,520 Speaker 1: Recalibrate the process. 239 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:53,800 Speaker 3: Dan. 240 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:56,240 Speaker 1: One of the questions that you had for a niche 241 00:13:56,840 --> 00:13:59,960 Speaker 1: that I get the sense you were very excited to ask, 242 00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:05,679 Speaker 1: was about the crowd noise, right, yeah, the fake crowd noise, 243 00:14:05,800 --> 00:14:08,120 Speaker 1: the fake crowd noise. What were your thoughts on fake 244 00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:08,960 Speaker 1: crowd noise this year? 245 00:14:09,040 --> 00:14:09,199 Speaker 3: Dan? 246 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:13,440 Speaker 2: It was very strange, And it was strange because I 247 00:14:13,520 --> 00:14:17,000 Speaker 2: found myself getting comfortable with how normal the broadcast would 248 00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:18,839 Speaker 2: feel in those games in which maybe it was only 249 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:21,640 Speaker 2: friends and family, maybe it was a few, a few hundred, 250 00:14:21,760 --> 00:14:24,440 Speaker 2: or no fans at all. The one game that specifically 251 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:27,960 Speaker 2: stood out to me that I really was able to 252 00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:32,320 Speaker 2: connect to the fact that there were no humans watching 253 00:14:32,360 --> 00:14:35,200 Speaker 2: the game. I'm almost positive this is true. Michigan, Michigan 254 00:14:35,240 --> 00:14:37,600 Speaker 2: State in the Big House, which is of course already 255 00:14:37,640 --> 00:14:41,360 Speaker 2: in a cavernous place defined by how large and overwhelming 256 00:14:41,400 --> 00:14:46,600 Speaker 2: it can be. Michigan State has the upset, and there 257 00:14:46,720 --> 00:14:50,400 Speaker 2: would be a number of wide shots that were supposed to, 258 00:14:50,680 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 2: I don't know, add environmental character to the situation, and 259 00:14:57,480 --> 00:15:01,600 Speaker 2: there was a feeling of these players snuck onto the 260 00:15:01,640 --> 00:15:05,840 Speaker 2: field on a Wednesday morning to play a game, almost 261 00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:09,760 Speaker 2: like I'm almost positive there's a tradition like the student newspapers, 262 00:15:09,760 --> 00:15:12,200 Speaker 2: the Michigan and Michigan State student newspapers, they played the 263 00:15:12,240 --> 00:15:16,200 Speaker 2: night before, and it had that feel to it where 264 00:15:16,240 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 2: it was, why don't we just all throw it like 265 00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:19,600 Speaker 2: a pop up? 266 00:15:19,680 --> 00:15:20,760 Speaker 1: It's a pop up game. 267 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:22,200 Speaker 2: Why don't we just I don't know, why don't we 268 00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:24,000 Speaker 2: mess around on a Saturday morning and play some college 269 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:26,240 Speaker 2: football and just let's just do it. Let's go crazy 270 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:30,800 Speaker 2: and do it. So that stood out to me. When 271 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:33,840 Speaker 2: I would hear the crowd noise followed up by shots 272 00:15:33,840 --> 00:15:37,760 Speaker 2: of no humans, I was my brain almost felt like 273 00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:41,640 Speaker 2: it was it was getting tricks played on it. 274 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:41,800 Speaker 3: It was. 275 00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:42,840 Speaker 2: It was very strange. 276 00:15:43,080 --> 00:15:45,120 Speaker 1: I get the sense that a niche was in a 277 00:15:45,200 --> 00:15:48,320 Speaker 1: very similar spot. First and foremost, we asked him where'd 278 00:15:48,320 --> 00:15:49,400 Speaker 1: the crowd noise come from? 279 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:51,400 Speaker 3: Well, as far as I know, for the games that 280 00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:54,840 Speaker 3: I did, most of the fake crowd noise was being 281 00:15:54,880 --> 00:15:58,280 Speaker 3: pumped in by the schools themselves. So it was the 282 00:15:58,280 --> 00:16:00,840 Speaker 3: PA at the school that would be in charge of that. 283 00:16:01,200 --> 00:16:04,760 Speaker 1: So the schools are pumping it in, which is an 284 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:08,480 Speaker 1: important bit of context. We also asked him like, was 285 00:16:08,520 --> 00:16:12,280 Speaker 1: it helpful to you to hear this noise at all? 286 00:16:12,360 --> 00:16:13,440 Speaker 1: Or what was your take on it? 287 00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:17,720 Speaker 3: From my standpoint, it was helpful not being there, because 288 00:16:17,760 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 3: if you are there and it's okay, we're looking around 289 00:16:21,400 --> 00:16:24,840 Speaker 3: and I see two hundred people in the seats or nobody, 290 00:16:25,640 --> 00:16:28,080 Speaker 3: and you're rocking all this crowd noise, come on, who 291 00:16:28,120 --> 00:16:31,880 Speaker 3: are you fooling? But not physically being there, it actually 292 00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:35,320 Speaker 3: gives you this fake sense of hey, something is happening 293 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:39,640 Speaker 3: and something is important, and it props up your energy 294 00:16:39,680 --> 00:16:40,320 Speaker 3: by proxy. 