Stay Classy, Florida

So how did the Gators look this Saturday? I ask because I didn't see all of the game. Then again, I never see all of the game.

I am frequently asked how we "decide what to talk about" on our studio shows, be they football, Sports Talk Live, or the Chevy Florida Fishing Report. Here's a quick lesson:

Hours and sometimes days before we go on the air, the show's producer creates a rundown, a document that resembles an Excel spreadsheet. Each page of the rundown represents a unique item in the show, be it an on-camera read, a piece of videotape for me to narrate (what we call "VO," or voice-over), a sound bite ("SOT," for sound on tape), a full-page graphic, a scoreboard, what have you. The producer gets input from me and several other people in the studio to create that rundown, and once created, it's by no means set in stone - stories get moved, eliminated, and added, sometimes while we're on live television. The software allows several people to access the rundown at the same time from different work stations, and the scripts are written directly into the pages themselves. Once written, those scripts are linked directly to a TelePrompTer, and off we go.

(Why does "TelePrompTer" use so many capital letters? It's a television mystery, but that's how they spell it.)

What do I actually write? More than you think. I am amazed at how many people assume that sports anchors are just script-readers. It doesn't work that way, and it hasn't for a long, long time. Ron Burgundy is a fictional character, folks. If I'm speaking directly into the camera, leading in to a taped feature or delivering a news story, I'm reading my own writing. Same goes for when you see a scoreboard on the air and hear my voice underneath it - all those stats, game notes, and details have come from my keyboard. And therein lies the rub.

For the last two years, Sun Sports has produced up to four one-hour shows every Saturday during college football: College Kickoff, Gator Postgame, Seminole Postgame, and the Football Wrap, all of which we brand as "Chevy Tailgate Saturday." This year, the College Kickoff show has moved to Friday nights, which allows us to sleep in a little bit, but Saturday is still a long day for all of us. While Jamie Shapiro, Pat Kilkenney, Lynne Mixson, Mike Wargo, Mark Cassoni, and the rest of the production staff secure highlight feeds, make sure that the graphics are built correctly, and perform the myriad tasks required to make a show look seamless, I bury myself in the internet. Webber plays Wingate today? Better find out how these two did last year against each other, what Webber's outlook is on offense and defense, and who their star players are - all for a 20-second scoreboard in the second half of the wrap show. Multiply that by the eleven other football-playing schools in Florida, bearing in mind that Florida and FSU need extra attention in order for us to fill a one-hour postgame show for each, and you start to understand the amount of time needed to get myself ready.

The problem is, there are actual football games going on. We have a room set up on the ground floor of our building at Universal Studios where Terry Norvelle, Brady Ackerman, our interns, and the rest of the staff can watch up to ten games simultaneously via satellite - assuming that our games of interest are even on television. Needless to say, South Florida, UCF, Florida International, Florida Atlantic, FAMU, and Bethune-Cookman don't get quite as many games on TV as Florida, Florida State, and Miami - and don't even ask about Webber, Edward Waters, or Jacksonville. So while I'm watching as many games as I can as closely as I can, in order to sound remotely informed, I'm also typing furiously, finishing my scripts for three shows, all of which usually air back-to-back-to-back. It's impossible to catch everything.

We do have help, in the bodies of several enthusiastic interns, who are monitoring specific games in order to edit highlights for our shows. If they see something extraordinary, they are instructed to make a note of it, but even so, a big story can slip through the cracks. For example, during Florida's opener against Wyoming, Chris Leak made 17 consecutive completions at one point, eclipsing a school record set by Steve Spurrier during his Heisman campaign of 1966. I must have been researching Elizabeth City State's all-time record against Bethune-Cookman at that moment, because I missed it (then again, in his postgame press conference, coach Urban Meyer joked that he missed it too, so I don't feel so bad).

Point being, it's tough to just sit and enjoy the games. There are too many deadlines to worry about, and too many blank pages staring at me. By necessity and demand, I have to focus on the Big Three of Florida, Florida State, and Miami, which provides the bulk of our content, but it pains my underdog-loving heart to do it. FIU gave Kansas State a hell of a run on Saturday. Webber lost to Wingate on a last-minute missed field goal. B-CC won its ninth straight season opener under Alvin Wyatt. These are all good stories, but there are only so many hours in a Saturday.

For these reasons, I'm looking forward to Monday night. One live pregame show, one live postgame show, and one game to watch in between - Miami and Florida State. A busy night for our crew once again, but in the grand scheme of things, a simple night. The two winningest programs of the last twenty years going head to head, on national television, with no competition for eyeballs. Winner gets a leg up in the ACC. For one evening, I think I'll actually be able to enjoy a college football game as something resembling a fan.

Next weekend? College Kickoff live on Friday night, two 45-minute postgame shows back to back on Saturday (Florida plays Louisiana Tech at 6pm, while FSU kicks off with the Citadel at 6:45), followed immediately by the Football Wrap. Among the games we'll be covering: FAU's matchup with Oklahoma State, FIU facing Texas Tech, the FAMU-USF tilt, Jacksonville's weather-delayed opener against Georgia State, plus the Willie Gary Classic, pitting Edward Waters against Shaw University. Oh, yeah, and Notre Dame plays Michigan, while Steve Spurrier looks forward to a warm reception as South Carolina goes to Georgia.

I think I need a nap. Stay classy, Florida.