The first Jim Nantz Award winner now has his first full-time college play-by-play job. Adam Cavalier, who was named the nation’s most outstanding collegiate sportscaster by STAA in 2009, has been hired as Director of Athletic Communications at Carson Newman University in Jefferson City, TN.

In addition to broadcasting Eagles football, men’s basketball, and likely other sports, Cavalier will oversee sports information for all 16 of Carson Newman’s programs. He will also produce and manage multimedia content for cneagles.com.

“My vision for this position and for the future of Carson Newman athletics aligns in near lockstep with [Athletic Director] Allen Morgan’s,” says Cavalier. “We both believe Carson Newman has the opportunity to not only be one of the best, but THE best school in the south. We both want and expect excellence not only for the athletic department but for the university as a whole. That environment, and the character associated with the school, are driving factors. It doesn’t matter that Carson Newman is DII, we will be big time.”

A 2009 graduate of Marshall University, Cavalier has been the voice of Thundering Herd women’s basketball since 2010 and also served a variety of roles on Marshall’s football and men’s basketball broadcasts. He is also West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Charleston (WV) Bureau Chief.

The Carson Newman opportunity came about very quickly for Cavalier.

“Marshall play-by-play voice Steve Cotton told me that the position had come open Monday, June 25. My application was in Tuesday evening, I had a pleasant phone conversation with CN’s Athletic Director Allen Morgan on Thursday and then interviewed in person on the 4th of July. I’ll be cliché and say there were fireworks. This position was very much about whom I knew. The fact that Cotton was willing to go out of his way to help me get this gig two months away from the start of the football season speaks the world about him and what kind of person he is. I’ll be buying him dinner before I leave for Jefferson City.”

Cavalier has been an STAA client since 2009.

“STAA has helped me ramp up my game in terms of applying for jobs,” Cavalier says. “I honed cover letters, tapes and resumes I based on [STAA CEO] Jon Chelesnik’s advice and things I read on the site.

“It’s been three years since I won the Nantz. That hardware still gets mentioned when I’m introduced. I guess it is becoming/has become the Heisman trophy of sportscasting. To say that it’s not an icebreaker would be a bold-faced lie. In fact, when Allen Morgan introduced me to Carson-Newman’s president, the phrase, “Jim Nantz Award winner” came out of his mouth third after “this is Adam Cavalier,” and “we want to hire him.”

(Visit Adam’s STAA Talent Page).

(July 10, 2012) Graham Doty is looking forward to a football heavy fall schedule this year. An STAA client, Doty has been hired as the Studio Host for the Ole Miss Football Radio Network.

“The opportunity to work a football season in the SEC is something that I consider a great opportunity. I have grown up an Ole Miss fan, I graduated from the University and it’s my favorite team. I am very thankful and excited about the opportunity.”

As the newest addition to the Ole Miss broadcasting crew, Doty will host the two-hour pre game show, plus the one-hour post game show. At halftime, Doty will step in for David Kellum, the voice of the Rebels, to review stats and scores from around the country.

Doty is already the play-by-play voice of Rebels women’s basketball, which is how he first learned of the football host opportunity.

“After the Ole Miss women’s basketball season, I had a meeting with TeleSouth, the company that has broadcast rights for Ole Miss athletics. We reviewed the basketball season and discussed the upcoming season as well. They then mentioned that the person who had done the pre and post game last year was uncertain if he would do it for the upcoming season. I kept in touch with TeleSouth and they recently informed me that the position would be available and offered me the job.”

Doty also plans to continue as the voice of Hinds Community College football. The nine game regular season will be Doty’s second with HCC. He also has minor league baseball experience with the Mobile BayBears and Hickory Crawdads.

(Visit Graham’s STAA Talent Page).

(July 6, 2012) When Vic Travagliante began preparing for his career in sports broadcasting, he laid out a timeline and set some reasonable goals for working up to a major market. Now, Travagliante is ahead of schedule. An STAA client, Travagliante has been hired as a sports update anchor and fill-in host at 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, OH.

“I’ve always wanted to go back to Cleveland, it has always been my goal. I’m hoping to be a fresh voice for people to listen to for a long time in my home city.

“My goal was, by the time I was 28 or 29, I’d be making my way into a mid-major market – Dayton, Columbus, then by 33 or 35, Cleveland,” Travagliante says. “It will take longer for me to work my way up, but I’m already there.”

Travagliante is familiar with climbing the ladder at a station. He got his start as a news and sports host at ESPN Radio 1430-AM in Fostoria, OH. Travagliante used his four years in Fostoria to build experience in everything from sales and promotions to play-by-play, earning a promotion to news and sports director.

