- November 9th, 2011, 10:35 pm
#364708
Seems this group loves to talk about the announcers! I bet the TV and radio people have to be thrilled that everyone is watching and listening...and care! It really is awesome that most of the games are on regional/national TV - great for the growing nation-wide alumni base and seems like a great way to connect the tens of thousands of online students to LU - sense of community - common bond, etc.
As for how good or great our announcers are on radio and TV, it probably depends upon your perspective. Someone on here said they "point out the obvious." Well, I would think the people on here represent a small minority of the total LU fan base -- maybe .02%? While most of you probably read every post on here, research all the opponents, watch every Liberty youtube video, listen to the weekly call-in show, etc and know as much as the coaches --- the other 99.98% of fans do not...most know very little about the team, etc. And, there are even people who love Liberty who don't even understand the game of football. I know that is horrifying to this group! And certainly, most people sitting at home surfing sports on a Saturday afternoon do not even know Liberty.
So, it seems to me the TV announcers are doing a solid job balancing and playing to the audience --- bringing in more fans, helping create a loyalty with the fans who have not become FlameFans' members yet. From what I have seen/heard (3 partial TV games this year), they do a great job making the game exciting on TV, interesting info, etc. They seem to put the focus on the game and the players, not themselves - which is pretty impressive these days (I watch a lot of NFL!)
Side note - It seems the purpose of the TV exposure is different from local/state radio exposure too. Radio is more local and probably reaches the die hard fans. TV is more regional/national - two very different goals and approaches. Again, both the FlameFans and the novice fans can enjoy the TV game, but it seems the announcers have to play to the larger audience. I think that is the nature of TV, right? Radio is more for the guy sitting in the stands or tailgating or driving around Lynchburg while the girlfriend shops at the mall, etc. My point is that you might not be able to judge the radio and tv people in the same way - not sure.
Another thought: I understand the TV announcers are not full-time employees. I heard Jones was a high school teacher/coach for example. I think it would be fair to compare them to the top announcers in college sports if they were full-time, like the others. I guess the radio people are full-time, but not sure. It just seems to me that the more time you have to prepare for anything, the better you will be. I could be wrong.
Final thought (yes, there is a reason I seldom post! haha): What about FlameFans starting Annual Awards?...Best announcer for each sport, or most improved, or best one liner, or best investigative reporter, etc....That might be a fun way to turn what is being perceived as attacks and complaints, into something fun and special -- maybe the announcers would even want to try and win an award. You could do nice certificates or something. I don't know. (I think you can use survey monkey or similar to send a voter form to FlameFans' member email accounts to get your voting done without everyone knowing how you vote). Just an idea. May be silly. (you could do best LU coach or Sports Administrator, etc...Maybe vote on the best game or the best play of the season) -- wide open.
I hope something here made sense. All I really know is:
Go Flames! Beat Stony Brook!
I like setting beside this guy ... who needs a game program, JC got all the #'s 
- By Chippy
- By jmclaughlin