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.)
Districts Move to Semis on MHSAA TV
March 4, 2020
By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
Here is the schedule for MHSAA Girls Basketball District Semifinal games with live streaming video on Wednesday (March 4) on the NFHS Network and MHSAA.tv:
- District 4 at Grand Blanc - Davison v. Lapeer – 5 PM; Flint Southwestern v. Grand Blanc - 7 PM
- District 5 at Waterford Kettering - Rochester Adams v. Waterford Kettering – 5 PM; Clarkston v. Lake Orion - 6:30 PM
- District 6 at Bloomfield Hills - West Bloomfield v. Waterford Mott – 5 PM; Pontiac v. Auburn Hills Avondale – 7 PM
- District 7 at White Lake Lakeland - Walled Lake Northern v. Walled Lake Central - 5 PM; Walled Lake Western v. White Lake Lakeland - 7 PM
- District 8 at Holly - Hartland v. Linden - 5:30 PM; Holly v. Howell – 7 PM
- District 9 at Rockford - Grand Rapids Northview v. Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills - 5:30 PM; Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central v. Rockford – 7 PM
- District 13 at Stevensville Lakeshore - Portage Central v. Mattawan - 5:30 PM; Kalamazoo Central v. Stevensville Lakeshore - 7:30 PM
- District 17 at Brighton - Dexter v. South Lyon East – 5 PM; Brighton v. Ann Arbor Skyline – 7 PM
- District 26 at Bloomfield Hills Marian - Southfield A&T v. Royal Oak - 5:30 PM; Bloomfield Hills Marian v. Berkley - 7:15 PM
- District 32 at Macomb L'Anse Creuse North - Macomb Dakota v. Port Huron Northern 5:30 PM; Port Huron v. Macomb L'Anse Creuse North – 7 PM
- District 35 at Cadillac - Cadillac v. Reed City – 6 PM; Big Rapids v. Benzie Central - 8 PM
- District 40 at Chesaning - Chesaning v. Owosso - 5:30 PM; Durand v. Ovid-Elsie – 7 PM
- District 42 at Fremont - Comstock Park v. Sparta – 6 PM; Newaygo v. Grant - 7:30 PM
- District 48 at Plainwell - Plainwell v. Vicksburg 5:30 PM; Battle Creek Harper Creek v. Comstock - 7:30 PM
- District 65 at Non-Traditional Draw - Calumet v. Iron Mountain - 6 PM (At Calumet)
- District 66 at Manistique - Negaunee v. Manistique – 7 PM
- District 69 at Maple City Glen Lake - Maple City Glen Lake v. Mancelona - 5:30 PM; Grand Traverse Academy v. Traverse City St. Francis - 7:15 PM
- District 72 at Hart - Mason County Central v. Evart - 5:30 PM; Hart v. Shelby - 7:00 PM
- District 76 at Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian - Pewamo-Westphalia v. Saranac - 5:30 PM; Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian v. Grandville Calvin Christian – 7 PM
- District 79 at Kalamazoo Christian - Kalamazoo Christian v. Vermontville Maple Valley - 5:30 PM; Kalamazoo Hackett v. Delton Kellogg 7 PM
- District 94 at Otisville-Lakeville - Millington v. Flint Beecher 5:30 PM; Otisville-Lakeville v. Flint Hamady – 7 PM
- District 96 at Bad Axe - Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker v. Bad Axe – 6 PM; Cass City v. Unionville-Sebewaing - 7:30 PM
- District 102 at Non-Traditional Draw - St. Ignace v. Mackinac Island - 6:30 PM (At St. Ignace)
- District 103 at Pellston - Harbor Springs Harbor Light Christian v. Pellston 5:30 PM; Mackinaw City v. Alanson – 7 PM
- District 112 at Kingston - Mayville v. Ubly – 6 PM; Owendale-Gagetown v. Kingston - 7:30 PM
- District 123 at Huron Valley Lutheran - Westland Universal Learning Academy v. Lutheran Westland – 5 PM
- District 126 at Auburn Hills Oakland Christian - Waterford Our Lady v. Clarkston Everest Collegiate – 6 PM; Burton St. Thomas More Academy v. Auburn Hills Oakland Christian - 7:30 PM
The schedules for the 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 Girls 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.