When it came time to decide if jumping from Fostoria to Cleveland was a good move, Travagliante turned to STAA.

“Vic sought council from many people,” says STAA CEO Jon Chelesnik. “My advice to him was that, if he could get himself into a major market, anything can happen because of the overwhelming amount of opportunities in big league sports cities. He’s taking a big step forward towards his goals in sports talk and even play-by-play.”

Travagliante is excited to begin extending his brand to a wider audience.

“Now that I’m in Cleveland it gives me an opportunity to have more people look at my work now that it says Cleveland on it. It makes me more valuable in other markets.”

(Visit Vic’s STAA Talent Page).

(July 3, 2012) STAA client Joe Szadok is trading his city life for small town charms – and the ideal job to begin his sportscasting career. Szadok is joining K101/Z92 Radio in Woodward, OK.

“This opportunity is perfect for me because it will let me get a lot of experience in a wide array of broadcasting areas. I love play-by-play but this lets me get more experienced in sports reporting as well as news, which can only help.”

Szadok will be working alongside fellow STAA client Pete Mundo.

A 2012 graduate of CW Post in Brookville, NY and an STAA client since May, Szadok grins when he says, “I’m not going to lie. I’ve read all the other [STAA client success stories] and have been wanting to see a story about me getting a job on STAA ever since I signed up.”

Szadok’s opportunity to score a job and a headline story came from an STAA job lead email.

“I applied for every single radio position that I thought would be good for me. I didn’t care if I thought I was qualified or not, I just applied for it all.”

After reading the K101/Z92 opening, Szadok called in a little extra help for his application.

“I sent [STAA CEO Jon Chelesnik] my cover letter for this job before I sent it in, and he made corrections that obviously helped me get this job.”

Szadok joined STAA upon the recommendation of friend and fellow client Patrick Creighton. Since then, Szadok has referred others to STAA. “There are others at my college radio station who have asked me about STAA and I gave great recommendations. I’m pretty sure there will be more CW Post radio guys coming your way,” Szadok smiles.

“STAA has been incredibly helpful to me over the last couple months. There are so many job lead emails about jobs I’d never know about. Also, STAA’s One Day Ticket to Sportscasting Success seminar where I learned incredible information from so many different broadcasting minds.”

“Thanks again [to STAA]. I definitely couldn’t have done it without you.”

(Visit Joe’s STAA Talent Page).

(June 29, 2012) Chris Cox had high expectations when he traveled from Louisiana to North Carolina for STAA’s recent One Day Ticket to Sportscasting Success seminar. He knew he would gather outstanding career building insights from some of sportscasting’s biggest names, but he got more than that. He got a job. An STAA client, Cox has been hired as a sports talk host at 103.7 The Game in Lafayette, LA.

In addition to hosting a daily show Mondays through Fridays, Cox will have duties for high school and University of Louisiana-Lafayette football and will assist the station’s digital efforts.

“I can’t speak for everyone but attending the seminar has paid off for me,” Cox grins.

Since December, Cox has been hosting a bi-weekly sports talk show for Cumulus Broadcasting in Shreveport. He learned of his new opportunity when, by sheer coincidence, he chose to sit at a table at the seminar where another Shreveport resident and STAA client, KLFY-TV sports anchor/reporter Jeff Horchak was seated. “We started chatting, and through that, I learned that this new sports station in Lafayette LA was hiring. He gave me the number of the GM and put in a good word for me.”

Less than two weeks later, Cox had a new job.

“I was in a very bad position and sending out tons of resumes every time I saw one of the job postings [on the STAA website]. I was having no luck and the jobs were all for some very far away place that would take me away from my girlfriend and family,” Cox says.

“It’s an amazing opportunity. Jeff helped me out a ton. I am glad I picked the right table at the seminar.

“Thank you [STAA] so much for what you do and for the networking opportunities you provide your members. I am very lucky to have been given this chance. If it wasn’t for your seminar I would probably still be stuck!”

(June 27, 2012) Marky Billson is back in sportscasting action and returning to the game he loves. A founding member of STAA, Billson has been hired as the play-by-play broadcaster for Harlingen (TX) WhiteWings baseball.

“I wanted to call baseball again,” Billson says. “I grew up calling Strat-O-Matic games into a tape recorder, and while I certainly am passionate about writing and other news and sportscasting endeavors and don’t want to section myself from them, this is my first love.”

