Not having a remote to watch film can be a nightmare as you watch game film in a staff or team meeting. Using your keyboard or mouse doesn't get you close to how efficient you want, or need to be.
The old "Cowboy" remote that every coach has used (or at least seen) at one point or another in his career carries a price tag of anywhere from $60 to $500, and while you can find other remotes and presentation clickers that work with various video players, they're not always the most reliable, or reasonably priced.
Two Division III players in Indiana at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (a school that specializes in churning out engineers), devised a solution to that problem. First go to noHuddleremote.com from your Google Chrome browser, and from there all you'll need is a WiFi internet connection and a smart phone.
The app provides a simple solution to an issue that coaches nationwide have had since they began watching film from a computer. If you don't currently have a remote, this is going to make your future team meetings and staff meetings so much more effective. This is also huge for coaches who hit the clinic circuit speaking at event after event, who now just need their cell phone and don't have to worry about fragile equipment, the proper USB plug ins, or batteries for their clicker.
Major props to creators Tyler Rockwood (a senior defensive back) and Kevin Trizna (a senior offensive lineman) for seeing this issue and coming up with a solution that pretty much everyone can employ, quickly and easily.
I asked Rockwood what inspired them to create the app, and he responded:
We were inspired to make noHuddle because we saw the need and the unique opportunity to combine our academics (Kevin and I are both Computer Science and Software Engineering Majors) with our sport.
Our coaches had other corded remotes that don't work very well or were pretty expensive. Someone mentioned, as a joke, "why isn't there an app for this?". I actually thought that I could build one. Several prototypes later, we're where we are at now, with Android and iOS Apps out along with a Chrome Extension.
We just want to make our impact on coaches who don't have the money to spend on a fancy remote, along with getting our name out there as people who are looking to solve problems and help improve people's lives.
After all, that's the point of engineering new technology right?
Below, Rockwood walks you through a quick 2-minute demo on how to get everything set up.
Rockwood also shows you the app in action in the one-minute clip below.