. What made you want to become a sports reporter? It happened by accident. I met anchorman Mike Jacobs when I was a 20-year-old kid working in a shoe store at the old Northridge Mall in Brown Deer, Wisconsin. I started out as a news intern for him at TMJ4-TV, the NBC station in Milwaukee. On weekends they hired me to produce sportscasts where I worked with Wisconsin Hall of Fame sportscaster Hank Stoddard.. The first interview they sent me on was to interview Herb Brooks. He had just coached the men’s US Hockey team to win the gold medal in the Winter Olympics in the “Miracle On Ice” game vs Russia. Brooks was in Milwaukee as the keynote speaker for a large Boys & Girls Club fundraiser. They liked the interview back at the station and that’s how I got my start. I also did some work downtown for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and once again – ended up in the sports department.
What’s a typical Gameday like for you? Long. For a Packers game at Lambeau Field I get to the pressbox by 9am. I have live reports on NFL Radio on Sirius XM for their pregame show. After the game there are press conferences and locker room interviews with players and coaches from both teams. I do live call in reports for some postgame shows, then edit about 20-30 interviews for our Civic Media stations for the next morning. I usually leave the stadium around midnight, 1am. Brewers games are a long day too. Arrive at 2pm. Talk to the manager and players for both teams in the clubhouse or dugout around 4pm during batting practice. Then postgame coverage. If it’s a 9 inning game, leave the ballpark after 11pm. Same for Milwaukee Bucks and Badgers football & basketball.
Which athletes or coaches have been the most interesting to interview? Most NFL quarterbacks talk for 7-8 minutes. Brett Favre could easily go 45 minutes. It became more than just Q&A interviews. They were conversations. Aaron Rodgers was the same – but entirely different viewpoints. Giannis Atetokounmpo. Great athletes are often the best interviews because they’re smart, competitive, and they truly care about finding what it takes to win. Brewers manager Pat Murphy is hilarious. Robin Yount was always excellent. Currently I like the Brewers Christian Yelich, the Packers safety Xavier McKinney, and the Bucks Damian Lillard. “Dame” could be an NBA commentator someday. .
What’s your favorite part about covering sports for radio? I can tell the whole story, and I can do it with the words and thoughts of the players & coaches. TV sportscasts don’t have enough time to tell the whole story like Radio can. And we provide to-the-point updates throughout the day – 7 days a week on WRJN.
Favorite sporting event you have attended as a fan or have covered? I covered the Brewers in the World Series in ’82 just months after being hired by their flagship station WVTV-TV18 in Milwaukee. I once covered the GMO Golf Tournament and followed Jack Nicklaus around for a day. The same for Tiger Woods at the PGA Tournament in Kohler, WI. I was there when LeRoy Butler did the first “Lambeau Leap” for the Packers. I have covered over 20 Super Bowls, including the Packers wins in 1996 and 2010 seasons. But my all time favorite game is still Super Bowl XLII, when the Giants upset the 18-0 Patriots 17-14,and the “Helmet Catch.” A classic David beats Goliath story.
What are some of your Interests/Hobbies outside of work? Travel. Going to festivals like Summerfest, State Fair, Holiday Folkfaire. Films. I enjoy watching classic movies on TCM. Music. I’m pretty good at “Name That Tune” from anything from the 1950’s to today. History. Just had a great weekend touring the Milwaukee Public Museum. Someday I hope to travel through Europe. Have not been there yet.