295 00:16:41,240 --> 00:16:45,840 Speaker 1: So the crowd noise helped him more being off site 296 00:16:45,880 --> 00:16:47,160 Speaker 1: than it would have if he were there. 297 00:16:48,200 --> 00:16:51,720 Speaker 2: Can I tell you something, I have no reason to 298 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:55,240 Speaker 2: doubt a niche Okay, he would know better than you 299 00:16:55,320 --> 00:17:00,480 Speaker 2: or I would. But I have been in the Fox truck, 300 00:17:01,280 --> 00:17:05,000 Speaker 2: like the a team Fox truck, NFL Fox, not college Fox. 301 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:07,520 Speaker 2: So this is like the team that would do a 302 00:17:07,560 --> 00:17:10,520 Speaker 2: Super Bowl or a you know, NFC championship game. The huge, 303 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:13,240 Speaker 2: the biggest of the big crew, the Aikman Joe Buck crew. 304 00:17:13,880 --> 00:17:16,080 Speaker 2: And this was for a documentary thing I worked on 305 00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:20,040 Speaker 2: a few years ago, and I got to watch the 306 00:17:20,119 --> 00:17:24,120 Speaker 2: audio mixer do his thing mid game a huge game. 307 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:27,840 Speaker 2: It was Patriots Saints, I believe, in Foxborough and he 308 00:17:27,880 --> 00:17:32,520 Speaker 2: had a mixer with like, I don't know, sixty four channels, 309 00:17:32,680 --> 00:17:36,679 Speaker 2: thirty two channels, some crazy number of audio channels, and 310 00:17:36,760 --> 00:17:39,920 Speaker 2: I got to watch him as a player was carded off, 311 00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:45,680 Speaker 2: move the button up, the lever up for the sad 312 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:49,240 Speaker 2: Fox theme the butta dunt dut du dun dut du 313 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:53,960 Speaker 2: dun dunt into commercial. So I know the pure raw 314 00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:58,080 Speaker 2: power that television has from an audio perspective, and it 315 00:17:58,480 --> 00:18:01,199 Speaker 2: is still hard for me to believe that that a 316 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:04,399 Speaker 2: version of that guy didn't exist in Bristol or in 317 00:18:04,560 --> 00:18:08,280 Speaker 2: LA to sort of level out the environment as the 318 00:18:08,320 --> 00:18:10,440 Speaker 2: game was going on, because I do know the raw 319 00:18:10,480 --> 00:18:13,199 Speaker 2: audio power available to these networks, so no reason not 320 00:18:13,280 --> 00:18:17,920 Speaker 2: to believe a niche. But at the same time, it 321 00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:22,000 Speaker 2: would it wouldn't. It doesn't fully make sense the networks 322 00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:25,399 Speaker 2: would give that much control over the TV broadcast audio 323 00:18:25,760 --> 00:18:28,679 Speaker 2: to the random stadium audio engineer. I don't know, and 324 00:18:28,760 --> 00:18:32,479 Speaker 2: I think it was different depending on the sport. I 325 00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:35,240 Speaker 2: know back in the fall, if you watched any like 326 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:38,720 Speaker 2: Premier League soccer, you could watch one channel that had 327 00:18:38,720 --> 00:18:42,000 Speaker 2: the crowd noise and another that really yeah, they would 328 00:18:42,000 --> 00:18:44,840 Speaker 2: allow you to watch a different station that didn't have it, 329 00:18:44,880 --> 00:18:48,160 Speaker 2: maybe online or through one of the pay services. So 330 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:53,919 Speaker 2: just a really weird again layer of context that some 331 00:18:53,960 --> 00:18:56,720 Speaker 2: of the networks tried to add in to make the 332 00:18:56,800 --> 00:19:01,320 Speaker 2: product feel a little bit more authentic. The audio junkie 333 00:19:01,880 --> 00:19:05,359 Speaker 2: between us, you are the person who pays attention to 334 00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:08,040 Speaker 2: things like that, whether it's an audio form or the 335 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:12,000 Speaker 2: audio during a TV show or whatever. Where were your 336 00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:15,600 Speaker 2: ears and brain connected watching these games? Were you just 337 00:19:15,800 --> 00:19:19,280 Speaker 2: accepting this fake noise as like, yep, okay, this is 338 00:19:19,480 --> 00:19:20,600 Speaker 2: I've accepted it and I'm not. 339 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:21,560 Speaker 1: Paying attention to it. 340 00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:24,800 Speaker 2: Or were you paying closer attention as you were watching 341 00:19:24,840 --> 00:19:27,160 Speaker 2: a game in a bigger moment, knowing like, I don't 342 00:19:27,160 --> 00:19:28,520 Speaker 2: know which game it was. I think Notre Dame was 343 00:19:28,520 --> 00:19:30,400 Speaker 2: at Boston College, right, so you at least had one 344 00:19:30,440 --> 00:19:33,439 Speaker 2: Notre Dame game where there were zero people in the crowd. 