Inspiration and Opportunity By John McBride Why Announcing? To me, two things stand out as to why I became enamored with being a Public Address Announcer: Inspiration and Opportunity. I believe this is largely true for anyone in any field. Something has to whet your appetite, and then you seek to satisfy that appetite. If…
Unskilled Labor? No Way! By Matthew C Wallace How Hard is Announcing? “Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to…” “Now Batting for Shortstop, Number 9, Jamie Erickson, …Junior, Number 13, Patricia Jones.” “Peters on the carry for 7 Yards. Tackled by Williams. Second down and 3.” “Penalty, Landers of Centerville College, 2 minutes for roughing,…
Punctuate! By John McBride Elevator Pitch Elevator Pitch is a term to describe selling a product or service in 15 seconds or less, as if you are granted an unforeseen opportunity in an elevator and no more than 15 seconds to create interest. Using this concept, I have formed an answer for the question: What…
Vocalzone in the Vocal Zone By Matthew C Wallace My hand waving moment… Before I say diddlysquat, I am not a doctor, pharmacist or a medical practitioner. I am a public speaker and my son, a baritone. The experiences and opinions expressed here are only my own and my son’s. If you even have the…
How To Make Roster Sheets – Easy! By Matthew C Wallace From Blanks to Names… There is nothing an announcer needs more than a clean, easy-to-read Roster Sheet for a contest of any kind. Most announcers only announce college or high school and good roster sheets are hard to come by. Truth is…quick facts and…
Sometimes I Feel Like I’m Wearing Stripes By Matthew C Wallace I have announced multitudinous games and events in my life and, one thing very clear to me is that I have felt like I’ve always been an unofficial member of the officiating team at sporting events. It’s certainly a funny thing to say considering…
The University of Oregon Athletics Department is looking for talented individuals to fill various positions currently available for the 2022-23 season. Positions such as public address (PA) announcer, in-arena/stadium Emcee and in-game DJ. Local talent groups, solo acts or instrumentalists are also encouraged to submit an application to perform the national anthem or at halftime of…
Part-time, temporary position, working games as scheduled for multiple positions, including time/score keeper, bookkeeper, and announcer. Pay is $25.00 per game. Positions run from Mid-August until May. Responsibilities for time/score keeper include ability to run a scoreboard clock, and/or a shot clock, and input scores into the scoreboard for soccer, basketball, or baseball games. Responsibilities…
Luck Favors the Prepared By Matthew C Wallace The unexpected always happens…period. If I did not prepare offsite for each and every event and game, I would be doomed. Through mistakes I’ve made and observed, PA Announcing cannot be done professionally on the fly. Not all of it anyway. That’s my opinion after over a thousand…
Lost In Translation By Matthew C Wallace Ever feel like you need a Masters in American Sign Language (ASL) in order to interpret the officials’ hand signals? I do…all the time. Invariably, every announcer finds themselves in a game of any field sport whereby and for whatever reason, the officiating crew is not rigged with…