Communiqué
“Gridiron Glory” Returns for 23rd Season
< < Back to gridiron-glory-returns-for-23rd-seasonPremiere is Friday, August 19 at 11:30 p.m. on WOUB HD
ATHENS, OH – Gridiron Glory (GG) returns to WOUB for its 23rd season this Friday, August 19 at 11:30 p.m.
Gridiron Glory is an award winning, weekly 30-minute sports show that airs highlights of high school football games from Southeastern Ohio. The program began in 1999 and airs every Friday night at 11:30 p.m. with repeats on Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m. during the high school football season.
“I think I speak for the entire staff when we say we’ve got high hopes for this year. Southeast Ohio football is going to be as exciting as ever, and we’ve got plenty of stories we’re eager to tell,” said Gridiron Producer Dylan Theisen, a senior E.W. Scripps School of Journalism student. “We’ll be following the title races in the Tri-Valley Conference, Frontier Athletic Conference, Muskingum Valley League, Ohio Valley Conference, Southern Ohio Conference, Mid-State League, Licking County League and the Scioto Valley Conference. You name it, we’ll be there. And of course, it all leads up to playoff action, when we’ll see every one of those teams all the way through to the end.”
This season, the GG staff is not just focused on the games, they will also be focused on telling the stories of the communities that these teams are a part of.
“It’s not just about what each game means for the rankings but also what it means to the fans and families,” said Theisen. “We’ll be at games earlier than ever to catch all the pregame festivities and will do our best to be on the ground in communities in the week leading up to each game.”
The host this season is Jacob Motta, a senior E.W. Scripps School of Journalism student. Motta has been working with WOUB for the last four years and brings a hometown perspective to the program.
“Previously a reporter for the TVC-Hocking and Mid-State League, Motta is a 740 native,” said Theisen. “He’s a graduate of Berne Union High School and knows just how much the football team means to his community and others like it. His insight will make a big difference for our staff and our show. I’m excited to have someone with the community ties as the face of our broadcast this year.”
The other new addition for this season are the roles of senior reporters which will be filled by Chloé Gee-Workman and Jack Demmler.
“We want to do a better job not just putting the games in the community context, but also maintaining the narrative threads that each team and each conference follows throughout the season,” said Theisen. “Our senior reporters are going above and beyond by presenting their own unique segments on each episode of the show. Some weeks, these segments may be as straightforward as breaking down the standings or firing off highlights from our digital games. But I know they’ve both got some great ideas for community stories about the games they’re covering, and the teams in our area.”
Viewers will see five games covered on the live broadcast every Friday night, with five more games receiving in-depth coverage on GG’s digital platforms the following day. The social media content will include video highlights from all the biggest games as well as videos showcasing sights from the Game of the Week. Viewers can find Gridiron Glory on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. They can also find each week’s program on WOUB’s YouTube channel.