If you didn’t know any different, you might have thought we were crazy to roll out the “purple carpet” for some guy named “Packman”, but this Packman is not from the NC State, nor is he a fan of the 80’s video game.  He is Mark Parker, son of the famous sportscaster Billy Packer, and host of “Primetime with the Packman”, heard on radio stations across the south, including Pirate Radio 1250 and 930.  His southern flavored program is one of the most listened to in sports radio today.

 

This summer we invited Packman to put East Carolina on the “Southern Fried Football” tour.  He agreed to the visit, his first ever to Greenville, which took place last weekend during the So. Miss. game.  Once again, remember, he is heard by millions of people a week, so this was an amazing marketing opportunity for the University.  This is type of exposure ECU needs, but cannot buy.

 

He rolled into town around noon.  We were all set-up and ready to go before the tailgate lots opened up and our pregame show hit the air (4 hours before kickoff). Many folks have asked me how his visit went and what he thought of ECU tailgating.

 

First of all, he had a blast!  Packman has already stated that he will be back for 2006.  He was also very impressed with the many beautiful coeds on our campus.  He rated ECU right under UGA for the best-looking student body.  I’ve been to Georgia, and that’s quite a compliment in my book.  You can click on this link www.southernfriedfootball.com/babes/ to see some of Packman’s favorites. You can also click on this link see all the pictures from the Pirate Radio tailgate, including some bonus shots that are not on his site.

 

I took him down on the field to meet Terry Holland; of course they already knew each other.  Terry gave him a personal tour of the Murphy Center, which really looked first class on gameday.  I have been in that building hundreds of times, but I have never seen it look as good as it did this past Saturday. 

 

I’d like to thank of all our listeners, sponsors, friends, and administrators that turned out to make this visit such a huge success.  The weather was perfect, the tailgate was HUGE, the scenery was great, and the only thing missing was a win on the football field.

 

See ya at the game this weekend.  Go Pirates!

Troy Dreyfus
troy@pirateradio1250.com