Touchdown I&M

What an exciting time for sports fans! Super Bowl LVII is just around the corner, and Stanford alum, Christian McCaffrey of the San Francisco 49ers, will be in the NFC Championship game this year!

But during the Stanford Cardinal season, have you ever wondered about the players providing communication support behind the scenes? UIT’s Installation & Maintenance (I&M) staff, led by Rocco Petrunti, were on the sidelines for home and away games, ensuring smooth communication on game days.

First and Ten for I&M

I&M provides hands-on, after-hours support for communication and networking projects, installations, and maintenance activities across the university, hospitals, and clinics in the Bay Area. And here’s the kicker: for the past 25 seasons, I&M has taken on additional responsibilities for Stanford football.

Game-Day

For home games, five to seven I&M staff work an 8 to 12-hour day setting up, testing, and providing game-time support for Stanford coaches’ wireless headsets. They also ensure that the visiting team’s communication equipment is operational.

Additionally, I&M:

• Ensures Stanford-provided communication and network needs are met for television production (ESPN, Pac-12 Network, Fox, etc.) and in the press box
• Confirms ring-down phones are installed and tested for medical, production, and other functions
• Verifies network connectivity is in place for KNBR radio and that frequencies are allocated and monitored
• Supports Cable TV connections for alumni in the Chuck Taylor Grove

MVPs of away games

I&M staff work just as hard for away games. In 2017, three I&M staff members, Rocco Petrunti, Dan Fraher, and Giovanni Moraga traveled with the Stanford football team to Sydney, Australia. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, I&M staff member Giovanni Moraga rode with the team for a three-week-long road trip up and down the west coast. Giovanni went the extra yard to help the group maintain a COVID bubble for practices and games. This year, two I&M staff traveled with the team to provide support for the regular season.

Overtime

I&M team lead, Rocco Petrunti says you’ll catch the team back on the field next year. “We look forward to supporting Stanford Football's new head coach and staff by providing an excellent game day communications experience.”