It’s amazing how fast the peak of joy can navigate into a nightmare.
As a local boy growing up, the idea of hosting Stadium of Fire was beyond my wildest dreams. Yet, here I was, sitting in my backstage trailer on July 1, 2017, just moments before taking the stage to address 45,000 fans in LaVell Edwards Stadium and military personnel watching from U.S. bases around the world — and I can’t even remember my name.
Schooled as a news and sports anchor and as a BYU play-by-play announcer, I was no stranger to pre-show anxiousness, but this was different. Unnerving, even. The confidence from successful rehearsals was long gone and replaced by the fear of failure — and I started to panic.
The teleprompter was 45 yards from the stage. Would I be able to see it? The jets were coming at a specific time, and my job was to keep the program on schedule. Could I do it? My mother was sitting out in the crowd. Would I make her proud? Why is my mouth so dry?
All harrowing thoughts.
There was only one thing to do. I locked the trailer door and got down on my knees and asked Heavenly Father to “calm the storm.” I didn’t ask him to get me out of there. We had an amazing program that everybody had thoroughly prepared to execute, including me. I just asked him for some help.
Seconds after my hopeful “amen,” a knock rocked the door.
“Dave, it’s time!” said the talent producer.
I jumped up, grabbed my suit coat, and marched to the stage. The stadium was packed. The weather was perfect. The moment was here. I was handed the microphone as the public address announcer declared;
“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our host, Dave McCann!”
By the third step toward the crowd, the nerves that had been dogging me dissipated, so much so that I actually felt them leave. The rest of the night was magical — just as the veteran Hollywood producers, Wayne Baruch and Chuck Gayton, intended it to be.
Late in the show, with Little Big Town needing a few extra minutes before starting their performance, Baruch told me to “go back out there and kill five minutes.”
“What do you want me to talk about?” I asked.
“Talk about BYU football. They seem to like that around here,” he said with a smile.
So, I did. And I was surprised to discover so many Utah fans in the crowd that night. They were good sports. Five minutes later, Baruch waved me back off the stage. The band was ready and the show went on.
Afterwards, walking down the stadium steps and glaring up at the stars, a lump of gratitude developed in my throat. I knew that in this giant world full of challenges far greater than mine, God was still aware of me, and in my moment of need, he was there and truly “calmed the storm.”
I’ve had the honor of working every Stadium of Fire since in a variety of roles. The nerves that come with the excitement return every year — and so do the unforeseen circumstances.
For example,
July 4, 2019: Moments after a pre-show meet-and-greet with country star Keith Urban, Baruch and Gayton called me on the phone. High winds were hitting the stadium hard.
“Dave, Hill Air Force Base just canceled the flyover,” they said.
Anyone who knows me knows of my love for flyovers. I was thinking, “This was the worst news.” Then it got worse.
“We need you to announce that to the crowd,” they said.
By the time the national anthem finished, the wind had stopped, and even with the cancellation declaration, I looked up to the sky with everybody else hoping the jets would come anyway.
They didn’t. But the thrill of getting to personally introduce Urban to the stage made up for it — at least a little.
July 3,2020: Instead of entertaining a full house at LaVell Edwards Stadium, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert and I sat socially distanced at midfield in an empty venue and recorded an interview for KSL-TV.
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world and pushed a pause button on our cherished traditions. After the interview, as the governor and I tossed a football around, we noted the sadness of our reality.
Among the things we were missing the most as a people was the togetherness that events like Stadium of Fire produce.
July 3,2023: Moments before Steve Shallenberger, past chairman of America’s Freedom Festival, and I were to start our annual segment honoring the Freedom Award recipients, the teleprompter went out. This was especially nerve wracking for Steve, who hadn’t been tutored in the art of winging things on live TV.
A field producer handed us note cards. I put my arm around Steve and said, “We can do this.” A few seconds later, the camera was on us and we did it. Capping the experience off by winging my introduction of Journey made it all the more memorable.
Not everything goes perfectly in such a massive event, including the fireworks, but the key ingredient that makes Stadium of Fire undefeated is the vibe of family, community and country that permeates throughout the night.
One of the greatest thrills comes when each Freedom Award recipient is honored with a standing ovation from a grateful nation. For many, it’s their first standing ovation. From my vantage point, I can see their eyes tear up as their sacrifice is appreciated.
Additionally, there is the moment, surrounded by family and singing God Bless America with the sky lit up in red, white and blue. That is the secret sauce that Alan and Merrill Osmond envisioned for Provo when they coined “Stadium of Fire” in 1980. It’s when everybody is playing for the same team — as Americans.
On Saturday night, more than four decades later, and on America’s 250th birthday, the motive for unity is the same.
There are typically seven major events held each year at LaVell Edwards Stadium, with BYU football games and Stadium of Fire. This year there will be eight, with the Cougars getting an additional home date.
Each event is independently huge, but Stadium of Fire with its wide-reaching significance stands alone as the night of all nights and certainly one worthy of generating a few extra nerves for those on the mic.
See you Saturday!
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com