{"id":14651,"date":"2015-12-29T08:00:25","date_gmt":"2015-12-29T13:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/?p=14651"},"modified":"2015-12-29T08:00:25","modified_gmt":"2015-12-29T13:00:25","slug":"halftime-is-showtime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/halftime-is-showtime\/","title":{"rendered":"Halftime is Showtime"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div id='fullscreen_slider_1'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_one_fifth  avia-builder-el-first   container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='extra_large'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='14605'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='false'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_1'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout=''  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment=''  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  data-default-height='100'  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-1 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-extra_large av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 80.1333333333%;' ><li style='background-position:top left;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/FEAT-Sarah-Moll_139b-1500x1202.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-1' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class = \"caption_fullwidth av-slideshow-caption caption_center caption_center_framed caption_framed\"><div class = \"container caption_container\"><div class = \"slideshow_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_inner_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_align_caption\"><h2  class='avia-caption-title  '  itemprop=\"name\" >Halftime is Showtime<\/h2><div class='avia-caption-content  '  itemprop=\"description\"  ><p>The Coolest 12 Minutes in Television<br \/>\nBy Nancy Spitler<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_1'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-14651'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-1  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-2  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><blockquote>\n<p>The playoffs are underway and the countdown to Super Bowl 50 has begun \u2014 that four hours of football mania, punctuated with the year\u2019s best advertising, endless commentary and a no-holds-barred halftime show.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span class=\"av_dropcap1 \" >C<\/span>lemson alumni know firsthand that football can stir the soul, delivering ecstasy or agony depending on the score when the clock strikes zero. But even if your preferred team loses miserably in the upcoming Super Bowl, Sarah Moll \u201999 has been busy making sure that when it comes to halftime, you (and the other 100-million-plus viewers) won\u2019t be disappointed.<br \/>\nMoll has been researching which performers are trending, what albums are selling and whose albums are soon to be released. She\u2019s been negotiating and finalizing contracts, and thinking through every moving part of an intricately choreographed production that will be scrutinized by millions of viewers. She\u2019s been working with a production company to coordinate the hundreds of volunteers who come back, year after year, just to be part of something this big.<br \/>\nAnd when the clock ticks down to the final seconds of the first half, everything goes into motion.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>There are 8 minutes for set-up.<br \/>\n12 minutes for the production.<br \/>\n6 minutes to get off the field.<br \/>\n\u201cI don\u2019t breathe for 26 minutes,\u201d Moll says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-4  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_2'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-5  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='extra_large'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='14560'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='false'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_2'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout=''  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment=''  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  data-default-height='100'  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-2 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-extra_large av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 66.375%;' ><li style='background-position:top left;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-KatyPerry2.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-2' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class = \"caption_fullwidth av-slideshow-caption caption_left caption_left_framed caption_framed\"><div class = \"container caption_container\"><div class = \"slideshow_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_inner_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_align_caption\"><h2  class='avia-caption-title  '  itemprop=\"name\" >It\u2019s not everyone who has top artists calling to see if they can be a part of what is undeniably the largest music event of the year.<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_2'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-14651'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><h3>A powerhouse in the music industry<\/h3>\n<blockquote>\n<p>She is not actually in the music industry, yet Moll is regularly named to such lists as <em>Billboard\u2019s<\/em> Power 100 (2015), <em>Billboard\u2019s<\/em> Women in Music: the 50 Most Powerful Executives in the Industry (2013, 2014) and <em>Billboard\u2019s<\/em> 40 Under 40 (2014, 2015). She is included with those labeled as groundbreakers, game changers, progressive leaders, movers and shakers. It\u2019s not everyone who has top artists calling to see if they can be a part of what is undeniably the largest music event of the year.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Her title is director of media events for the National Football League, and, as the title implies, that includes all the major music and television events. In addition to the Super Bowl halftime show, she handles the NFL \u201cScouting Combine,\u201d the NFL \u201cKickoff\u201d and the \u201cNFL Honors\u201d show, which she calls the \u201cOscars of the NFL.\u201d And this year, the season included three games in London that also featured music.