When I was a little kid my dream job was to be a pro athlete, when I hit about 16 years old and needed to stand on a few phone books to hit 6 ft. tall, I figured I would start looking into other options. Eventually, I decided that I wanted to become a PR practitioner in the sports industry. After meeting Kenny Mossman this semester, my goal was completely solidified. Kenny Mossman is the Media Relations Director for The University of Oklahoma's Athletics Department and pretty much my hero.
There are so many incredible aspects to Mossman's job that they are too numerous to be listed. Let's start with he gets to hang out with high-profile athletes and coaches all day long. He is also ultimately responsible for all of the external media relations communications that come out of OU's Athletics department. Mossman travels with the team to away and bowl games, and he gets paid pretty well as well. Gosh, I'd do all of that for free. I am currently taking Mossman's Sports PR class, and every time I leave on Thursdays I think to myself "he is such a badass".
I have probably learned more about what I want to do with my life over the course of this semester , than i have in my 4 years here at OU. Mossman could take a terrible situation and turn it into something positive without hesitating for a second. The best part of it is, he doesn't need slant or spin, he is just so experienced that nothing phases him.
Now on to what it takes. Ultimately, to get into Sports PR you have to start from the ground floor, or just be really lucky. According to Mossman over 90% of those in this line of work started at a volunteer level. From there you must gain experience and start from a little pond and work your way up into the ocean of high profile collegiate and professional programs.
2 comments:
I admire your goals. I would suggest to keep your mind open to other options as well. Do you know where you want to work and with what organization? That would be interesting to know.
What do you know. Another sports pr student. I have a friend that just got a job with the Orlando Magic. He says its the most awesome experience ever. One thing that he mentioned as a drawback...athletes. He says almost all of them are divas and are mostly in it for themselves all the time. I imagine that it is hard to create a positive team atmosphere considering the massive egos that professional athletes are famous for. But all in all, any sports fan would be nuts to pass up an opportunity for "the big show" jobs.
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