RESOURCES:
Sportscaster Ryan Wooley on Facebook
TRANSCRIPTION:
David Fair: WEMU continues to celebrate its 60th year of serving Washtenaw County and other parts of the region. And throughout the year, we're presenting conversations with people who have helped build the station into the community's home for jazz, news and blues. I'm David Fair, and today, we're going to talk about the EMU Eagles and WEMU as a launching pad for sports broadcasting careers. WEMU is the home station of EMU football and men and women's basketball. For Ryan Woolley, working Eagle Sports on WEMU as a student has led to jobs as sportscaster, to sports talk host, to play-by-play and color analyst, to stadium announcer at Comerica Park for the Detroit Tigers. Ryan, welcome back to The Nest!
Ryan Wooley: David, thank you so much! Happy to be here!
David Fair: As you drove on campus today, walked to King Hall, and entered the studios of WEMU for the first time in quite a while, did it conjure any particular memories or sentiments?
Ryan Wooley: It did, because, typically, I come out here and I go a different route and i drive right to the George Gervin GameAbove Center— the former Convocation Center. And so, I don't really get on campus. And it's been probably 13, 14 years as I've actually walked on campus.
David Fair: I can't believe it's that long!
Ryan Wooley: And the squirrels bring back memories, seeing them on campus, the hills but just parking over there by Pease and walking into WEMU studios, I mean, it was just kind of like a flashback like, "Wow! This it's been a long time since I've been here!" And even the smell of the building is the same.
David Fair: Well, that'll never change, I don't think. When you got interested, or how did you get interested, in sports broadcasting in the first place?
Ryan Wooley: Well, it actually stems from professional wrestling. When I was a kid, even now, I've been drawn to professional wrestling, I love the entertainment aspect of it, the lights, the rings, the championship belts. And with my last name being Wooley, I wanted to be the Wooley Mammoth. And I realized at a young age--
David Fair: It could have worked.
Ryan Wooley: It could have, but you're on the road so many days. And I wanted have a family. I wanted to have a normal career. And they're on the road 300 days a year. And so, I changed it from wrestlers to wrestling announcer. And I'm like, "Well, I guess I'm still on the road." So then, I changed from wrestling announcer to sports broadcaster. And then, I kind of followed that suit in high school. My high school didn't have a broadcasting program, so I did what I could which was public speaking, advanced public speaking, and drama. I was also in the marching band. But when I got here to Eastern Michigan University, I dove headfirst into the E-TV program.
David Fair: And you ultimately landed a job doing the halftime sports reports during EMU athletics. From a foundational standpoint, do you think your time at WEMU helped get you prepared for what lay ahead?
Ryan Wooley: 100%! Like, it was funny because I had a radio-TV production course or a radio TV management course with Art Timko, who used to be here at WEMU. And I just went up to him one day after class and I said, "Hey, do you guys do sports at WEMU?" And he was like,"Yeah. Actually, we do." And he told me about the scholarship--the John Fountain parent scholarship that he had--and he got me in touch with Clark Smith. And I came in here, and it was the first time I ever had a real audition. I was actually sitting in this exact room that I'm in right now in the studio.
David Fair: Probably in that chair!
Ryan Wooley: Yep! And he told me to go a minute with a sportscast that I had prepared. Now, mind you, I'd never had a real audition. I had only done stuff in class. And so, I was used to people counting me down. You get me within 60 seconds or whatever, and I think I went a minute-30. And Clark, nice, he's like, "Why did you go a minute-30?" And I said, "Well, I was waiting for you to count me down and have me get out." And he's, like, "Well no. The clock's right in front of you. Get out of that in 60 seconds." And so, that was my first intro to like, "Wow, you're responsible for a lot of things!" And so, that led me to getting the sportscasting scholarship, which allowed me to do the halftime updates. And that was instrumental because, my senior year, I got to broadcast the halftime updates for both football and basketball, alongside John Fountain and Brian Nemerovski. And I learned so much from John Fountain and Brian himself. And then, the year after my senior year was the year John retired. So then, they moved Brian over to play-by-play and asked me to take over color. And I did that for three years with him.
David Fair: I remember it so well! And I want to come back to your sportscasting for a moment. It is something you are truly recognized for.
"Live sports. The Tigers wrapped up their seven-game road swing with a four-and-three mark after taking the final two games against the Rockies in Colorado, which included a 14-9 victory yesterday. Detroit exploding!"
David Fair: You went from WEMU, Ryan, right to major market job becoming evening sports anchor on 97.1 The Ticket. Of course, that's a big jump! Very few people do that. I remember my first job and they said, "Glad you got a broadcasting education. Now, forget everything you've learned, and we'll teach you real radio." Did it feel anything like that?
