Rowan’s sports media program partners with Wings affiliate as a building block for students and athletes

A dozen college students are getting a once-in-a-lifetime experience this summer with the Greater Philadelphia Collegiate Box Lacrosse League, which is affiliated with the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League.

Located at Steelyard Sports in King of Prussia, the students studying sports communication and media at Rowan are responsible for all of the behind-the-scenes work for a standard broadcast, from filming and directing to live commentary and play-by-play. They’re showcasing their work live on NLL+, a free streaming service, during a five-week internship.

Despite the league being in its second year of existence, it’s the first time these college students have an opportunity for hands-on experience with the GPCBLL.

“I get calls from people interested in us being involved in their broadcasts in some way, shape, or form,” said Neil Hartman, the senior director of Rowan’s Center for Sports Communication & Social Impact. “[Philadelphia Wings president Marc Zamarin] reached out to me, and we had talked in the past about potentially doing some things for the club during the season, but he brought up the summer league. They wanted to stream it and thought of us.”

The partnership with the Wings is just one of many professional partnerships that the program offers. Throughout the academic year, students can land internships with the Delaware Blue Coats (the 76ers’ NBA G League affiliate), Wilmington Blue Rocks (the Washington Nationals’ high-A affiliate), and Philadelphia Rebels of the North American Hockey League.

“It’s all about creating relationships and observing and learning while you’re in those internships,” Hartman said. “There’s plenty of opportunities out there for students that really show initiative and get out there and get involved.”

Hunter Greene, a rising senior at Rowan, is a prime example of that. He’s landed production internships with the Blue Coats and Blue Rocks, and he currently serves as the executive producer for the GPCBLL.

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“We have our broadcasters. They do preparation for each game. Once that audio board goes up, [they] know what they’re doing,” Greene said. “And then our camera operators, everyone has been taught how to shoot a lacrosse game so everybody knows what they’re doing, and I’m back here controlling it all, choosing the camera angles, operating the stream for our replay and graphics on the stream as well.”

Greene is at every game because of his role as executive producer. However, the rest of the schedule and positions are decided by Hartman. Keegan Thompson, another rising senior, bounces between operating a camera and being one of the voices of the GPCBLL.

“I commentate probably once every week or two, and then I’m on camera every week I’m not doing that,” Thompson said. “I didn’t realize how much I loved lacrosse until I commentated it at Rowan this year, so the fact that I have the opportunity to commentate this for an NLL affiliate team is out of this world. I can’t believe it.”

Hartman added: “The one thing that I think is really important for a broadcaster to have is as much versatility as possible on their portfolio. Our students get a chance on campus to do a variety of sports … but we get a chance to do other sports at a higher level than college, and for us to be able to do those things is important for the students’ experience.”

While the GPCBLL is a building block to potentially land a job in media after college, it serves a similar function for the 57 college athletes playing in the league. The GCPBLL is made up of three teams of 19 players who hope to eventually go pro.

The athletes spend the summer being coached by former and current Wings players. Former Wings defensemen Anthony Joaquim and Brett Manney are in their second year coaching the FDR Park Rangers and Spring Garden Stealth, respectively, while current Wings captain Blaze Riorden is coaching the Schuylkill River Monsters.

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“Coach Manney and the other coaches really know what they’re talking about,” said Stealth forward and defenseman Kyle Bergen. “Being able to learn from them is incredible, and I think the skill set that we’re learning is something we’ll be able to see in the fall.”

Whether it’s behind the camera or on the field, students and athletes share the same sentiment about the experience.

“I think [the GPCBLL] is going to pay off immensely just because of all the connections I’ve made,” said Stealth forward and defensemen Seamus McCluskey. “People I’ve now played with, everyone I’ve had the opportunity to pick their brains, learn about more of the game of box lacrosse. So I think everything that’s given here with the resources provided really pays off in the long run.”