Ford Field Trip Gives Students Taste of Football Finals Broadcasting
By
Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
December 7, 2021
Four levels above them, in the press box, a group of prospective broadcasters were touring the facilities. The high school students had spent the Fall sports season streaming games to the NFHS Network and now were learning about a career in broadcasting from Eric Vandefifer, a Montrose High grad currently serving as the radio voice of Saginaw Valley State University basketball and as a contributor to a variety of high school broadcast channels including the MHSAA Network.
Seven years ago, Vandefifer was in a similar situation. He was part of a field trip to Ford Field for the Finals that helped him realize sports broadcasting was a career he wanted to pursue. Those field trips were headed by Tom Skinner and Thom Lengyel, who became mentors to Vandefifer. As a high school junior in 2017, Vandefifer was named Best Student Broadcaster nationally by the NFHS Network.
“With Tom Skinner now deceased and Thom Lengyel retired from the broadcast business, I just felt like I had to continue this and their legacy,” Vandefifer said. “It was important to me to keep it going because when I was in school, it was something I looked forward to.”
Nearly 50 students from Lowell, Montrose, Lake Orion, Mount Pleasant and Ann Arbor Greenhills high schools made the Nov. 26-27 trip to Ford Field. They were able to film highlights, interview players, practice announcing the games, meet other members of the press and more. For Vandefifer, giving back to students who are in the position he once was is very rewarding.
“We had the ability to feel like real media members for a day. I wanted to be able to give other students that same opportunity,” Vandefifer said. “Seeing kids who have a love for sportscasting and that drive to get better gives me real hope for the next generation in this business.”
And after the field trips were done each day, Vandefifer put his headphones on, got behind the microphone and called the two afternoon games for the MHSAA Championship Network.
PHOTOS (Top) Eighth grader Sam Belill, left, and freshman Owen Leitelt from Montrose practice calling a game from the Ford Field press box. (Middle) Mount Pleasant make a stop at the press conference room. (Photos provided by the Montrose and Mount Pleasant School Broadcast Programs.)
MHSAA TV: Boys Hoops District Semis Schedule
March 11, 2020
By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
Here is the schedule for MHSAA Boys Basketball District Semifinal games with live streaming video on Wednesday (March 11) on the NFHS Network and MHSAA.tv:
- District 1 at Marquette - Marquette v. Gaylord, 6 PM
- District 4 at Grand Blanc - Flint Southwestern v. Davison, 5 PM; Lapeer v. Grand Blanc, 7 PM
- District 6 at West Bloomfield - Orchard Lake St Mary's v. Bloomfield Hills, 5 PM; Waterford Mott v. West Bloomfield, 7 PM
- District 7 at Walled Lake Northern - Walled Lake Northern v. Milford, 5 PM; Walled Lake Western v. White Lake Lakeland, 7 PM
- District 8 at Howell - Howell v. Fenton, 6 PM; Holly v. Linden, 7:30 PM
- District 9 at Cedar Springs - Grand Rapids Northview v. Rockford, 5 PM; Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern v. Lowell, 7 PM
- District 13 at St. Joseph - Stevensville Lakeshore v. Mattawan, 5 PM; Kalamazoo Central v. St. Joseph, 7 PM
- District 17 at Brighton - Ann Arbor Skyline v. Dexter, 5 PM; South Lyon East v. South Lyon, 7 PM
- District 18 at Saline - Ann Arbor Huron v. Belleville, 5:30 PM; Ypsilanti Lincoln v. Ypsilanti Community, 7 PM
- District 35 at Cadillac - Cadillac v. Big Rapids, 6 PM; Ludington v. Reed City, 8 PM
- District 36 at Clare - Clare v. Remus Chippewa Hills, 6 PM; Gladwin v. Tawas, 7:30 PM
- District 39 at Bridgeport - Bridgeport v. Caro, 5:30 PM; Frankenmuth v. Mt. Morris, 7:30 PM
- District 40 at Corunna - Ovid-Elsie v. Corunna, 5:30 PM; Perry v. Owosso, 7 PM
- District 49 at Williamston - Lansing Catholic v. Lansing Sexton, 5:30 PM; Williamston v. Haslett, 7 PM
- District 63 at Armada - Croswell-Lexington v. Imlay City, 6 PM; Armada v. Yale, 7:30 PM
- District 64 at Flint Powers Catholic - Goodrich v. Lake Fenton, 6 PM; Flint Powers Catholic v. Ortonville Brandon, 7:30 PM
- District 65 at Calumet - Calumet v. L'Anse, 7 PM
- District 67 at St. Ignace – St. Ignace v. Charlevoix, 6:30 PM
- District 75 at Pewamo-Westphalia - Pewamo-Westphalia v. Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, 6 PM; Potterville v. Vermontville Maple Valley, 7:30 PM
- District 76 at Grandville Calvin Christian - Grand Rapids Covenant Christian v. Holland Black River, 5:30 PM; Grandville Calvin Christian v. Wyoming Potter's House, 7:15PM
- District 88 at Riverview Gabriel Richard - Ecorse v. Allen Park Cabrini, 6 PM; Taylor Prep v. Riverview Gabriel Richard, 7:30 PM
- District 94 at Burton Bendle - Burton Bentley v. Flint Beecher, 5:30 PM; Burton Bendle v. Otisville LakeVille, 7 PM
- District 95 at Reese - New Lothrop v. Hemlock, 6 PM; Reese v. Saginaw Valley Lutheran, 7:30 PM
- District 98 at Painesdale Jeffers - Painesdale Jeffers v. Dollar Bay, 7 PM
- District 103 at Pellston - Pellston v. Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian, 5:30 PM; Alanson v. Petoskey St. Michael Academy 7 PM
- District 107 at Brethren - Frankfort v. Manistee Catholic Central, 6 PM; Brethren v. Onekama, 7:30 PM
- District 121 at Plymouth Christian Academy - Ann Arbor Central Academy v. Livingston Christian, 5:30 PM; Westland Huron Valley Lutheran v. Plymouth Christian Academy, 7 PM
- District 124 at Bloomfield Hills Roeper - Bloomfield Hills Roeper v. Novi Christian, 5:30 PM; West Bloomfield Frankel Jewish Academy v. Southfield Christian, 7 PM
- District 125 at Auburn Hills Oakland Christian - Auburn Hills Oakland Christian v. Chesterfield Austin Catholic, 6 PM; Sterling Heights Parkway Christian v. Warren Michigan Math & Science, 7:30 PM
The schedules for District Finals will be released the day before that round. You can always reach a list of the upcoming tournament games by Clicking Here.
The basketball action is part of a week of more than 200 live events on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network. You can Click Here to look at the latest list of all upcoming varsity games.
NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $10.99 a month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants benefit as a portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program.
A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA Website.