Matt Crossman

Charlotte, NC USA
Website: http://mattcrossman.com
Contact

Professional Experience

I have written more than 30 cover stories in national sports magazines, but I’m not just a sports writer. I pride myself on being able to write about anything, and my specialty is profiles. I’ve written about billionaires and street singers, superstars and benchwarmers, Green Berets and nuns. In pursuit of stories I have delved into deep caves, climbed high mountains and gone shoe shopping in Manhattan with Robinson Cano. My work can be seen at mattcrossman.com.

Expertise

Editor
4 Years
Writer
16 Years

Specialty

Outdoors
2 Years
Sports & Recreation
15 Years
War & Conflicts
1 Year

Industries


Magazine - Local/Regional magazines
4 Years
Newspaper - Local/Regional
5 Years
Magazine - Large Consumer/National magazines
14 Years

Total Media Industry Experience

20 Years

Media Client List (# assignments last 2 yrs)

SportsonEarth.com (10+), Charlotte Magazine (6-10), GX Magazine (6-10), Our State Magazine (3-5), Robb Report Collection (3-5), SBNation.com (3-5), BleacherReport.com (3-5)

Other Work History

Sporting News | St. Louis, MO/Charlotte, NC | 7/00-3/13 Writer | 6/07-3/13 Associate Editor | 7/00-6/07 • Author of 30 cover stories on NFL, Major League Baseball, College Basketball, College Football, NASCAR and cross-sports topics. The Daily Telegram | Adrian, MI | 6/98-6/00 Managing Editor | 2/00-6/00 News Editor | 6/98-1/00 • Managed newsroom of 16,000-circulation newspaper. • Developed ideas, assigned stories and coordinated all aspects of daily newsgathering. • Wrote award-winning weekly column and editorials. The Express-Times | Easton, PA | 8/97-5/98 City Hall Reporter • Wrote daily stories pertaining to city government and political issues and events. The Daily Telegram | Adrian, MI | 5/94-7/97 Staff Writer • Covered topics related to City Hall, politics, the school board and the police department.

Computer Skills

I have the basic computer skills necessary to write stories.

Equipment

Mac Book Pro, audio recorder

References

Mike Nahrstedt, mike.nahrstedt@gmail.com Michael Graff, michael.graff@charlottemagazine.com Glenn Stout, glennstout@fairpoint.net Bill Eichenberger, beichenberger@bleacherreport.com

Awards

National Motorsports Press Association | Race coverage (4), magazine writing (2) and feature writing NMPA Magazine Writer of the Year (2005) Pro Football Writers Association | Feature writing (3) Best American Sports Writing | Notable mention (3) Associated Press | Deadline writing and public service Michigan Press Association | Deadline writing, column writing, editorial writing and feature packages Thomson Newspapers | Deadline writing

Associations

Professional Football Writers Association Baseball Writers Association National Motorsports Press Association

Showcase

War stories

Before Soldiers can get to Q Course to become Green Berets, they must pass Special Forces Assessment and Selection, a grueling, three-week marathon of strength, stamina and problem-solving tests in which their every action-and reaction-is scrutinized.
Rowan County veterans salute comrades a final time with ceremonies befitting their service to our country.
The incredible story of how three Green Berets risked their lives to save a fourth. He was completely transfused three times, needed two years to recover ... and now competes in triathlons.
Tom Davis lost his leg in Iraq but not his drive. He now is one of the best handcyclists in the world.

Outdoors

The bats living in the caves under Humpback Mountain scare some people, but not Sarah Davis. She owns the darkness and has come to terms with what's in it.
An Oklahoma Soldier and her daughter use fitness to fight children's cancer. But their determination was put to the test when they took a 22-mile hike-in 5 inches of snow.
The top of Crowders Mountain is a place for bragging, for looking 25 miles into the distance, seeing Charlotte's skyline, and wondering about the people chained to cubicles contained therein. The top is being glad I live there because living there allows me to hike here. But the top is ugly.
Eight out of 10 days, this view from the top of Mount Mitchell is obscured by clouds. But anytime you stand here, at the highest point east of the Mississippi River, and gaze outward, your perspective will change.

Profiles

You may not know him, but you've probably heard his voice. Follow Charlotte's favorite street performer as he reels in his audience, one passerby at a time
Arian Foster is a commencement speech come to life, a walking, talking, living, breathing, rhyme-dropping, Shakespeare-quoting, yoga-practicing, linebacker-outrunning testament to the idea that hard work fueled by dedication can turn dreams into reality.
A helmet-to-helmet hit took the life of a 22-year-old football player. Two years later, friends and family keep his memory alive, one story at a time.
Robinson Cano has established himself as one of baseball's best players, and he's on his way to becoming one of the game's all-time greats. Wherever his career takes him, he'll arrive with a smile on his face.

Sports

How a mother's love saved a college football player from drowning in the depths of grief and guilt after he nearly killed one of his best friends.
The guitar's name is Denise. It is Da'Quan Bowers' most prized possession, a 1964 Fender Stratocaster that his father played for most of Da'Quan's life to provide the family's income. "Put it like this," Da'Quan Bowers says, "if I left it with you, I'd rather something happened to you than to it."
This is a story about every childhood in America-playing outside, hanging out with friends, toeing the line between fun and trouble. The only difference: The two lifelong friends in this story now make $291 million combined.
Danica Patrick's critics have long said that she has her job because of what she looks like rather than how she races. However true that is, it's also an ugly lie, because many drivers have their jobs for reasons unrelated to how they drive.

NFL and concussions

A Sporting News survey of 125 former NFL players found far more players suffered far more concussions than previously has been reported. The consequences are far-reaching for the players and their families.
They are falling apart physically and mentally because of their football careers. Yet 96 of the 125 players would play again, and many say so enthusiastically. "Absofrickinlutely!" wrote one. "Hell yes!!!!" wrote another.
Joe DeLamielleure spent a good chunk of the last decade wondering if he was going crazy. Depression gripped him suddenly. Then it would let go just as quickly. His keys disappeared for hours because he couldn't remember where he put them. Worst of all, he couldn't sleep at night.
If fear can be called a symptom, it's the most prevalent problem former players face due to concussions, a Sporting News survey of 125 former players found. Eighty-five of them (68 percent) said they are afraid they will degrade mentally-or that they have already started to.
What good is glory if you can't remember it? In an investigation published long before concussions became an every day story, I uncovered sobering problems facing former NFL players.