Plattsburgh State senior broadcast journalism major Kyle Bryans initially thought he was going to fly under the radar, skate through two years, get his degree and go home. When he got here in the fall semester of 2014, he had the mentality of hitting the ground running, and with that drive opportunities opened up, and he took advantage of them.
Bryans, a transfer student from Hudson Valley Community College, was looking at a few schools at the time, came to PSUC for a visit and really loved how much the campus felt like home.
Bryans chose to study broadcasting journalism because he said it’s all about telling people a story many different ways.
One of the first PSUC clubs Bryans joined when he got to PSUC was WQKE, the Quake, the student-run club radio station.
“At the second meeting everybody was broken up into departments. I went over to the sports department, and I was the only one there,” he said. “A few weeks later hockey season was about to begin, and they needed someone to call the games, so they asked if I wanted to do it.”
Bryans said the first game he called was against the Quebec All-Stars, and he said he butchered a lot of the player’s names.
“After the first game I was like ‘this is going a long year,’” Bryans said. “The more I did it, the more fun I had, the easier it got and learned the game very quickly.”
During his time being the play-by-play announcer PSUC hockey, Bryans said he has been able to work with great people and call some big games including Plattsburgh versus Oswego, overtime winners and NCAA Championship games.
Bryans also is a part of PSTV, which he joined his during second semester at PSUC.
“I started out very shy and quiet,” he said. “I was really trying to fit in, and I was afraid I was going to get lost in the mix.”
Bryans said once he got settled in working on PSTV, it has turned out to be a great experience.
“I’ve been an anchor for a couple of shows on PSTV,” Bryans said. ‘I was the anchor for Cardinal Sports last semester, and this semester I’m the anchor for New Briefs.”
He said the great thing about PSTV is that it allows students to try everything. He’s also been a camera operator, teleprompter operator and assistant producer.
Senior audio/radio production major Ryan Connors, who is also a member of the Quake, said Bryans likes to help people in anyway he can and has become a close friend of his during his time at PSUC.
“I actually met Kyle at Hudson Valley Community College,” Connors said. “I actually lost contact with him the summer before we transferred in (to PSUC), and he just happened to be in my suite when I got here, which was a surprise.”
Connors said people are always coming to Bryans for help.
“When we have to record our projects for our classes, everyone wants to use Kyle’s voice,” Connors said. “He’s got the best voice in the major.”
Connors said before Bryans took over the Cardinal hockey play by play job there was a guy that precede him who many considered to be the “voice of Cardinal hockey.”
“Kyle has come in, and I feel like he has taken over that role,” he said. “Everybody knows his voice from the hockey games.”
This year Bryans assumed the position of sports director for the Quake.
“I have been trying to give other people the opportunities to call games and do the things that they want to do,” Bryans said. “It’s been a lot of fun and something I thought I would never do when I came here.”
PSUC sophomore childhood education major Anthony Bennice was someone Bryans took under his wing.
“The first time I met Kyle was last year at a radio meeting for the Quake,” Bennice said. “I was talking to the head of the sports department, asking if I could get my own sports show, and Kyle came up to me and said, ‘I have a sports show, and I’m looking for a co-host, so you’re on.’”
Bennice said he was nervous his first radio show but Bryans helped him a lot along the way, and by the end of the semester he was running the sports show when Bryans wasn’t able to make it.
“Im sure I can speak for everyone when I say that Kyle is someone that you will never forget,” Bennice said. “Whether it’s his voice or the advice he gives you. He’s so passionate about what he does.”
Bryans, who is a resident assistant at Adirondack Hall, said he’s enjoyed the opportunity to meet new people and help them the best they can.
“There are a lot of international students in Adirondack, and being able to help them out with their own transitions has been so rewarding,” he said.
Bryans is also part of the The Plattsburgh State Red Zone, which is a part of the PSUC Student Association’s Activities Coordination Board.
“We try to bring life to the student section. It’s fantastic. I love the people involved and having a great time at the games,” he said.
Bryans said coming to PSUC was one of the best decisions he’s made.
“I never knew I was going to get anywhere near this level,” Bryans said. “If I’d never put myself out there, I would’ve just graduated with no connections whatsoever.”
Bryan said he came to PSUC with so many worries but believes students, especially transfers, shouldn’t stress about coming in late and that they’re going to feel out of place.
“Find something you really love here, and just go after it,” he said.
Email David Luces at fuse@cardinalpointsonline.com
