Professional Work
Reflection:
Networking will open up an infinite realm of opportunities.
Building relationships with other professional journalists has helped me gain experience unlike anyone else at 17 years old. From serving as a cohost on ESPN to being published in a magazine and covering the NFL Draft, networking has proven age is just a number in this industry.
ESPN 97.5 - The VYPE Scoreboard Show
Tommy Yarrish and VYPE U Director Matt Reese prepare for The VYPE Scoreboard show.
As a part of my VYPE U internship, I was given the opportunity to co-host “The VYPE Scoreboard Show” twice on ESPN 97.5 radio. The show airs every Friday night to provide high school football scores and updates from around the Houston area. We had different VYPE reporters to call in from different games, interviewed coaches, and gave opinions on players and teams during the one hour segment.
To listen to the best moments from The VYPE Scoreboard Show, click the audio link below.
VYPE Magazine Story
To read Jonathan’s story, click on the image. To zoom in on the story, double click and press the “+” button.
For every magazine VYPE Media puts out, there is one story from a VYPE U intern featured. The intern is chosen by the editors at the end of the month, and in the December 2018 issue, my feature story on former Olympic gymnast gone “American Ninja Warrior” contestant Jonathan Horton was published. The story detailed his journey from Cy-Fair High School, which is in my district, to the University of Oklahoma for gymnastics, to winning two medals in Beijing in 2012. After his retirement from gymnastics, he became a contestant on the popular TV show “American Ninja Warrior,” which featured obstacles and tests of strength. He even began a coalition of the best competitors to ever grace the stages of the competition, called the “Ninja Coalition.”
NFL Draft Night Coverage
During my internship with The Old Coach, I was tasked with running the organization’s social media page during the 2020 National Football League’s draft. As players were drafted, a team of content creators would send me images of athletes who played high school football in Texas to post live. We repeated this process for three days and more than 50 draft picks.
To see all the draft day tweets, click on the images above.
Learning from Bill Brown
Click the image above to watch the KPRC news segment on Bill Brown’s book.
One of the most beneficial professional connections I’ve made is with former Houston Astros play-by-play broadcaster Bill Brown. Mr. Brown and I began exchanging text messages and phone calls, as he was looking for a student journalist’s perspective for his book “Sportscasting 101.” We soon became friends, and I would send him some broadcast samples of me doing play-by-play commentary for various pre-recorded sports game. His advice helps me build on my skills. Having a veteran sportscaster with decades of experience in my corner to give advice whenever I need it is a resource I’m proud of and never take for granted.