As fall begins to fade into winter, most seniors are counting down the days until spring graduation, and Logan Whaley, senior journalism major, is no exception to the anticipation of such a milestone.
However, while most students look forward to leaving Union and making their mark on the world, Whaley will graduate with the confidence that he has already left an indelible mark because Whaley has grown into a gifted broadcaster for UU athletics during his time at Union University.
Whaley got his start in broadcasting as a color commentator for Graves County High School baseball from 2015-2016. This past summer, he worked as an intern for the Florida Collegiate Summer League, providing both play-by-play and color commentary for the Winter Garden Squeeze, writing game summaries at the conclusion of each game and writing feature stories highlighting coaches and players.
Though he has provided play-by-play commentary for local high school football and basketball games during his time at Union, Whaley is most known, however, for his work in Union University athletics. In addition to being the television voice of Union Bulldog basketball and baseball, Whaley also produces sports content for Union’s daily news show, West Tennessee Today.
When asked about the difficulty that such a fast-paced job must entail, Whaley says that the biggest challenge lies in the preparation. Whaley says he overprepares so that he doesn’t have to “be married to his notes” and can broadcast with more of a real flow.
“The amount of time I spend preparing… comparing my research on players with the statistics… creating spreadsheets with recent trends on how players have performed in recent games – this preparation allows me to be over-prepared and able to focus more on broadcasting the games,” Whaley said.
Perhaps even more impressive than Whaley’s work and accomplishments as a broadcaster for Union and local sports is his social media sports account that many students refer to as famous. One of his shared videos of a basketball player dunking made it onto Sports Center highlights after ESPN reached out to him.
Even so, Whaley rejects the idea that his Twitter page is famous, but he does feel that it allows him to practice the journalism side of broadcasting and share player and stats information that he has gathered in his research with all of his followers. Whaley mentions the importance of having “tools in your belt” when it comes to the career path he has chosen.
“If you want to work in sports, you’ve got to be able to do more than one thing well,” said Whaley. “You have to have broadcasting skills, journalism skills, experience with social media, even graphic design.”
He calls athletics “the front porch” of the university and sees his role as one that uses sports highlights to help market the university.
As Whaley looks to the future, he realizes that sports is a popular field that many people want to work in. One advantage he feels he has is his willingness to go absolutely anywhere to work, as long as it’s in the field of sports broadcasting. Whaley says he doesn’t know the future, but he is excited about the ministry side of broadcasting.
“Having the opportunity to work with people from so many different backgrounds, that’s something that really draws me in,” said Whaley.
Although he says he has no idea where he will end up, he does acknowledge the one thing he can control- how he prepares for it. His plan for now is to just prepare the best he can and wait to see what doors the Lord opens for him. For someone with Whaley’s work ethic, experience and talent, there is little doubt that the doors of opportunity will soon be opening for him, and the community that welcomes him in will be truly blessed.
