22
sports
november 8, 2013
The Roar’s Jack McElduff interviewed ESPN reporter and South alumnus Andy Katz about his time at South and his career in sports journalism Jack McElduff: When did you start to get interested in journalism?
AK: Huge. I went to Red Sox games consistently every summer. [I went to] Celtics games; I was a Bruins fan. At the time, Andy Katz: The first couple of the Patriots were a clear fourth years of high school, I was a little when I grew up. Obviously that bit like the king of JV at South. The has changed over the last 20 years. first part of senior year, I was on I was actually a little more of a the [basketball] team, [but then Dolphins fan growing up, but with they] added another player. They the other three teams, I was a huge had a rule then that seniors were fan. not allowed to play on JV, so I got cut. I was crushed, devastated. But JM: Were you involved in any I didn’t want to not be around it, publications during your time at even though I couldn’t play at all. South? Local cable was just starting to do local games. So I went down there, AK: I worked for The Lion’s Roar, and proposed [covering] games. I which started with the class above ended up broadcasting the games, me. That was the first newspaperand I did a play-by-play. So I type job I had. ended up staying around with my teams and my friends in the media JM: Do you feel like South gave capacity. you a head start in your career? JM: Were you a big fan of the Boston sports teams growing up?
AK: Yes. Those were defining moments for me. I easily could have
gone in a different direction, like a life of crime. But if I had been on the team [and not gotten cut], I would have most likely not continued to pursue [journalism] in college. JM: What do you do on a typical day during college basketball season? AK: It’s constantly evolving. Over the past few years, I’ve been doing the “Three-Point Shot,” which is basically gathering news for the day. Am I going to a game? Am I going to Charlotte for ESPNU? Is there something I have to do at ESPN? I don’t really have a traditional day. One constant is setting the table for the day with those news nuggets in the morning. JM: What have you enjoyed most about your time working at ESPN?
ESPN
AK: The diversity of what I do. The fact that I write, I report, I host, I analyze. I now don’t just do college basketball — I’m a backup at Outside the Lines, which I love doing. It’s really the diversity over the last 15 years that I really love. JM: What was the most exciting sporting event that you have covered to date? AK: The one that pops in my head now is the 2010 title game, when Butler played Duke. The Memphis-Kansas game in ‘08 was great, but at [the 2010 game] I had great seats. I saw the whole shot, and it really almost slowed down. It was really a perfect storm. It was in [Indianapolis], and had that shot gone in, there really would have been a lot of great spin-offs of that would have occurred. JM: If there was one person in the world who you could interview, who would it be? AK: It’s not in the sports world, but people like Nelson Mandela, that would be a dream come true. I’ve been able to talk to a lot of interesting and intriguing people, but I don’t just have one like that. JM: How did you begin helping President Obama fill his marchmadness bracket?
AK: In 2008, we were interviewing him for a story, prior to the election. We were in a Hampton Inn in Dunn, North Carolina. There was a little free time after the interview, and I just asked him, “Hey, Senator, if you win, I’d love to come to the White House in March and fill out the bracket with you.” He said yes, and to [the White House staff ’s] credit, it’s ESPN Andy Katz helps President Barack Obama fill out his 2013 March Madness bracket. The two have been collaborating since 2009. become a tradition.