Filing this one under the ever-popular “personal update” category.
After 4 years, today is my last day as a full-time employee at McCallie School. Tomorrow, I begin a new chapter teaching undergraduate courses in the Department of Communications at
@UTChattanooga
.
UTC-ALERT Campus is closed/classes canceled today due to water service outage. Crews are working to restore service ASAP. More info to come as it is available.
@mattyglesias
Yes, polls in the lead up to an election. Equating that with polls a full year out from an election is not the same thing. That’s all I’m saying.
While I won’t be in Chattanooga or Pittsburgh this weekend to cheer on
@GoMocsMBB
in person, you better know I’m geared up and ready to support
@UTChattanooga
in the mountains of Utah! Go Mocs!
#RepTheC
Guys ... there’s a live sporting event on the tv right now. On FS1 you can watch Australian Rules Football: Brisbane vs Hawthorn. They appear to be playing in an empty stadium, but it’s live sports. I’ll take what I can get right now.
Went for lunch at
@UTChattanooga
’s Crossroads for the first time in a year today. Happy to report that
@MocsDining
legend Ms. Cassandra was well and still remembered me. It was good to see that she’s still in charge and keeping everyone in line on campus.
This probably doesn’t mean much to anyone but me, but it’s still pretty cool to have earned some recognition for my knowledge of journalism and media literacy along with my (at times haphazard) ability to teach it to others.
To those who jumped on the bandwagon this year, stick around. This program, this school and this city are special and worth supporting. We will reload and go at it again next year. Blue and Gold, ride or die.
I’ll be back at McKenzie Arena. Will you?
#GoMocs
Proud to have been chosen to serve as board chair for
@WTCI
, Chattanooga’s PBS station. WTCI has been providing the best in education, public affairs and entertainment programming to the Chattanooga region for more than 50 years.
|
@TimesFreePress
I will say this: when I walked to the epicenter of the incident on campus at UTC today to find out what was really happening, I was proud to see a bunch of
@UTCComm
students already at the scene to find out facts and capture the scene in words, video and photos.
My match report for
@TimesFreePress
from last night's
@ChattanoogaFC
4-3 exhibition loss to
@RealBetis_en
at Chattanooga's Finley Stadium. Good showing by the home team against world-class competition from Spain's first division La Liga.
Don’t call it “Chatty.” Ever. Just don’t do it. “Chatt” is fine. No problem with “Nooga” or “The Noog” at all. “ChattaVegas” is fine, although “ChattaBoogie” is preferred. While we are at it, “Scenic City” and “Dynamo of Dixie” are both WAY better than “Gig City.”
Completed my year as board chair at
@wtci
today, and amazingly the station is still afloat after a year of me running the WTCI Board of Directors.
Thanks to station President Bob Culkeen, the great staff of WTCI and to my fellow board members
Support your local
@PBS
station!
My cousin decided to get artistic with the
@Nothing_ButNet
buzzer-beater from last night's
@SoConSports
championship game. That shot certainly was a work of art for DJB and the entire
@GoMocsMBB
nation.
Just randomly met
@GoMocsMBB
coach Dan Earl out grabbing some food in Chattanooga. Nice guy. Glad I was able to personally welcome him to town and to the
@UTChattanooga
family.
#GoMocs
I left Chattanooga on Feb. 28 for a couple of weeks out west. Did some skiing, ate well, had fun. Since I left, tornados destroyed Nashville/Cookeville, a pandemic ravaged the world & I have to work online for the foreseeable future. Explain why I should leave this hot tub?
Well, it’s a Friday night, so that means it’s time for prep football. I’m in North Georgia for
@TimesFreePress
to cover the interstate showdown between
@McCallieSchool
and
@CHSJacketsFB
. But first, I had to check out the legendary
@bucees
just opened in Calhoun.
Folks, this is a team that lost 11 in a row at one point this season. Now, you can call them champs. Just an impressive display of perseverance and grit by
@UTCCoachKatie
and her team. Go Mocs!
Huge crowd at Finley Stadium for the Division II-AAA state championship game. Personally happy to see
@McCallieFB
get the 34-28 win, but lots of credit to Baylor
@RaiderReCap
for playing a great game. This one could have gone either way.
