John Curley Center hosts Penn State alum and ESPN sports writer Ryan Hockensmith for public session

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — On Thursday, Oct. 12, Penn State alumnus Ryan Hockensmith engaged with the audience at the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism as part of its ongoing Conversations series. Hockensmith shared insights into the world of sports journalism and his career.

Hockensmith began by providing a glimpse into his process for writing a piece on Patrick Mahomes' early career, titled "The QB Battle that Unlocked Patrick Mahomes."

He emphasized the importance of finding new and intriguing angles on popular topics, often involving extensive hours of research and numerous phone calls.

“If I could be a really good writer, or a really good reporter, I think I would choose reporter, because every time I have called eight people for a story, and then I called a ninth, the story gets better,” Hockensmith said.

Hockensmith also touched on how many of his most successful projects have been unconventional sports stories, such as his award-winning piece titled “The secret MVP of sports? The port-a-potty.”

Many of the students in the audience were there on an assignment from a news writing class, one which Hockensmith attributes to many of the foundational skills he learned in his journalistic career.

“I think it is really interesting how [Hockensmith] can make sports stories which aren’t necessarily just about sports and are interesting to everyone, by focusing more on the human angle behind them.” Gianna Girol, a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism, said.

Ryan Hockensmith will be at the Bellisario Media Center on October 13th from 2-4 p.m. for a reception and celebration of the John Curley Center’s 20th anniversary.

Trip Tagle is a first-year student majoring in digital and print journalism. To contact them, please email tnt5403@psu.edu.