Please, just call me EJ. I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado before moving to the Lone Star State in 2011. Like most kids growing up, I played every sport imaginable growing up before the age of the iPad and the smartphone. Even at a young age, I knew I was different than most kids who were getting into sports. Yes, I was good at them, even playing NCAA baseball for all four years in college. But while the rest of the kids dove into cartoons and ice cream after watching a game, I would ask my Dad if I could use his computer to watch the highlights. Not just to watch touchdowns and diving catches again, but to HEAR it again with the broadcast call over the play. I wanted to engage in 9U baseball debates as if it was my own version of ESPN’s “First Take”. Other kids found it odd. Parents of my friends would laugh and say to my parents, “you need to teach that kid how to be a kid” when they would pick me up. I wanted more.

I continued my love of sports into high school before I finally got the shot that I always knew I wanted. Before I tell the story, there is some background that is required. Like many, my love of sports stems from my Dad (pictured here). He was the one that played broadcaster with me the same way other Dads would play “superhero” or “race car driver”. He would ask me questions on the way to baseball games as if he was a member of the press and I was the star athlete getting ready to take the field. Throwing me the last ball of a batting practice round and then lowering his voice to say, “HOW FAR IS THIS ONE GOING?”, making me feel like the greatest hitter ever. Well, this same voice was going to miss one of my sophomore year playoff games in high school and I knew he was devastated. Luckily for him, a local streaming voice would be covering the game so he could listen while he was on the road. As he put the game on, a commercial rang through his speakers, “DO YOU WANT TO LEARN HOW TO BE A SPORTSCASTER? SUMMER CAMP SPOTS STILL AVAILABLE”. My Dad told me years later that he pulled the car over so he could rewind the commercial to double check. I was signed up the next morning.

Three weeks later, I was in an office building with 2 other kids learning how to set up mixers, work a spotting board, and of course watching other broadcasters. After dissecting Keith Jackson and Dan Fouts’s call of the 2006 Rose Bowl, the week concluded and my work has done. I had gained an experience that would help me on college applications that weren’t due for another 2 YEARS. That is until we got an email two weeks later. The company that ran the camp offered me a chance to be a color commentator and produce Liberty Hill High School Football on their network. What?! I was excited. I was scared. I couldn’t even drive myself to the games yet! What if I said something dumb? Do they really trust me? All these thoughts ran through my 15 year old mind, but quickly faded. I didn’t screw up and began my career at the age of 15 and haven’t looked back since.

More than a friend, son, or broadcaster, I’m a man of faith. As you can see from my experience, my start in this industry has involved being in a lot of places at the right time. I don’t call them coincidences. I’ve turned my fateful start into a daily challenge and vow to keep giving back to audiences and those around me. Those parents growing up were right and wrong to tell my parents that I needed to focus on being a kid. In the time since, I’ve continued to grow up, but I have found a career that keeps me in childish awe. That’s being a broadcaster. The day that stops will mark the end of this adventure. Not so soon though, I’m here to stay.