“Real G’s move in silence like lasagna,” said Lil Wayne in his song, “6 Foot 7 Foot.” Well, if Lil Wayne saw the TNH staff members hard at work late at night in the MUB newsroom, he would think they are G’s for sure. The production staff and editors move the chains of this organization, so thanks for grinding it out twice a week to get the paper out. I’m just the guy who writes about track and field; they’re the real ballers.

So yeah, a year and a half later, here I am. I was lost in the sauce junior year and thought I needed another challenge on my plate to juggle, so my boss suggested I build on my somewhat strong writing ability. And boom, next week the Great Gambino (my good buddy Mark Garbino) introduced me to my new editor, Andrew Yourell. When I first met Yourell, he was in the middle of figuring out a computer issue and was swearing up a storm and slamming his hand on the desk—which in retrospect was pretty funny—but at the time I was like, “Garbino, does he always do this?” Anyway, Yourell showed me the ropes and through some fine tuning throughout the semester, he crafted me into a fine beat writer for the track and field teams of UNH, which some people might find boring to read about but I don’t care; I enjoyed what I did.

My weekly chats with Coach Hoppler and Coach Boulanger about their teams were probably the most consistent part of my last two semesters here. Some were funny, some were awkward, but finding out the right questions to ask and getting that perfect answer was rewarding. I was able to pull this off thanks to those two guys, so thank you. I met some really cool athletes at UNH, and I think my favorite part of the job was meeting and interviewing them. Also, I apologize if you are a UNH athlete and I ever came up to you at the bar or a party and started talking to you like we knew each other. Good times.

Brian Dunn, you were great to have as an editor this year—always flexible and easy to write for.  Allie Bellucci, thanks for working with Brian last spring to get me on staff for this year. I appreciate that, and good job as executive editor this year.

So, there we have it. I’m glad I sent it, bro. Students of UNH: Take risks, grow out your hair while you can and meet as many people as your mind will allow here. 

“And, like ranch, I dip.” – Lil Wayne.

R-Pags out.