Turning a passion into a career  

USD Alumni share experiences working in the sports industry

Amara Brooks / Sports Editor / The USD Vista 

Sports have always been an integral part of the lives of many. As fans, athletes or industry professionals the passion for sports often remains the same. For some, this passion leads into a career path in the industry. Whether it’s playing at the professional level, coaching at the professional level or even writing about those playing, the sports industry is one that contains a multitude of different paths. Many Toreros have achieved remarkable success in the industry and explore how their experiences at USD helped shape their careers. 

USD alum Matthew Roberson is currently a staff writer for GQ Sports, after working with the New York Daily News as a Senior Journalist, covering Mets, Yankees and baseball at large for a few years, Roberson accepted his new position with GQ this past March. Reflecting on his time writing on sports in New York, Roberson remembers the beginning of his career started by walking into The Vista newsroom one day. 

“I think it was the Alcalá Bazaar which was how it crossed my mind originally,” Roberson explained. “I remember going maybe that first week of freshman year and the newspaper stood out to me because it was something I was always interested in.”

Starting off at The Vista as a contributor his first year, Roberson started writing pieces on the different teams and by his sophomore year he was Assistant Sports Editor. 

“I went to the pitch meeting, and I believe my first article was about the men’s soccer team and how they had a bunch of international players,” Roberson stated. “So I remember talking to this one guy about growing up in Norway and another about growing up in Germany. I don’t even know if it is online anymore, but if I was to find it it would probably be fluffy and a nothing piece, but I remember at the time just being very excited about it and seeing my name on the by-line.”

Roberson enjoyed that he was able to write pieces he was passionate about and found himself writing many articles expanding on the players and games with the soccer and baseball teams and writing national sports stories as well. 

“I remember thinking once freshman year comes to an end, I’m going to want an internship and I need something to show them,” Roberson described. “So when I was looking for jobs in sports having actual articles to show them to demonstrate I know what I’m talking about helped.”

Moving from his home state of Washington to New York, Roberson started his first job on the East Coast with the Daily News. While the move was a big one not just physically, Roberson was now writing for a larger-scale paper with higher viewership. However, he shared that at the end of the day, it’s all just sports writing. 

“Remind yourself that you are good at this; just because you made a big leap doesn’t mean you need to change a bunch of things and be someone you’re not,” Roberson stated. “Stay true to yourself but also understand there’s a responsibility to give the readers what they want. Once you realize it’s all just sports writing at the end of the day, it’s just you and the Google Doc.”

With GQ, Roberson has the opportunity to move away from baseball focused pieces and have a bit more “fun” with his articles. Covering Eric Andre’s “Bizzare 40th Birthday Bash” and looking at the “Biggest Fits of the 2023 NFL Draft” he discovered there were fewer limits writing for the magazine. 

“‘Fun’ is a good word for it honestly,” Roberson claimed. “For GQ, the whole appeal of the job when applying is I would get to write stories that are more fun and have more freedom.” 

2011 graduate Thomas Caughlin made a move in his career taking him from Germany back to San Diego. Caughlin now finds himself working in the university’s backyard at the Torero Stadium in his position as the San Diego Loyals Marketing & Communications Manager.

As someone who enjoyed and loved sports, Caughlin realized you do not have to be an athlete to be involved in sports. 

“I loved the positivity of sports, and it’s a genre that has never been all that negative because it’s generally very inspiring and positive,” Caughlin stated. 

 After graduating from USD, Caughlin had worked his way up from an internship to a full-time job as a news reporter with KUSI TV in San Diego. After getting a MBA in marketing at SDSU, Caughlin began interning with numerous sports teams and programs which in turn encouraged him to leave reporting behind and pursue a career that focused more on marketing and communications.  

“I went from wanting to be a sports reporter to seeing that I didn’t necessarily want, or I couldn’t see myself being in that sort of spotlight figure,” Caughlin explained. “Just the schedule and the daily sort of grind you face as a sports reporter is very unique, and I liked and I saw the power that you could have  on the public relations side.”

Looking back Caughlin recalls many of the qualities that were important to his on-campus jobs at USD helped post-graduation, as he grasped the importance of being diligent with your time. 

“There were certainly a lot of challenges I faced, whether it was assignments or people or life in general while I was in undergrad trying to balance a lot,” Caughlin stated. “Being someone who tried to be involved, I worked as a manager and practice player for the women’s basketball team. I worked operations at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. So I think it prepared me in the sense that I started to get a little bit of a grasp of how time works and how you have to be really, really diligent and efficient with your time.”

While working and being a part of the sports industry for years, Caughlin realized the importance of holding on to that creative spark and not letting others diminish your light. 

“Don’t lose your imagination,” Caughlin stated. “As you get older and you leave college, you have to continue to be and develop your professional self. But there’s a spark that I think we have as kids and even in high school and a little bit in college where we’re much more risk-taking and inventive. I saw in my own experience that a lot of times there’s people who just kind of wanna bring you down in a way where they like things a certain way and they’re not necessarily welcoming of, of inventiveness and, and riskiness.”

A passion for sports may lead to a successful and fulfilling career in the sports industry. From marketing to broadcasting, from coaching to sports medicine, there are a multitude of career paths available for those with a love of sports. Both Roberson and Caughlin serve as a reminder that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to building a career in the industry. With dedication, hard work, and a willingness to take risks, anyone can turn their passion for sports into a fulfilling and rewarding career.