By Carter Goodson, Reporter
MOUNT BERRY, Ga.–Berry College’s on campus, student-led multimedia organization, Viking Fusion, relaunched its sports broadcast department in partnership with Berry athletics to end a one-year hiatus caused by a lack of funding.
Now, after having streamed all of Berry’s home football games, the newly recast sports department turns its attention to basketball, softball and lacrosse.
“We had to scramble to get everything ready for football season, but the student team has done a great job learning the equipment and learning on the job,” said Steven Hames, faculty advisor to Viking Fusion and a staff member with the Department of Communication.
As a part of the LifeWorks program, Viking Fusion helps in “developing professional and transferable skills through on-the-job learning” for its student workers,” Hames said. The broadcasts allow students to learn “to really focus your attention on the action and what you are supposed to be doing because there are no do-overs on this.”
Resume hit
Longer term, participation in the broadcasts gives Fusion students, who mostly are volunteers, a valuable line to add to their resumes.
“We have a lot of people who want to work in sports broadcasting,” said Kenadie Tuner, executive director of Viking Fusion and a senior Communication major.
The re-launched streamcast program is led by Chris Coleman, a senior sports leadership and strategy major, who runs a control switcher not unlike the one that powers live broadcasts of games at ESPN or CBS.
Hired as Fusion’s sports director over the summer, Coleman splits his time with the sports information department, where he also works. In fact, it was Paige Ward, director of sports information and promotions, who recommended Coleman to Fusion.
Huge upgrade
During the hiatus, Ward’s office had to broadcast the games as part of its obligation to the conference. Her department streamcast the 2023 season a fixed, one-camera view, she said.
“We have maybe two cameras in our department,” said Ward, who became SID in late 2023. “The quality wasn’t as good. The connection was terrible.”
Now, she said, Fusion provides “that ESPN type look. I don’t think anybody in our conference at the SAA really has that, so it sets us apart.”
The re-launch and transition bringing Fusion back on stream has been “super easy,” Ward said. The two departments work together. Fusion handles the technical aspects; the SID staffs the press box, including the play-by-play and color commentators.
From Fusion’s standpoint, it’s been a learning curve, Turner said.
It has helped that the equipment this time around is easier to set up and use than in 2023, requiring less training and less time, according to senior Gavin Zielke, a veteran on the Fusion staff.
Balancing the budget
According to Hames, it was the state of equipment that led to the termination of the streamcast program in 2023. Without a budget for replacement, the Department of Communication had no choice but to unplug, he said.
Fortunately for both Communication and for the Department of Athletics, President Steve Briggs stepped in to identify and provide the needed resources, according to Curt Hersey, chair of the Communication department. The new equipment buys another five or so years, at which time equipment will again need replacing.
“We’re already in conversations about how we will maintain this and get a budget to be able to repair cameras when they get damaged and replace them when needed,” Hames said.
View Viking Fusion’s broadcasts at berryvikings.com and at vikingfusion.com.