<br \/>\nEvery Super Bowl offers its own challenges in seeking artists that match the varied parameters. \u201cThis year\u2019s Super Bowl will be in the light of day,\u201d Moll says, \u201cwhich I\u2019ve never had to do. Halftime will be at approximately 5 o\u2019clock in California. That\u2019s a whole different halftime show.\u201d<br \/>\nShe\u2019s already looking forward to next year; the game will be played in a dome, which offers its own challenges and opportunities.<br \/>\nNo matter how many of those <em>Billboard<\/em> lists she gets included on, Moll is careful to remind you that she\u2019s not a one-woman show. \u201cI get a little apprehensive taking credit for the halftime show,\u201d she says, \u201cbecause I am really a cog in the wheel, and it\u2019s a very big wheel. I have two bosses who really let me go with it. They let me be the day-to-day point of contact with the artists and with the production company we hire to produce it. That\u2019s why people see me up in the forefront, but it really is a team.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-9  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_3'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-10  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='extra_large'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='14555'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='false'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_3'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout=''  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment=''  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  data-default-height='100'  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-3 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-extra_large av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 72.125%;' ><li style='background-position:top left;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-BrunoMars.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-3' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class = \"caption_fullwidth av-slideshow-caption caption_bottom\"><div class = \"container caption_container\"><div class = \"slideshow_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_inner_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_align_caption\"><h2  class='avia-caption-title  '  itemprop=\"name\" >With eight Super Bowls under her belt, and artists ranging from rock and roll icon Bruce Springsteen to relative newcomer Bruno Mars, Sarah Moll sets out each year to put on the best show possible.<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_3'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-14651'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-11  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-12  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><h3>Getting a foot in the door<\/h3>\n<blockquote>\n<p>A native of New Jersey, Moll has football in her blood. She grew up with a high school football coach for a father, and she had always heard about \u201cthat team that ran down the hill.\u201d Her family stopped by Clemson on the way to Florida between her sophomore and junior years of high school and drove through campus.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThere were people on Bowman Field playing volleyball and Frisbee, and I thought, \u2018This is cool. I could do this.\u2019\u201d<br \/>\nLater, when former Clemson coach Clyde Christensen\u00a0was in New Jersey recruiting, Moll found herself thinking, \u201cClemson? I know Clemson. We should put that on the list.\u201d<br \/>\nSports was a recurring theme in Moll\u2019s life as a Clemson student. A sports management major (Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management) with a minor in journalism, she was assistant sports editor for the Tiger newspaper, covering mainly men\u2019s basketball. \u201cGetting to cover Division I sports as a college student is a surreal experience,\u201d she says.<br \/>\n<div id=\"attachment_14553\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/clemson.world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14553\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14553\" src=\"https:\/\/clemson.world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4-300x265.jpg\" alt=\"Sarah Moll \u201999\" width=\"300\" height=\"265\" srcset=\"https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4-300x265.jpg 300w, https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4-768x679.jpg 768w, https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4-705x624.jpg 705w, https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-4.jpg 772w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-14553\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Moll \u201999<\/p><\/div><br \/>\nShe also worked in the football office as one of the Tiger PAWS (Promoting Athletics With Students), responsible for showing recruits and their families around campus. And it was in that football office that the girl from New Jersey found a home and several surrogate mothers who took her in, offering advice on everything from what to wear to whom to date (or not).<br \/>\n\u201cJill [Wilks], Karen [Blackmon], Ren [Winham] and Lynn [Sparks] \u2014 they were instrumental in raising me and helping me transition to Southern living,\u201d Moll says.<br \/>\nThe summer between her junior and senior years, Moll spent back in New Jersey in a plum internship at NFL Films. \u201cI got to travel the country, meet amazing people and work with professional athletes. And I got to learn a ton, most importantly. I was hooked. I knew that TV and film production was what I wanted to do.\u201d<br \/>\nWhen asked what advice she has for students wanting to get into the business, she replies, \u201cInternships. Internships. Internships.\u201d She follows that up with this bit of advice that obviously has served her well: \u201cShow up early, stay late and volunteer for whatever you can.\u201d<br \/>\nThat was the mantra for her summer internship. \u201cI really got thrown into everything. I produced commercials, got to travel, set up interviews \u2014 and I also did filing. It wasn\u2019t all glamorous. I did a ton of paperwork; I worked on budgets. I volunteered for everything.\u201d<br \/>\nAnd when the summer was winding up, NFL Films offered her a job in the sales department, where she could work part time and finish her degree at nearby Temple University.<br \/>\nShe turned it down.<br \/>\n[pullquote]\u201cA lot of people thought I was crazy to turn down a job with the National Football League at the age of 20,\u201d she says. \u201cBut they didn\u2019t go to Clemson. You only get one senior year. You only get one final football season, one senior year to hang out at TD\u2019s and Tigertown.