
ESPN Bolsters Camera Totals as Expanded College Football Playoff Enters the Semifinals ESPN will add three MindFly BodyCams on referees at both the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Thursday, January 9, 2025 - 5:54 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The newly-expanded College Football Playoff reaches more familiar territory Thursday night as the semifinals get underway with Notre Dame facing Penn State in the Orange Bowl in Miami before Ohio State and Texas battle on Friday evening in the Cotton Bowl in Arlington.
While ESPN will offer a slew a viewing options across its family of networks, the primary main telecasts are loaded with production tools elevating these games to the biggest ones ESPN has produced this season.
ESPN College GameDay Stage Director Mike Ruhlman makes final adjustments to the set prior to coverage of the Orange Bowl on Thursday Night. (Photo by Allen Kee / ESPN Images)
The most notable addition to the overall camera plan for the semifinals is the MindFly BodyCam. The wearable camera system sits on the chest of the referees. It has been used numerous times by ESPN at events over the past year like the Home Run Derby, the College World Series, pregame at a Stanley Cup Playoff game, the UFL, and a pair of regular season college football games in the ACC this season.
According to Jarrett Baker, Senior Manager, Remote Production Operations at ESPN, the MindFly BodyCams will be worn by three officials (umpire, center judge, and head linesman) at each of the games. Due to NCAA rules, ESPN won't be able to take audio off those systems as they have done in some of the other deployments.
On top of that, both the Orange Bowl and the Cotton Bowl will feature pretty similar operational plans. Both sites are anchored by more than 50 cameras, including 21 manned cameras (about eight of which are super slow-mo. There will be eight PylonCams in each endzone, as well as the line-to-gain PylonCams. The goal line pylons and the line-to-gain pylons have super slow-mo capabilities built into them. A wireless cinematic rig shooting in shallow depth-of-field will also be able to hit the field after scoring plays. That setup is a Sony FX3 on a gimbal connected to the truck via RF.
There will be plenty of aerial options from SkyCam (which has AR-graphics capabilities), a live drone from ESPN's internal drone division, as well as a blimp or plane flying above both stadiums.
For this entire CFP, ESPN has also added goal line robotics to ensure they have the best chances at having a definitive shot on scoring plays.
Comfortable in Each Stadium There's comfort level from both crews as ESPN is plenty familiar working at Hard Rock Stadium and AT&T Stadium, facilities the network visits regularly during the college and NFL seasons. The network will have more than 150 crew production, operations, and executive staff at each site.
At the Orange Bowl, the crew, led by producer Phil Dean and director Scott Johnson will work out of Game Creek Video 79, as well as GCV Edit 2.
I think we have a crew that's comfortable in this venue, says Jim Birch, Manager, Remote Operations for ESPN who is overseeing operations in Miami. We know the venue staff well since we've worked with them a few times. This is a place that call home when it comes to the playoffs, especially when we're used to doing a New Year's Six game here every year. It's always nice coming down here. We're always welcomed with open arms with the venue and it's always nice to get a little bit of warm weather in these [Playoff] games.
Meanwhile, the Cotton Bowl show, headed up producer Bill Bonnell and director Jimmy Platt, will originate from Game Creek Video Varsity and GCV Edit 1.
We come to AT&T [Stadium] a lot, says Terry Cook, Senior Remote Operations Specialist for ESPN, who is heading up ops in Arlington, where the weather has been treacherous with snow in the forecast. We know the technical people and they roll out the red carpet and work hand-in-hand in how we park the trucks. Thankfully, here we have parking underneath [the stadium]. Being inside is a blessing with the weather.
While there are ten 12-channel EVS XT-VIAs on-site, ESPN is adding a layer of its REMCO (remote) workflows for replay and graphics for Semifinals and the Championship. Four EVS operators are back in Bristol, as well as a Vizrt operator and an Associate Producer
MegaCast Options Return With the CFP semis also comes all of the pomp and circumstance of the network's various MegaCast options, which includes the alternate broadcast Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show from the sidelines at both games.
Other options are longtime fixtures:
Command Center on ESPNU (a four quadrant screen with multiple camera angles and statistic displays)
SkyCast on ESPNEWS (view plays from the SkyCam angle; it is noted that whenever the main telecast shows a replay viewers of the SkyCast will see those same replays)
All-22 (watching the game from a high vantage point that allows the viewer to see all of the players on the field; this is accompanied by the ESPN Radio call of the game)
Hometown Radio (which allows viewers to watch the game but with the feed of the team's dedicated announcers included).
ESPN Takes Pride in First Two Rounds of CFP With the championship game still to come at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on January 20, this week is far from a culmination of a long season of college football for ESPN's crew, but the team did express pride in the work done in the first two rounds of the CFP, most notably the First Round which brought playoff football games to college football campuses for the first time in history.
Each of the four production compounds at the CFP First Round sites. (Courtesy: Jarrett Baker, LinkedIn)
To prepare for that uni
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
06/12/2025
In a live broadcast from the Reagan National Defense Forum, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher Kubasik joined Morgan Brennan on CNBCs Closing Bell: Overtime. Ku...
