NFL幕后:俄亥俄州校友领导获奖的底特律雄狮公关团队

As a student, Eamonn Reynolds, BSJ ’12, MSA ’18, 在newbb电子平台担任俄亥俄田径运动的学生交流助理，获得了第一手经验. Now, he leads the award-winning Detroit Lions public relations department. 

美国职业橄榄球作家协会(PFWA)将底特律雄狮公关团队选为2023年皮特·罗泽尔奖得主。 this summer. This is the first time the Detroit Lions franchise has been awarded the honor.

作为足球传播总监，雷诺兹带领着一个四人团队和两名季节性实习生. They serve as the primary point of contact for media information, player and coach interviews, and access to the professional football team. 

雷诺兹说:“得到美国职业橄榄球作家协会的认可对我们来说意义重大。. “我的部门非常年轻，我们不得不尝试自己找到自己的方式. 我们的行政领导团队给予了我们很大的支持，让我们有能力做好自己的工作，讲述故事，发展与媒体的关系.”

According to the PFWA, 皮特·罗泽尔奖颁发给“NFL俱乐部公关人员，他们在与媒体的交往和关系中始终如一地追求卓越”.” The award is named for Rozelle, who served as NFL commissioner from 1960-1989. 

The award is voted on by media at the conclusion of each season. During the 2022 season, 雷诺兹指出，他的团队承担的一项艰巨任务是让底特律雄狮队出现在NFL电影和HBO节目上。Hard Knocks” during training camp.

“That was a very big lift for my department. NFL电影公司带来了大约40人，他们每天都在这里，”雷诺兹说. “Our department was responsible for getting them everything they needed, whether it was logistics, interviews, content support. It was a huge lift, and I made it a priority.”  

“我去年的首要目标是让我们的主教练和领导层有一个积极的、没有问题的经历, and I think we did that. 这给我们的球员和教练带来了非常积极的体验。. “这也让我们的球迷和我们的城市对丹·坎贝尔领导下的底特律雄狮队有了一个真正令人振奋的看法, Brad Holmes and our owner Sheila Ford Hamp.” 

Reynolds has worked with the Detroit Lions for 11 years, with this year being his sixth as director of football communications. 在他的角色中，他与主教练丹·坎贝尔和总经理布拉德·霍姆斯密切合作. 他还与他的团队一起管理教练组和关键球员的媒体义务. 

“我们四个全职员工在一起工作已经是第三个年头了. 随着团队的发展，我们能够明确角色定义，对此我感到非常自豪,” he said. “我觉得我们部门更有能力支持从球场上的成功到社区中不断增长的倡议.”

The Detroit Lions will kick off the 2023-24 NFL season 在黄金时段对阵卫冕超级碗冠军堪萨斯城酋长周四，9月9日. 7. 雷诺兹期待着全国观众有机会进一步了解这支球队和它的年轻球员. 

In addition, Reynolds has an annual season favorite: the Thanksgiving game. 

“I always look forward to Thanksgiving. We play the Green Bay Packers this year,” he said. 感恩节是底特律的一个重要节日，雄狮队已经在这一天打了几十年了. It’s very special. It is a privilege to work in these kinds of jobs, and I don’t take for granted some of the special opportunities it’s granted me.” 
 

From Toledo to Athens

In his Bobcat green and Lions blue story, Reynolds credits his successful career to the many teachers, professors and bosses he had while growing up in Toledo and learning in Athens.

“我非常喜欢回顾那些帮助我到达某些地方的人，那些让我接触到新的思维方式或想法的人,” he said. 

Growing up in Toledo, 雷诺兹住在西瓦尼亚郊区，就读于西瓦尼亚北景高中. Two of his teachers, Tami Blue in interactive media and Sarah Huey in journalism, pushed him to consider attending OHIO. 

“我记得去了雅典，参观完校园后就毫无疑问了,” Reynolds recalled. “校园本身就很有吸引力，我永远不会忘记第一次看到它的情景.” 

