Here's how Athens Academy's student-run sports broadcasts provide more than a show
Athens Academy senior Ian Walker was looking for a hobby when he entered high school, something sports-related without being on the field or court.
"I'm not the most athletic person there is," he joked.
That's how he found Mike Callinan, the robotics and engineering teacher who created the school's student-run broadcast group more than two decades ago.
Four years later, broadcasting high school sporting events has transformed for Walker into a passion with purpose, perhaps a future career.
The 17-year-old is the director of the fully student-run production, which covers football, basketball and baseball. All of their webcasts are played on the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Network.
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Being the director means Walker calls the shots and makes sure the broadcast runs smoothly. By his side has been friend and fellow senior, Thomas Collins, the webcast's play-by-play announcer.
The webcast's baseball agenda was created by Collins and Walker and is a point of pride since they enlisted a production crew for the spring sport when they were underclassmen.
"I was just in the media production class. It's something we have at (Athens Academy) that Mr. Callinan teaches and it's one of those things where it's project based. I sort of figured (covering baseball) would be a good project to do," Collins said. "We were planning on just doing one game, we got all the stuff out there and then we really liked it. So, we've done every home game since."
When they graduate in the spring and go their respective ways, the pair hope baseball broadcasts will continue. It's a matter of getting people to do it, which can be hard because there are other sports going on during the spring and how frequently baseball teams play − it's not just once a week like football.
The webcast team travels with the football team to cover away games. This year, Walker said they boarded the same bus to Alabama to cover the game between Athens Academy and Mobile Christian in Week Two.
Friday nights are busy. After school gets out around 3 p.m., Walker and Collins don't go home. They switch into work mode and start setting up. Walker helps make sure sound levels are up to par and cameras are charged and working clearly. Collins prints out the scouting report he prepped during the week as notes before helping move equipment and checking for issues — there's almost always an issue, Collins said, so it's better to get ahead. They barely have time for dinner before the pregame show hits the air at 7 p.m.
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"I love it, because it's been me and Thomas ... we've done it together. He's one of my best buddies," Walker said. "It's a really fun time all hanging out together. We all have fun. And I mean, our football team is pretty good, so we get a lot of good (action) too. It's fun to be involved and have such an influence. We probably have 200 viewers a game this year, and most of that is coming from our community at the school, like grandparents and parents. Everyone really likes it, which helps too."
You can catch their next show on NFHS Network Friday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. when Athens Academy heads to Banks County. They'll have two more broadcasts after that to close out the 2023 regular season, one on Oct. 27 at Union County and the other on Nov. 3 when East Jackson at home.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Athens Academy's student-run sports broadcasts offer more than a show
