IC alum recaps broadcasting in pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the sports world cannot be understated. College and high school athletics saw an entire season scrapped, with many still waiting to step on the field again. Seemingly every professional sports league went through a lengthy delay of sorts before returning to empty arenas and stadiums.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was a bit different, being the last major sports organization to cease operations after holding an event in an empty Brazil arena on March 14 and being the first to return to action with an event in Jacksonville, Florida, on May 9. Since that return in May, the UFC has held 33 events in three locations, and 2005 Ithaca College alum ’05 Brendan Fitzgerald has been a part of many as one of the organization’s three play-by-play broadcasters.

Fitzgerald, who is originally from Massachusetts and currently resides in Las Vegas, got the job thanks to a tryout in 2017 after holding several studio anchor positions around the country since graduating from Ithaca College. He could not have imagined having a year like this one when he was hired, but it’s safe to say he’s gotten used to doing his job during the pandemic.

“It’s just weird how normal it’s gotten,” Fitzgerald said. “There’s a lot of stuff that we never thought would be normal, like wearing a mask into a Costco every time you go in, but the broadcasting side of things has gotten pretty normal because it’s just no fans. Once you’re in the tunnel vision of putting on the headset and realizing you’re on camera, on TV, putting out live sports to the world, you can kind of forget about the no fans.”

One positive benefit is that he gets to be home a lot more while still regularly working broadcasts. Of the 33 events the UFC has held since May, 21 have been where he lives in Las Vegas, whereas a normal year would send him around the globe.

“Sometimes it’s good to go away with the crew,” Fitzgerald said. “I’ll be in one place and see the world in a different way and then kind of interact with fans who are supporting their people in different places. But on the other side, more time at home is never a bad thing. It’s been safe. I’ve never felt in danger in terms of who I’m interacting with and all of our procedures. So, it’s just like, the show goes on. This is our reality for the time being.”

Going from over 10,000 screaming fans in a tightly packed arena to only essential personnel in attendance can be a bit jarring on the broadcasting side of things. However, Fitzgerald compared it to an experience he had at Ithaca College during his time there.

“You just got to go,” he said. “I remember that Butterfield Stadium press box. If you’re on the radio in there, you’re in one room with the SID, with the visiting coaches. I remember looking around before a game and just being like, ‘Jeez, I’m just going to announce to all these people in the press box?’ Then you get a good game, you get a big first down or a touchdown late in the game and after you go to commercial, you kind of look around like, ‘Wow, I was yelling pretty loud to everybody.’”

As previously mentioned, the UFC was the last major sports organization to cease operations back in March, and Fitzgerald was on the call for the last event on March 14 before the next five were canceled. It took place in an empty arena in Brasilia, Brazil, and the NBA, NHL and NCAA had all canceled earlier that week, creating a unique situation for Fitzgerald.

“That was just such a strange time,” he said. “We never thought The Strip in Las Vegas was going to close for six weeks. We never thought New York was going to close, and we never thought pro sports were just going to stop for an indefinite period of time. I was on the plane to go from Vegas to JFK, and then JFK to Sao Paulo and then Sao Paulo to Brasilia. The world was very different from when I took off to when I landed.”

Fitzgerald went into further detail about that experience that took place at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“That was a pretty stressful weekend in general,” he said. “It was very eerie in the stadium because it’s a big place and usually Brazil has some of our loudest crowds. There was no testing, and nobody had a mask at that point. I was walking around the Sao Paulo airport without a mask and then into Brasilia. I’m still proud that we got the show on the air, and I was kind of proud that we kept going since we all were down there anyways and didn’t cancel it. Then, I was certainly happy to walk back in my door and still feel good.”

Following a stretch of 25 events in 24 weeks to close out the year, Fitzgerald understands how fortunate he is to be able to broadcast sports regularly during these times.

“[My agent] was just like, ‘Hey, just keep in mind how grateful you should be,’” Fitzgerald said. “Ed Cohen, fellow Ithaca grad and New York Knicks play-by-play announcer, hasn’t called the game since March. There are plenty of play-by-play guys that even though sports came back, they didn’t for every team and they didn’t for every league. They certainly didn’t in the manner that they were before. So, there are plenty of guys that I feel for that don’t get to do what they love to do.”

With a broadcast experience in unique situations under his belt, Fitz is anxiously awaiting the return of fans in the stands and the energy that will bring in 2021.