Ryan Wooley: Not so much. I mean, I felt pretty prepared when I went over there. So at the time, Dan Zampillo was the program director. It was then 1270 AM. And I had just wrapped up my senior year here at WEMU. And he called the station and left a note for me to call because he had heard me here on WEMU. And I think I still have that note somewhere in a box, but I called him and he brought me in. I did an interview, and they brought me in just as a board op--overnight board op. And it was a bad job as far as like, "Oh my gosh! Overnights!" But it was a huge job to get your foot in the door. And I realized, at that point, like, this is a huge opportunity. And within six months, they flipped to The Ticket. And as you said, I was moved to the evening sports anchor chair and I worked basically from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. for a couple of years. Then on the weekends, I went over to WWJ and did updates for them. And then by 2012, when the Tigers made the run of the World Series, WWJ asked me if I wanted to become their main sports anchor over there. And so then, I left The Ticket to go to J. And then within a year, I was back at The Ticket and J splitting time between both of them again as a full-time sports anchor.
David Fair: Our 60th anniversary celebration conversation with former WEMU sportscaster Ryan Wooley continues. His experience at WEMU as a student helped launch a wide and varied career in broadcasting. And we've talked about sportscasts. I do want to mention that over the years Ryan has won at least 11 awards for his sportscast, and we here at WEMU celebrate them all. But that's not all that Ryan does. As he's touched upon, he is exceedingly adept at color analysis and play-by-play for live sporting events.
"GameAbove Center! Welcome to Game Two of our double dip this afternoon. You're watching the MAC here on ESPN! We couch it on tip-off in this...."
David Fair: Now, you broadcast games for ESPN3 on TV. You're doing color analysis for high school football games on WHMI in Howell. You've hosted and produced sports talk shows. As I've mentioned, your career--wide and varied. All of these elements require different skill sets and preparation. Which might be your bigger passion with all of that in consideration: the sports themselves or the broadcasting of sports?
Ryan Wooley: I love the storytelling. I mean it kind of goes one in the same, but I love the storytelling aspect of sports. So, what I like to say is when you go into a game, the game itself is the focus. It's not about me. It has never been about me, but I am the liaison between the viewer or the listener, right, depending on if it's radio or TV. But the story that you're trying to present is here is the game. But before the game takes over, let me tell you the story of the game. Let me tell what happened leading into it. Did the team win seven in their last nine? Are they riding a six-game losing streak? Like, who is the player to watch? Is this the first time you've tuned into an Eastern Michigan broadcast or a WHMI broadcast? The point is you're trying to educate, entertain and inform the audience. And that is what I enjoy the most.
David Fair: It is about connecting with people, but a lot of people don't understand you're not just hopping on and providing all of that information.
Ryan Wooley: No.
David Fair: The vast amount of research and preparation that goes into it is literally the weeklong before the game.
Ryan Wooley: Yeah, multiple hours heading into a game. And you might have three games in a week, or like for Eastern Michigan, I might have a Tuesday/Wednesday game, so Tuesday men, Wednesday women, and then a doubleheader on Saturday. So, you could have four games, not to mention high school football on a Friday, or if it's a volleyball game for Eastern. So, you're prepping for these games, and it's two to three hours, I'd say, per game that you're preparing. I'm building charts. I'm going over stats, I'm making graphics for the broadcast. And then, when I get to the arena, sometimes we have a chance to talk to the coaches or if it's a high school game, we might talk to coaches on a Monday or Tuesday to get information for our pregame show. It's not as simple as just turn the mic on or stand in front of the camera. And I tell students that all the time when I've had career days, like the hardest part is the prep. The easy part is what we're doing right now. You get on the microphone, and you're able to talk about both teams and the game for an extended amount of time.
David Fair: It's almost like the reward for the practice you put in during the week.
Ryan Wooley: Yes, 100%!
David Fair: Exactly right. Well, before we part, Ryan, I want to mention another element of what you do. And for those of you listening, if you've been to Comerica Park for a Tigers game this summer, well, then you probably heard this.
"Let's meet the starting lineup for your Detroit Tigers!"
David Fair: That, of course, is Ryan Woolley! And how did the job at Comerica Park come about?
