Today I will be continuing my Passion and Dedication series and interview ESPN Radio legend Freddie Coleman. Ever since I was a kid I listened to Freddie on ESPN radio. The reason being he was and still is super insightful. Coleman tells it how it is but is also fair with his opinions and respects his listener’s opinions, which I always loved! Coleman is the definition of what it means to be Passionate and Dedicated when it comes to his job and I’m sure his family as well. That’s why I am so excited to interview a man of his magnitude!
MB: Freddie, thanks for taking a few minutes out of your busy schedule! I appreciate it!
Freddie Coleman: My pleasure Mike and appreciate you for thinking of me as well as the kind words.
MB: Well let’s jump right into it! How’d you get into doing radio for ESPN? Also did you always want to do radio while you were growing up?
FC: I’ve been in radio in one form or another since 1988 when I landed my 1st job as a TOP 40 DJ in Portland, Maine. I got the call to ESPN Radio when I was working in Albany, New York back in 2004. And I loved radio growing up, but never I could or wanted to do it until I got to college at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania.
MB: Freddie, how do you handle criticism? I also asked Ian Rapoport from NFL Network this same question. I want to get different perspectives from different sports personalities because, I believe this will be useful knowledge for young adults that want to get into this amazing field.
FC: You treat it by not letting it affect you. I don’t mind criticism if I get something wrong because I always want to be right. But people criticizing because of a difference of opinion means nothing to me. I’m ok with it because I’m going to be honest and how people deal with that is on them.
MB: Growing up did someone that was in your life inspire you to get into sports broadcasting/radio?
FC: Too many people to count. From Marv Albert to Keith Jackson to Curt Gowdy to Chris Schenkel to Art Rust, Jr. The list is endless and I owe them all a big debt for how they inspired then and still inspire me.
MB: If you had to pick your top 5 guests you ever had on your show who would they be and why?
FC: Can’t pick a Top 5. I’ve been blessed to talk to so many athletes & celebrities that it would be impossible to narrow it down to 5 or even 50.
MB: Are there any charities that are close to your heart that you would like to share with my readers?
FC: I don’t have a particular one. I like to contribute to as many as I possibly can through my time and money.
MB: Growing up in Brooklyn NY, Jets or Giants? Also how do native New Yorkers pick what side they are going to root for the rest of their lives? How do you pick Jets or Giants? Yankees or Mets?
FC: Jets, mainly because of Joe Namath. I think people pick teams based on their dads or their friends. I believe fans of teams are multi-generational mostly. In New York, it’s a blessing to have a Noah’s ark of teams in sports, 2 of everything.
MB: If you had to pick a sports idol that you look up to who would that be and why?
FC: Jackie Robinson. All that he endured and thrived despite that foolishness??? Still inspired by that today and his contribution should never lessen or disappear.
MB: Why do you feel like it’s important to connect with your listeners on social media?
FC: I love the interaction, the intelligence, the stupidity, the comedy, etc. Twitter is like life from an observational standpoint and connecting with just about anybody no matter where everybody is or at is just fantastic!!! The good of Twitter will ALWAYS outweigh the bad for me.
MB: Before you go can you let my readers know your Twitter handle?
FC: @ColemanESPN.
MB: Freddie! Thank you so much again! I appreciate it!
FC: My pleasure Mike and Be Well!!
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Main Photo via ESPNFrontrow.com
