Jason Notoras is News Center 23's Sports Director.

We knew Jason’s destiny lay in sports broadcasting at a young age. When asked to write about his future in a third grade homework assignment, Jason adamantly described how he would one day be a “sports TV talker guy.”
Jason backed up his goals by spending valuable time pretending to be athletes in crunch situations. Once, the Indiana native dribbled toward the basket on a gravel driveway and sank a remarkable turnaround jump shot over no one as the time in his head expired. The daydream shot lifted Reggie Miller and the Pacers past Chicago in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Sadly, such events never came to fruition in real life.

Real sports were also a major part of Jason’s life growing up in America’s breadbasket. Throughout elementary and middle school he participated in basketball, baseball, soccer.
His greatest memories during that time were being the first 1st grader to count to 5,000 and participating in a select basketball camp with ABA star Billy Kelly.

He developed a fanatic relationship to certain teams in his younger years, those include the Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Pacers, Notre Dame Irish football, Indiana Hoosier basketball, Cincinnati Reds baseball; so he was never really used to supporting winning programs until the Colts broke through this millennium.

Always being taught to broaden his horizons, Jason began playing trombone in middle school and focused his academics on literature. In seventh grade, he was nationwide runner up in a narrative contest. Sure Jason also took time for punt, pass and kick, shot put, basketball, travel baseball and all the typical sports, but there was also that stint on the Academic Team in eight grade. You need balance kids, balance.

High school brought more sports, including four years varsity volleyball and various intramural plus pick-up games. Jason also took part in German Club (where he rocked the name Axel), Student Council, Service Club (an organization that taught him to give back to the community in which you live), Drama Club (National Thespian Society) and was a National Honor Society Member. When reminiscing on those adolescent years, Jason’s fondest recollections were trips to Europe (Germany, Austria and Greece) and being in the halftime festival for the Outback Bowl.

Jason credits his hard work in high school as solid preparation for college. He was an early acceptant into one of the nations top rating journalism schools, Ohio University’s Scripps School of Journalism. On campus, Jason learned from former CNN personalities, many former news directors, producers, anchors, and reporters: and earned his bachelors in science of journalism (emphasis broadcast) with a dual specialization in mathematics and music.

During his tenure, Jason worked all four years at WOUB and served as the station’s sport director in 2007. Accomplishments include a NATAS Emmy for the station’s high school football program, being part of a nationally broadcast sports talk radio program with guests such as Sports Illustrated and NBC Sunday Night Football’s Peter King and ESPN’s George Smith. Jason also had a chance to follow Ohio Athletics, which led him to cover the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, AL and to multiple MAC Basketball Tournaments to report and call play-by-play for the Ohio Sports Network. The other big moment came in 2006 when Jason’s voice was heard in New York as he introduced the Marching 110 as the Thanksgiving halftime performers during the Giants/Redskins game. It was the beginning of the nickname “the voice” around the college athletic programs as Jason announced volleyball, baseball, softball, football halftime shows, and women’s basketball.

Jason kept time to follow a dream as well. In 2007 he created and produced a half hour basketball highlight and in-depth coverage program called Hardwood Heroes. It aired on WOUB. Staying up to date with technology, he also produced sports mini-segments, Bobcat Blitz, available on i-Tunes.

In the free time Jason found, he played for the Ohio University Men’s Volleyball team (national tournament contenders every year). Jason also suited up for many intramural sporting teams including flag football, soccer, softball, dodgeball, basketball, indoor hockey and racquetball.

While sports were a major impact in Jason’s life, he also took time to enjoy the arts. A member of the University’s jazz and symphonic bands, Jason is also a brother in Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and served as the Alpha Kappa chapter’s President in 2007. His passion for music led to the creation of an a’capella group “The Leading Tones”, where Jason served as the entertaining beat-boxing. You can share a laugh by searching for his group and watching their video’s on-line.

Following a summer with WCMH (AP’s #1 Sports Department in Ohio), Jason took everything he learned, plus a few possessions, and moved to the Valley. In September 2007 he became our Sports Director and began stressing the importance of sharing accomplishments in local athletics. During his stay, Jason has introduced the RGV to complete high school football coverage in Friday’s Gridiron Glory and Russell the Sports Dog, who predicts games and at one point trained Valley boxer Sergio Perales.

Golf, tennis, jogging, basketball and community service are all still activities Jason enjoys in his free time. Since moving to the Valley, Jason has become a Ronald McDonald House volunteer and participated in numerous career days and community activities. Jason holds the concept “if you can dream it, do it” dear to his heart, because he says if his dream of anchoring sports came true, so can your dreams.

If you have any story ideas for the NewsCenter 23 Sports Department or just want to talk sports with Jason, then feel free to e-mail sports@kveo.com