#BestOfPreps
Great win for
@GoMocsMBB
tonight. Much of the focus will rightly go to
@Nothing_ButNet
for that insane game-winner. But don’t forget the work done by
@SilvioDeSousa5
tonight with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Happy to see that guy’s redemption journey continue in Chattanooga.
My second match report from Saturday's
@ChattanoogaFC
-
@RealBetis_en
exhibition in Chattanooga, for
@NPSLSoccer
. Much of the same info as my TFP story, but some great photos & a new quote from Béticos star Joaquin on the supporter-ownership model in soccer.
In a bizarre quirk of the calendar, I am the first (and currently only)
@TimesFreePress
writer to have written the Sunday focal story in each of the first three decades of the 21st century.
Basically, this just means I’m old. But it also is pretty cool. Take that,
@dflessner1
!
All I’ve ever done and accomplished is only possible because of my mom. We celebrated the latest victory this weekend, but nothing I’ve ever done well would have happened without her love and support. The things I’ve screwed up are on me.
Happy Mother’s Day!
She was small in stature but even the tallest looked up to her. Her voice was soft but her message rang loud and clear and will echo forever. Thank you, RBG. Rest In Peace. Respectfully, Dolly Parton
All I gotta say to
@Braves
Twitter, is that y’all would never have survived the 91/92 NLCS’s. Which is surprising since I know at least some of y’all lived through it with me. Believe, and stop being so negative.
#BattleATL
Today as I was working thru my second day of full-time teaching Media Writing at
@UTChattanooga
, my Grandmother, Barbara Sumner Poston, passed away quietly at home with my mom and family with her. She was almost 97 years old, & she’s why I am a journalist and journalism educator.
It is late & time for bed. And I promise I’ll shut up about it soon. But I did this — something I never thought I’d be able to do (or even have a chance to do) just two years ago. thankful to have friends and family with me today. Thank you,
@USCAnnenberg
&
@USC
#FightOn
#USCGrad
Conducted my first online class with my
@UTChattanooga
Media Writing I students! It was great to finally see these guys again, even if it was just online.
Most importantly, at the end of class we all showed off our pets! We get thru this weird time together.
@UTCComm
I’m not saying that I’m going thru a midlife crisis or anything, but I did buy an electric guitar & an amp today. Also a weighted blanket, because I am curious to see what the fuss is all about. And a turntable to play my records. And hippie Chacos. OK, perhaps there are issues.
This is one of your Comm writing professors reminding you to use numerals when more than 10. Thus, this TD is the Mocs’s longest in 21 years.
#AlwaysTeaching
Doing some soccer coverage tonight at Finley stadium for NPSL and the Times Free Press.
@ChattanoogaFC
is about to take on Real Betis from Spain's La Liga.
Welcome to Finley Stadium. We are 10 minutes from the start of tonight's match between
@ChattanoogaFC
and La Liga side Real Betis in an exhibition showcase. Follow along for updates throughout the match.
This is a strong get for the
@TimesFreePress
coming off a big season for UTK hoops. Kudos to
@StephenHargis
and the sports team || Vols basketball star Admiral Schofield will speak at Best of Preps banquet
First day of mynew job teaching communications at
@UTChattanooga
was today, but also got to see the finished product from my one year as the yearbook advisor at
@McCallieSchool
. The staff did an amazing job, and the book looks great. Thanks for
@yearbookforever
for their help.
So ... I was wearing shorts & a Santana tour t-shirt while moving into my new office today when I run into
@UTChattanooga
Chancellor Angle & system president
@randyboyd
. So, now my big bosses think
@UTCComm
faculty wander around campus dressed like roadies for REO Speedwagon.
Six weeks ago, I would sometimes think that I didn't have a social life and lived a boring life.
I was mistaken, because NOW I don't have a social life and live a boring life. I stand corrected.
Once word got out that
@SilvioDeSousa5
would miss the game, the Mocs became a betting underdog. While we missed him, Vegas just learned that these Mocs are more than one player. This is a complete team. Big win.
