Darnell Calhoun knew that breaking into the field of sports broadcasting would be rough. But he didn't imagine it would mean squaring up against a Sun Devil heavyweight.
"When I saw it on TV I was wondering how I was still moving," Calhoun says.
That's only a sampling of the job responsibilities for Calhoun, the campus correspondent for the Fox Sports program Sun Devil Insider. Calhoun won the position over more than 40 other applicants, and for the last two months has covered a wide variety of ASU athletics for the brand-new show.
"It's a chance to get some exposure and know the business," Calhoun says. "It's definitely a blast so far."
Sun Devil Insider producer Josh Kelman says Calhoun won the job due to his smooth delivery.
"He seemed to be really comfortable in his own shoes," Kelman says.
Unfortunately, Calhoun learned he would have to do some work in other people's shoes. In a recent segment, Darnell found out what it was like to grapple with ASU wrestler Cain Velasquez. Calhoun says the seemingly neck-breaking slams did not hurt while they were taping the segment, but some people watching the feature saw it from a different perspective.
"It's amazing he didn't walk out of there with a broken neck," says Brett Hansen, public relations director of Fox Sports Arizona.
Hansen helped come up with the idea for a student to be a reporter on the show. He knew it would not only bring a different aspect to the show, but it would also provide someone with great experience.
"We thought it would present a great opportunity to get into television," Hansen says.
The opportunity and experience is backed by a nice paycheck. Calhoun earns $15.50 an hour, working around five to seven hours a week. Calhoun says the best part is being able to present some ideas of his own.
"It hasn't been, 'Darnell do this, Darnell do that,' and they have been working around my schedule," he says.
Aside from working for Sun Devil Insider, Calhoun is the assistant sports director at the Blaze radio station and hosts a show on Saturday night called "Off the Bench."
With only a small amount of experience in front of the camera, Calhoun has taken a very big step. Kelman says he is impressed with everything that Darnell has been willing to do.
"Darnell is very courageous; we've put him in some precarious situations," Kelman says.
One recent situation included a trip to the UA campus to taunt Wildcat students for a segment on the upcoming football game.
"I was thinking, 'I have to go down to Tucson.' I'd never been there before, and now I have to go and egg-on students," Calhoun says.
Calhoun easily attracted attention on his appearance alone, dressed in maroon and gold sweatpants, a maroon shirt and a Sparky foam hat. Once on campus, Calhoun listed off his top 10 reasons that ASU would beat Arizona, poking fun at anything from the mascots to former player Clarence Farmer. Although there was no wrestling involved this time, he did come across some disgruntled students.
"Someone came up to me and says, 'What the hell are you doing here?'" Calhoun says.
He also has done other human interest segments that feature athletes such as Ike Diogu and Andrew Carnahan, giving viewers an in-depth look at Sun Devil athletics.
"They've been able to see more about ASU than they usually would," Hansen says.
Hansen says the student segment is getting great responses and Sun Devil Insider expects to continue having a campus correspondent for the show. They say they hope students will be out in full force, auditioning to be the next Calhoun.
"Hopefully this will be a call to arms for students," says Kelman about the show.
Calhoun's tenure as campus correspondent is completed in April. When he graduates from ASU, he would like to start off doing similar sports reporting and move up from there.
"My ultimate goal is to be a play-by-play man for a baseball team," Calhoun says.
Sun Devil Insider, which airs every Wednesday night, has put Calhoun in some tough spots, but he knows it has opened a big door for his career.
"I'm still kind of shocked that I'm on Fox Sports and people are actually tuning in," he says.
Reach the reporter at nicholas.oviedo@asu.edu.