[\/pullquote] This is Clemson, and there truly is something in these hills.\u201d<br \/>\nSo she came back, finished up and began mailing r\u00e9sum\u00e9s out to everyone in the sports industry \u2014 all packed in mailing tubes, so they would stand out. NFL Films took notice, and offered her a job in the talent relations department, setting up interviews with celebrities, newsmakers, current and former players. She loved it.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not for everybody,\u201d she says. \u201cThere\u2019s no such thing as Monday through Friday, 9 to 5. It\u2019s nights, it\u2019s weekends, holidays. But listen, don\u2019t get your violin out for me. The payoff was and is amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-14  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_4'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-15  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='extra_large'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='14559'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='false'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_4'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout=''  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment=''  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  data-default-height='100'  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-4 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-extra_large av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 66.25%;' ><li style='background-position:top left;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-KathyPerry.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-4' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class = \"caption_fullwidth av-slideshow-caption caption_left caption_left_framed caption_framed\"><div class = \"container caption_container\"><div class = \"slideshow_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_inner_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_align_caption\"><h2  class='avia-caption-title  '  itemprop=\"name\" >There are 8 minutes for set up. 12 minutes for the production. 6 minutes to get off the field.<\/h2><div class='avia-caption-content  '  itemprop=\"description\"  ><p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t breathe for 26 minutes,&#8221; Moll says.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_4'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-14651'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-16  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-17  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><h3>It\u2019s what you know and what you do that lets you stay<\/h3>\n<p>Moll tells the story of one of her early experiences at the job, working with the legendary Steve Sabol, one of the founders of NFL Films. He was scheduled to interview Sam Wyche, former head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals, who lives in Easley. Sabol, who knew Moll had gone to Clemson, suggested she come along on the trip.<br \/>\n\u201cThis was my first trip with Steve, and there was no way I was going to screw this up,\u201d she says. \u201cSo after we checked into the hotel, I got back in the car and drove around to every place we would have to go the next day, including every place I thought Steve would want to go, including where to go to get a great Southern breakfast. It may sound silly, but taking that extra time and never having to take a U-turn with your boss in the car \u2014 huge.\u201d<br \/>\nThat story illustrates the approach Moll has taken in every phase of her career at the NFL.<br \/>\n<div id=\"attachment_14554\" style=\"width: 283px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/clemson.world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-5.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14554\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14554\" src=\"https:\/\/clemson.world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-5-273x300.jpg\" alt=\"Sarah Moll \u201999 with Katy Perry\" width=\"273\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-5-273x300.jpg 273w, https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-5-643x705.jpg 643w, https:\/\/clemsonworld.wpenginepowered.com\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-5.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 273px) 100vw, 273px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-14554\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sarah Moll \u201999 with Katy Perry<\/p><\/div><br \/>\n\u201cI didn\u2019t get where I am without being a hard worker,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd I\u2019m also organized to a \u2018T.\u2019 Some people may call that anal, but I\u2019m just organized. That\u2019s just gotten me where I am. Who you know gets you in the door. What you know and what you do lets you stay, and I truly believe that.\u201d<br \/>\nSeven years of hard work with NFL Films led to an opportunity to move to New York City and work in the NFL\u2019s league offices. Among the responsibilities of the new job was overseeing the halftime show. That year, Prince had already signed on to perform.<br \/>\n[pullquote]\u201cLet me get this straight: I get to live in New York City, I get to work on the halftime show, and it\u2019s Prince?\u201d said Moll. \u201cSign me up.\u201d[\/pullquote]<br \/>\n\u201cI never had a desire to live in New York City, but I\u2019m really glad I did,\u201d she says. \u201cI feel like everyone should try and live in New York at some point in their life. I became the person I was meant to be, and I grew as a person and became very strong. I don\u2019t think I\u2019d be as good in my job if I hadn\u2019t had a chance to work in the league office and learn the business side of things.\u201d<br \/>\nShe pauses. \u201cIf you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.\u201d<br \/>\nWith eight Super Bowls under her belt, and artists ranging from rock and roll icon Bruce Springsteen to relative newcomer Bruno Mars, Moll sets out each year to put on the best show possible. In 2014, the Super Bowl drew 115 million viewers; in 2015, that number rose to 121 million. It\u2019s hard to even imagine the pressure that brings.<br \/>\nMoll says the best solution to that is to try not to think about it. \u201cI try to put on the best show possible and know that my work is going to speak for itself, and the artist is going to give 100 percent. You can\u2019t think, \u2018I want to top that rating.