SVG Students To Watch: Maggie Lynn, Virginia Tech

The soon-to-be senior from Charlottesville is building her skills in replay, TD, and even creative content for HokieVision and its ACC Network productions

In the live-sports-video industry, the future is bright. Our series SVG Students To Watch highlights the next generation of live-sports-production professionals. Across campuses nationwide, students are playing a pivotal role in bringing their schools' games to fans - from running cameras and graphics to sitting in the producer's or director's chair and everything in between. This series shines a light on the young talent making an impact today and preparing to shape the future of sports-video production.

Maggie Lynn

College: Virginia Tech

Academic Year: Junior

Hometown: Charlottesville, VA

Roles: Replay Operator, Technical Director, Camera Operator

What drew you to live sports production, and how did you get started?

I didn't necessarily know I wanted to get involved with live production specifically, but I always knew I wanted to work in sports. Coming into my first semester at Virginia Tech, I reached out to the former director of the ACCN at Virginia Tech about getting involved.

In addition to working on live broadcasts for HokieVision, Virginia Tech's video-production department, Lynn shoots creative video for the athletic department.I became a production assistant with the program, working on games when I could and just getting a feel for the pace and atmosphere of live production. Then, in the spring of my internship freshman year, I became a production specialist, working all the sporting events I could.

I have fallen in love with the storytelling aspect of live production. I think my interest was sparked by Virginia Tech's Women's Basketball Final Four run because that story was so special and made me want to get involved at Virginia Tech.

Were there any aha moments when you realized you really loved a particular role, like directing, replay, or graphics?

From the second I stepped foot in the control room, I knew that I would love replay. My first-ever shift was a replay shift, and I enjoyed it so much. I have established a lot of great relationships in the tape room and have been able to learn and grow a lot in there. Our lead tape op, Alex Balog, has been a huge mentor for me and has instilled a lot of confidence in my abilities.

Understanding how replay works has helped me out in a lot of ways in other positions, too. I have been pushed outside my comfort zone, including learning how to technical-direct for the ACCN. I love the thrill and pressure of being in such a crucial role for the show. I have had a lot of interest in learning the backend of the switcher and learning little tips and tricks on how to become a better TD. Another shoutout, to Andrew Park for sitting with me for hours to learn and practice. For me, it's all about reps, so coming into practice when I can is super important.

Lynn has had the opportunity to work on the live production of many sports while working for HokieVision, which produces live coverage for ESPN, the ACC Network, and ESPN+. Here, she shoots creative video alongside fellow student Anna Jackson during a women's basketball game.What has been your favorite project or game that you've worked on, and why?

Being from Charlottesville and growing up a UVA fan, there is a lot of excitement for me when it comes to the Commonwealth Clash. I had the opportunity this year to TD the UVA vs. VT women's basketball game for the ACCN. Just being in that role on a game that is always so special to me made me extremely thankful. It also made things 10 times better because VT did in fact win (Go, Hokies!).

What's the most challenging aspect of working in live sports production as a student?

I think the most challenging aspect of working in live production is finding the time to balance my job/internship with my school workload. I am always trying to learn and grow in production because it is something I could potentially see myself doing in the future. However, I am a double major in sports media and analytics and marketing management, and so my classes can take up a lot of my times.

The biggest struggle I've had is navigating my frustration. I want to pour a lot of my time into becoming better at my job, but sometimes school prevents me from putting in the time that I want. Finding a balance has been extremely important, and I am looking forward to next year, when I will have a lighter course load and can focus more on building my production skills.

Although HokieVision is responsible for producing Virginia Tech home events in Blacksburg, a group of students from the department got the chance to travel to a Hokies Football game at Florida State. Here, Lynn (second from left) is with fellow students (from left) Cayla Bauman, Effriata Berasu, and Kam Pestel.What advice would you give to your freshman self?

I think the biggest advice I would give myself is take advantage of every opportunity and don't be afraid to learn something new. When I was a freshman, I never would have thought that I would be TDing for ACCN and punching my first ESPN show this year.

If I didn't have the willingness to learn, I would not be where I am. And what I will say is this: even as a junior, I want to continue learning and getting better. I have my first ACCN wireless coming up soon, and I'm super excited to try a new position.

I've always had the mindset of I must gain as much knowledge and experience as possible before I leave Virginia Tech. If I don't try and put myself in new positions and learn new things, I might as well be wasting my time. That's not something I want to do, and I want to become as valuable to the show (or anything, really) as much as possible.

If you run video production at a college athletic department and

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2026/05/27/svg-students-to-watch-maggie-ly...
	See more stories from svg

More from Sports Video Group