PITTSBURGH (PTTP) — Tristan Russell joined Pitt Athletics in September 2022 shortly after graduating from Ball State University. His background in sports media production and experience with major athletic organizations prepared him for his role with the university’s broadcast team.
Russell gained his passion for Broadcasting starting in high school by getting involved in his school’s news program as well as filming their football games. Before arriving at Pitt, Russell interned at the NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis and freelanced with several professional sports organizations, including the Chicago White Sox and the Indiana Pacers as a replay operator. He also served as a lead video producer for the March Madness Live app.
Russell works with the Pitt Studios staff to produce broadcasts of Pitt sporting events that air on ESPN networks. While he primarily serves as a director, he also works as a producer, technical director and replay operator during productions.
In addition to his on-air responsibilities, Russell manages a staff of more than 100 part-time and student event workers. He oversees production crews for every home event and manages the ACC Network production internship program during the academic year.
“When your producer tells you, you have to get this graphic up on screen, you don’t have time to sit around and make decisions like that, you just have to come up with something and stick to your guns and execute it and I just- I really enjoy that” said Russell when he was asked about the most important skills needed to work in live television.
It’s clear that Tristan Russell is a prime example of it truly being possible at Pitt even if you didn’t graduate from here.