Ryan Wooley: I'll tell you; it's a dream come true! It's one that I never thought would have happened, but I was actually teaching at Southfield High School of the Arts and Technology last August through the end of the semester, first semester in January. And I had to leave for a couple different reasons. But then, a week after I left, the Tigers reached out to me and said, "Hey, we want you to come down for an audition." And this was middle of January. They wanted me to come down to Little Caesar's Arena. And I went in, and they gave me like a stack of 20 papers. There was eight or nine of us, I think, down there. And everybody had different audition times, and they would tell you, Hey, we're gonna read this. We're going to do this. We are going to do starting lineups. We want you to read about ambling." And as I did the audition, they said they would know within four weeks whether or not they were gonna move forward with me or not. And so, by week five, I still hadn't heard anything, but I felt like I killed the audition. I felt I nailed it. I was very happy with it. And then, by week 5, about into that week, they called me and said, "Hey you're one of two finalists." And then, by week six, they said, "We're going to move forward with you and one other person. You're going to split the role this year." And so, it's been just an awesome opportunity to be down there, of course, with them being the best team in baseball makes it even better. But again, it's not about me, but to be part of the atmosphere, to be a part of that voice that you hear inside Comerica Park. And, hopefully, it's a game that they win, but if not, you still had fun doing it, but it is so much fun!
David Fair: It's always been a good year to be at the ballpark!
Ryan Wooley: It's been amazing! And if you would have given me a list of 20 jobs or write down 20 broadcast jobs, I would never have thought public address announcer for a professional team. But it was awesome that they reached out to me. And what's even better is there's multiple Eastern Michigan products that have graduated from the ESPN-plus program that we have that are working over there. And in one of the games, the TrueEMU Night where WEMU is actually down there, there was at least seven or eight of us working that game in the control room.
David Fair: As you reflect back on your time at WEMU and in all of these varied aspects of your career thus far, what is left undone? What do you still want to accomplish?
Ryan Wooley: If I can continue to work in this field, that is the ultimate goal. Like, my pride and joy and my priorities are at home. So, it's my wife. We've celebrated 17 years of marriage this year.
David Fair: Congratulations!
Ryan Wooley: Thank you! We have three kids. I have a13, a soon-to-be 11 and a five-year-old. And so, that's where my priorities lie. But if I can to do this for a living and continue to just chase my dream, that's what I tell everybody all the time. Just chase your dream. Because this is a dream that I've had ever since I was at least 10 or 11. And sometimes, I have to stop myself and say, "Ryan, you're not chasing it anymore. You are living it!" I'm living it because of my education here at Eastern Michigan. I'm living it here because of my opportunities with you guys here at WEMU, and it's taken me along this path. So, there's a lot more, I think, in my career. Believe it or not, I'm turning 40 on July 30th.
David Fair: Another congratulations!
Ryan Wooley: Thank you! So, I mean, I'm not old, but I'm not spring chicken either. So, it's one of those like I'm very proud of what I've done before the age of 40. But I just want to continue to do this. And as long as I can make a living and make people proud and be employed, that's ultimately what I want to do.
David Fair: You do it very well, and we are certainly wishing you all of the successes in the future, but I want to call on your expertise for one more thing. If other students at Eastern Michigan University with a similar interest in sports broadcasting came to you and said, "What is the checklist that I need to follow in order to create the kind of successful career you have?" What are you going to tell them?
Ryan Wooley: Again, chase your dream! That's the first thing. But more importantly is get involved. When I was a freshman here and back in 2003, I dove head first into the E-TV program. I was involved with the Eastern Weekly News. I anchored that. I helped co-create a sports show. I was doing play-by-play for the student-run station at the time--E-TV. But now, it's all in the ESPN platform. So, jump right in. Don't be afraid. I mentioned that the job at 1270 AM that became 97.1 The Ticket wasn't an ideal job to be an overnight board op, but I knew that that was a foot in the door. No job is too big for you. And every job leads to something. And if you follow my resume or all the things you've kind of lined out, one thing has led to another. And if it wasn't for one job, maybe I don't get that other job. Or if I don't have that experience here at WEMU, I don't land at 97.1. And so, the list goes on and on. But if you're a student and you want to do this, you have to give it your all. But do not go into it for the money, right? It's all about doing the job.
David Fair: If you chase the dream, the money will come. But if you chase the money, the dream may never occur.
Ryan Wooley: 100%.
David Fair: Well, thank you so much for the time in the conversation today, Ryan! And best of luck in all you are doing and will do in the future! And I hope you'll stop by once in a while here at your old stomping grounds.
Ryan Wooley: I got to tell you, David, I appreciate it! I loved seeing you guys down at the Michigan Association of Broadcasters Broadcast Excellence Awards. Congratulations to you guys! Love seeing the work you guys do! And keep it up!
David Fair: Of course, we here at WEMU think of ourselves as the Hotel California of radio stations. You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave. That is Ryan Woolley, sports broadcaster and stadium announcer for the Detroit Tigers who started his career right here as a student intern at WEMU. He's the latest to return and help WEMU celebrate 60 years of broadcasting. To hear the 60th anniversary interviews we've had thus far, stop by our website at WEMU.org. I'm David Fair, and there will be more of these celebratory conversations to come in the months ahead, right here on your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU-FM, Ypsilanti.
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