Editor's note: In honor of the university's centennial year, The Daily News is counting down 100 days to the university's celebration Sept. 6 with 100 of Ball State's most famous traditions and figures. Check back each day to read about Cardinal history.
What began as one bad night and a spur-of-the-moment catchphrase turned into a viral video and a variety of television appearances.
Brian Collins’ famous quotation “Boom goes the dynamite” began in spring 2005 while he was a freshman telecommunications major at Ball State.
Collins was just getting his feet wet in the broadcasting world by shooting video for NewsLink Indiana.
"I can't remember if I was shooting sports or sitting around waiting for something to happen, but the person who was doing sports came in late and said he was sick,” Collins previously told The Daily News. “They were going to call someone in but saw I was there, and I said, 'Sure.' I came home, got changed and ran back.”
However, when he went on air, he didn’t know where to look. He said the person running the teleprompter made it go too fast, causing him to lose his place.
Throughout the broadcast, Collins can be heard saying things like, “Oh, no,” “I’m so sorry” and of course, “Boom goes the dynamite.”
"That night, I came back [home]. I remember it was raining, and it was horrible," Collins said.
A few weeks later, Collins thought his broadcast woes were behind him. However, his co-worker sent the video clip to the website eBaum’s World and from there, it spread quickly. The video now has nearly 11 million views on YouTube.
In June 2005, Collins received a call from “Late Show with David Letterman” asking him to be a part of the program’s audience show and tell segment. During the show, Letterman showed Collin’s video and outtakes from other shows that began using the phrase.
Collins also made appearances on “The Early Show” and “Tosh.0.” The phrase “boom goes the dynamite” has been used on ESPN’s “SportsCenter,” “How I Met Your Mother” and “Family Guy.”
The video didn’t seem to affect his career too much though. After graduation, Collins got a job as a field reporter in Waco, Texas, for ABC affiliate KXXV.
Read more centennial content here.
Contact Brynn Mechem with comments at bamechem@bsu.edu or on Twitter @BrynnMechem.
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