345 00:19:33,920 --> 00:19:36,240 Speaker 2: Did that take you out of anything? Were you paying 346 00:19:36,280 --> 00:19:40,560 Speaker 2: extra close attention to how the audio engineer was riding 347 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:42,640 Speaker 2: the levels? Was that something you paid attention to. 348 00:19:42,760 --> 00:19:46,679 Speaker 1: Riding the level? Sure? I tend to pay attention to 349 00:19:47,440 --> 00:19:51,359 Speaker 1: the volumes of the two commentators. It's really easy for 350 00:19:51,440 --> 00:19:53,240 Speaker 1: those volumes to get a little bit out of sync 351 00:19:53,480 --> 00:19:56,480 Speaker 1: and to feel a bit disconnected from the game, especially 352 00:19:56,480 --> 00:19:59,159 Speaker 1: when someone's doing a broadcast remotely like that. And there 353 00:19:59,200 --> 00:20:01,239 Speaker 1: were a few instances is where you heard it, But 354 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:02,920 Speaker 1: by the end of the year they got really good 355 00:20:02,960 --> 00:20:05,080 Speaker 1: at it. They got really good at mixing everything down. 356 00:20:05,200 --> 00:20:07,320 Speaker 2: You're talking about with the with the fake crowd noise, 357 00:20:07,359 --> 00:20:08,440 Speaker 2: you're talking about it with the. 358 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:11,439 Speaker 1: Crowd noise, with the other microphones that maybe they had 359 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:14,560 Speaker 1: on site, the whistle, the sound of the players hitting 360 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:18,480 Speaker 1: each other, things like that. It was really easy, I 361 00:20:18,520 --> 00:20:21,080 Speaker 1: think in the beginning for some of the voices of 362 00:20:21,119 --> 00:20:23,720 Speaker 1: the commentators to be a little bit too loud, or 363 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:25,919 Speaker 1: one to be too loud, in the other to be 364 00:20:25,920 --> 00:20:27,959 Speaker 1: a little bit too soft. And by the end they 365 00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:28,959 Speaker 1: got really good at doing it. 366 00:20:29,760 --> 00:20:33,560 Speaker 2: I noticed I was able to hear whistles and yelling 367 00:20:33,560 --> 00:20:36,760 Speaker 2: from the sideline onto the field early on in the season. 368 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 2: I couldn't tell you a specific game, but like when 369 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:41,760 Speaker 2: an offensive coordinator was trying to get the attention of 370 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:44,439 Speaker 2: his quarterback, or when there were substitutions being made and 371 00:20:44,480 --> 00:20:47,200 Speaker 2: somebody was yelling for a linebacker to run off the field. 372 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:50,439 Speaker 2: I did notice that I was hearing those more than 373 00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:53,280 Speaker 2: I normally would, which makes sense. Obviously there's there's less 374 00:20:53,280 --> 00:20:55,880 Speaker 2: sound to interrupt everything. But yeah, I think you're right 375 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:59,800 Speaker 2: that in the beginning of the season there were there 376 00:20:59,840 --> 00:21:02,280 Speaker 2: were audio instances that felt different. 377 00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:07,920 Speaker 1: We asked a Niche, what was the remote studio set up? Blake, 378 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:12,080 Speaker 1: If you sat down at your desk, what was in 379 00:21:12,119 --> 00:21:12,960 Speaker 1: your field of view? 380 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:16,040 Speaker 3: The peripherals would be. I'd be sitting on the right 381 00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:20,800 Speaker 3: side of this extended broom closet if you will. Logan 382 00:21:20,840 --> 00:21:23,800 Speaker 3: Bill is to the far left in front of me. 383 00:21:23,960 --> 00:21:27,600 Speaker 3: I have a desktop computer, and on that desktop monitor, 384 00:21:27,920 --> 00:21:30,479 Speaker 3: my stats guy Paul Newman, would type in there and 385 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:33,119 Speaker 3: I would see what's going on. To the left of that, 386 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:36,639 Speaker 3: I had my monitor a little bit elevated. That was 387 00:21:36,680 --> 00:21:39,800 Speaker 3: our program feed. That's the game itself, it's what the 388 00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:43,640 Speaker 3: viewers are seeing on television right above that. They could 389 00:21:43,680 --> 00:21:47,720 Speaker 3: give me one extra monitor, one extra camera, so I 390 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:50,000 Speaker 3: had the all twenty two, and then in that same 391 00:21:50,080 --> 00:21:54,880 Speaker 3: monitor I had the stats feed. Then I had a 392 00:21:55,040 --> 00:21:59,880 Speaker 3: second monitor or a second laptop which had net return, 393 00:22:00,320 --> 00:22:04,159 Speaker 3: which is the feed on a delay, so sometimes it 394 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:07,159 Speaker 3: allows you to see a play twice if your replay. 