{"id":35481,"date":"2022-10-28T15:11:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-28T19:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/?p=35481"},"modified":"2024-02-13T15:48:28","modified_gmt":"2024-02-13T20:48:28","slug":"nashville-voices-andrew-allegretta-of-vanderbilt-university","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/nashville-voices-andrew-allegretta-of-vanderbilt-university\/","title":{"rendered":"Nashville Voices: Andrew Allegretta of Vanderbilt University"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

NASHVILLE –<\/strong> College football is in full swing and fans all around the country are tuning into games every Saturday as the voices behind our favorite teams continue to be so important to the identity of the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vanderbilt\u2019s Director of Radio Broadcasting Andrew Allegretta<\/strong> has been filling that job as the play-by-play voice for Commodore football and baseball since 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThrough individual experiences, what I saw, what I felt and what I was comfortable with, I gravitated to the play-by-play side of things,\u201d he shared with\u00a0Steven Boero of Pressbox615<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allegretta\u2019s passion for sports and sports broadcasting specifically, began when he was young. In middle school his passions grew with watching games and ESPN\u2019s SportsCenter.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/VandyFootball\/status\/1583862558900920327\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cI think I knew I had a bit of an interest for it at a young age,\u201d he recalls. \u201cAbout the time I was in seventh grade, it peaked my interest just by watching ESPN, SportsCenter<\/em> and watching and listening to games. There was a gravitational pull there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was in high school when he was looking at colleges that this passion began to formulate and narrow down into something that he could see as a possible career path. He went on to attend Syracuse, one of the top broadcasting schools in the country that has produced numerous sportscasters such as Bob Costas<\/strong>, Mike Tirico<\/strong> and many more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI loved my time at Syracuse. Not just from a broadcasting standpoint, but because I met some of my best friends there,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to ignore Syracuse\u2019s history and tradition within the broadcasting realm. I didn\u2019t know it to the depths then that I do now, but I knew it enough to say to myself, \u2018This is something you need to take pretty seriously.\u2019 I\u2019m certainly glad that I did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Syracuse, he worked with the radio station Z98 which had a history of being the starting point for so many broadcasters, including\u00a0Sean McDonough<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Marv Albert<\/strong>. It was here where he began to focus on the play-by-play side of the sports broadcasting world.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJust being in that environment really motivated me, grabbed my attention and sparked my passion,\u201d Allegretta shares. \u201cI loved being around the game, the performance of calling the game, and working with my classmates to produce those games. I fed off the energy of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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After graduating from Syracuse in 2010, he got a job\u2013which was more of an internship, according to Allegretta\u2013with the Walla Walla Sweets, a summer league baseball team in Walla Walla, Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being a native of Maine and going to school in New York, the Walla Walla Sweets were an opportunity to go to the West Coast. This began his journey of traveling and working throughout different parts of the country, resulting in his growth as both a person and as a broadcaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBeing on the West Coast was really valuable for me,\u201d he notes. \u201cI think one of the really neat things about my personal journey is that I\u2019ve been able to travel the country and live in different parts of the country. From a totally non-broadcasting standpoint, I do think that has helped me understand people from everywhere in America.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a summer with the Sweets, he spent time with Charleston Southern University doing play-by-play for their football and men\u2019s basketball teams. In 2011, he got a job with Virginia Tech\u2019s athletic department where he spent eight years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat was a really big grounding force for me to get in with a Power 5 school and really learn what it\u2019s all about to be the voice of a team, a voice of a program and what it means to work within an athletic department,\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allegretta went on to be the Director of Broadcasting for Digital Media and Olympic sports at Virginia Tech. He also served as sideline reporter and pre\/post-game host for football broadcasts, as well as play-by-play broadcaster for the Hokies\u2019 women\u2019s basketball and baseball teams. Additionally, he anchored coverage of VT Olympic sports broadcasts on the university\u2019s digital platforms.