The opportunity to join the WhiteWings arrived in Billson’s inbox via one of the job listings emailed exclusively to STAA Premier clients. “The WhiteWings contacted STAA saying they needed a broadcaster even though their season was already underway,” says STAA CEO Jon Chelesnik.

“Having the advance listing by being a Premier client, responding quickly, and, as [Jon Chelesnik] always says, writing ‘I will be calling on this date’ really got me to the front of the line,” says Billson. “In this case, the team needed a take charge guy with some experience, so by presenting myself to them in such a fashion it made all the difference.”

Billson is a veteran broadcaster and sportswriter from Pittsburgh, PA but he’s been out of the industry for several years. It can be a fight to return to an industry that you’ve left for a while, but it’s worth the effort to return to your dream.

“As far as taking this opportunity, it’s a bit of a risk. I’m taking a major pay cut from my previous job, which was not in the media. But the fact of the matter is that I have found when I was in the media business it was much easier to get another position, or a position of growth, in that field than not being in the industry,” Billson says.

“Telling a potential employer, ‘Well, I’ve been a cab driver but I have also written “Pennsylvania Sports Trivia’ to stay involved in the media industry wasn’t the answer I wanted to give an all-sports radio station or sports editor. So while I had tapes of my work, they were somewhat dated. The players I was calling coming up are now coming down. And I always want to improve.”

Billson is also looking forward to the non-broadcasting responsibilities of his new job, and hopes it will be a springboard to new opportunities down the road.

“What makes this such a delight is I should be involved in various parts of the organization. I have an extensive background in sports writing and I’ll be able to use those skills here writing game stories, press releases, and hopefully freelance articles on our players to their hometown newspapers.

“I not only want to use this position to climb the media ladder, be it eventually calling major league baseball or other broadcasting, print, or internet media positions. I also want to use this position to learn more about business, whether it is running a professional sports franchise or another sort of enterprise.”

(Visit Marky’s STAA Talent Page).

(June 26, 2012) Sometimes you try out for pitcher and you end up in center field instead. Matt Tarnawa applied for one job, and then ended up with an offer for a completely different position. An STAA client since 2009, Tarnawa has accepted a job at KWOS in Jefferson City, MO.

“My job at KWOS is going to be primarily news-based, at least for the immediate future, Tarnawa says. “I’ll eventually be anchoring the station’s drive-time news hour, contribute to the website, etc. Everyone’s still kind of learning as they go along here. It’s a brand new position.”

Tarnawa comes to KWOS from KRES in Moberly, MO, where he had a healthy slate of high school play-by-play, news and a daily air shift. While Tarnawa will focus on news for the present, he is hopeful that sports will be added to his responsibilities soon.

“It was a tough choice to leave KRES behind, especially for all the high school sports I’ll miss out on for the near future. But I definitely needed a change, too.”

“Jefferson City is the state capital and nearly four times Moberly’s population, and I’ll be doing work for other stations in our group in Columbia down the road, too. Hopefully, I’ll get involved with sports in some way once I settle in. KWOS does cover Jefferson City Jays athletics and I’d love to get a chance to contribute there.”

The position at KWOS was created after Tarnawa applied for a different opening within the station cluster.

“I actually learned about it because [fellow STAA client] Will Palaszczuk knew there would be a morning show change at another station in his group and said I should apply for it. The PD didn’t think I was the best fit for that, but this job in Jefferson City opened up for me as a result. Once again, the power of networking was on full display!”

(Visit Matt’s STAA Talent Page).

(June 25, 2012) STAA client Jacob Wilkins is sending his voice to the stars and back. Wilkins has joined Sirius XM Radio as a sports update anchor.

“I will be doing Universal updates (that air across all channels), as well as anchoring updates for “College Sports Nation”, “NFL Radio”, “MLB Network Radio”, “Fantasy Sports Radio”, and “Mad Dog Radio”,” Wilkins says.

“This is a good opportunity as it provides great exposure over a variety of platforms. Sirius XM obviously has a great reputation, and covers a vast array of sports.”

This is just the latest opportunity Wilkins has earned. In March, he began voicing highlights for MLB.com. He also broadcasts high school football and basketball on MSG Varsity. Wilkins was previously the voice of Hudson Valley Renegades baseball.

Wilkins’ new job came about after he had a copy of his demo on hand when introduced to a Sirius executive.

“[It was] a routine meeting with someone I knew at Sirius in January. He asked if I was interested in doing updates, and actually introduced me to an executive producer in his office. Since I had my demo CD with me, all three of us watched some of my reel right there. They were generous enough to ask me to come in to do a few demos. When an opportunity opened around April, they told me I should apply, and the rest is history.”

