So you want to be a PA announcer? Jeff Kurtz says there are a few things you need to know.
KURTZ: You are not a radio guy. You're not a play by play announcer. You're not a color man or color woman. You're a public address announcer.
Kurtz is the announcer at many Kent State University games. That means he's the voice for the fans in the stands. On this Saturday, he's in the Hudson High School library training announcers young and old-experienced and novice-on the finer points of this craft.
KURTZ: I'm going to need people to come up in pairs, one will serve as a spotter, and one will serve as a public address announcer….
Among the most enthusiastic-and the youngest-is thirteen year old Jordan Walker. He's the first to volunteer to call a practice game off a videotape.
WALKER: Hooper takes the snap. He hands it off to Smith and he's tackled around the 35 yard line. Thank you very much…
Clearly, this kid Walker is going places. He's already calling youth baseball games and wants this to be his career.
WALKER: One, I talk a lot. And, two, I like sports, so I'm thinking, OK, I probably don't have much chance at being an athlete because that's like one in a million, so why not still be at the games for free and get to call the games and actually get paid to be at the games.
But most of the men and women here happily do it for free.
MUHN: Best seat in the house.
Jim Muhn of Maumee, Ohio, has been calling high school games for forty years, and says the announcer often gets the best view and a guaranteed ticket
MUHN: Either through heat or cold, rain or snow, you're there, and that's great protection. What more of a comfort seat is that?
Muhn has been to every clinic he can get to. They're offered by the National Association of Sports Public Address Announcers and he says they really help him refine his skills.
There's the practical advice. Like make sure your roster is taped down in case there's a gust of wind. Keep a bullhorn in case the power goes out. And write the names of the players phonetically, or else you'll get some angry parents coming to your booth.
But clinic-leader Kurtz says some professional sports announcers are becoming showmen.
CLIP OF ANNOUNCER
He's more of a purist. He says an announcer at a high school game doesn't need to be boring, but shouldn't attract attention.
KURTZ: Because the focus is supposed to be on the student athletes and the game, not on all that extraneous stuff.
And as the announcers practice at this clinic, some like Andy Mark are mindful of how hard it is.
MARK: He's looking to pass, throws to the right side, cut! Oh, I can't tell where the ball went.
Kurtz's last piece of advice is one broadcasters of every stripe should remember, the microphone is always on.