Andrew Pogar: For the Love of Fenway

By Rilwan Ameen - Every sports fan remembers one event that shapes his or her life forever. For a young Andrew Pogar, the site of the Fenway Park's revered 'Green Monster' in 1999 marked his journey towards a career in sports media. 

Born in Portland, Maine, sports became a way of life when Andrew first began playing basketball at six years old. As a member of the Scarborough rec program, weekly Saturday games were Pogar’s foray into competitive travel basketball. Reflecting back, Pogar says, “Sports were practically my life, from the age of 7 until I graduated high school and it still is.” It was a continuous cycle for Pogar, rotating between baseball in the summer, football in the fall, basketball in the winter and AAU basketball in the spring.

In a humorous anecdote of his growing passion for sports, Pogar rose to 6’3’ by the time he was fourteen. “In the 7^th and 8^th grade, I had an unexpected growth spurt. I can’t really attribute it to anything, but I was abnormally tall for my age,” Pogar said.

Through his participation in sports, Pogar learned many life lessons along the way. "You learn more than about just the X’s and O’s... the more you are exposed to different sports it really shapes who you are,” he continued.

Now 24 years old, Pogar is a graduate student in the Broadcast & Digital Journalism program of Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Pogar’s goal at Newhouse is to translate his athletic background into a fulfilling career in sports broadcast. 

Interview with Andrew Pogar:

 RA: Andrew, tell me about the first time you were at a sporting event?

AP: The first time I was at sporting event, it was in 1999 attending a Red Sox game. I became a sports fan that year... they had Nomar Garciaparra and Pedro Martinez. They were two players that I looked up to as a young baseball fan. My best friend invited me and I remember it like it was yesterday. Tim Hudson vs. Pedro... Whenever you were going to a Red Sox game, if you were seeing Pedro Martinez pitch back in the latter part of the 90's or early part of the 2000's it was a big deal. We arrived at the ballpark and the image that I will take away for the rest of my life is when I walked through the concourse and finally walked out onto the field to see the Green Monster. When you went to Fenway Park, as a baseball fan what stood out most was the Green Monster. The Red Sox lost and it was one of Pedro’s four losses on the season. Since then whenever I heard Tim Hudson was going to be pitching, I just thought he's going to get the W, because he's one of the best in the game. It started when he first defeated Pedro in that battle. I had a heck of a time, a lot of memories from that game. Just to go to Fenway Park, I think it's the best venue in the Boston area to catch a game.

RA: How did that Red Sox game call you into playing sports?

AP: Sports was practically my life, from the age of 7 until I graduated high school and it still is. It's a continuous cycle; you play baseball in the summer, football in the fall, basketball in the winter and AAU basketball in the spring. This would leeway into the summer and then whatever downtime I had, I would be going to camps. I was always busy playing a sport. Now and days after graduating and being in college and not playing a collegiate sport it’s really opened my eyes to other things. I'm not saying that's a bad thing because I spent less time paying attention to sports, which I still dedicate, a lot of time too.

RA: How would you characterize the involvement of sports in your life?

AP: I think it defines my life. If you were to ask one of my family members or best friends, one of the words that they would associate with me is sports. Whether I'm playing, watching or just talking about sports I could sit down with you all day Rilwan and I'm sure we could chat for hours on end talking about the NBA or any sport. It’s just something I enjoy. It's the competitive nature too. I have always been very competitive, whether it’s with homework or playing a sport you name it, I always wanted to win. This is another goal in itself being here at Newhouse that I'm striving for and I hope to accomplish down the road.

RA: What sort of things playing sports, you can translate to having a career in covering sports?

AP: Knowledge of the game. When you play sports, you learn more than about just the X's and O's. You’re around a group of people learning what goes on internally, in terms of an organization when you hear about certain instances that may occur. Playing sports definitely gives you an advantage in the industry. We listened to Beth Mowins; she went to Lafayette and played basketball there after being an all-star player here in Syracuse at North Cicero. I did not play basketball collegiately, but I'd like to think I know a lot about whatever the sport may be. Whether its basketball, football, baseball, the more you’re exposed to different sports, it really shapes who you are. It can play a huge part into whichever area of the industry you decide to go into – whether it’s play-by-play, an anchor or even a producer.

RA: If there were one sport that you had the chance to cover, what would it be and where would it be?

AP: I feel starting out in the industry I will do whatever it takes. Ideally, I have always aspired to work in some capacity to work with the NBA doing play-by-play. As an alternative, I would love to be a sports anchor. Listening to guys like Stuart Scott and Scott Van Pelt who not only have the opportunity to anchors but to work in other roles as show hosts and on the radio teaches me to not be narrowly focused and work in more than one area of sports whether its radio or television.

RA: Is there anything else that you would like to add?

AP: As an athlete growing up, when I decided not to play sports in college, it was a major adjustment for me. Because you were not spoon-fed being involved with a program, where every year you had something that you were committed to. For me it was how I stay physically active, how do I stay healthy and how do I enjoy myself. There would be nights when I first began college where I would not work out or have any type of physical activity in my life. It was mentally and physically tough. I think now though I really try and take the time out of my day given the demands of the program that we're in now. It’s tough during the week but weekends I try and take advantage of the free time and play basketball. It will never be the same as when you were playing during high school. When you had a goal, when you were striving to win the championship and had something to play for. Now and days it’s different, you can play in men’s league and there could be a championship game but you don't have your mom and dad or your family members in the crowd and classmates to cheer you on. You’re not in a packed gym on a Friday evening, and there’s nothing better than that. I do not have any regrets in life, but I did not win when I was in high school and looking back now it’s nothing something I lose sleep over but I wish it could have gone differently.

RA: Thank you Andrew.

AP: You're very welcome.

To listen to my interview with Andrew Pogar, click here: https://soundcloud.com/roameen1990/ap-interview/s-ejY4Y