Penn State alum Michael Barasch used his knowledge and passion for collegiate marching to revolutionize college gamedays. He launched his own media company, Blue Line Media, which gives a voice to the underrepresented collegiate marching band community.

Barasch, a four-year member of the trumpet section of the Blue Band, graduated from Penn State in 2009, only to find that his job opportunities were affected by the economic crisis in 2008. 

“When I was in my last final broadcast journalism classes, my professors were telling us, ‘How can I convince you not to go into journalism?’,” Barasch said. “There were just no jobs.”

He interned at NBC on Dateline and that experience helped him shift to digital media as he saw potential in social media and advertising. During his brother’s time in the Blue Band, he noticed the lack of media coverage for collegiate marching bands. 

“I was part of the generation that first had social media in college, which was the first generation to have that. I knew this was where things were going to go. I need to figure out ‘How do I use it? How do I utilize this?'” said Barasch.

That’s when he decided to launch Blue Line Media with his business partner Ed Sullivan, creating a platform for college marching band fans. Sullivan also graduated in 2009 from Penn State. He has an entrepreneurial background influenced by his family. With Barasch’s passion for collegiate marching bands and Sullivan’s entrepreneurial prowess, the pair identified a niche market in college marching bands that lacked content.

They have started multiple companies together, all under the Blue Line Media umbrella. They explore underserved markets, including high school marching bands, college twirlers, and a cappella. 

“It would be really cool if there was a place where collegiate marching band fans from across the country who all share this love for marching band, college football, the pride of their school, and the traditions of college football, to come together and celebrate that equally,” said Barasch.

The company’s original goal was to create collegemarching.com, a website featuring articles, breaking news, and videos for marching band fans. Over time, they realized the success their content could have on social media, eventually transitioning to @collegemarching.

College Marching gained popularity on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. 

“Nobody shows the halftime shows, nobody shows the pregame shows. Nobody talks about these bands. And so I said, ‘Okay, let me go and try to be like the ESPN for college marching bands,'” said Barasch.

A recent project of Blue Line Media is their new song, “White Out All In,” inspired by Barasch’s appreciation for the White Out atmosphere. They created the song specifically for the Penn State fan base that built around the school, complete with a hype video. Barasch heard other Penn State songs and wanted to make one that Penn State fans could add to their gameday playlists.

“I wanted to create something that was family-friendly, that anybody could listen to, but was produced at a level that people would listen to it and say, ‘This is legit’,” Barasch said.

He recounted the unique atmosphere of White Out games and how the energy of performing in Beaver Stadium holds a special place in his heart.

“I think as a band member, you have this incredible perspective of these things, because you literally are at the dead center of Beaver Stadium, looking around, seeing, the entire stadium come together, cheering, screaming, and that electricity pulsing through you as you’re performing on the field is unmatched of anything you probably experienced in your entire life,” said Barasch.

In 2018, Barasch and filmmaker David Parrella came back to Penn State to film an episode of their documentary series “Take The Field”. During their filming, they created a viral video of the drum major and the drum line marching out onto the field, which now has tens of millions of views across social media and has become a Penn State athletics staple in building excitement for the White Out game. 

“It’s funny because I obviously was in band, and I knew how special that moment was, but I was ever surprised nobody ever filmed it from that angle before,” said Barasch.

Blue Line Media’s impact on collegiate marching is extensive. During the 2015 Rose Bowl, the #MarchOnRome trend emerged in response to a negative comment by Jim Rome about marching bands. Barasch created the hashtag and tweeted it out in response to the comments made. The hashtag trended worldwide, gaining media attention and support for the marching band community. 

“That moment really cemented us as kind of being the voice for this space, which traditionally is voiceless because marching bands are extensions of the universities,” said Barasch.

Another campaign by Blue Line Media was during the 2017 ACC Championship with Miami vs Clemson, where the decision was made to bench the band at halftime. The band directors personally reached out to Barasch, who united the band world to reach out to both schools’ athletic directors and advocate for the bands. Within less than 24 hours, Blue Line Media convinced ACC commissioner John Swofford to get the bands back on the field with extended time at pregame.

“We’ve had this ability to really influence the college football landscape and in ways that are beneficial for the band community,” said Barasch.

College Marching evolved from a content space showcasing entertaining videos of collegiate marching to an outlet that challenges those opposing collegiate marching. Barasch’s passion project turned into a revolutionary force in the marching band world.

During his time at Penn State, Barasch was a section leader and Vice President of the Blue Band, which significantly shaped his college experience and future career. He followed in his father’s footsteps, who was also a member of the Blue Band.

“I’ve had such a positive impact on the space that I love, [which] has been super rewarding and also incredibly fun, because I’ve been able to go to essentially every major college football stadium in America, see a game from behind the scenes, and profile what is the soundtrack and the heartbeat of college football,” said Barasch.

Barasch advises Penn State students looking to break into media to take risks. He emphasizes the importance of persistence and adaptability in the media and music industries.

“Worst thing that happens is that you fail. Failing is actually a really good thing, because you learn a lot from failing, and then you can decide a new course of action and go from there,” said Barasch.

Folks can follow @collegemarching on Instagram, watch the hype video, and listen to “White Out All In” here or on Apple Music.