Otisville-LakeVille First SBP Using Pixellot

January 31, 2017

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director
 

A challenge to schools wanting to stream live video of their athletic events to their communities is being able to adequately staff those productions.

“We had signed up for the School Broadcast Program over a year ago and we were really excited to get our games out to the community, and when it came to it, we just couldn’t get the manpower to run the equipment,” said Drew Johnson, the athletic director at Otisville-LakeVille High School in Genesee County. “That first day, we had everything lined up, we were ready to go, and two of our three kids missed school that day for being sick. It was just a hassle.

“So when we heard about Pixellot, it was a quick and easy decision.”

Just three weeks ago, LakeVille became the first school in Michigan and one of the first in the country to install a Pixellot unit in its gymnasium, automating the process of streaming live video on MHSAA.tv and the NFHS Network.

Pixellot is a unit equipped with four High Definition cameras that cover the length of the playing surface and then focus in on the ball and player movement to deliver the action.  The unit communicates with the scoreboard to insert a time and score graphic on the screen. Ambient audio is picked up by the device, but the play-by-play of an in-person announce team can also be patched in.

All that has to be done from a school’s perspective is type in the event schedule, and promote the fact that the games are available on MHSAA.tv. Pixellot does the rest. The unit can also be set up to isolate a camera on a fixed location, which allows for activities like wrestling to also be streamed.

“We’re going to do everything that takes place in our gym,” Johnson said. “We’re also excited about being able to record our practices as well.”

Johnson added that the school will look into installing additional Pixellot units at its middle school auditorium for musical events and LakeVille’s outdoor athletic fields in the future. 

In its eighth year, the School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events, with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics. 

The program also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions.  

All sporting events – Live or On-Demand – are available on a subscription basis only for their first 72 hours online. They become available for free, on-demand viewing approximately 72 hours following their completion.

Here’s the schedule of events School Broadcast Program members plan to stream over the next week for broadcast at MHSAA.tv

Tuesday, Jan. 31

Wednesday, Feb. 1

Thursday, Feb. 2

Friday, Feb. 3

Saturday, Feb. 4

Monday, Feb. 6

Tuesday, Feb. 7

Be sure to check the Upcoming Events page at MHSAA.tv for schedule additions every day.

The NFHS Network has announced new pricing for 2016-17, eliminating the Day Pass and lowering the cost of a Month Pass to $9.95. 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. Some schools also will be selling Annual Passes at a discounted rate. 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.

Fans also can access scores of games in-progress on the NFHS Network website via ScoreStream. Click on the Scores button in the upper right corner.

A weekly staple on the MHSAA.tv website and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube is back for another year with highlights of selected games last week produced by members of the Association’s School Broadcast Program.

This week’s highlights package consists of clips from last week’s Bark River-Harris at Powers North Central boys basketball game in which the Jets set a state record for consecutive boys hoops victories, an ice hockey game pitting Detroit Catholic Central at Brighton in a battle of two of the top teams in the state and a demonstration of Pixellot in action during a boys basketball game with Millington at Otisville-LakeVille

Schools interested in becoming a part of the School Broadcast Program should contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office.

PHOTOS: (Top) A laptop shows the variety of angles for the Pixellot and the calibration of its four cameras. (Middle) This Pixellot hangs at midcourt at Otisville-LakeVille High School.

100 Stations Carry MHSAA's 'This Week'

September 17, 2019

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

More than 100 over-the-air radio stations and internet audio website are carrying the MHSAA Network’s flagship program, This Week In High School Sports, as part of their weekly high school sports programming for the third straight year.

The five-minute program, powered by Michigan Student Aid, is in its fifth year. It leads off each week with feature stories from around the state from the MHSAA’s Second Half, or from network affiliated stories and interviews. This Week Game Balls are then presented for team or individual achievements in the past week. Be The Referee, a 60-second look at the fine art of officiating, comes in the middle of the show, and is followed by a closing MHSAA Perspective. 

This week’s show will feature the inspirational story of Larry Prout Jr. at Pinckney High School, present game balls in 8-player football to Powers North Central and in boys soccer to Gaylord; address a swimming rules change during Be The Referee and conclude with an MHSAA Perspective on how most decisions in high school sports take place at the local level.

Here is a list of radio stations and web audio outlets carrying This Week In High School Sports

