Covering the Catamounts
Seven radio station affiliates across North Carolina and streaming audio online at CatamountSports.com are set to carry football broadcasts of the Catamount Sports Network (CSN) during Western Carolina’s 2017 season. The Catamounts have a strong presence on the air across the mountains of Western North Carolina including WISE Sports Radio 1310 & 970 AM and 97.3 FM out of Asheville/Canton; 540 AM WRGC in Sylva; and WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5, which originates on-campus in Cullowhee. WCU welcomes back 1050 AM WFSC in Franklin and its simulcast sister station on the FM dial, 104.9 FM. CSN has also again partnered with Stretch Internet (www.stretchinternet.com) to provide unlimited free streaming audio through the athletics web site, CatamountSports. com, giving WCU a worldwide reach. Longtime play-by-play voice of the Catamounts, Gary Ayers, returns to the microphone this football season, and will be flanked by returning crew members in producer Jeff Bryson and WCU alum, Greg McLamb, who will both patrol the sidelines on road games and provide color commentary for home broadcasts. Two additional WCU alum will again join the broadcast during the 2017 season with Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations – and WCU football contact – Daniel Hooker will join Ayers and Bryson in the broadcast booth during games played away from Cullowhee for color commentary with Dan Gibson – who has been in the booth the past two seasons at home – now on the sidelines during home broadcasts. Ayers has been behind microphone for 31 of the past 32 years at WCU, and has been a familiar voice to the region’s sports fans for over three decades. In addition to serving as the “Voice of the Catamounts,” on football and men’s basketball broadcasts, the Swain County native has done play-by-play for Pisgah, Tuscola, Franklin, Cherokee and Swain high school football and basketball. Ayers, who is the President of Allison Outdoor Advertising in Sylva, also spent several seasons as the public address announcer for WCU Athletics. Bryson serves as the program’s producer, as well as the in-booth host of the pregame, halftime and post-game shows. His radio experience dates back nearly 30 years. During that time, he has worked at a variety of stations including WZZU-FM in Raleigh; WCHL-AM in Chapel Hill; WKSF-FM in Asheville; and served as the program director at WRGC-AM in Sylva. Bryson is no stranger to the Catamount Sports Network as he previously worked with CSN providing color analysis for football and men’s basketball for the 1995 and ‘96 seasons. Additionally, he has provided various play-by-play football and basketball broadcasts for Smoky Mountain, Franklin, Cherokee and Pisgah high schools. Bryson, too, serves as a
2017 CSN FOOTBALL AFFILIATES WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5 – Cullowhee 540 AM – WRGC – Sylva WISE Sports Radio 970 AM – WYSE – Canton 1050 AM – WFSC – Franklin WISE Sports Radio 1310 AM – WISE – Asheville WISE Sports Radio 97.3 FM – WISE – Asheville 104.9 FM – WFSC – Franklin
Stretch Internet through www.CatamountSports.com Public Address voice for WCU Athletics, while also working with WCU’s basketball crew for ESPN3 television broadcasts. McLamb – a 2000 graduate of WCU – will roam and report from the sidelines for a 10thstraight season after joining the CSN crew on-the-air in 2007. His radio experience also includes stints on the weekly sports talk shows, “Sports Talk Live” and “In the Litterbox,” both produced on WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5. McLamb is also an adjunct professor within the College of Arts & Science at WCU. Aiding with pre-production work and as on-air talent as the color commentary on road games is WCU Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations, Daniel Hooker, who also is a part of Catamount men’s basketball and baseball broadcasts. A 2001 Western Carolina graduate, his sportscasting experience began in 1997 as a student announcer at WWCUFM in Cullowhee and includes both play-by-play and color analyst roles in broadcasting Catamount women’s basketball, Thomasville Hi-Toms baseball in the Coastal Plain League, and two seasons on broadcasts of the Charleston Swamp Foxes in the arenafootball2 league. He also spent one season on the sidelines during CSN’s 2001 football coverage. Hooker is also slated to provide play-by-play during home ESPN3 broadcasts this fall. Gibson, who also serves as WCU’s Director of Compliance, moves to the sidelines in 2017 to continue on the Catamount Sports Network for his third season. With two degrees from WCU, Gibson has been a staple of Catamount Athletics since 2004 including previously working as the Director of Football Operations. Each week, the pregame tailgate show starts 60 minutes prior to the scheduled kickoff time and includes comments from WCU sixth-year head coach Mark Speir, in-game scoreboard updates, as well as other special features. The Catamount Sports Network broadcasts using the Tie-Line i-Mix G3 unit, with network breaks transmitted on-location. Also in use are a six-channel Shure M367 mixer and a Shure PGX2/SM58 Handheld Transmitter and PGX4 Diversity Receiver.
