If you’re not feeling well, don’t like the weather, don’t feel like going on a road trip, or for some other reason can’t go out on a Friday night, you can still enjoy the Patriots football game.
Fort Dorchester graduate and sports stadium announcer Ralph Nolen Jr. will broadcast all Patriots college football games this fall on mixlr.com. Anyone interested in watching a game can do so at fdhsathletics.mixlr.com.
“The broadcast started last fall as just a passion project to see how it would go if I did it,” Nolen said. “It was well received, so I wanted to keep it going for those who can’t come to a game but still want to know what’s going on. I want people to be in the stands, but if you can’t come to a game, you can listen to me. If you’re a parent, tune in. If you’re a fan, tune in. If you’re an alum, tune in, after all, it’s free. I’ll keep you updated with game reports throughout the game.”
Nolen was a pitcher and first baseman in high school. After graduating, he didn’t forget his roots and worked as both an assistant coach and stadium announcer for the Patriots baseball program.
Before the 2010 football season, former Football League athletic director Steve LaPrad asked him if he would be interested in becoming the stadium announcer for the school’s B team and junior team football games, and he happily agreed.
“I bleed blue and silver,” said Nolen. “I’m happy to help wherever I can.”
LaPrad gave him the green light to broadcast football in 2023, but then resigned as the school’s AD. LaPrad’s successor, Taryn Floyd, also thought it was a good idea.
“I reached out to Taryn, introduced myself and asked if she would mind if I broadcast games and she said absolutely not. So in 2023 I’ll be broadcasting most of the football games. I really enjoy it. One cool thing about the program we use is that people can actually send me chat messages so we can talk back and forth. The coaches love it and other than Hanahan, none of the other schools in the area do anything like that.”
While the school pays him for his work in the athletic department, it is not his full-time job and he provides his own equipment for the broadcasts. Anyone wanting more information about the broadcasts can email him at [email protected].
Nolen can also be followed on Twitter (@chisecast19), Instagram (chisecast@instagrahm) and Facebook (Fort Dorchester Sports Radio).
Access to past broadcasts is also possible via the Mixlr channel.
“I have three pages of past broadcasts so that players or parents who want to see the performance of a particular player in a particular game can do so,” he said.
He enjoyed the broadcasts so much that after the 2023 football season ended, he set up a side channel at Fort Dorchester to broadcast events that the Patriots were not involved in. His first broadcast on chisecast.mixlr.com (The Lowcountry Sports Network) was the Lower State 5A football championship between Summerville and White Knoll.
“I just thought it would be a great combination,” he said. “I think I was talking to the right people because when I logged into the system that night, there were already 250 people waiting to listen. By the end of the night, there were almost 900 people listening.”