395 00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:11,000 Speaker 3: It allows you to see the highlights when they do 396 00:22:11,040 --> 00:22:13,560 Speaker 3: a cut in, so you're able to kind of watch that. Okay, 397 00:22:13,800 --> 00:22:16,600 Speaker 3: you're showing Kyle Pitts here from Florida. We can react 398 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:19,760 Speaker 3: off of that. And then there was an ISO monitor, 399 00:22:19,840 --> 00:22:22,399 Speaker 3: which is where our producer can show us things before 400 00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:26,080 Speaker 3: they come on air, whether it's a graphic or an 401 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:28,960 Speaker 3: edit or a package. Hey, look in your ISO. Let 402 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:30,520 Speaker 3: me know when you want to go to this. It's all, 403 00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:34,000 Speaker 3: you know, broadcast jargon. But there were a lot of inputs. 404 00:22:34,119 --> 00:22:35,240 Speaker 3: A lot of inputs. 405 00:22:36,359 --> 00:22:40,159 Speaker 1: Sounds very complicated. It doesn't sound unlike some of the 406 00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:42,480 Speaker 1: rigs that you and I have put together. Obviously a 407 00:22:42,480 --> 00:22:47,680 Speaker 1: lot more sophisticated, sure, but it's very clear the more 408 00:22:47,720 --> 00:22:50,800 Speaker 1: we talk to a niche how they were cobbling this 409 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:53,000 Speaker 1: thing together. Again, I think they all did a very 410 00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:55,640 Speaker 1: admirable job of doing it, but a lot of it 411 00:22:55,800 --> 00:22:57,879 Speaker 1: was shooting from the hip, trying to get the best 412 00:22:57,880 --> 00:23:01,560 Speaker 1: information they could to the posters. Like one of the 413 00:23:01,600 --> 00:23:04,480 Speaker 1: interesting things that Aniche said was that he's not usually 414 00:23:04,520 --> 00:23:06,920 Speaker 1: a phone guy, you know, a cell phone guy during 415 00:23:06,960 --> 00:23:10,080 Speaker 1: the game, but you're trying to get as much information 416 00:23:10,119 --> 00:23:14,160 Speaker 1: as you can in the moment. And so whereas before 417 00:23:14,280 --> 00:23:18,000 Speaker 1: maybe he's tweeting and texting periodically throughout the course of 418 00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:21,760 Speaker 1: a game, now he's tuned into his phone throughout the 419 00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:25,359 Speaker 1: entire broadcast, using it to get whatever information maybe the 420 00:23:25,359 --> 00:23:27,600 Speaker 1: school is putting out or someone on the ground is 421 00:23:27,600 --> 00:23:28,080 Speaker 1: putting out. 422 00:23:28,160 --> 00:23:31,000 Speaker 2: If that particular game didn't have a sideline reporter, didn't 423 00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:34,000 Speaker 2: have producers on the ground overhearing seeing a player get 424 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:37,600 Speaker 2: carried off because of an injury or whatever, the circumstance 425 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:41,920 Speaker 2: taken into the injury tent, whatever, that they're searching for information, 426 00:23:42,280 --> 00:23:45,399 Speaker 2: just like the rest of us. There's a certain helplessness 427 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:49,320 Speaker 2: I'm sure that comes from broadcasting a game remotely, and 428 00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:52,639 Speaker 2: I can imagine looking at screens and trying to be 429 00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:56,600 Speaker 2: an authority on what's happening eighteen hundred miles away. It 430 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:01,760 Speaker 2: feels inauthentic. It feels like you are are literally read 431 00:24:01,880 --> 00:24:05,920 Speaker 2: now literally maybe figuratively, reaching to appear to be. 432 00:24:05,880 --> 00:24:09,160 Speaker 1: In the know. So Aniche mentioned the All twenty two 433 00:24:09,160 --> 00:24:12,639 Speaker 1: camera Dan right, it's the coaches angle from way up 434 00:24:12,720 --> 00:24:16,560 Speaker 1: high that they watched tape from Yeah, interesting story on 435 00:24:17,240 --> 00:24:21,280 Speaker 1: why that monitor ended up being one of the ones 436 00:24:21,400 --> 00:24:22,760 Speaker 1: in front of him. 