The game never starts at first pitch.
At Florida baseball and softball games, it starts a few moments earlier, with a phrase most fans never hear and the orange towel most never notice.
Eddie McLendon works a camera for GatorVision. The UF’s in-house broadcast operation is responsible for putting every pitch, swing and out on the SEC Network. McLendon has been at GatorVision since it started in 2014.
Born and raised in Gainesville, 62-year-old McLendon lives with his wife in Newberry, where they own a plot of land and tend to their cows. McLendon retired from his career in construction 20 years ago.
"We're from here, kind of born and bred Gator fans,” McLendon said.
For the past nine years, McLendon has served as the timeout coordinator. He is responsible for syncing the start of the game with television, officials and in-stadium operations.
In the role, McLendon’s main job is to not let the first ball be pitched until broadcast is synched, said Nick Spagnuolo, the director of GatorVision. He can also hold pitches between innings as needed.
The timeout coordinator role exists across college sports. In football, it’s typically handled by network staff using visible countdown clocks. In baseball and softball, especially on school-run broadcasts like Florida’s, the job is often less formal and sometimes assigned to students.
So at The Swamp, the role is McLendon’s alone.
What began as a practical decision to streamline operations turned into something far more valuable. It provides consistency, which is rare among other schools.
“We are one of the only schools with a consistent TOC,” Spagnuolo said.
McLendon's responsibilities begin about an hour before first pitch. He’s often in the umpire room where crews meet, get in uniform and review plays. It’s where he establishes the most important line of communication of the day.
“If you just look over there, I have this orange beach towel,” McLendon tells the umpires. “When I move it, we’re ready to go.’’
Linus Baker was an umpire for the Gainesville regional championship at UF’s Condron Ballpark on Sunday. It's been a few years since Baker last saw someone start a game with a hat or towel, he said.
“It's better to have so that we’re not guessing when to start the game,” Baker said.
If an umpire starts play before the broadcast is ready, cameras are forced to cut to the game mid-intro. Announcers are rushed. Viewers at home miss the first pitch.
“That breaks the cardinal rule of television,” Spagnuolo said. “Never miss live action.”
That’s where McLendon and his towel come in.
“I would ask my wife for a dish towel,” McLendon said. “Once she picked up on the fact that I was doing the thing with the towel, she said, ‘Why don’t you just take this orange beach towel that we have? That would make more sense, and it's much more visible.’”
For every game, McLendon is in the same spot: the camera on the third base side. He goes through the same routine, and he uses the same signal. And, when the broadcast is synced with the game, he cues the same line from GatorVision directors: “Let ’em play, Eddie.”
“I think it's something that those guys just started doing,” McLendon said.
The line has become standard across broadcasts. Used by directors from Gator Vision, the SEC Network and ESPN, it’s endured multiple crews and seasons.
“The hours leading up to the game, the new director will confirm, ‘What camera guy are they looking at? What's the signal?’” Spagnuolo said. “And we always just say, ‘Tell Eddie to let ‘em play.’”
Jack Jankowski is a contributing writer for The Alligator.
