Blindness not a barrier for sports broadcasters
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Nick Gomberg and Matt Wallace host 'We Make The Call' on
Temple's TUTV, along with two other fellow student broadcasters. - Joseph V.
Labolito
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY - On the set of We Make the Call,
a weekly hourlong show that features four students debating sports on TUTV,
Temple University’s digital cable station, Class of 2015 broadcast journalism
majors Nick Gomberg and Matt Wallace tend to have different approaches.
Gomberg, who is somewhat shy by nature, at first had
difficulty interjecting his points and keeping his statements crisp. But he has
built his confidence over the estimated 100 shows that have aired. Wallace,
however, has at times been told to dial back his intensity.
While their on-air approaches may differ, the best
friends have much in common. They were both born without eyes (a condition
called bilateral anophthalmia), grew up in the Philadelphia region, attended
much of grade school together, majored in broadcast journalism at Temple and
approached TUTV’s managers as underclassmen with their idea for a sports-talk
show (their initial pitch: Keen Eye on Sports) that is now five years old.
The two share an incredible knowledge of and passion for
sports, which includes rooting interests in teams that are a bit unusual for a
couple Philly-area kids: the Ohio State Buckeyes, Cleveland Browns and Columbus
Blue Jackets top their lists. Both say being sports journalists in Ohio would
be a dream come true.
“It was very fortunate we met at a young age,” Gomberg
said of Wallace, who introduced him to Ohio sports fandom, which, like
Philadelphia, has its challenges. “I have a best friend who wants to go into
the same field, so we can feed off of each other’s experiences. We’re taking
the same classes. That’s also why he says he introduced me to his teams. He
said, ‘Look, if I’m going to suffer, I want someone to suffer with me.’”
Wallace’s older brothers and father got him into sports.
In grade school, one of Wallace’s brothers, Brian, would listen to SportsCenter,
ESPN’s sports news and highlights show, with him before their bus came and kept
him updated on various team standings.
It was Gomberg’s father, Bob, who introduced him to
sports. He would take him to games and bring headphones so his son could follow
along with the play-by-play. He would also diagram baseball plays or football
formations on Nick’s back to help him understand the movement of each sport. To
this day, when they’re at a bar or restaurant and a game is on, Bob will serve
as Nick’s personal announcer.
“He listens to hours upon hours of live and taped games,” said Bob Gomberg, who helped found the International Children with Anophthalmia Network. “We must have 1,000 tapes in his room of baseball games from the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s. He’ll listen to a live game, broadcast the game into a recorder and play it back to critique himself.”
Gomberg, who also has a passion for music and sings in Jewkebox,
Temple’s Jewish a cappella group, said he maintains his interest in sports
largely because of the passion and level of description provided by radio
announcers. He ranks the San Antonio Spurs’ Bill
Schoening, a Philadelphia native, as the best in the business—the same
business he and his best friend are pursuing.
“I’m proud that even with the fact that I’m blind, I never really let that bother me,” Gomberg said. “It’s ‘let’s just do it anyway; let’s just continue on.’”
- Brandon Lausch
