ZANESVILLE — Legendary competitor sports media is part of the fabric of the regional sports landscape.
Originally an idea from owner Aaron Spragg, a former sports commentator and game-by-play talent, it morphed into a novel concept in 2008.
Now in its 15th year, the Zanesville-based business has outgrown the team’s awesome films and recruiting videos that have become their backbone.
There are more of them now, a true evolutionary story. In addition to the groundwork for their team and event videos, the business also digs deep into the team apparel industry. It will soon add creative marketing to its portfolio under the name CrowdBounce Creative Media & Marketing.
The latter is the product of one of the largest social media outreach in Ohio – they have nearly 26,000 followers on Twitter, over 22,000 on Instagram and 29,000 on Facebook.
Interacting with coaches, players and fans on the way to and from high school events, countless long nights and countless hours spent editing the movie-making bay.
They currently cover 25 football teams and 40 schools across all platforms. It ranges from Dayton to Columbus to Akron, but the biggest attraction remains in the Mackingan Valley. They also work for Buckeye Trail and Meadowbrook in Guernsey County and Ridgewood in Coshocton County, in addition to 4 schools in Licking County and 10 schools in Greater Columbus. Garaway, who attended the Intervalley Conference with Ridgewood, is also a member school.
It took years and the trust of coaches and administrators to allow rare behind-the-scenes access. He calls the popularity of these businesses a product of old-fashioned word-of-mouth advertising.
“When you post as many videos as we do, I think it’s because of the way they stand out and people want to know ‘who made this? There’s word that these people are hired and we want these people around and things are It happens. You do something for 15 years and you want it to grow organically.”
A 1999 graduate of John Glenn with a degree in journalism from Muskingum University in 2003, Spragg’s background as a broadcast talent and broadcaster provided him Opportunity to build relationships with coaches and athletic directors at area high schools.
It will only grow over time, and the business has tried to give back as much as possible.
In 2020, when COVID-19 capped spectators at 20 percent for high school games, he wrote checks totaling $50,000 to schools that used his pay-per-view service for the season. Spragg wants to help them make up for the thousands of dollars in lost revenue from ticket sales. His clothing chain was created as another source of income for the company, and he also served as team fundraisers for the schools he covered.
It was a challenging year, he said, and he wouldn’t be able to survive without federal PPP loans and 25 schools asking his company to film graduations that are not open to the public.
“It’s been the best six weeks (financials) we’ve ever had,” Sprague said. “If it wasn’t for that, I don’t know what would have happened.”
John Glenn was his first client and is still one today. So did Zanesville, who followed his alma mater and spent most of WHIZ’s time as a game-by-play voice over for the basketball program.
“Luckily, we retained our clients because we were good at what we did, and it became part of their plan,” Sprague said. “But when people reach out, we try to cover them, and that’s how we end up covering teams so far away.”
John Glenn athletic director Michael Dunlap said many of his teams use Sprague’s company as a local source for video and apparel, adding that both of his products are of high quality.
Their social media outreach only helps extend the team’s success to a wider audience.
“They’re willing to work under very tight time constraints, such as tournament T-shirts, league titles and other things that might only take a few days,” Dunlap said. “They’re offering sales through digital platforms, and from a school’s perspective, it makes things very easy.”
Meeting the needs of teams that need coverage and immediate need for clothing is one of the many challenges that Task Force Sprague faces every day.
The logistical challenges of running a media operation, with shooters traveling in all directions of the state and working in two offices, are always an unnecessary source of stress. The same goes for keeping up with technology and updating equipment, such as cameras and computers.
It’s also part of a show that Spragg is already familiar with.
“Without the employees we have, this wouldn’t exist,” Sprague said. “I’ve told our employees. Our goal is to create a company that can create and enjoy their work professionally, but still provide them financial support. The goal is not to earn media wages, but to earn livelihood wages. We do this Very important to me.
“Right now our entire staff is making sacrifices because sometimes we have to make sacrifices to get the job done,” he added. “But I think they see what we’re building.”
This includes developing talent.
Sprague lamented the current college climate in electronic media and multimedia journalism programs, which he said left students unprepared for operating cameras and how to capture video.
This has led him to work closely with new employees gaining on-the-job experience to capture the intimate moments and highlights the school has come to expect.
The company’s alumni base includes Ryan Wise, who left to become the University of Michigan’s football creative video director. Another is employed by NFL Media and another is employed by Campbellsville University.
“This validates what we’re doing,” Sprague said.
After spending most of his early years trying to be a one-man saboteur, part-time filming, editing and handling the business side of the company, he started working full-time in 2013.
He now delegates most of the workload to the trusty Lieutenant Sean Fisher and the rest of the production team, including those who are also approaching ten years. Fisher has been with the company for 10 years.
During that time, in addition to the original facility in Newton Township, the business expanded into an office in Grandview Heights to better serve schools in the Columbus area and western Ohio.
Sprague still shoots regularly, but he is now focusing on the business side of the operation. This includes finding corporate sponsors and expanding the team apparel business. He will soon venture into creative marketing.
It’s all about not making the mistake that others have made in the past – relying too heavily on ad revenue to stay profitable.
His ultimate goal is to build a company that is stable and profitable enough to pay its employees a living wage.
It’s gotten better over time, but he admits it’s still a work in progress.
He is a firm believer that his employees only shoot events that generate revenue. He doesn’t want them spending time and energy on endeavors that don’t help the business financially.
This is not always the case, especially in the early years.
“I like the business side of it,” Sprague said. “Despite the pressure, I love the idea of doing something successful and figuring it out. Even though it’s been 15 years, it’s still the boot mode and the bootloader.”
sblackbu@gannett.com; Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR
