The Plug

Digital Mag

BEHIND THE VOICE: Indianapolis native Michael Grady reflects on career in the Circle City

AN ADOPTED HOOSIER: WTHR’s Taylor Tannebaum embracing Indianapolis, empowering next wave of women in sports

SETTING UP SUCCESS: D1 Trainer Lauren Murray intertwines volleyball career with personal training

TABLE OF

CONTENTS 4 CONTRIBUTORS Editor Aueyia Taylor Writer Josh Ayen Photographer David Dixon

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BEHIND THE VOICE: INDIANAPOLIS NATIVE MICHAEL GRADY REFLECTS ON CAREER IN THE CIRCLE CITY

AN ADOPTED HOOSIER: WTHR’S TAYLOR TANNEBAUM EMBRACING INDIANAPOLIS, EMPOWERING NEXT WAVE OF WOMEN IN SPORTS

SETTING UP SUCCESS: D1 TRAINER LAUREN MURRAY INTERTWINES VOLLEYBALL CAREER WITH PERSONAL TRAINING

ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT: MONROE PROFITT

SANTA'S WORKSHOP COMES TO THE FACTORY FOR ANNUAL CHRISTMAS TOY GIVEAWAY

SOCIAL FACEBOOK

fb.me/thefactoryd1indy INSTRAGRAM

@thefactoryindy thefactoryd1indy.com THE PLUG | 1

FROM THE DESK OF THE

DIRECTOR Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.

Dream big. Stay positive. Work hard. Enjoy the journey.

-unknown

Kwana

Love, Laugh, Live

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Is It in you?

Behind the

Voice

Indianapolis native Michael Grady reflects on career in the Circle City

By Josh Ayen

T

he lights are dim inside the Barclays Center as the Brooklyn Nets prepare for an early-season clash against the Chicago Bulls. As the Nets get set for tipoff, the YES Network hosts their standard pregame show just a few feet away from the court.

Courtside reporter Michael Grady dons a headset at the pregame show studio with a dark grey suit, powder blue shirt and speckled blue tie. He focuses on one segment not on the typical stars like Kevin Durant or James Harden, but Patty Mills, who is proving to be an unsung hero to the Nets success.

“Patty Mills may be tired of talking to me after games,” Grady jokes as he shrugs his shoulders, “But he’s been playing extremely well.”

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Grady is in his element as he lists off the recent accomplishments of Mills with the deep, rich timbre of his voice.

The headset, the look, the voice. It all comes together as Grady demonstrates why he is one of sports media’s rising stars.

Brooklyn has learned all about Grady since making his debut with the YES Network in 2017, but the man first planted his roots in Indianapolis. Pacers fans have fond memories of Grady as a PA announcer, alerting Bankers Life Fieldhouse that the end of each quarter was near with a booming TWOOOOO MINUTES (two-ah). Avid radio listeners may remember when Grady hosted a daily talk show with former NFL lineman Joe Staysniak on the “Grady and Big Joe” show. Some may even recall seeing Grady on television on WRTV. Well before Grady became a media personality, he was a student at Warren Central High School with a dream of becoming a broadcaster like other hopefuls around the country. Classmates and teachers would always tell Grady that he had a broadcaster’s voice.

It was fitting he heard that all the time, especially because he was pulled into radio at a young age. He still remembers listening to music stations, along with Colts and Pacers games on WIBC as a child.

“It just seemed like a world that I wanted to be a part of,” Grady said.

Grady got his start at Warren Central’s student-run radio program, WEDM. One of the biggest highlights of his early career came during his junior year, when Warren Central’s boys’ basketball team advanced to a regional semifinal at Hinkle Fieldhouse.

It was Grady’s first time at the venue, home to iconic moments in Indiana basketball lore.

It was also the moment when Grady realized he belonged in the industry.

“To walk into Hinkle Fieldhouse, to be on the event level, to look up and see the sunshine coming through and hitting the basketball court, and to be able to be a part of the broadcast calling this IHSAA tournament game, it was a game-changing moment for me,” Grady said. “I realized, ‘Okay, this is not only what I want to do, but this is what I’m supposed to do’.”

Realizing the potential of their student, the instructors at WEDM arranged to send Grady to a weekend-long broadcasting bootcamp at Vincennes University. That weekend trip was all he needed to discover where he would study after high school.

“I just fell in love with the program, and they just really sold me on the fact that they were going to throw me right into the fire,” Grady said.

Grady spent that weekend doing all sorts of handson learning, including putting together mock sportscasts. He decided to enroll at Vincennes once he graduated from Warren Central in 2001.

After earning his degree from Vincennes, Grady landed his first opportunity in the broadcasting

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industry as a weekend board operator at Emmis Communications, the parent company of stations like WIBC and WFNI. As many in the broadcasting industry can attest to, that first opportunity is all you need to be set up for success. Throughout the late 2000’s and early 2010’s, Grady leveraged that first job into more opportunities at Emmis, a PA role with the Pacers, and even a sports reporter with WRTV. Grady quickly climbed the ladder to become a household name throughout Indianapolis. As it turned out, he caught the attention of other network executives, too.

In 2017, Grady was offered a sideline reporter position with the Brooklyn Nets on the YES Network. After calling Indianapolis home for almost all his life, Grady was eager to explore a new city that is ripe.

“There’s something about New York, the pace, the possibilities, the various things outside of sports that I’m into at that particular time,” Grady said. “It just felt right.”

Even though Grady is living big city life, he still embraces the city he called home. He cohosted the “Grady and Big Joe Show” remotely for two years after moving to New York, and he has also come back to Indianapolis a few times as a sideline reporter for CBS Sports’ coverage of Colts games.

Grady keeps going back to one word as he’s reached this point in his career: Gratitude. He’s always thankful for the people that have played a part along the way in his career, from family, teachers, and colleagues.

“I have my blood family, but it feels like one big family where the community was able to watch me grow up,” Grady said.

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6321 Crawfordsville Rd. Speedway, IN 46224

chicagospizza.com

An adopted Hoosier:

WTHR’s Taylor Tannebaum embracing Indianapolis, empowering next wave of women in sports

By Josh Ayen

Taylor Tannebaum has been a sports junkie since her childhood.

Growing up, her dad owned a chain of sports memorabilia stores in the Fort Lauderdale area. She often found herself face-to-face with pro athletes who hosted autograph sessions at those stores.

Tannebaum attended countless games around south Florida, from the Heat, to the Marlins and even the Dolphins. Whenever there was a game going on, Tannebaum wanted to be there.

“It was always a part of our lives, and I always loved it,”

Tannebaum said. “I was always a bit of a tomboy.”

Tannebaum thought about pursuing a career in the sports industry, and it was cemented one day during her freshman year of high school. She spent the day shadowing WSVN Sportscaster Steve Shapiro, who recently retired after a 30-year career in the industry. That day was pivotal to Tannebaum as she got a glimpse into her future career.

Combined with her upbeat outlook on life and passion for telling stories, Tannebaum decided to pursue a career in sportscasting.

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After graduating from high school, Tannebaum moved seven and a half hours from home to enroll in Florida State’s media production program.

Starting a career in broadcast journalism, especially in sports, is an uphill battle for anyone coming out of college. Sometimes, it comes down to being at the right place at the right time.

As Tannebaum was getting ready to graduate in 2013, a former supervisor set her up with a mock interview at a TV station in Dothan, AL. The news director at that station already offered a sports position to another candidate, but Tannebaum still made the 90-minute drive from Tallahassee to gain experience in how to interview for a job.

Days later, the news director called her back.

“Would you like to be a weekend sports anchor in Dothan?” he asked.

Because of a technicality in the hiring process, the previously hired candidate had to back out.

Years later, Tannebaum is grateful that her former supervisor set up the mock interview and opened the door for the job to fall in her lap.

Three years after getting her first role in Dothan, Tannebaum moved almost five hours north to Huntsville, AL, to take a sports reporter position at CBS affiliate, WHNT. Dothan and Huntsville do not host major college or pro sports teams, but they do carry passionate fanbases that religiously follow Alabama and Auburn athletics. During Tannebaum’s time in Alabama, she travelled across the country as Alabama or Auburn competed for a national championship. At the same time, she earned valuable reps to become a better storyteller and on-air reporter.

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“When you’re in small markets, you have a lot of opportunities to be you, find your voice, and shake all the rust off you didn’t know you even had,” Tannebaum said.

In the summer of 2018, Tannebaum made the most ambitious move in her career when she accepted a sports anchor role at NBC affiliate, WTHR, in Indianapolis. Indiana, let alone the Midwest, was a foreign territory to Tannebaum.

Aside from getting comfortable with colder weather, Tannebaum feels like she’s adjusted well to the area.

On her off days, Tannebaum often checks out the local sports scene around Indianapolis.

From watching the Pacers, the Fever and even minor leagues like the Indy Express, Tannebaum is committed to being part of the central Indiana community.

“Sometimes the biggest complement I get is, ‘Seems like you’ve always been here. You’ve assimilated so well. You understand the community’,” Tannebaum said. “That is truly the biggest complement you can get because I try to immerse myself here and make people feel like this place matters to me, because it does.”

Tannebaum also credits the Indianapolis community for embracing her since she moved to the area more than three years ago. Thanks to people like high school coaches, players, and even The Factory’s own Defro, Tannebaum has enjoyed sharing the stories of athletes around central Indiana.

For decades, covering sports has been viewed as a men’s club; almost every print and TV sports reporter was male. That trend has changed nationally as reporters like Erin Andrews, Holly Rowe and Maria Taylor have become household names.

This trend has also trickled down to the local level in Indianapolis, but there is more work to be done. Among the dozens of TV sports

reporters in Indianapolis, only three are female, including Tannebaum.

Tannebaum hopes this trend will change sooner than later.

“I feel like there’s room for a lot more, even though it’s getting better,” Tannebaum said.

As Tanenbaum has developed into a well-known presence around Indianapolis, she’s also dedicated time to support other women who are working their way into the industry.

She’s more than willing to help broadcasting students who need someone to interview for an assignment or take time to look at a reel for job applications.

In early 2020, Tannebaum even moderated a “National Women in Sports Day” panel hosted by the Fever. The event offered an opportunity for young girls to learn from women who work in the sports industry.

Tannebaum is a firm believer that representation matters, and she hopes her efforts will go a long way to developing the next wave of women in sports.

“I do think there is room for everybody,” Tannebaum said.

“The more you foster those relationships and grow the industry, I think that also comes back onto you.”

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Setting up success: D1 TRAINER LAUREN MURRAY INTERTWINES VOLLEYBALL CAREER WITH PERSONAL TRAINING

By Josh Ayen

Lauren Murray joined the D1 Training staff in July 2021 and works mainly with adults in the mornings. Outside of personal training, Murray is passionate about coaching volleyball.

Murray caught up with The Plug’s Josh Ayen to share how she incorporates her volleyball coaching into her personal training, and vice versa.

WHAT GOT YOU INTO PERSONAL TRAINING?

I have been an athlete my entire life. I started out with gymnastics. Then I tried to play volleyball when I turned eight and fell in love with the game. I went on to play in college and wound up playing at the University of Evansville for two years.

Then I transferred to Marian (University) and figured out that playing wasn’t for me anymore, but I loved being around volleyball in general. I started coaching after I transferred to Marian in the spring of 2019, and then tried coaching in the fall at North Central (High School) and realized I can’t stop.

I’ve been coaching ever since, and I figured, ‘Well that's all I want to do now.’ So I changed my plan to go get my Master’s in Kinesiology and then be a personal trainer.

YOU TRAIN MAINLY WITH ADULTS DURING THE MORNING SESSIONS. ARE THESE PEOPLE THAT ARE TRYING TO MAINTAIN AN ATHLETIC CAREER, OR PEOPLE THAT ARE JUST TRYING TO STAY IN SHAPE?

HOW DO YOU FEEL YOUR PROGRAM BROADENS THE HORIZONS FOR THOSE WHO ARE JUST LOOKING TO STAY IN SHAPE?

II think it helps me a lot with coaching in volleyball as well. I’m used to training for sitting positions or for skills that focus on maintaining a lot of things. Coaching people who are trying to maintain weight or lose weight broadens my knowledge of how to train people.

I train mostly females in the morning. Some are just trying to lose weight and just maintain their body shape. For strength class they are just trying to gain muscle and keep up their build.

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WHICH DO YOU PREFER MORE, COACHING VOLLEYBALL OR PHYSICAL TRAINING?