After enrolling in the Scripps College of Communication and the journalism program through the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, Reynolds was curious about the field of public relations and sport management. He thanks his former professors in those fields, Dan Farkas and Michael Pfahl respectively, for helping him find his career pathway. 

Late into his sophomore year, Reynolds found his way to OHIO Athletics and what was then the Sports Information Department as a student assistant. It was the beginning of the lightbulb moment for his future career. 

我知道这是100%的催化剂，让我有机会追求我的职业生涯，现在在NFL发生了.” — Eamonn Reynolds

He started working volleyball, field hockey, football, basketball and baseball games, doing statistics work, designing media guides, writing player bios, filming interviews and so on. 

“I had no idea these were jobs, let alone at the college level or even professionally,” Reynolds said. “It was this perfect hands-on experience that to this day I am very grateful for. 我知道这是100%的催化剂，让我有机会追求我的职业生涯，现在在NFL发生了.” 

He gives thanks to the former sports information directors Jason Corriher, 德鲁·怀斯曼和汤姆·西蒙兹给了他在体育领域学习和获得第一手交流经验的机会.

Due to department changes during his junior year, 雷诺兹被要求担任女子游泳和跳水的主要媒体联系人. 

Before this, he did not even know how scoring points worked for the sport. On top of that, 女子游泳和跳水队在2010-11赛季主办了中美洲会议(MAC)游泳和跳水锦标赛. 

“I’m there for three straight days doing the best I can, and OHIO ends up winning it all – they won the Swimming and Diving MAC Championship. That was so neat to be around,” Reynolds recalled. “As I was writing the recaps, 我接到了Jason (Corriher)的电话，他当时正和另一支球队在客场比赛，他说我做得很好. 这对我来说是一个灵光乍现的时刻——这份工作是一份很有成就感的工作.” 

After graduating in 2012 with immense experiential learning opportunities, Reynolds secured an internship with the Detroit Lions. He’s been a part of the organization ever since. 

His educational journey with OHIO wasn’t finished, however. Reynolds returned back, virtually, to obtain his professional master’s in sport administration (now online master’s in sport administration) through the College of Business, completing it in 2018. 
 

‘Find your own path’

While Reynolds credits his success to former teachers, professors and bosses, he acknowledges that sometimes starting out in college can be stressful. 

“我记得大学绿地上的参与博览会，我不知道从哪里开始,” Reynolds recalled. He did not find the athletics department his first year – instead, 在找到合适的工作之前，他曾尝试为俄亥俄州的几家出版物撰写体育文章. 

“我陷入了这种竞争的天性，因为每个人似乎都在我前面,” he said when asked to give advice for current students. “But you have to find your own path. 尝试一些东西，如果它们不起作用，尝试一些不同的东西，不要对自己太苛刻. If you get involved in things and it doesn’t work out, what’s the worst thing that is going to happen, right? College is for the experimentation – just go in with an open mind.” 

Reynolds says the first step can sometimes be simply taking a walk around Athens.

“雅典的建立方式，城市和学生群体之间的关系，是无与伦比的. I had so many friends who worked on projects for groups in the community. I was always inspired by it, and it makes you want to get invested in something bigger than yourself,” he said. 他说:“雅典是一种氛围，它孕育和培养了独特的兴趣和人群.”

Online Master of Sports Administration

Ohio University's Online Master of Sports Administration is the top online sports management graduate program in the U.S. as of 2023¹. 在线MSA课程是为职业体育专业人士设计的，可以在不搁置职业生涯的情况下提高他们的教育水平. 我们提供实习和经验选择，以确保学生有机会与校友联系, faculty and other Sports Ad students during the program.

(source: ¹College Rank. "Top 20 Online Best Sports Management Graduate Programs." Retrieved Oct. 25, 2023 from http://www.collegerank.net/best-online-sports-management-masters-degree-programs/)