\u2019\u201d<br \/>\nShe downplays her part in that success: \u201cThe game gets better, there are more people in the world. The jump last year was pretty big; Katy [Perry] is obviously attributed with that.\u201d<br \/>\nLast summer, her role with the NFL shifted again. \u201cI was spending more and more time in our Los Angeles office, so much that they asked me to move out there, creating the trifecta of working in all three of the NFL\u2019s domestic offices.\u201d<br \/>\nThe move to California has been a positive change for Moll. \u201cI live on the beach, so I go for bike rides on the beach probably every weekend,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve started to pick up my golf game again, and I do a lot of yoga. The California lifestyle is really appealing to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>That lifestyle provides some relief from the pressure of a job that can be all consuming. \u201cI\u2019m not married; I don\u2019t have children,\u201d she says. \u201cSo it\u2019s easy to be all in with your job, 24-7. I\u2019ve been trying to consciously not do that \u2014 by having a life and taking some time off work. I take so much pride in what I do and the products we put together, so it\u2019s kind of hard for me to turn that off.<br \/>\n\u201cBut I\u2019m working on it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-19  el_after_av_three_fifth  el_before_av_fullscreen  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='fullscreen_slider_5'  class='avia-fullscreen-slider main_color   avia-builder-el-20  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth   slider-not-first container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><a href='#next-section' title='' class='scroll-down-link ' aria-hidden='true' data-av_icon='\ue877' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello'><\/a><div   data-size='extra_large'  data-lightbox_size='large'  data-animation='slide'  data-conditional_play=''  data-ids='14557'  data-video_counter='0'  data-autoplay='false'  data-bg_slider='true'  data-slide_height='100'  data-handle='av_fullscreen'  data-interval='5'  data-class=' '  data-el_id=''  data-css_id='fullscreen_slider_5'  data-scroll_down='aviaTBscroll_down'  data-control_layout=''  data-custom_markup=''  data-perma_caption=''  data-autoplay_stopper=''  data-image_attachment=''  data-min_height='0px'  data-stretch=''  data-default-height='100'  class='avia-slideshow avia-slideshow-5 av-slider-scroll-down-active av-default-height-applied avia-slideshow-extra_large av_fullscreen   avia-slide-slider '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\" ><ul class='avia-slideshow-inner ' style='padding-bottom: 62.75%;' ><li style='background-position:top left;' data-img-url='https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/Sarah-Moll-BrunoMars3.jpg' class=' av-single-slide slide-1 ' ><div data-rel='slideshow-5' class='avia-slide-wrap '   ><div class = \"caption_fullwidth av-slideshow-caption caption_bottom\"><div class = \"container caption_container\"><div class = \"slideshow_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_inner_caption\"><div class = \"slideshow_align_caption\"><h2  class='avia-caption-title  '  itemprop=\"name\" >\"I pinch myself every Super Bowl Sunday.\"<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><div id='after_full_slider_5'  class='main_color av_default_container_wrap container_wrap sidebar_right' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-small alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-14651'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-21  el_after_av_fullscreen  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-22  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><h3>A Clemson foundation<\/h3>\n<blockquote>\n<p>These next few weeks will probably not provide much time for Moll to relax. At least a month before the game, she\u2019ll begin working with the production company and an army of volunteers who come back year after year to work the event, with the reward of a t-shirt and the knowledge they helped create the magic.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>But she\u2019ll have her Tiger Paw mouse pad with her, the one she takes to all her events. \u201cEverybody knows this is where I went to school,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m just so proud to have gone to school here, and no matter what I\u2019ve done, my four years here built my foundation. My parents instilled in me being a hard worker, but this is where you\u2019re taught to be teachable and coachable. You\u2019re learning time management and how to do a schedule and having to be somewhere on time and being accountable. Those are all things I do in my job every day, and I learned it here.<br \/>\n\u201cMoving 12 hours away from home gave me the courage and the know-how to live in New York City, to move across the county and live in LA. I could do all these things because I started doing them all at the age of 18 when I came to Clemson.\u201d Despite the pace, despite the never-ending details to be dealt with and the pressure of putting on a better show for a bigger audience every year, the job never gets old for Moll.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cI pinch myself every Super Bowl Sunday. I didn\u2019t even know a job like this existed. It\u2019s the 12 coolest minutes in television.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><em>Sarah Moll spoke on campus this fall about her journey from Clemson to the NFL. Watch the video:<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><br \/>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-24  el_after_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":14605,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[371,462,1712,2074,2519,2878,2879,3299,3301],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-14651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-billboard","tag-bruno-mars","tag-katie-perry","tag-nfl","tag-sarah-moll","tag-super-bowl-50","tag-super-bowl-halftime-show","tag-winter-2016","tag-winter-2016-features"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2015\/12\/FEAT-Sarah-Moll_139b.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14651","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14651"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14651\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14651"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14651"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14651"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=14651"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}