A native of Buffalo, N.Y., who calls Memphis, Tenn., home, I bring extensive sports beat experience and strongly held journalism values to The Daily Advertiser’s daily coverage of UL Ragin’ Cajuns sports.
Those values were instilled at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, widely regarded as one of the nation’s best both back in the day and today.
The beat work — including traveling writer covering the NBA’s Utah Jazz and NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning — came during 10-plus-year stints at the Deseret News in Salt Lake City and the St. Petersburg Times in Florida.
Those are two of four newspapers I’ve worked for since college, bookended by the Amarillo Globe-News in Texas straight out of Mizzou and the Daily Advertiser today.
Beyond full-time newspaper employment, I also have freelance bylines on or in The Sporting News college football and basketball preview magazines, The Sporting News/Street & Smith NBA preview magazines, ESPN.com, Yahoo.com, The Hockey News and even the UPI wire service.
I’ve covered events including the 2002 Winter Olympics men’s hockey tournament; NBA and Stanley Cup Finals games; numerous NBA All-Star Games from 2000 to 2010; the 1999 and 2002 NHL All-Star Games; four NHL Drafts; NASCAR races at Daytona, Talladega, Charlotte and Indianapolis; NBA exhibition games in Mexico City, London and Madrid; multiple college football bowl games; and, for the Advertiser, the 2012 BCS college football National Championship Game.
It’s an array of experience I hope brings perspective and insight to UL sports coverage in the Acadiana area. Be sure to check out our coverage of the R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl all this week in our sports section, and contact me at tbuckley2@gannett.com to let me know what you think.