Fred Bowen's "The Score" column,
October 10, 2003, Washington Post

The Talk of the Town

Chick Hernandez is a studio anchor and sports reporter for the cable channel Comcast SportsNet. That means Chick's job is to go to Redskins, Wizards and University of Maryland games, and talk about the teams. Pretty cool, huh?

But not too long ago, Chick was just a kid growing up in Silver Spring. He went to Montgomery Knolls Elementary School and played in the Maplewood football program. I spoke to him about how he got such a fun job and what it's like to be on TV talking about sports.

Did you play sports when you were growing up?

Sure, I was big into sports. I was on the baseball, football and swimming teams at Blair High School. I was pretty good at football, but I was mostly on the swimming team for my spirit.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be?

I was a big Cowboys fan, so I wanted to be Drew Pearson [a former star wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys]. But my parents were short, so I figured I better come up with another plan.

Were you one of those kids who would "announce" the games when you were playing them?

Not really. But when I was in high school, my buddies and I would go to Orioles games and sit in the first row of the upper deck at Memorial Stadium and announce the games. The people around us would think it was funny for two innings, and then they got sick of it.

When did you get the idea that you would like to be a sports announcer?

When I was at the University of Maryland, I wanted to try out for the campus radio station [WMUC]. But I was a shy kid even though I was a class clown. So for two years I would get to the door of the tryouts, be ready to knock and then turn around and go home. Finally, I became the sports director of my fraternity, and that gave me more confidence. I went back to the radio station and knocked on the door.

What is most fun about being a sportscaster?

Two things. Being there at a special moment, like when Cal Ripken broke Lou Gehrig's consecutive-game record. I also like it when people, especially people who don't usually like sports, come up to me and say that they tune in to watch me. That tells me that I am reaching more than just the sports fans.

What is the most surprising part of your job?

I think kids would be surprised at how much preparation it takes to put on a show or do an interview. It takes work to make it look easy. For example, I have to do a lot of reading and research when I interview people.

What did you do as a kid that helped you with your job now?

I watched a lot of sports on TV. Watching the games and listening to the announcers helped me develop an ear for what sounded right. I also watched talk shows like "The Tonight Show." That helped me when I began hosting sports shows on television.

So, what should kids do if they want to become sports announcers? Just watch TV?

No, read the newspaper. At the end of high school and during college, the newspaper became my Bible. I do a lot of different things and it is important for me to know what is going on.

When kids get older, they may try to get an internship at a TV station. I was lucky to have an internship at Channel 9 and to work with Glenn Brenner and James Brown. They were special people who helped me.