Although Saco may have wanted to play softball forever, the reality was there wasn't a future in it beyond college, "it was already out of the Olympics, there went that goal," said Saco. So, Kelly used her Softball skills to get her into one of the best journalism schools in the country, Syracuse University. If she wasn't going to be able to play sports as a career, she was going to cover it.
The former Division I athlete turned sports reporter, juggled a rigorous Journalism Program at Syracuse University and played on the SU Softball team.
Within weeks of her last college internship, Kelly Saco landed a job in her home town of Miami, Florida. She currently covers stories on the Miami Heat, Florida Marlins, and Florida Panthers, for Fox Sports/ Sun Sports. Ultimately, Kelly Saco would like to be a sideline reporter and producer. Although, juggling two very demanding roles, seems difficult, Saco seems well prepared to do just that.
Listen to Questions & Answers with Kelly Saco:
https://soundcloud.com/alicia-nieves/q-a-kelly-saco
1. How did you know you wanted to be a sport's journalist?
Kelly: " The funny thing is I didn't. I never knew that. Even in my senior year of high school, it was some thing that was in the back of my head but even throughout high school , I remember I used to watch the morning announcements and i was like huh! I could never do that. Those people are crazy. I would never go on TV! And read in front of all these people?! No! Not for me. Not gonna do it. And i always thought I wanted to go into sports medicine. I always knew I wanted to be involved in athletics. Cuz that's what I knew. I grew up with it and i loved it. I really had a passion for it. I knew that, as a female athlete and softball, that after college that was it. It was already out of the Olympics, there went that goal. And professional softball, I was realistic enough knowing it wasn't going to get me anywhere. So my senior year of high school when I was being recruited. I was being recruited, my top two were Auburn in Alabama and Syracuse. And when I was getting recruited to Syracuse, I knew it had a very good communications school. I was like ok, that would be another way to get into sports. So people had told me they thought I would be good at it, and i had a good personality for it. It was just something that I got a little more interested in and my freshman year I started to take it seriously. And I was like, you know what, I'm going to go for it, I am going to try to get into Newhouse. and the rest is history. "
2. What has been your best or favorite moment in your career?
Kelly: " Ooh, my favorite moment in my career... You know I worked not only for Fox Sports but I've been freelancing as a sports reporter the Miami Herald as well. and when they had me covering the University of Miami Baseball, I was so excited. 'Cause I had been covering high school for the most part. Every now and then, I'd do a feature on something else, sometimes professional athletes. But it wasn't like covering a game, because that's what I wanted to do. So I remember this one game that I covered for the University of Miami. And i just thought I did such a fantastic job, asking questions, gathering the story together, and just really bringing that story to life in my article. So that, for the Herald, that was definitely one of my favorite, my moment that stood out. I was like Yes! I did a good job on this. I'm able to cover a baseball game. I know I can do this after that. "
3. How is it, in the field now, being a woman sports journalist?
Kelly: " That's funny that we're having this conversation now, because I was just watching the ESPN Let them Wear Towels, last night. And I was seeing how incredibly difficult it was for the, just to like, break into this industry. But I feel it's a little bit different, a little better now. When I have to go into the locker room, for the Heat, for the Heat I would go into the locker room to get the post game interviews. And I would always, 90% of the time, be the only girl there. And I remember the first time I walked in there. When they were saying, in [ESPN] that documentary they did not let their eyes wander. That was the first thing that I told myself when I entered that locker room. I was like I will not look anywhere else, and I just walked straight in with my camera guy and looked straight at him and was talking straight to him. But, every experience that I had so far, everyone has been very respectful. everyone on that team was very respectful of me being there, no comment or name. But I've heard of other instances where people try. You know when I was talking to my producer or reporter and she had to go into a locker room Other things have happened with her, several times. And I still think you are in the field where you have to, you still have to know your stuff, because your margin of error is a lot smaller. Because if you make a mistake, it's because, oh well she's a girl."
4. What advice would you give [to those] going into the field?
Kelly: "Going into the field...Um, it's funny because people always talk about networking. And that's always something originally I thought,oh networking is just, you know, talking to people and then just asking them for a job. And it's not. Like networking is being a friendly person, being a friendly person because you never know who's going to know someone else. You never know who's going to have that connection. And if your just that person who thinks, well ok only this person's going to be able to help me out, and you are not nice to anyone else, you're not gonna go anywhere. And that's how I ended up with this job. I was interning in New York City, with the Olympics, with NBC. I'm a very friendly person, I talk to absolutely everybody. And one day with probably about a week left of the Olympics, a little less than a week probably, one of the editors went up to me and was just like so hey Kel what are you doing when you're done here? I was like oh I don't know, headed back home, and looking for a job I guess. And he asked me, so you live in Miami right? I was like, oh yea. He was like, I actually have a buddy, he works for Fox sports Florida down there. why don't I give you his contact information? I was like, oh yea that'd be great. So he called his buddy, gave me his information, and said alright he's a producer for the Panther's show. He's expecting your call, give him a call, he's a great guy. So i got in touch with him, and he put me in touch with our guy in HR who in charge of hiring. And two weeks later, I had a job!"
Links to Kelly's work:
1. Fun Questions and Celebrity Look-A-Like package:
http://www.foxsportsflorida.
2. High Heels in Left Field:
http://www.foxsportsflorida.
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