Ball State’s Department of Telecommunications held its annual banquet April 28 at the Alumni Center to honor academic year 2015-16 for its students.
For the night, over $32,000 in scholarships were awarded to the largest department on campus, including several Sports Link members winning awards.
The banquet honored the late Bill Bryant with its 2016 TCOM Alum of the Year award, presented by former professor and department chairperson, Dr. Joe Misiewicz. Bryant’s wife, Holly, and his daughters, Heidi and Kendall, accepted the honor.
Craig Named First Bill Bryant Scholarship Winner
Sophomore Matt Craig, who owns a 3.7 grade-point average as a digital sports production major and a minor in marketing, was awarded the first Bill Bryant Sports Production Scholarship.
Bryant, who lost his battle to cancer in 2015, was one of four founding members of Ball State Sports Link in the program’s pilot semester in 2008. Bryant graduated from Ball State in 1986 with a degree in telecommunications, he returned to spend 26 more years teaching and promoting the university.
Bryant worked for the Indianapolis Colts as an end zone camera operator for years and then was promoted to Game Day Producer. He also did similar camera work for the Indiana Pacers and the Indianapolis 500 for years, and was a regular crew member for a wide-range of Big Ten contests throughout the Midwest.
Bryant also crewed for Mecum Auto Auctions and Auctions America. His name could be found in TV credits for ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports, IRL, Speed, NFL Network, Comcast, ABC, Discovery/Velocity, and NBC/NBCSN.
Tidrow Wins Morry Mannies Scholarship
Sophomore Mick Tidrow, who owns a 3.5 grade-point average in digital sports production, earned the Morry Mannies Sports Broadcasting Scholarship awarded by Mannies.
Mannies served as Ball State’s play-by-play announcer for both football and men’s basketball for 56 years beginning as a freshman at Ball State in 1956. He received his bachelor’s degree from Ball State in 1960 plus a master’s in 1964.
Mannies is a three-time winner of the Indiana Sportscaster of the Year Award and a three-time recipient of the Mid-American Conference Sportscaster of the Year honor. He has been inducted into the following Hall of Fames — MAC, Ball State Athletics, Indiana Basketball, Indiana Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association and Delaware County.
Mannies has broadcast over 7,000 Ball State and high school football and basketball games and logged over 30,000 hours behind the microphone.
2015-16 Sports Link Award Winners
Sports Link Member of the Year: Zac Miklusak
NCAA Digital Externship: Zac Miklusak
Sports Link Most Improved Member of the Year: Kaitlyn Young
Sports Link Newcomer of the Year: Jason Porter
Digital Sports Production Freshman of the Year: Connor Nichols
WCRD Member of the Year: Jake Bartelson*
*Sports Link Member