My heart is always within volleyball, but I love both just because I like helping people.

WAS THERE AN ADJUSTMENT GOING FROM WORKING WITH YOUNGER ATHLETES, WHO ARE ON A REGULAR STRENGTH TRAINING SCHEDULE, TO ADULTS WHO DON’T HAVE THAT TYPE OF TRAINING ROUTINE?

It was a little bit of an adjustment because working with high school athletes all the time, they didn't think about what you say, and they don't ask any questions.

When you ask an adult, they’re not going to back down. They may say, ‘I don't think this is right,’ or, ‘I don't think it's going to benefit me.’ They're not afraid to say what they want.

I haven't had any issues with players. But it’s different with adults because they are more vocal about what they want and what they need in their exercises.

HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK PERSONAL TRAINING WILL HELP WITH YOUR VOLLEYBALL COACHING?

Anytime I have a certain practice we’ll do certain warm-ups or agility drills for conditioning. I love conditioning, but we're not playing a lot to where we just kill our players and just make them tired every day.

That will breakdown into volleyball skills so it's not counterproductive.

HOW DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOUR RELATIONSHIP HAS CHANGED WITH THE ADULTS YOU’VE WORKED WITH SINCE STARTING AT D1 THIS SUMMER?

I think it's a lot better than when I started. I even have clients that will only come - say certain people are there or let's say I have like a really good arm workout that they like every week - they'll come for that one specifically.

It’s like having like a fresh face in the morning. When you come in 5:30 in the morning every day you want to have somebody upbeat and talkative and who wants to work with you. That really helps because I'm a morning person, I love people.

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TheFactory D1indy

Monroe Profitt AKA “Lilo”

Age: 7 Favorite athlete: Kobe Bryant How long have you been playing? Since I was born What’s your favorite thing about playing basketball? It gets you in good shape and a good sweat How often do you practice? I put up shots and get reps in the gym every day.

Do you play any other sports? Karate Favorite subject in school? Math What’s your favorite thing about being a big sister? I can take care of my little brother, Otto. We can play Spider-man together and watch movies.

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A LEAGUE FOR

EVERYONE

Bite Size League Ages 3-6 Impact League Ages 7-10 5th & 6th Grade League Middle School League High School League 30+ League Indy Pro Am League THE PLUG | 6

Santa’s workshop

comes to The Factory for annual Christmas toy giveaway

On a cool Saturday in mid-December, The Factory transformed from a basketball workshop into Santa’s workshop.

Christmas carols serenaded Carol Teague and Santa’s helpers as they prepared to welcome children for their fourth annual toy giveaway. Teague was proactive while many stores struggled to keep toys stocked for the holiday season. Many of the toys were purchased as early as October. Ask Teague how many toys were bought, and she just shrugs her shoulders.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” she says.

With the help of relatives and other staff members from The Factory, Teague lined up hundreds of toys along the bleachers. Nerf guns, dolls, scooters, and even mini basketball hoops were stocked for kids, as young as bite-sizers to early teens.

Before welcoming all families, The Teague’s welcomed kids from the Bite-Size league to get first dibs on the toys. Toddlers and young children paced up and down the bleachers as they searched for the perfect toy.

Once they made their pick, kids stared in awe at their new gift. Nerf guns were the most popular pick, even though some of these toys were taller than the toddlers themselves.

As kids waited in line to get their picture taken with their new toy, a few gathered for a mini show-and-tell.

“Look what I got!” a boy screamed.

“I got this! Here’s mine!” said another girl.

Before taking off, the children would return the favor by putting together a present for their parents. A wrapping station was set up so children could put together gift bags with jewelry and a “thank you” note.

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As for the toys that were not selected on that Saturday, Carol donated what was left to donation centers around central Indiana.

The Christmas toy giveaway is one of many ways that the Teague family gives back during the holiday season. In November, The Factory held a turkey giveaway leading up to Thanksgiving. Two months before that, the Teague family partnered with “Pull Up Neighbor” to donate toiletries and other essentials to families in Indianapolis and in Anderson.

Not only do these events bring smiles to those in need, but it’s a reminder to Carol and the rest of the Teague family that The Factory is committed to more than basketball.

“What we do, we do it from the heart, because it’s what we love to do,” said Carol.

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