Ben Darnell, 2005
Sports Announcer, ESPN radio
(WMFD) and ABC radio
(WWAY), Wilmington, NC

As a Communication freshman, Ben Darnell was the Music Director at TSU's radio station, WEAX. Ben went on to a variety of on-air and management responsibilities at WEAX, but he especially enjoyed announcing basketball and other sports. He was unable to announce football games because he was a star receiver on the team, setting a TSU record of 244 receiving yards in a single game. Ben used his conditioning and his knowledge of public relations principles in his senior capstone project to get Indiana college students to bike and conserve energy. During spring break Ben biked to Purdue and other campuses around the state, overcame an unexpected blizzard, and received extensive newspaper and radio coverage for his message in Indiana and even Michigan. After graduating in spring 2005, Ben quickly found a public relations position as an event coordinator near Wilmington, NC, at an Atlantic coast luxury resort, where he got to meet several TV and movie stars. Loving the location but missing radio, a few months later Ben landed an even better job as sports announcer for ESPN radio (WMFD) and ABC radio (WWAY) in Wilmington, NC. Ben announces basketball and baseball but once again not football, since in the fall he also coaches football at Laney High School, Michael Jordan's alma mater.