Football: Cajun Field gets prime time treatment – ESPN setting the stage for tonight’s nat broadcast

Kris Wartelle, The Advertiser, October 23, 2012

If you had a chance to stop by Cajun Field on Monday morning, you might have noticed an unusual amount of activity of the prime time kind. Giant 18-wheelers crowded the side of the stadium. Rows upon rows of equipment and camera boxes lined the pathways surrounding the stands.

That’s what it looks like when ESPN comes to town to televise your local college football game.

"We’ve been here since 7 this morning," said Paul McDonald, ESPN’s technical manager. "It is a two-day process, with crews working between 10- and 12-hour days."For McDonald and his crew, each venue has its own set of challenges. In this case, UL’s aging stadium means a whole set of issues that have to be tackled before game day and the national broadcast on ESPN 2.

"Access has been tough," said McDonald. "One problem is there are no pre-installed cables. We have to pull in all of our own video and audio cables and install them. The newer facilities have that. The crew also won’t be able to run the sideline cart because there isn’t enough space. So there will be extra hand-held cameras on the field.""Game Day" producer Bob Goodrich has been producing televised college football games for the past 35 years. For him, the challenges are nothing new. In fact, he said in some cases, he prefers the older stadiums to the more modern ones.

"I really like the intimate stadiums," said Goodrich. "The crowds are really excited and make a lot of noise. That’s one thing I like about producing college football. Every place we go has atmosphere. I’m very impressed by the campus. It’s got a very nice feel for the old and the new. "In fact, on Monday, ESPN crews were out taking what they call "meaningful shots" of the campus that producers use between bumps and commercial breaks during the game. You might see some familiar scenes flashed across the screen.UL Athletic Director Scott Farmer said the last time ESPN traveled to televise a UL game was in 2009, for a Friday night game against Oklahoma State University.

"I have been looking forward to this for a long time," said Farmer. "Any time you have a nationally broadcast game, it is an exciting opportunity to expose the football program and expose our university to millions of households. It gives us a chance to highlight the football program and our institution."

This will be the second week in a row that the Cajuns play on national television. ESPN2 televised the Ragin’ Cajuns last week during the game against North Texas State in Denton, Texas. Fans and UL supporters are hoping for a much better turnout this time, and UL officials say the Cajuns should have no trouble delivering.

"One thing you can learn from losing is that you hate to lose," said Farmer. "But you come back and work even harder, and they have. This ought to be a great college football game, and we anticipate the Rajun Cajuns to come out in full force."Farmer said the Athletic Department will also be adding to the excitement by rolling out a "half- time report" on the master facilities plan, which will address some of the challenges crews like the one from ESPN face when broadcasting games. He said fans may get to see some pictures of what a newly renovated UL stadium might look like in the future."When we renovate our stadium, we will try to capture some of of the character that makes it (the stadium) so unique," Farmer added.

The UL Arkansas State game begins at 7 p.m. at Cajun Field and can be seen on ESPN2.