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Q&A With Doug Hauschild
Q&A With Doug Hauschild
Published by Swampy Meadows
07-29-2014
Q&A With Doug Hauschild

Since it's the middle of the Flyer hoops off-season and the furor over the new logo seems to have finally died down, it seemed like a good time to do some Q&A. This time my victim, err, guest is UD Director of Media Relations Doug Hauschild. Bear in mind, this interview was done before the new logo was released, so the subject never came up. I don't know about Doug, but I am really glad that it worked out that way.

Enjoy!

FTS: Most people probably don’t know that at one time you were the Softball Coach at UD. Give us a little of your personal background and how you ended up at as the Director of Media Relations at Dayton.

DH: I began working in the Sports Information Office as a student. It was a case of right place, right time. With women’s sports beginning to take off, and the current SID, Gene Schill taking on more administrative duties, there was a need for more than the one full-time person in the office.

I was given more and more responsibility, and fortunately had more successes than failures. That led to even more responsibilities and when I graduated in 1981 I was hired full-time. After serving as the Assistant SID for a couple of years, I was named the head SID in 1983.

Before I was hired full-time, I had all kinds of jobs to keep my head above water while I was still going to school. I taught bowling classes for the phys ed department, I drove a bus for the NYSP program in the summer, and for a couple of years there just before I graduated, coached the UD softball team. One year the team overcame the coaching they were getting and won the state championship.


FTS: Over the past 30+ years, you’ve worked with every UD Basketball Coach in the modern era except for Tom Blackburn. Give us a sense of what it was like to work with each of them.

DH: Based on conversations I have had with some of my colleagues in the business, I’ve been very lucky to work with coaches who were, first off, very good people. And you can throw in the other primary coaches I’ve worked with – Mike Kelly and Rick Chamberlin.

They also want what is best for their programs above what is best for themselves. And while they had, or have opinions on what they want for their programs, they all listen or listened to me when I had something to say about what was not just best for their programs, but best for UD.

They really are more alike than different.


FTS: What is a “Day in the Gameday Life of Doug Hauschild” like for you at the Arena?

DH: One of the best things about this job is no two days are alike. But when I answer this question, most people are surprised how long a day can be.

First off, it’s hardly a game day in the life of one person. We have student staff, full-time staff, a stat crew, photographers and videographers all producing “product” that people see.

Game day might even start 24 hours before the game if it’s on TV. If the announcers or producer get into town the day before, it’s likely they will attend practice. If they are there, so am I. It’s a great opportunity to sell our program. If they don’t get in until game day, or they get in so late they will miss practice, packets of information will be left at their hotel.

As long as the game is not an early afternoon game, I will be in the office during normal business hours. I will definitely be at the team’s shootaround (approx. 2 pm) and stay at the Arena from then on.

During the game, I will be “backstage” troubleshooting. Some in my position make sure they are sitting courtside, but I feel someone else can answer the phone and track me down if there is a problem.

After the game we have scores to report, stats to send out, recaps to write, photos to edit and videos to be uploaded. While much of this is going on, I am managing the post-game media sessions.

On a good night, I head home roughly five hours after tipoff, and plan on being back in the office for regular office hours the next morning.


FTS: What’s the most bizarre request you ever got from a member of the media?

DH: This one’s up there. Really, who wants to know what I do?

FTS: Okay in the space of a few days in March, UD hosted the “First Four”; the Flyer men’s team played in the NCAAs in Buffalo and the women’s team did likewise at Penn State. How on earth did your department handle all of that?

DH: As I said, we have a great team. And we were planning on it. You may not remember, but we sure do, that we also have spring sports to worry about. We also had quite a hectic first week of the tournament the year before when we hosted 10 games in six days. It did feel weird that I was not the last person out of the media area on the second night of the First Four. That was a new experience after all of the tournaments we have hosted over the years.

FTS: What was your favorite game from the NCAA Elite Eight run and why?

DH: That’s such a tough question. If I had to pick one, I’d say the Syracuse game. It was the biggest upset and brought so much more attention to us. I was able to plant the Devin Oliver-President Obama story with CBS, and that led to Devin getting a shoutout from the White House. My most vivid memory is how our small sliver of red in the stands drew the ire of the sea of orange during a deadball timeout. Our fans’ energy woke up their fans, and the energy level in the building went off the charts. In an instant, the game went from kind of a plodding affair to a very exciting game with a very exciting finish.

FTS: Probably the most confusing issue facing Flyer fans (especially us out-of-towners) is whether or not a Flyer game will be streamed on the web or not. Can you lay that out for us and what contractual obligations prevent a game from being streamed?

DH: Probably need a little background on this. When streaming was new, most people in the broadcast industry did not see much value in streaming video, and basically gave it away. Then the companies that carried the games – cable and small dish providers – did not appreciate the television people allowing a pathway for anyone to see the games. So as agreements expired and were renewed, part of the contracts involved restricting free access via the internet.

Think of it this way: If you are Dish Network, and you are paying rights fees to carry certain games, you want to drive customers to subscribe to your service, or to subscribe to a certain sports package. You don’t want that potential subscriber to have a chance to watch the game for free if you can help it.


FTS: What is your favorite Bucky Bockhorn story?

DH: There are too many. One of the favorite things about Bucky is how the recent players look up to him, and how many come over for a quick visit or just fist bump before a game.

FTS: “The Voice of the Flyers” Larry Hansgen is writing a book about the 2013-14 Flyer season. Ever thought about penning a chronicle of your 30+ years at UD?

DH: No. The book everyone wants to read is the one Bucky will never write, anyway.

FTS: Will the Flyers be an NCAA team again next year?

DH: I believe so. But opinions don’t matter. It’s all about what happens in the locker room and on the court. Our team knows that first hand. Most opinions in January did not have the Flyers in the tournament. Those opinions didn’t matter come March.

FTS: I saw where your son (former Flyer pitcher) Michael got promoted to AA ball. How is he doing?

DH: He’s having a solid season. Working hard and having fun doing it. We’re biased of course, but it’s satisfying to see a good kid get a chance. Not everyone gets that chance and he is trying to make the most of it.

Doug is being his typically humble self about Mike. Here is an article written the week after he was promoted to AA ball:

http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp..._t482&sid=t482

Thanks for your time, Doug and for the fantastic job you do with all of UD sports and not just the men's hoops team!

That's it "From the Swamp."
You can email me at: swampy@udpride.com
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  #1  
By bobber on 08-17-2014, 12:58 AM
Thanks. Great read.

But did you ever think to ask him why the football internet feeds are so incredibly bad? They freeze up most of the time. Sometimes the audio doesn't match the video. If I was connected with the athletic program I'd be ashamed to put such a PPP out for the world to see. Other PFL teams with no more resources than us get it right, because I've seen their games on line.

But obviously it isn't on UD's radar. So much for us out-of-town alumni.
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