437 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:25,320 Speaker 3: You may have had a camera guy have a COVID test, 438 00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:27,159 Speaker 3: and so now I've got a backup camera guy. And 439 00:24:27,200 --> 00:24:30,400 Speaker 3: that's the stuff people don't realize. And guess what play 440 00:24:30,400 --> 00:24:34,000 Speaker 3: action pass he's fulled and he's not following it. Well. Now, 441 00:24:34,080 --> 00:24:36,399 Speaker 3: us as play by play guys and analysts, for the 442 00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:39,880 Speaker 3: most part, we can only see what you see on TV. 443 00:24:40,680 --> 00:24:42,560 Speaker 3: We had that early in the year and they said, hey, 444 00:24:42,640 --> 00:24:45,280 Speaker 3: what if we had the ALL twenty two? So you 445 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:47,960 Speaker 3: have that on an extra monitor, and so that situation 446 00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:50,240 Speaker 3: happened in a game and I can look up and 447 00:24:50,320 --> 00:24:52,760 Speaker 3: I can see, Okay, I'm off to the other monitor. 448 00:24:52,800 --> 00:24:55,760 Speaker 3: Now I can see that it was indeed a pass. 449 00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:58,800 Speaker 3: He threw it downfield and the ball was intercepted or 450 00:24:58,800 --> 00:25:00,560 Speaker 3: it was caught or whatever, and you can still call 451 00:25:00,600 --> 00:25:01,040 Speaker 3: the play. 452 00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:04,040 Speaker 1: You have a lot of instances like this. The Deeper 453 00:25:04,080 --> 00:25:07,520 Speaker 1: we got into conversation with a niche a bunch of 454 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:13,399 Speaker 1: instances where they tried something, maybe it didn't not work, 455 00:25:13,920 --> 00:25:17,320 Speaker 1: but through the course of their normal business, decided there 456 00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:20,720 Speaker 1: were other things that they could do to further optimize 457 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:25,119 Speaker 1: another example, spotters. You know what a spotter is, right, yep. 458 00:25:25,520 --> 00:25:28,720 Speaker 1: Spotter's a guy who is keeping track of who's making plays, 459 00:25:28,800 --> 00:25:32,120 Speaker 1: keeping track of key events in a game, feeding all 460 00:25:32,119 --> 00:25:34,040 Speaker 1: that information back to the broadcasters. 461 00:25:34,200 --> 00:25:37,679 Speaker 3: We had a spatner who was on site and basically 462 00:25:37,760 --> 00:25:41,919 Speaker 3: had a gizmo where he's got my spotting board, and 463 00:25:41,920 --> 00:25:44,280 Speaker 3: when substitutions are coming in and out, he can point 464 00:25:44,320 --> 00:25:46,680 Speaker 3: and say, hey, this guy's in, this guy's out, or 465 00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:48,400 Speaker 3: update me on injuries. 466 00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:52,080 Speaker 1: Figuring out how to communicate with the remote staff. It's 467 00:25:52,119 --> 00:25:56,800 Speaker 1: hard enough you're in a studio somewhere in Charlotte, physically 468 00:25:56,880 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: removed from the game, artificial crowd noise again through your headset, 469 00:26:01,720 --> 00:26:04,080 Speaker 1: a bunch of monitors that you're not accustomed to in 470 00:26:04,119 --> 00:26:08,000 Speaker 1: front of you, trying to paint a picture with your 471 00:26:08,040 --> 00:26:11,160 Speaker 1: voice as to what is going on. All the while, 472 00:26:11,200 --> 00:26:14,320 Speaker 1: you still got to communicate with others who are connected. 473 00:26:15,160 --> 00:26:18,800 Speaker 1: I don't know if a Niche said, maybe Skype, maybe phone, 474 00:26:18,840 --> 00:26:23,520 Speaker 1: maybe zoom. Who knows you are trying to collect all 475 00:26:23,560 --> 00:26:25,400 Speaker 1: of these parts to put together a broadcast. 476 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:27,119 Speaker 2: And the other part of it too is and he 477 00:26:27,240 --> 00:26:32,119 Speaker 2: sort of touched on this, but when broadcasters aren't in 478 00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:34,680 Speaker 2: the stadium and they're not in the town and they 479 00:26:34,680 --> 00:26:37,320 Speaker 2: don't go out the night before, and it's not that 480 00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:40,399 Speaker 2: they're going to get a pulse of whatever it is 481 00:26:40,480 --> 00:26:44,080 Speaker 2: Tennessee football or Missouri football or cal football. They're not 482 00:26:44,119 --> 00:26:46,359 Speaker 2: going to get that in like you know, they're parachuting in. 483 00:26:46,400 --> 00:26:49,200 Speaker 2: They're in and out. But there is that element of 484 00:26:49,720 --> 00:26:52,800 Speaker 2: feeling feeling the energy in a town the night before 485 00:26:52,920 --> 00:26:56,800 Speaker 2: and the seeing the out of town fans, seeing you know, 486 00:26:56,920 --> 00:26:59,320 Speaker 2: the excitement for the game in the morning, and then 487 00:26:59,520 --> 00:27:02,919 Speaker 2: traveling to the stadium and seeing people tailgating. It can't 488 00:27:02,960 --> 00:27:06,680 Speaker 2: help but feel the people broadcasting and producing the game 489 00:27:06,960 --> 00:27:09,919 Speaker 2: that they're part of something big, that it's building to 490 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:12,040 Speaker 2: a moment. Even if it's a game between you know, 491 00:27:12,119 --> 00:27:15,560 Speaker 2: two unranked teams, people are still so excited for football. 