Ongoing UF Softball Commentary

Not enough advertising for these games to offset the costs of the production. ESPN will broadcast any of them as long as the host school has a deal with them and they’re willing to cover the costs.

One of the guys on here said how much it would cost to broadcast the UF games and that the school didn’t want to pay for any more of them. If someone gave them money earmarked for that, I don’t know why they’d have an issue with it though.

 

I also remember there being limited camera availability. It was something like UF could only do 3 events on campus at one time and so a hierarchy is formed and apparently softball falls way low on the totem pole.

 

I can’t remember the numbers. Was it a half a million? That’s what they’d need to do the rest of the home games?

 

It doesn't need to be an ESPN style production. Case in point. My nephew graduated from Allegheny College in Pennsylvania this year. He played baseball there all four years. Guess what? A college with an enrollment of 1548 undergrads streamed every home baseball game. Likewise, almost every team they played did as well. College baseball powerhouses like Washington and Jefferson, Baldwin Wallace, and Slippery Rock, to name a few. Yes, that Slippery Rock. They use a single HD camera behind home plate that does a surprisingly good job. With play-by-play from a student in their communications department. I'd guess a $1,500 to $2,000 investment for equipment. Which I assume was covered by the two or three sponsors they plug during the broadcast. A local pizza joint, automotive shop, and Sheetz Gas Station. All three of which likely got their investments back at least ten fold.

PS: The play-by-play guy that also just graduated got a gig with a Single A Minor League team somewhere in the Midwest.

 

Not sure a bootleg production would be legal with our espn contract. Probably either them or nothing, at least on our home field.

 

Taylor Shumaker mic’d on Instagram:

Florida Gators Softball on Instagram: "*tap tap* It’s TayShu on the mic️ #GoGators"

 

My grandson’s High School in rural Pennsylvania broadcast every home athletic event on YouTube with volunteers running the show. Somehow the cost should be manageable.

 

I sent the following email to Kris Pierce at USF
kwp@usf.edu



Gator fan here..
Do you plan to stream all the games this year? I don’t know logistics and economics but, considering a small school such as Stetson could stream 30 games on ESPN last year, it may not be a big deal.
I will appreciate any information you can share.
Happy Holidays
Bill Morris

Probably won’t get a reply. Perhaps if others in the forum would contact Kris or others at USF or even the participating schools, it would get them thinking. Squeaky wheels sometimes get greased.