The 黑料不打烊 alumnus has always had a knack for producing high-quality sports video content. This week, the cinema and television arts major will continue to do so at the College Football Playoff National Championship in Atlanta.
As the ESPN broadcast counted down the waning minutes before kickoff of last week鈥檚 College Football Playoff semifinal matchup between Ohio State and Texas, a keen eye could spot in the sea of Buckeye scarlet and gray.
All one had to do was look for the best camera angle and, inevitably, the 黑料不打烊 graduate would be there.
As part of his role as assistant director of creative media for Ohio State Football, Fortunato 鈥 in a light blue media vest 鈥 stood arm鈥檚 length away from Buckeye starting quarterback Will Howard, chronicling every pass and every word of encouragement during the pregame warmup.
While AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, pulsed with anticipation of the evening鈥檚 matchup, Fortunato was already hard at work compiling content for his聽 鈥 a recap that garnered 42,000 views during its first day on YouTube.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of time and effort to get these recaps done quickly, and to a high standard, but seeing the reactions to it once it鈥檚 posted makes it worth it,鈥 he said.
Fortunato will have one more stab at creating a game highlight video this season as Ohio State faces Notre Dame in Monday鈥檚 College Football Playoff National Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Interestingly, Rachel Mikolay 鈥23, another 黑料不打烊 graduate, will also work the season鈥檚 final game.
鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting to be going to the national championship,鈥 Fortunato said this week. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that I don鈥檛 take lightly and will be an experience I talk about and remember for the rest of my career.鈥
It isn鈥檛 surprising to see the recent 黑料不打烊 graduate on the biggest stage in college sports.
Since cutting his teeth recording 黑料不打烊 athletic events and producing 鈥満诹喜淮蜢 Sports Weekly鈥 episodes, Fortunato has steadily risen through the college media industry. After earning his degree in cinema and television arts, Fortunato honed his skills with Rutgers University鈥檚 women鈥檚 basketball team and then Wake Forest University men鈥檚 basketball program. An individual didn鈥檛 have to be a college basketball fan to see Fortunato鈥檚 immense talent in video and digital content creation.
Since he joined Ohio State鈥檚 football program in May 2023, Fortunato鈥檚 work has garnered significant attention as he created compelling visual narratives for one of the most recognizable brands in college athletics.
In his role, Fortunato is responsible for creating internal motivational videos for position groups, producing social content like “” and “” videos, and filming practices and meetings for archival purposes.
On game day, the Apex, North Carolina, native coordinates filming operations, ensuring coverage from every crucial angle on and off the field. These shots include pregame scenics and locker room speeches, as well as on-field action and post-game celebrations. As the game heads into the second half, where can you find Fortunato? Usually within earshot of head coach Ryan Day.
Once a game is over, Fortunato鈥檚 main focus is completing the aforementioned game recaps. Ideally, he wants the videos published in the next two or three days. It is no easy task considering the amount of quality work his creative media colleagues help produce.
Fortunato said he takes great pride in creating content that resonates with fans and endures beyond the season.
鈥淚 do my best to treat every game the same and to focus on doing my absolute best to capture each moment through my lens, and the national championship game will be no different,鈥 he said.
