Class provides training camp for aspiring sportscasters
Most sports fans have at some point in a game broadcast thought, “I can do better than this guy.” There’s a place for those wanting to unleash their inner Al Michaels—the “Sports Broadcasting: Play by Play” class offered by the College of Continuing Education.
Taught by Fox 40 sportscaster Mark Demsky, the class is based on a sports broadcasting camp he attended early in his career. But while the camp featured top names in broadcasting, Demsky found it did not offer enough hands-on learning. “Other than critiques of our calls, there wasn’t much teaching on ‘how’ to do play-by-play.” So when Demsky designed his course curriculum, he broke down the essentials of the process for his students.
Demsky’s six-week course combines lectures on the nuts and bolts of calling a game with in-class practice and visits from guest speakers from the local broadcasting world. They’ve included Grant Napear and Gary Gerould, the television and radio play-by-play announcers for the Sacramento Kings, and Sacramento Monarchs play-by-play callers Jim Kozimor and Jason Ross.
The class culminates with an opportunity to call a game in the press box at Raley Field during a Sacramento River Cats game or at Hornet Field at a Sacramento State football game.
What differentiates Demsky’s class from most others on campus, and probably on any other campus, is the in-class participation. In a sort of United Nations simultaneous translation to the extreme, as a tape of a sporting event plays on a screen in the front of the room, each student provides his or her own commentary into a voice recorder—all at the same time. “It can get pretty loud,” says student Stu Varner.
In preparation for the mock broadcasts, Demsky offers game-calling tips such as how to add “color” by talking about elements like crowd or field conditions, how to work with an analyst, and what to do when they make a mistake or need to buy time to clarify what’s happened in play. He also provides tools of the trade for the broadcast including sample rosters and “spotting charts” listing names, numbers and stats about players in each game.
During the cacophony, Demsky walks the room, listening and offering critiques. But he also encourages each student to use his or her own style. “I stress for them to be individual, to develop who they are into a play-by-play broadcaster,” he says.
Between classes, students are encouraged to “call” as many games as possible. Demsky sends them home with recorder and headset to practice with. Students leave the tapes with him to review at the next class.
Getting this kind of analysis from someone with experience in the industry is invaluable, says Varner, who is taking Demsky’s course for the second time. A golf course restaurant manager by day, Varner practices his new passion as the game day announcer for Rancho Cordova high school baseball, and hopes to make game-calling a permanent gig. “I’m 55, but I want to get into it real bad,” he says.
And there’s work to be found. Another student who also took the class twice, Greg Young, has already landed a gig announcing minor league indoor soccer and AA baseball. “It’s great to see the success,” Demsky says.
Continuing Education also offers a Demsky-taught course in sports anchoring and reporting. And they are considering offering a blended course this summer for those who want to balance their announcing skills with a spot behind the sports desk.
