The coordinating producer of Elon Sports Vision, formerly Maroon Sports, returned to her native Minnesota to support three of the network’s basketball-centric shows.
It is a bit of a misnomer, but the NCAA’s March Madness regularly extends into April. Following her six days spent supporting CBS Sports Network’s Final Four coverage earlier this month, Katie Halter knows that better than most.
The coordinating producer of Elon Sports Vision regularly worked 12- to 14-hour days between April 3 and April 8 assisting with three of the network’s shows: “NCAA March Madness 360,” “NCAA March Madness Bracket Breakdown” and “We Need to Talk.”
As a “utility” staffer, Halter was responsible for setting up and tearing down cables and cameras, managing camera cables during the shows, handling tripods for on-location shots, and assisting with crowd management when the talent and crew ventured into the audience.
The Minnesota native and avid sports fan was both excited to return home for an extended stay as well as work the Final Four. But this wasn’t Halter’s first experience helping produce programming for a major sporting event.
“I’ve done many NCAA tournament games, MLB All-Star games, Super Bowls, and to add this to the list is amazing,” Halter said. “They’ve all been great events, but the Final Four was special because there were tons of fans from each fan base and they were all super fun.”
In fact, it was Halter’s experience supporting the CBS Sports Network during its Super Bowl LII coverage in Minneapolis that led to this month’s freelance gig.
“Last year, when we hosted Super Bowl LII, I didn’t think the state could top what they did,” Halter said. “But the Final Four committee did a great job showcasing the city, what makes it so great, and the weather was nice, which was a plus, too.”
Elon Sports Vision
Launched in 2017, Elon Sports Vision (formerly Maroon Sports) partners with Elon Athletics to broadcast and live stream university sports events at an ESPN-quality level. Students gain immersive and hands-on experience with Elon’s NCAA Division I Athletic Department in live broadcasting, content creation, sports business and marketing, in-venue productions, and studio shows. Elon Sports Vision also includes student-produced “Elon Phoenix Weekly,” which airs regionally on Spectrum channels, and “One on One Sports,” a talk show airing locally to the Elon campus.