–by Amy Boone
I have the interesting and honored perspective of living with the person who broadcasts ACU athletic events.
My husband Grant spends countless hours on the road and on campus getting know know players, coaches and various teams at ACU. He brings the games to life and asks questions in interviews that help fans get to know the athletes, as well.
He knows countless details about the players’ lives and games. He knows many of the players’ families. He knows things other people don’t know and that aren’t his to share. That’s what happens when you spend lots and lots of time with people.
People often comment about how in the world he knows such intricate details about a particular player’s high school stats or a random connection they have to an alum. He is a student of ACU athletics. The time he spends preparing for a broadcast would seem excessive to many. He studies player guides and previous game stats. He meets with the opposing teams’ broadcasters and coaches.
Every detail and nugget of information matters to him.
He is the master of witty phrases and takes great pride in crafting a sentence that includes a clever play on words. Friends were so impressed with the way he could seamlessly weave minute details and impressive vocabulary words into game broadcasts that they began texting him outlandish words to work into a broadcast- he is always up for the challenge. Some of my personal favorites have been “circumcise,” “smooth criminal” and “super fly!”
The journey the past few years into Div. I has been fraught with many, many challenges, some known ahead of time and many unknown until they occurred. Not only is Grant a brilliant broadcaster, he’s the biggest ACU sports fan as well. He pours so much time, energy, love, and professionalism into ACU athletics.
He has celebrated each milestone in the D1 journey and has endured the challenges alongside the teams. He’s truly the best of the best and as insanely fortunate as ACU is to have him, he is ACU’s biggest cheerleader.
Speaking of Cinderella stories and “The Big Dance,” the past few days of ACU basketball have seemed a bit like a wave of the fairy godmother’s magic wand for Grant. After years of calling game after game from Conway to Corpus and everything in between, the ride of this past week has almost felt like one in a magic carriage.
I got choked up when he texted after each of the games from Houston and said, “One of the coolest moments ever” and “I’m in another world right now. Surreal.”
Watching your favorite person do what they love is a gift. Watching your favorite school achieve what seemed impossible really is “one of the coolest moments ever.”
Go Wildcats (the purple ones… not the blue ones)!