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/AAllegretta\/status\/1581334746462040064\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In 2018, he was honored by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association (NSSA) as Sportscaster of the Year for the state of Virginia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When first getting into broadcasting he wasn\u2019t sure if he wanted to go down the path of college athletics or professional. However, his work for Syracuse really paved the way for his successful career in the world of college sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was just the way it unfolded for me,\u201d Allegretta notes. \u201cI kept moving toward college athletics and the voice of the team side of things, which I\u2019m really thankful for. I think it suits who I am personally\u2013trying to be part of a community and getting to know people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2019, Allegretta moved from Virginia Tech to Tulane where he was named Director of Broadcasting. In 2021, he made another move to Nashville to become Vanderbilt Athletics\u2019 Director of Broadcasting. The 2022 effort marks his first full season with the Commodores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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FirstBank Stadium at Vanderbilt University. Photo: Courtesy of Vanderbilt Athletics\/Daniel Dubois<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cFor me, personally, Vanderbilt is the No. 1 job in the country,\u201d Allegretta offers. \u201cMy nature desires to be in and around collegiate athletics, in a community and to build that continuity of the fanbase, the players and coaches over the course of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow, from Tulane to Vanderbilt, I get to do it in the SEC\u2013the best collegiate athletic conference in the country\u2013at a place that has won two baseball national championships. They have all of this energy around it to push it forward with what [Vandy\u2019s Athletic Director] Candice Storey-Lee<\/strong> is doing now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a really easy move for Allegretta as he saw the job at Vanderbilt as the crown jewel to move into the SEC and a growing athletic department. It was also a personal move, though, as his wife has family here.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to beat an opportunity like this, personally. It\u2019s not going to be everybody\u2019s No. 1 job in the country but, for me, it is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being with Vanderbilt for just one year, Allegretta has had a lot of fun calling\u00a0Clark Lea<\/strong>\u2018s first season as Vandy\u2019s football coach, as well as being a part of the Vandy Boys’ great baseball season. He\u2019s also felt the freedom to create and try to take Vandy to a new level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really just a cauldron of energy and creativity and I\u2019ve had fun with it,\u201d he shares. \u201cI get the true fortune of working with people who are passionate about Vanderbilt and who know the history and legacy. Whether it’s\u00a0Kevin Ingram<\/strong>\u00a0coming in and being our sideline reporter for football games, or our color commentator\u00a0Norm Jordan<\/strong>\u00a0who played here in the 1980\u2019s, I\u2019ve got a crew that is really fun to work with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As the Director of Broadcasting and the lead football voice, there can be a lot of preparation involved. Allegretta is very meticulous about the prep he and his team do on game day, doing a lot of work throughout the week to try and make every aspect the best. From pregame, to the tailgate show, to the Monday night show, it\u2019s a bigger process than just putting on his headset and calling a game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere are a lot of layers to it that are more than filling in the data, putting it into a chart and saying it into a headset,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt\u2019s more like how can I make sure that the engineer who\u2019s running our broadcast has all of the technical stuff that he needs? I try to be a positive force in every aspect of our operation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allegretta is really looking forward to continuing to develop the relationship between the fans. He knows it takes time and is an uphill battle, but it\u2019s something that is really important to him. He\u2019s also really excited about how the Vandy United upgrades will continue to unfold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPersonally, I\u2019m looking forward to continue getting to know the fanbase here at Vanderbilt. It means a lot to me,\u201d he shares. \u201cOn a macro level, I\u2019m excited for people to get out here and to slowly start to see the physical fruits of our labor around here, like the physical construction. I know it’s a long time coming for people to see this place really take significant strides with its facilities and on a very real level.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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\nhttps:\/\/twitter.com\/AAllegretta\/status\/1580005261921902593\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think we\u2019re all understanding of what Vanderbilt is trying to do and the fact that we\u2019re all in that moment together is a fun moment to be at Vanderbilt,\u201d he sums.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Andrew Allegretta talks through his time at Syracuse, Virginia Tech, and his current position at Vanderbilt University.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2823,"featured_media":35486,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"close","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Nashville Voices: Andrew Allegretta of Vanderbilt University","_seopress_titles_desc":"Andrew Allegretta talks through his time at Syracuse, Virginia Tech, and his current position at Vanderbilt University.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1539],"tags":[1552],"class_list":["post-35481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nashville-voices","tag-nashville-voices"],"blocksy_meta":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/andrew-allegretta-headshot.png","author_info":{"display_name":"Steven Boero","author_link":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/author\/stevenb\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2823"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35481"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35481\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35487,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35481\/revisions\/35487"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35481"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbox615.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}