Alma - WQBX-FM (104.9) - Halftime of game broadcasts, Between 1-2 p.m. Saturdays if no game that week
Alma – WFYC-AM (1280) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Between 1-2 p.m. Saturdays if no game that week
Alpena – WHSB-FM (107.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Alpena - WKJZ-FM (94.9) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Alpena - WZTK-FM (105.7) - Football Fridays, 6:30 p.m.; Halftime of basketball game broadcasts
Ashley - WJSZ-FM (92.5) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Battle Creek – WBCK-FM (95.3) – Following game broadcasts
Beaverton – WMRX-FM (97.7) -  Halftime of game broadcasts; Sundays, 8 a.m.
Bridgman – WYTZ-FM (97.5) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Cadillac - WKAD-FM (93.7) – Immediately following Friday game broadcasts
Canton - WSDP-FM (88.1) - Halftime of football game broadcasts
Caro – WIDL-FM (92.1) – Prior to pregame show 
Cheboygan - WCBY-FM (100.7) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Clawson – Detroit Sports & Entertainment – Halftime of game broadcasts
Coldwater - WTVB-AM (1590) - Halftime of Friday game broadcasts
Coldwater - WTVB-FM (95.5) – Halftime of Friday game broadcasts
Deckerville - ThumbTailgater.com - Halftime of game broadcasts 
Detroit - WDTK-FM (101.5) - Pregame of game broadcasts
Detroit - WDTK-AM (1400) - Pregame of game broadcasts
East Lansing - WVFN-AM (730) – Fridays at 6 p.m. during football season
Escanaba - WCHT (600) - Halftime of game broadcasts 
Escanaba – WUPF-FM (107.3) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Escanaba - WDBC (680) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Escanaba – WYKX-FM (104.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Ferrysburg - WMPA-FM (93.1) - Fridays at 6:35 p.m. during pregame broadcast 
Frankenmuth - Frankenmuth Sports Network – Pregame and halftime of game broadcasts
Frankfort – WBNZ-FM (92.3) – Pregame of game broadcasts
Grand Haven - WAWL-FM (103.5) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Grand Haven - WGHN-AM (1370) – Fridays at 6:35 p.m. during pregame broadcast
Grand Haven – WGHN-FM (92.1) – Fridays at 6:35 p.m. during pregame broadcast
Grand Haven – WGHN-FM (94.9) – Fridays at 6:35 p.m. during pregame broadcast
Grand Haven – MichiganGameNight.com – Halftime of game broadcasts
Grand Rapids - WMAX-FM (96.1) – Following post-game scoreboard show
Grand Rapids – MichiganSportsRadio.com – Pregame or halftime of game broadcasts
Grayling – WGRY-FM (101.1) - Pregame of game broadcasts
Grayling - WQON-FM (100.3) - Pregame of game broadcasts 
Greenville – WGLM-FM (106.3) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Hancock – WMPL-AM (920) – Pregame of game broadcasts
Hancock – WMPL-FM (107.3) – Pregame of game broadcasts  
Hancock – WKMJ-FM (93.5) – Pregame of game broadcasts
Holland - WHTC-AM (1450) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Holland - WHTC-FM (99.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Howell – LivingstonPost.com – Halftime of game broadcasts
Houghton - WHKB-FM (102.3) - Postgame of game broadcasts
Houghton Lake – WTWS-FM (92.1) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Iron Mountain – WZNL-FM (94.3) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Saturday at 11:30 a.m.
Ironwood – WJMS-AM (590) – Pregame of game broadcasts
Jackson – WKHM-AM (970) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Jackson – WKHM-FM (101.5) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Jackson - WKHM-FM (105.3) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Kalamazoo – WQLR (1600) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Kalamazoo – WKZO-AM (590) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Lansing – LansingHerald.com – Halftime of game broadcasts
Lowell – WRWW-FM (92.3) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Ludington – WKLA-AM (1450) – TBA
Ludington – WKLA-FM (92.7) - TBA
Ludington – WKLA-FM (96.3) – TBA
Ludington - WLDN-FM (97.7) – TBA
Ludington - WLDN-FM (98.7) – TBA
Manistique - WTIQ-AM (1490) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Marquette – WRUP-FM (98.3) – Postgame of game broadcasts
Marquette - WKQS-FM (101.9) – Postgame of game broadcasts
Marquette - WFXD-FM (103.3) – Postgame of game broadcasts.
Marquette – WFXD-HD2 (105.1 – 99.9) - Postgame of game broadcasts
Marquette – WUPZ-FM (94.9) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Marquette - WZAM-AM (970) - Tuesdays between 4-5 p.m.
Marquette - WZAM-FM (93.3) - Tuesdays between 4-5 p.m.
Midland – WMPX-AM (1490) – Halftime of game broadcasts; Sundays, 8 a.m.
Midland – WMPX-FM (107.7) -  Halftime of game broadcasts; Sundays, 8 a.m.
Monroe - MonroeCountyRadio.com - Halftime of game broadcasts
Mt. Pleasant – WCZY-FM (104.3) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Mt. Pleasant - WMMI-FM (92.3) - Halftime of game broadcasts
Muskegon - WLCS-FM (98.3) - Pregame of game broadcasts
Muskegon – WVIB-FM (100.1) - Pregame of game broadcasts
Muskegon – WMUS-FM (107.9) – Following post-game scoreboard show
Newberry – WNBY-AM (1450) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Saturday at 11:30 a.m.
Newberry – WNBY-FM (93.9) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Saturday at 11:30 a.m.
Niles – RCSportscasting.com – Halftime of game broadcasts
Novi – WOVI-FM (89.5) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Ontonagon – WUPY-FM (101.1) – Pregame of game broadcasts
Oscoda – WWTH-FM (100.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Petoskey - WMBN-AM (1340) – Immediately following Friday game broadcasts
Petoskey – WMBN-FM (104.7) – Immediately following Friday game broadcasts
Rogers City – WHAK-FM (99.9) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Saugatuck - WVYN-FM (92.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Sault Ste. Marie - WSOO-AM (1230) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Saturday at 11:30 a.m.  
Sault Ste. Marie – WUPN-FM (95.1) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Monday at 8:50 a.m.
Scottville – WKZC-FM (94.9) – TBA
South Haven – WCSY-FM (103.7) – Halftime of game broadcasts
St. Ignace/Cheboygan – WWMK-FM (106.3) – Halftime of Friday game broadcasts
St. Joseph – WSJM-AM (1400) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Daily at 1:40 p.m.
St. Joseph – WSJM-FM (106.1) – Halftime of game broadcasts, Daily at 1:40 p.m.
St. Joseph – WSJM-FM (94.9) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Sturgis – WBET-AM (1230) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Sturgis – WBET-FM (99.3) – Halftime of game broadcasts
Sturgis – JoeInsider.com – Halftime of game broadcasts
Tawas City - WKJC-FM (104.7)