Two of the most distinctive programs at Asbury University are the athletic and media communication departments. The revamped Luce Center displays the accomplishments of athletes throughout the building. Likewise, the Miller Building displays posters and props of the hundreds of movies that Asbury graduates have worked on over the years.
The two departments largely operated independently of each other until last spring, when three Asbury media communications majors — Georgia Clark, Tim McCune and Jared Ziegler — met with Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Mark Whitworth.
The trio, who are now all seniors, pitched the idea of using their media skills to create content for the 16 varsity athletic teams. The content would include videos of the teams in action, which could be used to create hype videos and provide good advertisements for the department on both social media and the athletic website. Whitworth agreed and the Asbury Sports Production was born.
“We saw a significant need for video content in the athletic department,” said Ziegler. “Before it was up to the individual teams to provide content.”
The group kicked off the 2019-20 school year by hosting “Media Day” over Labor Day weekend. The event featured four members from each Asbury varsity sports team posing for photos and videos to provide starting content for the group. But continuing to provide footage throughout the year for 16 teams with three people on staff is no easy task.
To help share the load, each of the three focus on different areas of media. Ziegler heads the creative direction and scheduling of the group, McCune is the primary source of video content, and Clark produces flypack broadcasting.
“The hardest part is the editing,” said Ziegler. “Each game we have to edit the entire game footage down to 10 minutes or so.”
The flypack broadcasting features a live broadcast of games complete with four cameras with multiple commentators. The broadcast is available on the Asbury website.
“I have around 20 volunteers that we cycle in and out,” said Clark. “It’s great practice for media communication students and a great thing to put on a resume.”
While the group is new and still establishing itself, the trio see this becoming a marketable group for the university.
“The group benefits both the athletic and media departments,” said Clark. “We see this as something that will gain more people and be able to enhance the athletic experience here.”
