Ole Miss Football Victories Spurred By Video

The key to an Ole Miss win in football may lie in the hands of an unfamiliar figure. Chris Buttgen is the video coordinator for Ole Miss, and he may be one of the best in the entire country.

“We make highlight videos; I started that at Arkansas State, and we try to give the guys something before kickoff to get their minds right,” said Buttgen. “We make good stuff; we want the guys to visualize themselves catching a ball, making a tackle and scoring a touchdown.”

Buttgen came to Ole Miss as an assistant video coordinator three years ago with Coach Hugh Freeze. Buttgen won the first “Video of the Year” award from the FootballScoop.com site for his video titled “The Journey” in 2012.

Buttgen now has the title of Coordinator of Football Media, but he still devotes a lot of his time to crafting motivational videos, starting Tuesday before the game.

“Music is probably the most important element, and then on Wednesday I get all the highlights from the previous games,” said Buttgen. “On Thursday after practice I get all the ideas and messages Coach Freeze wants to put in the video, and I check the atmosphere and the team we will be playing, and I make the video on Thursday night.”

The team watches the videos 2-3 hours before the game. Elliot Markuson, a sophomore tight end, is a fan of Buttgen’s work.

“Chris Buttgen’s motivational videos get me going before practice or before a game, depending on when he shows us a video.”

Elliot went on to say that the videos seem to matter more in rivalry weeks against Mississippi State and LSU because the videos remind the team that they are playing for the state of Mississippi and the University of Mississippi.

Fans seem to appreciate Buttgen’s work, too. The videos are released to the public after the team has had a chance to see them, and some of the videos have been viewed more than 21,000 times. The award-winning video “’The Journey’Ole Miss Football 2012 Highlights” has been viewed more than 58,000 times.

“The Journey” Ole Miss Football 2012 Highlights from Ole Miss Rebels on Vimeo.

Will Reid is an assistant video coordinator who works with Buttgen. He says it is a bonus that the fans appreciate the videos but says they have one primary purpose.

“It is their intent to motivate an athlete, coach, and/or team to perform at their highest potential and win the game, match, set, or whatever the situation might be.”

This story was contributed by Ole Miss journalism student, Tyler Bullard, tgbullar@go.olemiss.edu.