(Visit Jacob’s STAA Talent Page).

(June 20, 2012) If patience is a virtue, then STAA client Brett Henderson is a saint. He struck the delicate balance between patience and persistence in his job hunt. Now, Henderson is joining KYOY Radio in Cheyenne, WY as Sports Director.

“This is exactly what I have always wanted to do. I wanted to be involved with sports radio when I first got into the business. This is a purely a sports director position. I’m going to get to host my own show in the morning and cover the local teams and be closer to home.”

Henderson is moving to Cheyenne from Fort Dodge, IA, where he has been the news and sports director at Three Eagles Communications for the past two years.

The journey to KYOY began in March, when Henderson found the opening on the STAA job board. “I was checking the site twice a day,” says Henderson.

“I contacted them with my STAA Talent Page and sent them a follow-up email about a week after I contacted them.”

In April, Henderson was scheduled to visit family in Denver, less than two hours from Cheyenne. “[STAA CEO] Jon Chelesnik suggested I tell [KYOY] I would be in town and would love to meet them at the station if they would allow me to,” Henderson says. “I met with them, it went well and they said they would be in contact.”

Then the waiting game began. It would be two months before Henderson was offered the job.

“I’ve never had my patience tested like it was tested this time,” Henderson grins. “Jon Chelesnik says it all the time, ‘patience is key.’ My patience has never been tested like it was with this.”

“Jon Chelesnik’s advice to ‘make them tell you no’ was probably the best advice he could have given me. It’s a tightrope between being too aggressive and not aggressive enough. I think its better to err on the [side of being too aggressive]. I think going to visit the station is what got me the job. If I didn’t go after that, I don’t know if they would have called and given me the interview.”

Henderson left Denver more than three years ago and is excited to be within driving distance to home.

“This puts me about an hour and a half away from everyone (in Denver) doing a job I actually couldn’t be more happy to have.”

(Visit Brett’s STAA Talent Page).

(June 19, 2012) Sean Levine has known that sports talk radio was his life’s passion since the age of six. He is a good deal older now, but that passion hasn’t wavered. Levine, an STAA client, is joining News-Talk 1320 KLWN in Lawrence, Kansas as host for a new daily sports talk show.

Levine is replacing fellow STAA client Brian Hanni, who left to take over as men’s basketball play-by-play voice at Texas Tech University.

KLWN isn’t a stranger to Levine’s work; he’s been an independent contractor for the station, calling play-by-play in the past for KLWN. “I will continue doing the high school sports play-by-play as well for the station.”

Full time sportscasting work at KLWN is more than just another step in Levine’s career. This is the opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream in a location that holds personal meaning for Levine.

“Growing up in Kansas City with parents who went to KU, since birth I’ve had Jayhawk blood running through my veins. I don’t cry at funerals; I cry when KU gets knocked out of the tournament. As a kid driving out to Lawrence with my parents and sisters we would walk around campus, The Fieldhouse, Mass Street and to me, it was home. Getting a chance to work at such a great station like KLWN with passionate people like Brian Hanni and Jay Wachs is truly a dream come true.

“Since I was six years old in the backseat of my Uncle’s Lumina and heard sports talk on the radio for the first time, I knew what I wanted to do with my life.”

Levine knew this was the chance of a lifetime, so he employed a sweet flair to make sure his application was memorable.

“When I saw the posting on STAA I immediately got my Talent Page in front of Jay Wachs, the station’s GM. The night before my interview I called ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt and asked him to call Jay and put in a good word for me. Van Pelt only knew me from coming on as a guest on my college show, but he picked up my phone call and couldn’t have been cooler. He said that he would prefer Jay call him, so I had a cake made with Scott Van Pelt’s name and phone number on it and gave it to Jay just before my interview.”

After graduating from Kansas University, Levine spent a several months in Myrtle Beach, SC, co-hosting a sports talk show on ESPN 93.9. He then returned to his home state where he has been freelancing for KLWN.

Levine is grateful for the help he has received from STAA CEO Jon Chelesnik, on his journey to the dream job.

“Jon and STAA have been paramount in allowing me to pursue my career and passion. The Talent Page is an incredible tool to allow potential employers to see and hear my work without jumping through a lot of hoops. I appreciate so much that Jon has always returned my calls and provided me with incredibly well intentioned advice.

“There is no way I could have done this without STAA, I am forever grateful.”

(Visit Sean’s STAA Talent Page).