Anthony “Booger” McFarland

When American professional football player Anthony McFarland stepped away from the field in 2013, he was looking for the “what’s next.” After a storied nine years in the NFL including playing defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and two Super Bowl wins, he knew it was only the beginning of his career. Interested in potentially pursuing broadcasting as a next step, he applied to get into the NFL’s Broadcast Boot Camp twice and was successful on the second try.

Broadcast Boot Camp is a seminar the NFL offers former NFL players as a way to give them an opportunity to see what it’s like being in front of and behind the camera as well as network with TV network executives and established sportscasters. It also serves as a way for the networks to get a sneak peek at potential talent for their shows. 

“I was already doing local radio in Tampa, trying to get more on-air experience and exposure. I knew that there were bigger and better things out there for me,” says McFarland. 

During the event, there were two people who stuck out to McFarland: James Brown, the host of CBS’s NFL pregame show, and Media Trainer Annie H. Hoffman, who was teaching live reporting at the boot camp. Both Brown and Hoffman recognized McFarland’s natural talent for broadcasting and encouraged him to pursue it.

“Very rarely do you find people who will give up time, energy and expertise for people who need it. They’ll do it out of the goodness of their heart. Annie caught my eye with that. She is full of energy, full of life, exuberant and passionate about this industry,” McFarland says.

Confidence Booster 

The feedback Hoffman was able to provide about McFarland’s performance was invaluable, which is why he decided to hire her the summer after the boot camp to continue training. 

“It changed my confidence. Annie had been around so many on-air personalities and in broadcasting for so long and had even produced. She knew what someone was supposed to look like in front of the camera,” he says. 

“I knew from the very beginning that Booger had the ‘it’ factor. He displayed immediate presence on camera and though he was a bit new to television broadcasting, I had a gut feeling he was in for great things in this business,” says Hoffman.

Media Training Champion 

Oftentimes the best knowledge is gained through hands-on experience on the job. But in the world of broadcasting, having Sportscasting Coach Annie H. Hoffman in your corner can launch you from novice to expert in less time, landing you bigger and better opportunities, sooner rather than later. 

“No one else offered the high level of media training like Annie Hoffman, and I wanted to work with her to get better,” McFarland says. “I was able to gain knowledge about the industry as if I had been in it for five or six years when I was only in it for one to two years. I didn’t have to make all the mistakes and was ahead of the game because of her media training.”

Insightful Feedback Calls

When McFarland was hired as a football analyst for ESPN’s SEC Network, where he worked for three years, he and Hoffman had a standing Monday feedback call. The feedback calls Hoffman offers as part of her Athlete Media Training Package provide real, honest advice and tried-and-true methods for boosting a client’s presence in front of the camera to better resonate with their viewers.

“Annie would critique my Friday and Saturday shows. She’d give input on the tie I wore, how I was dressed and how I came across to viewers,” McFarland says. “It was a little uncomfortable to have someone critique something you picked out, but it ultimately made me better!”

“When you’re trying to get to the next level as a broadcaster, these calls can be essential to your growth. I can assure you, you’ll grow leaps and bounds if you take the feedback, and implement it. My goal is always to maintain the authenticity of the broadcaster as an individual while tweaking what doesn’t serve them well, from what they say and how they say it to, yes, what they’re wearing,” Hoffman says.

Star Maker

There’s no doubt that a solid foundation is everything, says McFarland, “just like building a house.” He credits Hoffman with helping him lay a lot of the groundwork for the second chapter in his successful career. 

“I was a novice in the industry. Networks are so big and have thousands of employees so you don’t always get the feedback you need to grow,” he says. “With her wealth of knowledge, she helped me tremendously.”

“Booger really took my advice to heart. He was a great client to work with! He always listened to my suggestions and immediately started implementing them. He was very focused, determined and always strived to be better, which shows in the success he has had in sportscasting,” Hoffman says.

Ongoing Professional Resource

Once McFarland was in a good place on camera and felt like he had a good foundation to grow from, Hoffman continued to check in one him once or twice a season. Today, almost a decade later, they continue to keep in touch with one another.

“She continues to be an advocate for me out there in the world,” says McFarland, who is an Emmy award-winning Football Analyst for ESPN.