• COVERING THE CATAMOUNTS – MEDIA OUTLETS • PRINT MEDIA ASSOCIATED PRESS Joedy McCreary, Sports Editor 4020 W. Chase Blvd., Suite 300 Raleigh, NC 27606-3933 (919) 510-8937 - phone ASHEVILLE CITIZEN-TIMES 14 O’Henry Avenue Asheville, NC 28802 (828) 232-5866 - phone www.citizen-times.com FRANKLIN PRESS Andy Scheidler, Sports Editor PO Box 350 Franklin, NC 28734 (828) 524-2010 - phone www.thefranklinpress.com THE GRAHAM STAR PO Box 69 Robbinsville, NC 28771 (828) 479-3383 - phone www.grahamstar.com
HENDERSONVILLE TIMES-NEWS Dean Hensley, Sports Editor PO Box 490 Hendersonville, NC 28739 (828) 692-0505 - phone www.blueridenow.com
WAYNESVILLE MOUNTAINEER Chuck Fiebernitz, Sports Editor Drawer 19 Waynesville, NC 28786 (828) 452-0661, ext. 126 www.themountaineer.com
WWNC RADIO (570 AM) Brian Hall, Jessica Lee 13 Summerlin Road Asheville, NC 28806 (828) 257-2700 - phone www.wwnc.com
MORGANTON NEWS HERALD Paul Schenkel, Sports Editor PO Box 280 Morganton, NC 28680 (828) 432-8950 - phone www.morganton.com
ELECTRONIC MEDIA
WPTL RADIO (920 AM) Bill Reck PO Box 909 Canton, NC 28716 (828) 648-3576 - phone www.wptlradio.net
SMOKY MOUNTAIN TIMES Jessica Webb, Teddy Greene (photo) PO Box 730 Bryson City, NC 28713 (828) 488-2189 - phone www.thesmokymountaintimes.com
CATAMOUNTSPORTS.COM
SYLVA HERALD & RULARITE Carey Phillips, Sports Editor Bob Berghaus, Sports Writer Box 307 – Sylva, NC 28779 (828) 586-2611 - phone www.thesylvaherald.com
CAROLINASPORTSNUT.COM Chris Kelly, Tim Denton (828) 989-0500 WLOS-TV (ABC) Stan Pamfilis, Sports Director Luke Notestine, Sports Reporter 110 Technology Drive Asheville, NC 28803 (828) 651-4563 - phone www.wlos.com WRGC RADIO (540 AM) Roy Burnette, GM Box 1044 Sylva, NC 28779 (828) 586-2221 - phone www.wrgc.com
5
WFSC RADIO (1050 AM) Sean Gibson, General Manager George Young, Operations Director Keith Giles, News Director PO Box 470 Franklin, NC 28744 (828) 524-4418 - phone www.1050wfsc.com
WISE (1310 AM) Bill McClement, Pat Ryan The WISE Guys 90 Lookout Road Asheville, NC 28804 (828) 259-9695 - phone www.espnasheville.com WTZQ (1600 AM) Mark Warwick, GM PO Box 462 Hendersonville, NC 28793 (828) 692-1600 - phone www.wtzq.com WWCU RADIO (90dot5 FM) Student General Manager Western Carolina University Old Student Union Cullowhee, NC 28723 (828) 227-7173 - phone www.wwcufm.com
EACH WCU HOME FOOTBALL GAME WILL BE BROADCAST ON:
2017 CATAMOUNT FOOTBALL