NILES — As fans sit in the bleachers preparing to watch a Brandywine sporting event, they might not realize the preparation going on behind the scenes, which took place hours before.

That is unless they know Vance Stratton, who has been the athletic director at Brandywine Community Schools for the past 15 years.

Stratton, who came to Brandywine from Cassopolis, where he served as athletic director at Ross Beatty High School from 1996 to August 2004, has assumed the role of athletic director, game day manager, secretary and is in charge of scheduling to make Brandywine’s sporting events run smoothly and safely — without a hitch.

The sports season highly influences what time Stratton’s start time for game preparation begins. In the fall, when football kicks off, Stratton spends time in the parking lot coning off areas where people cannot park, where the visiting team’s buses will park and where the visiting team will enter the school. All that can begin in the early afternoon, as Stratton then makes his way inside the high school to handle filling out rosters.

For basketball season, Stratton’s preparation depends on if only freshman teams are playing or if junior varsity and varsity teams are competing. Hypothetically, if a game starts at 4:15 p.m., around 1 or 2 p.m., Stratton could already be seen preparing. This is also dependent on if he needs to go to the bank and get change for the money box.

“There are a lot of factors that determine as to when you actually start,” Stratton said. “If it’s game day, you are in the mode for it when you come in that morning. You are already thinking about all the stuff you have to do and get done. If anything comes up during the day that takes you away from that, it’s a matter of getting back into the rhythm of getting it done again.”

On a game day, Stratton runs rosters for the game, makes sure the money box has the correct amount of change and is ready for the gate. He also is planning with gate workers and maintenance staff to ensure everything is properly set up for the concession stand. He transports water coolers for Brandywine and the visiting team’s benches and coordinates that all the table help, including scorekeepers, clock workers and announcers, are at the game on time.

He also interacts with officials prior to the game to make sure they are lined up and secure.

As the games or matches begin, and the excitement unfolds, Stratton’s job continues well beyond the final buzzer or whistle.

He pays the officials and converses with them before they leave to ensure everything functioned properly with the game. He stores and shuts down all electronics and score control panels. It is sometimes remembering little things, like turning off the public announcement system.

He records game scores in his game management program, and will send the recorded score to the Michigan State of Athletics Association.

Afterward, Stratton makes copies of his book to send out to the different newspapers, including Leader Publications, where scores and statistics can get published.

At Stratton’s past job with Cassopolis, he also served in a similar capacity as both athletic director and game manager.

“There are schools that have game managers, so the athletic director doesn’t have to actually be at the game,” he said. “It varies from school to school as to what the responsibilities are. I just know [at Brandywine] what my job is and what I have to do.”