492 00:27:15,560 --> 00:27:17,200 Speaker 2: It's not even just about the noise and energy in 493 00:27:17,240 --> 00:27:19,600 Speaker 2: the stadium, because as we know, college football is a 494 00:27:19,600 --> 00:27:23,560 Speaker 2: cultural thing, right It's showing up at six am to 495 00:27:23,600 --> 00:27:26,359 Speaker 2: set up your tailgate, and so everybody involved in that 496 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:30,639 Speaker 2: broadcast sees that they can sense the excitement, so they're 497 00:27:30,680 --> 00:27:33,199 Speaker 2: wanting to take that excitement and put it into the 498 00:27:33,240 --> 00:27:36,359 Speaker 2: game themselves. They feel the weight of the scale of 499 00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:40,320 Speaker 2: that game. So it's something that I mean, I'm not 500 00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 2: saying poor them, I'm saying more poor us, because we 501 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:47,520 Speaker 2: like it when a broadcaster is into it that understands 502 00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:51,639 Speaker 2: that even though Oregon or Notre Dame loss last week, 503 00:27:51,840 --> 00:27:55,640 Speaker 2: we're still feeling good about this week, We're still feeling optimistic. 504 00:27:55,680 --> 00:27:58,040 Speaker 2: We still can't wait to get loud in the stadium. 505 00:27:58,359 --> 00:28:02,520 Speaker 2: And so it's imps possible to me for anybody in 506 00:28:02,560 --> 00:28:06,520 Speaker 2: a remote room, as good as their rapport is, to 507 00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:10,080 Speaker 2: be able to bring that to their microphone. And so 508 00:28:10,640 --> 00:28:13,280 Speaker 2: that to me is something that I noticed a little bit. 509 00:28:13,800 --> 00:28:16,919 Speaker 2: But in hearing a niche talk think, I don't know 510 00:28:16,960 --> 00:28:19,680 Speaker 2: how you possibly fake it. It just seems impossible. 511 00:28:20,560 --> 00:28:22,720 Speaker 1: This was the one that got me when he talked 512 00:28:22,720 --> 00:28:24,240 Speaker 1: about the statistician at home. 513 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:27,720 Speaker 3: We had a statistician who was watching the games at home. Well, 514 00:28:27,720 --> 00:28:29,920 Speaker 3: how could he communicate with us? So in the beginning, 515 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:33,040 Speaker 3: it was on a zoom call and he'd have a 516 00:28:33,119 --> 00:28:35,560 Speaker 3: chat box and he would type in the chat box. Well, 517 00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:38,400 Speaker 3: the issue there is what if I'm not looking at 518 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:40,200 Speaker 3: that chat box and I look at it three plays 519 00:28:40,280 --> 00:28:43,560 Speaker 3: later and he's got something up there? Is that still relevant? 520 00:28:43,840 --> 00:28:47,160 Speaker 3: So they came up with this other system where we're 521 00:28:47,200 --> 00:28:49,720 Speaker 3: both on this website. We both log in and it's 522 00:28:49,760 --> 00:28:53,680 Speaker 3: almost like a whiteboard where he'll type in and then 523 00:28:54,040 --> 00:28:57,000 Speaker 3: once it's no longer relevant, he hits one button, it's 524 00:28:57,040 --> 00:28:59,239 Speaker 3: gone and he can type the next thing. So if 525 00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:03,320 Speaker 3: I'm looking in, whatever I see in there will be relevant. 526 00:29:03,720 --> 00:29:05,200 Speaker 1: Were they using Google Docs for this? 527 00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:05,520 Speaker 3: Dan? 528 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:08,360 Speaker 1: Isn't that? 529 00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:09,840 Speaker 2: How? Gosh? 530 00:29:09,840 --> 00:29:10,120 Speaker 1: Who what? 531 00:29:10,200 --> 00:29:12,640 Speaker 2: There was a general that was having some sort of 532 00:29:12,640 --> 00:29:16,440 Speaker 2: inappropriate relationship and that's how they were communicating live Google Docs. 533 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:17,640 Speaker 1: I think so. 534 00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:19,280 Speaker 2: I think that's the case, but I don't know if 535 00:29:19,280 --> 00:29:21,280 Speaker 2: they were using Google Docs, but they're using something very 536 00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:23,800 Speaker 2: similar to it. It sounds like they were using something 537 00:29:23,840 --> 00:29:26,480 Speaker 2: like Google Docs. And this is where it got real 538 00:29:26,520 --> 00:29:29,360 Speaker 2: interesting for me, because you know so much of what 539 00:29:29,440 --> 00:29:32,360 Speaker 2: we do. I'm not comparing what we do, but all 540 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:36,200 Speaker 2: these years has been very cobbled together with these tools 541 00:29:36,280 --> 00:29:38,760 Speaker 2: that we could find on the internet. And I think 542 00:29:38,840 --> 00:29:42,760 Speaker 2: desperate times called for desperate measures in this case, and 543 00:29:43,120 --> 00:29:45,960 Speaker 2: ESPN and CBS at anybody broadcasting a game, be it 544 00:29:46,600 --> 00:29:50,440 Speaker 2: via TV, radio, you name it, had to improvise and 545 00:29:50,520 --> 00:29:53,400 Speaker 2: had to see what tools were at their disposal and 546 00:29:53,800 --> 00:29:56,880 Speaker 2: basically use all of them until they got the formula right. 