WSU’s Roy Manning on a mission to energize with online videos

PULLMAN – Any prominent player or coach in a winning football program can expect a near-constant stream of communication from fans, well wishers, family members and the like.

Folks like to revel in successes and these guys have large networks of supporters who are inclined to reach out after a win.

But Roy Manning’s phone won’t stop buzzing after Washington State games for a different reason.

WSU head coach Mike Leach thinks Manning should be on the radio someday, but the assistant football coach is already getting an introduction to the demands of show business. His fans – not WSU’s fans, but Manning’s – want to know when his next postgame video is going to drop on Twitter.

What was once a spontaneous recorded act is now an expectation, and Manning has had to tweet assurances after WSU’s last two wins that a video was on the way. Just let him shower first.

“Yeah, I noticed the last few weeks it starts blowing up as soon as the clock hits all zeros,” Manning said. “We’ve had a lot of later games, so people are trying to get to bed after those games, but a lot of them are like, ‘I don’t want to get to bed until I see the video.’ I think it’s funny.”

One wonders how these folks ever get to sleep after WSU’s outside linebackers coach puts them in the mood to run headfirst into the first fullback they see.

“I watch them a lot. It’s kind of funny to watch because he’s so hyped,” WSU rush linebacker Nnamdi Oguayo said. “He’s more hyped than the players sometimes. I watch them before games to get energy.”

Manning videos are a drug for football junkies, and Cougars fans are mainlining them once a week for 2 or 3 minutes at a time. Every word he speaks has an exclamation point, and as he extols the virtues of the offense, defense and special teams, fans already celebrating a win – eight in a row now – celebrate the chance to break down the normal divisions and get behind-the-scenes proof that the coaches are just as ecstatic as they are.

“It is totally freestyle,” Manning said. “Totally. That’s just me, I’m real spur of the moment. Whatever comes to my mind on the spot after those football games, that’s what’s on those videos. I just try to keep it light, keep it fun and focus on us. It’s not about the opponent.”

It used to be easier. He has been making short videos for players back since his beginnings as a defensive assistant at Cincinnati. Manning said that Twitter is the only social media platform he uses.

As Twitter has evolved to be more accommodating of video over the last few years, Manning’s on-camera style has changed with the times.

Back when Manning was at Michigan, Twitter limited videos to 6-second clips called “Vines.” Manning was forced to pack his motivational messages and general life updates into short, punchy segments.

“So I was coming out of Target today and just got mistake for Devin Gardner! Really? Kind of fire up though. Hit the weights today, clearly people are noticing!” read one of his first missives.

By the time Manning arrived at WSU, Twitter began to allow videos of up to 30 seconds. The coach was able to express more thoughts and nuance in his videos, although the emotion he had in the earlier rapid videos never left.

At first, Manning used his new-found directorial freedom to show off the football program he had just joined. Videos focused on WSU’s new facilities, the view from his office or what he and other coaches had to eat on the recruiting trail.

Manning played the role of omniscient narrator, rarely including himself in the actual shot.

As Twitter changed, so did Manning’s on-air style. His habit of recording the things that energized him shifted during an early-morning run in Tucson, when he ditched the role of documentarian and became the star of his own show.

“Coach Manning running in the heat of Arizona,” he gasped into his camera phone. “Could have got up earlier but the sun wasn’t out yet I enjoy the grind baby, I enjoy the grind baby. The hard way. Hashtag Coug D, getting my run on in the AZ. Almost game time. Let’s go. Go Cougs.”

Manning found his voice in the desert, but he honed it during WSU’s preseason camp in Lewiston this year. He would record videos before or after practice in his truck, working off the extra energy he somehow had despite the long, hot practices.

First and foremost, he uses the videos to promote his players. It’s a sort of show of intensity to illustrate how hard the players are working – and there’s nothing subtle about it.

Those summer days away from the limelight can be a drag. So Manning tried to make them fun, providing a loud reminder that this is a game and is meant to be enjoyed. By recording the videos in his car, he was able to provide a loud, bumping soundtrack to his rants.

And Twitter changed again in 2016, allowing videos to be longer than 30 seconds. Now Manning is able to unload everything on his mind into the camera, still speaking at about 180 words per minute, of course.

“There are some where I wonder how long he can sustain the intensity,” Leach said. “But he keeps it going for quite a while.”

When the Cougars had their struggles early in the season, losing two games, Manning was mostly quiet on Twitter. But he debuted his postwin hype video when the Cougars beat Idaho. They haven’t stopped winning, and he has not stopped recording, since.