A newly installed jumbotron finished construction on Ed Burke field on Sept. 16, just in time for the homecoming football game last Friday.
“Greater attendance is something the jumbotron can bring because it is more entertainment and draws a greater audience,” John Prior (12), the senior captain of the varsity football team, said. “As a player, it is great to see the replays and [it] adds a level of excitement. The game in general was amazing, but adding the jumbotron made it feel a lot more special. ”
The jumbotron, which is entirely student run, provides opportunities for students on Falcon Vision, who will do everything from scripting, video editing and coordinating the live broadcast. With 20 students part of the production team, there are seven different job descriptions: music selection, photography, videography, camera operator and director.
“For some of these students, this will be an introductory unpaid internship,” Joe Austin, the Executive Director of the TPHS Foundation said. “But for others that are playing larger roles in it, they will be paid out of revenues that come in for sponsorships on the scoreboard.”
Although students are provided with a great opportunity, it is also a time commitment.
“We show up an hour before the game actually starts, and we are not only doing varsity games, we are also doing JV games,” Sawyer Hawkins (12), the Co-executive Student Director, said. “It’s a huge time commitment. I spent seven hours [in one day] with technical issues and figuring out the software.”
Despite being a huge time commitment, Hawkins, “looks forward to it because it’s really fun, especially in the physical aspect like I love controlling and figuring out all the technical side.”
The jumbotron has many new features, such as graphics, animations, close ups and a new scoreboard.
“I think the benefit of it is that it is a huge, beautiful digital screen,”Austin said. “With 5000 people at an event, it can advertise all the other great student activities. The student skills are going to create an experience like watching any live sport on TV or in a professional stadium, like Petco Park, type of experience. There really is no end to what that board can be used for.”
The jumbotron also helps engage more students and fans.
“The coolest part about it was how the fans reacted,” Prior said. “It got a lot of good reviews from my friends and a few adults texted me and told me they were coming because of [the jumbotron]. It is super special to have a jumbotron at a high school because it is something [professional] players have.”
The jumbotron made its initial appearance on Sept. 18 for a varsity field hockey game against Scripps High School.
“It went great, the Falcon head was a cool feature to have up there during the game,” Courtney Kun, English teacher and varsity field hockey head coach, said. “The scoreboard capability is a lot easier to work with than the previous scoreboard and everything is new and updated. At the end, when we won, they put up a little graphic that said ‘Falcons win’ and the fans and players really liked it.”
The project started in 2022, where a group of parents wanted to upgrade the existing scoreboard. The jumbotron cost more than $500,000, and the money was raised through donations of the schools Associated Student Body, parents, alumni and SDUHSD.
“We started an architectural assessment about a year ago and we have submitted those plans to get checked by a division of state architects,” Austin said. “Once those plans got approved, it took less than a week for everything from drilling holes to putting the pieces up and connecting them.”
Not only will the jumbotron be used for athletic competitions, but will also be used for third party rental services and graduation.
“Overall, we are just going to try and promote every element of Torrey Pines, not just sports,” Kyle Busby (12), the Co-executive Student Director, said.
As the jumbotron becomes a larger part of school events, it has the potential to improve athletic experiences and community engagement.
“The jumbotron is going to really enhance Torrey Pines sports as a whole,” Busby said. “We’ve been number one. We win a lot of games, and the ability for us to add a professional element like a LED scoreboard to our stadium just makes us stand out even more.”
