Martin Fennelly

Anyone who knows Kristal Roberts knows that sports is not my thing. I'm the punchline in all of those movies with the inept little kid that could(n't) pitch, punch, punt, kick,throw or catch. I'd sooner see two roaches reproduce than sit through a stinking game. So you could just imagine how I felt when sports columnist, Martin Fennelly walked into my Critical Writing class.

However, I knew that I had been pleasantly surprised before, so I decided to give this guy a chance.
Dressed down in a cozy green sweater, khaki shorts and weathered nikes, one thing that I could admire right off bat is that the man was comfortable in his own skin.

"I would never look back on these 24 years and wish I would have listened to mom and gone to law school” Fennelly said.

Through out his career, he has reported on six people dying. The first story was a death defying boating stunt turned tragic boating accident. The most recent story he's covered involved the young football players who disappeared at sea and for all intensive purposes can be presumed dead. In both instances, he had the painfully uncomfortable task of speaking to parents and loved ones to create coverage out of travesty. As he talked about those athletes, I could hear the care in his voice and I could feel the duty weight that each story left on his heart.
This guy couldn't help but where his emotions on his sleeve, and I loved him for it.
But in the midst of acknowledging the gut punching blow of unexpected, often presumed too early death, Fennelly honored the athletes by celebrating who they were. The hobbies that occupied their time. The friends that new the person behind the number and uniform.
To some, I'm sure that could come of as corny. But the last thing that Fennelly, as well as my self, would ever want is to be that monotone 6-inch blimp in the paper briefly describing bland, lifeless accolades dotting our lives; zip,that's all she wrote. After mentioning that most people only made it in the paper when they're born, married and dead, he feels obligated to make the last one, the best one.

Fennelly isn't a great sports writer because he can recall every play that had been made. He is a great writer, because he finds humanity in your garden variety sports story.
He looks at journalism as a snap shot. “This is what I learned, this is what I know, this is what I can tell you in this amount of time," Fennelly said.