547 00:29:57,080 --> 00:29:58,760 Speaker 2: Aniche said openly, look like. 548 00:29:58,960 --> 00:30:01,840 Speaker 3: You have to almost owen thinking, Okay, there's certain things. 549 00:30:01,880 --> 00:30:04,240 Speaker 3: If I miss, it's going to happen, and I can't 550 00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:05,959 Speaker 3: beat myself up over it. 551 00:30:06,240 --> 00:30:09,360 Speaker 1: You're never going to be perfect. But at least over 552 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:12,280 Speaker 1: the course of the season, it tended to get better 553 00:30:12,320 --> 00:30:16,000 Speaker 1: at it, and I think by the end, honestly, it 554 00:30:16,080 --> 00:30:20,320 Speaker 1: was a pretty close to normal product, albeit there weren't 555 00:30:20,800 --> 00:30:23,200 Speaker 1: the normal number of people in the stands, the normal 556 00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:26,520 Speaker 1: amount of fervor around a football game, just because of COVID. 557 00:30:27,280 --> 00:30:30,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, if you remember, we talked to Adam Amin who's 558 00:30:30,400 --> 00:30:33,120 Speaker 2: now at Fox last year he called College Football Forever, 559 00:30:33,440 --> 00:30:36,200 Speaker 2: and he talked about that ability just in reference to 560 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:38,760 Speaker 2: the All twenty two camera that was added that when 561 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:41,920 Speaker 2: he or any broadcaster is in the booth, they could 562 00:30:41,920 --> 00:30:45,000 Speaker 2: see Amari Cooper breaking loose deep and so their voice 563 00:30:45,120 --> 00:30:48,520 Speaker 2: could rise to match what they're seeing. And so I 564 00:30:48,560 --> 00:30:51,960 Speaker 2: think the networks piecing together. I know certain networks had, 565 00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:54,640 Speaker 2: you know, people in games or in stadiums, and certain didn't, 566 00:30:54,640 --> 00:30:56,040 Speaker 2: depending on the size of the game or the size 567 00:30:56,040 --> 00:30:58,800 Speaker 2: of the broadcast. But it is that ability to on 568 00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:01,480 Speaker 2: the fly say Okay, I need to add this display 569 00:31:01,800 --> 00:31:05,480 Speaker 2: so I can see this, or we need this element 570 00:31:05,640 --> 00:31:09,200 Speaker 2: to the spotting or the stat guy or the graphics 571 00:31:09,280 --> 00:31:11,800 Speaker 2: or the replays or whatever we'd like to be able 572 00:31:11,840 --> 00:31:16,120 Speaker 2: to shuffle on the fly. I think is fascinating because 573 00:31:16,120 --> 00:31:18,680 Speaker 2: that's nothing you can do typically in the same way 574 00:31:18,840 --> 00:31:19,760 Speaker 2: in the booth itself. 575 00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:23,200 Speaker 1: The operative question now as we move forward is how 576 00:31:23,280 --> 00:31:27,959 Speaker 1: much of whatever new ground we broke in twenty twenty 577 00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:30,600 Speaker 1: will be carried over into twenty twenty one. What do 578 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:34,320 Speaker 1: you think? I think they've found some ways that they 579 00:31:34,320 --> 00:31:37,880 Speaker 1: can further optimize the broadcast. They certainly have figured out 580 00:31:37,920 --> 00:31:40,880 Speaker 1: that they can do this if they have to. I 581 00:31:40,920 --> 00:31:45,640 Speaker 1: don't think anybody wants to. But in a pinch, if 582 00:31:45,680 --> 00:31:49,360 Speaker 1: you're looking to cut some corners save a few pennies, yeah, 583 00:31:49,360 --> 00:31:50,200 Speaker 1: it's always an option. 584 00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:52,960 Speaker 2: I think. Oh, you mentioned that you were at the 585 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:55,000 Speaker 2: Big ten network and you saw their setup right for 586 00:31:55,040 --> 00:31:58,480 Speaker 2: doing this with basketball. Yeah, that they would have production 587 00:31:58,720 --> 00:32:02,080 Speaker 2: crews at this and then they would beam back the 588 00:32:02,120 --> 00:32:05,120 Speaker 2: feed and they would have broadcasters in the Chicago studio. 