By: Lathan “Laytin” Gil
The semester is starting back up, and do you know what that means??? That means its FOOTBALL SEASON!!!! The sports broadcasting team is very excited to get back to calling multiple games scheduled this season on 107.7 The Bronc and 107.7 The Bronc Retro!
Jon Coiro ‘28, CJ Jackson ‘28, and Jake Rodriguez’28 all spoke to me about their expectations, hopes, new broadcast equipment, strategies, and MORE!!!
The Upcoming Season & Coming Back After a Summer Off!
This season we are broadcasting Rancocas Valley Regional High School and Lawrence High School high school football games! This year’s teams are experienced broadcasters and familiar with each team, but with the addition of our new sideline reporter equipment, they need to get their feet wet first. For second year color analyst Jon Coiro ‘29 he feels it will all come back naturally at kickoff (thanks to the constant work flow over the summer), “As many of us at 107.7 The Bronc do, we have a constant flow of content over the summer. I do this with The Best Damn Sports Report, The Overtime and my remote internship with Tunnel Vision Network. I was also fortunate enough to keep broadcasting for The Bronc a month after the semester ended, so I think everything will remain fresh.”
An Advancement in The World of Broadcasting
With the addition of the Comrex Fieldlink this summer, our broadcasters will now be broadcasting from the field and report from the sidelines for the first time in 107.7 The Bronc history. CJ Jackson’28 believes this equipment to be a real game changer for The Bronc. “Our sideline reporter will be able to provide updates on injuries, player and coach reactions, and other information that may not be visible from the booth.”
These Students Truly Form A Bond From Broadcasting These Games!
It may be hard to believe, but our Bronc broadcasters aren’t just doing this for the experience LOL! But there are other reasons why they like to broadcast sports on 107.7 The Bronc and 107.7 The Bronc Retro. For Jake Rodriguez it’s all about the professional and personal relationships broadcasting these games creates, “It has to be the relationship with my fellow broadcasters. Being able to do it for the first time with the guys was such a surreal experience. It’s going to get even better this year!”
Of course, since these schools do not play at Rider University, that means our young broadcasters have to to travel! Jon Coiro ‘28 said it’s actually one of the unique things about broadcasting RV football, “All of the games are a half an hour drive from Rider. This gives us time to bond. That’s different from broadcasting LHS [football] since that’s [school] around the corner. Most of the team is from South Jersey too, so it gives a wave of nostalgia.”
Preparing For The Games!
The way Jon coiro explains it, preparation process for a broadcast isn’t an easy one! “Leading up to the game, we pick a time and day early in the week to interview the head coach of the Red Devils, Garret Lucas . On game day, we pack a bag with all of our equipment and aim to get to the field about 90-120 minutes before kickoff, so that way we can set up and resolve any technical issues in a timely manner. As for gameday prep, our go-to source of information is on NJ.com since it is high school football, but we often use other sites like MaxPreps for out-of-state schools and Hudl for player number confirmations. When the broadcast is over, we upload each full game on Spotify commercial-free, and we always try to be on the lookout for top calls throughout the game, so we can save them for [awards], demo reels and potential employers. We try to make the broadcast enjoyable by implementing in-game updates through social media, usually run by a color commentator or sideline reporter, along with some sense of humor to keep listeners engaged. I found myself relistening to broadcasts during my free time to find some positives and things we can work on as a team, and I feel that it really helps in the long run.”
You can listen to the RVRHS football this season on 107.7 The Bronc RETRO and to the Lawrence High School games on 107.7 The Bronc FM.
The RV season opener is happening today, August 28! So make sure to tune in!