WAVES PUBLIC ADDRESS ANNOUNCER
JANE LEE
Sports Editor
Any devout viewer who religiously tunes in night after night to “SportsCenter” on ESPN is familiar with the show’s regular on-air talent.
Some may be fans of Stuart Scott, notable for his lazy eye and catch phrases, including “Booya!” and “Can I get a whoop-whoop?” The sports broadcaster somehow even manages to pull off the “as cool as the other side of the pillow” phrase every now and then.
Others may like Chris Berman, who makes the word “back” seem like a tongue twister after saying it 101 times on home runs and long fly balls.
Then there’s the less-popular but highly-regarded personality of Kenny Mayne, whose unique persona has inspired Pepperdine senior Jordan Bettinger to go after his own dreams of pursuing a career on the set of SportsCenter next to his idol some day.
“You gotta be a little different in the broadcasting business,” Bettinger said. “I enjoy watching Kenny Mayne because he has that dry sense of humor you can’t find anywhere else. He found his niche, now I need to figure out what my calling card is.”
Bettinger, who we go “Behind the Scenes With” this week, has been giving his voice some extra experience by doing the public address announcing at Waves soccer, water polo and baseball games for the past three years.
“It’s always weird thinking of it as a job,” he said. “For me it’s just a lot of fun because I love being around sports, and the announcing is pretty easy.”
Bettinger’s love for sports is no secret. Walk into his apartment and you see sports posters adorning the walls. Look the other way and you see two TVs side by side, one playing Sunday Night Football and the other a Padres-Giants game.
When not heard from the sidelines of soccer and water polo games during the next few weeks, Bettinger can be found playing in an Agoura Hills softball league with other Pepperdine students on the weekends.
“It will be a bunch of us college students against some old guys,” he said with a laugh. “But I’m pretty excited about it, and it should be fun.”
Bettinger, who also works with promotions during basketball season, said baseball is his favorite sport to announce.
“I enjoy all the little interactions in the booth,” he said. “I have friends surrounding me in there, so baseball will definitely be what I miss most because of the atmosphere.”
But whatever sport he is working with at the time, Bettinger just enjoys the privilege of working with the Athletics Department.
“The people involved with the job are incredible,” he said. “(Associate Athletic Director) David Rhoades is the nicest, most genuine person you will ever meet, and every person in there will do anything to help you.
“It’s just fun to like the people who are telling you what to do.”
With graduation around the corner, the telecommunications major is starting to think about life away from behind the microphone at Waves athletic events.
“I’ll start sending out tapes toward the end of the school year, and then just pray a lot,” he said. “It’s such a tough business and everyone has to work their way up, so I’ll probably be starting at small markets.”
Bettinger, who also gained broadcasting experience at Pepperdine with “NewsWaves” and “Sports Report,” got a taste of the business this past summer when he interned with KUSI, a San Diego TV station.
“It was really cool because I got to edit some tape and they actually let me do a lot of stuff,” he said. “I wasn’t coffee boy or anything.
“I also got to watch other people at work and see how, when I get into the business, I want to treat my interns with a lot of respect.”
As Berman would say, Bettinger and his impossible-not-to-love personality “could … go … all … the … way!”
09-14-2006