589 00:32:06,120 --> 00:32:08,280 Speaker 2: I think. I mean it, it was happening with football 590 00:32:08,320 --> 00:32:09,920 Speaker 2: before it was happening more and more with some of 591 00:32:09,920 --> 00:32:12,680 Speaker 2: the smaller games I had heard. You know, ESPN was 592 00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:15,280 Speaker 2: doing some of this experimenting with remote broadcasts, which is 593 00:32:15,680 --> 00:32:18,480 Speaker 2: I mean on the broadcaster side, I'm sure they hate 594 00:32:18,520 --> 00:32:21,520 Speaker 2: it for the reasons the niche is already laid out. 595 00:32:21,560 --> 00:32:27,440 Speaker 2: But knowing that you can save money and almost approximate 596 00:32:27,520 --> 00:32:29,600 Speaker 2: a normal broadcast, I think we're going to see it 597 00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:32,240 Speaker 2: way more. Maybe not in the near term, maybe not. 598 00:32:32,640 --> 00:32:35,360 Speaker 2: You know, we're going to see maybe the broadcasters get 599 00:32:35,360 --> 00:32:37,840 Speaker 2: back in the stadium just because it's the healthy thing 600 00:32:37,920 --> 00:32:41,720 Speaker 2: for broadcast crews and production crews. But I think long term, 601 00:32:42,280 --> 00:32:44,680 Speaker 2: I think places are going to look because it does 602 00:32:44,720 --> 00:32:47,080 Speaker 2: cost a ton of money to send a crew and 603 00:32:47,120 --> 00:32:49,880 Speaker 2: broadcast a game remotely from it's not remotely, but from 604 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:53,800 Speaker 2: a stadium. I think we're going to see it much more. 605 00:32:53,920 --> 00:32:54,560 Speaker 2: I really do. 606 00:32:55,280 --> 00:32:58,120 Speaker 1: And I think they will be able to apply what 607 00:32:58,200 --> 00:33:02,800 Speaker 1: they've learned from twenty two. They will further refine the 608 00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:07,280 Speaker 1: tools to make this more readily available or a better 609 00:33:07,360 --> 00:33:10,840 Speaker 1: product for the home viewer. They will find ways if 610 00:33:10,960 --> 00:33:15,800 Speaker 1: it involves saving money to make the products sound eighty 611 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:18,760 Speaker 1: five percent of what it normally would if the crew 612 00:33:18,760 --> 00:33:23,120 Speaker 1: were there on site, I mean, we have technology available 613 00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:27,560 Speaker 1: already where you can just have a drone fix its 614 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:31,400 Speaker 1: sites on a specific you know, on a raft or 615 00:33:31,440 --> 00:33:34,680 Speaker 1: a dog, and just follow it. Right, We're not terribly 616 00:33:34,760 --> 00:33:39,920 Speaker 1: far away from automated cameras following action. Maybe it'll be 617 00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:41,920 Speaker 1: a couple of years or something like that. But as 618 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,360 Speaker 1: technology gets better, technology is gonna get cheaper. That's what 619 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:48,040 Speaker 1: always happens, and so I think it's definitely going to 620 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:50,360 Speaker 1: carry over because what are we seeing more and more 621 00:33:50,400 --> 00:33:53,840 Speaker 1: that live sports are the one thing that people will 622 00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:56,600 Speaker 1: pay to view. As it happens, people aren't paying to 623 00:33:56,640 --> 00:34:00,959 Speaker 1: watch dramas or comedies the second day premiere. Cable subscriptions 624 00:34:00,960 --> 00:34:03,680 Speaker 1: are down, but all of these networks are paying an 625 00:34:03,720 --> 00:34:06,720 Speaker 1: astronomical amount of money. We just saw what ESPN, ABC 626 00:34:06,880 --> 00:34:09,560 Speaker 1: pay for the SEC once their deal is up, and 627 00:34:09,600 --> 00:34:12,520 Speaker 1: I think they're starting to broadcast it early. So the 628 00:34:12,600 --> 00:34:16,560 Speaker 1: rights acquisition fees keep going up. Are still through the 629 00:34:16,680 --> 00:34:19,640 Speaker 1: roof for football, especially, so. 630 00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:22,719 Speaker 2: On that back end, the networks are going to Sure, 631 00:34:22,760 --> 00:34:24,400 Speaker 2: they're going to get some streaming money, they're going to 632 00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:27,200 Speaker 2: get advertising revenue, but at the same time they are 633 00:34:27,239 --> 00:34:30,239 Speaker 2: going to look long and hard every single time one 634 00:34:30,280 --> 00:34:32,480 Speaker 2: of these deals comes up and they're figuring out budgets. 635 00:34:32,680 --> 00:34:34,600 Speaker 2: They're going to look long and hard at how they 636 00:34:34,640 --> 00:34:40,760 Speaker 2: can broadcast a high quality game at low quality prices. 637 00:34:43,640 --> 00:34:48,040 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to So Now What Technical Difficulties Part one. 638 00:34:48,560 --> 00:34:50,839 Speaker 1: You can catch our full interview with a niche out 639 00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:54,560 Speaker 1: on our Patreon at verbowlers dot com, and don't forget 640 00:34:54,560 --> 00:35:03,080 Speaker 1: to come back soon for part two. Then the co