#GoMocs
Chattanooga 75
Wofford 67
Good road win without the full team of players tonight.
@GoMocsMBB
are 12-3 and sit atop the SoCon. Home game this Saturday 1/8 at 4pm vs The Citadel.
If ever there was a true example of a Profile in Courage, Georgia SOS Brad Raffensburger is that guy right now. The pressure that guy has faced is overwhelming.
Keep an eye on Red Bank freshman Daune Morris. The speedy running back carried the ball 14 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns in the Lions’ 46-14 win over Soddy-Daisy on Friday. | My Chattanooga
@TimesFreePress
game story on the
@RedBankFB
win.
Well, my former classmate and Pulitzer winning author
@jmeacham
was at work today, and that's pretty cool. But I didn't see his freelance byline on the front of the
@TimesFreePress
sports section this morning. So, who is the real winner here? 🧐
When Randall Coleman arrived at UTC in July 2021, the Marching Mocs band had a little more than 30 members. As of June 2022, the Marching Mocs have 140 students signed up, a 425% increase and the highest number in more than a decade.
And the 2019
#Ironmanchattanooga
winner is 23-year-old Sam Long. This the first
@IRONMANtri
win of his career and a sweep of both Chattanooga Ironman events in 2019. More later in print and online at
@TimesFreePress
.
Today I got to wear a Super Bowl ring, introduce Derrick Coleman (the first deaf NFL player) & browbeat 300 people into donating another $10,000 at the RISE 2020 fundraiser for
@partnershipfca
. It was great day for a great Chattanooga nonprofit. Proud to serve on their board.
Holy comeback!
@GoMocsWBK
erase a 10-point deficit to claim an impressive 74-59 home win over UNC Greensboro. Senior Lakelyn Bouldin leads the Mocs with 25 points and freshman guard Dena Jerrells has a breakout game with 14 points, five rebounds, seven assists and two steals.
It is hard to express how much this means. It’s silly on its face. But it brings back so many memories of friends past and present. This is for the ATL!
Grades are in, Christmas is too close to even think about, but it’s still a good night for some Chattanooga
@GoMocsWBK
women’s basketball. Let’s see if
@Coach_Poppie
’s team can keep it rolling. Go Mocs! Throw Rocks!
Peak
@GoMocsMBB
nerdiness is arriving at the game super early to get one of 500 replica
@SoConSports
championship rings. Yes,
@mightejoe
and I did that. We are the nerds you’ve been looking for. Go Mocs!
College hoops season is upon us, and I got a chance to cover the
@GoMocsMBB
exhibition opener this weekend for
@TimesFreePress
|| UTC Mocs play hard in basketball exhibition to pull away from Covenant College in second half
Personal note from my night of prep football coverage for the
@TimesFreePress
. Despite living my entire life in Chattanooga, tonight I discovered that Boyd Buchanan School is not even remotely close to where I thought it was. I’m not sure how that happened.
#bestofpreps
Tonight, I had the amazing opportunity to meet legendary journalist Carl Bernstein, in town speaking at Southern Adventist University. Bernstein, who helped break the Watergate scandal 50 years ago, is here speaking on “Why Truth Still Matters” at a time when we need to hear it.
Final from McKenzie Arena:
@GoMocsMBB
90, South Alabama 72. Mocs improve to 3-1 on the season thanks to a career night by junior David Jean-Baptiste with a career best 25 points. Matt Ryan scores 20 and Ramon Vila adds 17 in a big home win for Chattanooga.
Final score from East Hamilton:
@EastHamFB
49, East Ridge 0 with the Hurricanes getting a pick-6 on the last play of the game. A dominating first half by the Hurricanes gets it done on a gorgeous night for football in East Brainerd.
#BestOfPreps
Just because TMZ got the story right doesn’t mean they did the right thing. Very tasteless move. Sometimes being first isn’t worth the heartache you create.
Jake Stephens this season for
@GoMocsMBB
:
22.1 PPG
10.5 RPG
3.7 APG
2.3 BPG
The last Division I player to average 20/10/3/2 over a full season was Wake Forest's Tim Duncan in 1996-97.