06/12/2025
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. A new survey from Pixitmedia by Datacore revealed a major shift in the Media & Entertainment industry in media archiving, with 85% of resp...
06/12/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. LiveU has announced that the national public broadcaster Czech Television has completed one of the largest LiveU live production deployments fo...
06/12/2025
NEW YORK The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented the Excellence in Production Technology Emmy Award to NASA+ and Dr. Tom Leight...
05/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nati...
05/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Veritone's Sean King on the Power of Mining Video, Audio DataThe company's Data Refinery offers users total control and governance over da...
05/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Inside the Nashville Predators' Unified, Flexible, Sca...
05/12/2025
Netflix Reaches Agreement To Acquire Warner Bros. Following Planned WBD SplitThe deal does not include WBDs sports assets like TNT Sports (US, UK, LatAm), Euros...
05/12/2025
FOX Sports Returns to Indianapolis for Primetime Broadcast of Big Ten Championsh...
05/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Digital Engagement & Monetization Workshop Tackles the ...
05/12/2025
Atlanta United Lights Up New Emory Healthcare Studio With First Live Broadcast f...
05/12/2025
As Messi Takes the Pitch, MLS, Apple, NEP Roll Out Largest MLS Cup Production Ev...
05/12/2025
ESPN Enters College Football's Most Intense Month With Elevated Workflows fo...
05/12/2025
It's about that time! Awards season is in full swing, and the Film Independe...
05/12/2025
Every year, Spotify Wrapped offers a personalized look back at the audio that defined your year. It's a snapshot of your listening habits, designed to tell ...
05/12/2025
In 2025, Spotify's EQUAL, GLOW, and RADAR programs celebrated women, LGBTQIA , and emerging artists who turned moments into milestones. From breaking record...
05/12/2025
In our latest blog, we explain how Wi-Fi 7 rollouts can drive consumer loyalty with value-add services such as consumer cybersecurity. We also explore how this ...
05/12/2025
LOS ANGELES Netflix announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsens Gracenote has launched Gracenote Content Connect, a new ad platform that provides agencies, brands, supply-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-si...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK In an most important update to the workings of deal-based programmatic advertising, IAB Tech Lab has released version 1.0 of its Deals API for public c...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Pass the turkey. Pass the stuffing. Pass the cranberry sauce. All are common requests of Americans celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family and f...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. Netflix announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved AT&T's $1.02 billion acquisition of spectrum from UScellular in a decision that was issued sho...
05/12/2025
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars From Yellow to Viva La Vida, Fix You to Paradise, this playlist goes back to the start.
December ...
05/12/2025
Zafris Lecture Series Brings Nabil Ayers to Berklee The 32nd annual James G. Zafris Distinguished Lecture series was held on Thursday, November 13, with guest...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the First Look for Land of Sin' - Premier...
05/12/2025
Introducing New Perks to Help You Get Even More from LinkedIn Premium Published on Dec 5, 2025 Categories: Company News, Product News
LinkedIn Corporate Co...
05/12/2025
Friday 5 December 2025
A new Game of Thrones Tale: Official trailer for Sky Exc...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Don Lee, Lee Jin-uk, and Lalisa Manobal to Star in Netflix Act...
05/12/2025
Tis the season of giving once again and this year we've taken our Give Back Fridays' concept and turned it on its head.
In the autumn we were approach...
05/12/2025
Brayden Gogis doesn't remember a time when he wasn't completely fixated on games in all forms. In preschool, when they asked us to dress up as what we ...
05/12/2025
The Grinch steals the spotlight as the theme for The Late Late Toy Show 2025
Tune in tonight at 9:35pm on RT One and worldwide on RT Player
#LateLateToyShow...
05/12/2025
RT Announces New Presenters of Flagship News Programmes
New RT Six One News co-presenter Tommy Meskill
Sarah McInerney & Justin McCarthy join Morning Ir...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & ...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir AJA Ki Pro Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & just:in linux
More Details:Starting with version 5.5, both just:in mac pro and just:in linux sol...
04/12/2025
Wangu Kanuri from Kenya and Godwin Asediba from Ghana are two of this years finalists for Thomsons Young Journalist of the Year Award. The pair are runners-up i...
04/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ProximaVision's Claudio Lisman on Why Tethered Drones Could Be...
04/12/2025
SVG Campus Shot Callers: Imry Halevi, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Co...
04/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: LiveU Lightweight Sports Production: A Step Change in Spor...
04/12/2025
London to Riyadh: DAZN brings the boxing glamour to new production levels for Be...
04/12/2025
Analysis: Paramount bets on the battering ram' with Champions League play By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 10:12
Print ...
04/12/2025
Space City Home Network Launches SCHN DTC App for Astros and RocketsThe Rockets and Astros were previously the lone NBA and MLB teams without a DTC appBy Jason...
04/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Content Workflows Workshop Spotlights Evolution of Spor...
04/12/2025
New Sponsor Spotlight: Geotech's Patrick Wambold On the Unreal Engine Revolu...
04/12/2025
Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nationally and RegionallyBy Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Thursday, December 4, 2025 - 1:52 pm
Print This Sto...
04/12/2025
(L-R) Rebecca Lichtenfeld, Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki, and Judith Helfand att...