From covering the infamous Barn Burner in 1996 to basketball in Puerto Rico to Auburn's first BCS National Championship, Auburn's videographer Stephen Sain has captured it all.
After graduating from Oral Robberts University in Tulsa, Okla., in 1976, Sain moved around between stations before stumbling upon the Auburn job with the help of a friend from CBS Montgomery.
Sain was asked to join in the filming of the '95 Citrus Bowl between Ohio State and Alabama, and was hired after Sports Information Director Kent Parker saw a video of his.
"He called me and asked me if I wanted a free trip to Orlando," Sain said. "When he described it, I realized it was a working trip, but I wanted to help, and that got me this job because he knew Kent Parker at the time."
Since cameras are not easy to come by, Sain said he mainly works alone, and because of long and strange hours marriage was not an option.
"You have weird hours and sometimes you have a seven-day work week," Sain said. "I don't think that would work well in a marriage. The awkward part about my job, though, is that I work for media relations, but my actual work is for the television stations and networks because they are the ones actually getting my work."
Since his tenure on the Plains, Sain has had many interesting trips, but said his favorite was a trip with the basketball team to Puerto Rico in 2000.
"I don't travel that often, and most of my trips are not that exclusive," Sain said.
Although Puerto Rico was his favorite trip, this year's BCS National Championship came closest to fulfilling one his lifelong dreams.
"My favorite memory has to be Jan. 10 of this year," Sain said. "One of my sports dreams was to go to a Super Bowl, but that BCS championship game was as close as it can get to a Super Bowl.
"It had all the media attention and all the excitement, and being with the Auburn team was a lot of fun."
After interviewing the coaches of all the different sports on the Plains, Sain said he has grown to love the Tigers he has covered for so many years.
"You get to know all these people and all these teams, so I am thrilled whenever any kind of Auburn team wins any championship," Sain said. "I can't imagine leaving here. It's in my blood.
"Initially I just felt like it was a job, but when you have been somewhere for a certain period of time, experienced championships and teams doing well it is hard to imagine being anywhere else."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
