The goose bumps would not exist during the intro video and replays at each football game if it was not for the Auburn videoboard team.
They make it all happen from creating highlight videos to changing camera shots.
"Intro videos are one of the most exciting parts about my job because Auburn fans are more passionate about intro videos than any other crowd in the country," said Bo Cordle, coordinating producer of Auburn University High Definition. "Auburn has long been known for their amazing pregame, and I'm honored that we can be a small part of that."
As soon as the intro video plays on the jumbotron, the crowd, players, coaches, cheerleaders and fans all go wild every game.
"I really enjoy the intro videos and how they get everyone pumped up and excited about the game," said Jenna Flanagan, a senior in public administration. "It's always fun to watch the highlights."
There is a great amount of tedious work that goes into flashing a single replay onto the jumbotron.
Technical Director Bradley Green, said he sits in the control room with the director next to him telling him the different camera switches, but he is the one that actually presses the buttons and is responsible for putting the graphics on the screen and pulling up replays.
"Afterward my mind is tired," Green said. "It is something you have to practice because there is a lot of things you have to think about. There are a lot of different sources and probably 150 buttons on the machine that controls everything. I practice just by listening to a director's track and basically just go from there."
Replay videos are essential to the 80,000 plus fans in Jordan-Hare in order to catch every action in each play.
"I love watching the replays because half of the time I can't see what is really happening on the field," Flanagan said.
There is always a lot of hype that goes on during preseason concerning what the famous intro video song will be.
"The intro video is only as good as the song, so I maintain a running list of all the song suggestions I get throughout the year," Cordle said. "In late spring, I sit down with several people in athletics and narrow down the choices. There are tons of great songs out there, but the trick is finding one that represents Auburn and works well in a 90 - second video."
This year there is more than one highlight video due to special requests.
"This year we added a team video at Coach Chizik's request, and we have got a lot of great feedback so far," Cordle said. "It's important that we stay true to Auburn tradition with the tunnel and kickoff videos, and I think this year's song 'Family Reunion' sums up Auburn as well as a song can."
AUHD is not only responsible for the intro videos, but they also do the tedious work people do not recognize.
"Our camera operators come in Friday before the game to set up and test the cameras for Saturday," Cordle said. "I typically get to the stadium seven hours before kickoff."
During this time, Cordle plays Norah Jones music to calm nerves, attends to last-minute touch ups, then has a production meeting to go through the script four hours prior to kickoff.
"After that, it's organized chaos until about an hour after the game," Cordle said.
This production requires a solid team to make sure everything runs smoothly on gameday.
"There is a lot that goes into our productions," Green said. "I think people just see the camera and they think there is just one guy in the studio and one working the camera."
Cordle said there are approximately 25 people working to get everything on the screen. It takes a lot to make what happens on the screen every week and for their team to be reliable.
There must be room for error in any situation, and AUHD is prepared for anything.
They feel a lot of pressure when a packed-out stadium is relying on the jumbotron.
"The five minutes leading up to kickoff are by far the most tense part of our day," Cordle said. "If you were at the first football game this year, you may have noticed that the 'Family Reunion' video stuttered about 30 seconds in. Luckily, we had practiced that exact scenario the previous week, and were able to switch to a backup video server in under two seconds."
AUHD has tactics to keep organized and avoid chaos.
"There is a marketing and operations script created for every game," Cordle said. "The script has columns for the PA announcer, the band, the ribbon boards and AUHD."
It lists every element based on when it will occur, whether it's 22 minutes and 30 seconds before kickoff or the first timeout.
Green said they also use headsets with multiple channels to communicate with one another, often times with 10 people on one channel at a time.
Flanagan said she appreciates all of the hard work put into the video productions for gameday. The Auburn football experience would not be the same without the pregame video.
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