Courtesy The Daily Mississippian

(September 22, 2010) Allison Croghan hasn’t had the typical college-student experiences. After studying abroad in London during the spring semester, the Ole Miss senior broadcast journalism major immediately moved back to the states into a three-month summer internship with television’s largest sports network, ESPN.

Now she is back in Oxford this fall for the first time since December and is using her internship as driving force.

“Every day there was an amazing experience. Every day I would wake up and be like ‘Wow, I’m working for ESPN’,” Croghan said.

Over 10,000 people applied for 88 summer positions, and the St. Louis native was one of the lucky ones selected. However, Croghan was uncertain she should pursue a career in the sports industry until she arrived at Ole Miss.

Croghan said she grew up at the hockey rink and baseball fields watching her brother’s games but never planned to work in sports.

Before her internship with ESPN, Croghan had the opportunity to be the sports intern at KMOX 1120 in St. Louis, as well as spend time working for the Memphis Redbirds, the AAA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals.

“It is very nerve-racking as soon as you submit your (ESPN) application because you know that thousands of people are applying to that company constantly,” Croghan said. “But you have to put yourself out there in order to succeed.”

She heard about the internship through an e-mail the journalism department sent to its students. She decided to apply before she departed for London. After several phone interviews, she didn’t hesitate to take the position when it was offered in April.

While working for ESPN, her superiors continuously stressed the importance of taking advantage of every opportunity while they were there, so she made sure to go above and beyond.

Although she was taught much during her internship, she said that she learned the most from ESPN’s “SportsNation” host, Michelle Beadle.

“(Michelle) Beadle is so nice and I really admire her as a woman in the (sports) industry,” Croghan said.

While working in Bristol, Conn at the ESPN headquarters, Croghan shadowed many departments, people and various shows. Her most important duty was to prepare shows to re-air.

“I had full creative control for the re-air of certain games and studio shows,” she said. “I would log and analyze them, and then basically decide what parts re-aired. I always tried to keep as much game-play in the re-air as possible.”

The one thing that surprised Croghan most about ESPN was the size of their national headquarters. She said it is a lot like a college campus which included a nurse, workout center, cafeteria, lake and a field designed to film for broadcasts.

Croghan said she couldn’t have picked a better summer to intern in Bristol. She worked at the same time as the 2010 FIFA World Cup, LeBron James’ famous decision,’ and the network’s launch of 3D sports.

Even after being away from friends and family for eight straight months, Croghan’s drive to succeed hasn’t slowed down.

Since returning to Oxford, she has continued to become involved in campus activities that will help her achieve her career dream of becoming an ESPN sideline reporter. This fall, she’s started working as an ESPN U Campus Connection reporter, become an analyst on Ole Miss’ Thursday night sports show “The SportsWhip”, signed on to be a correspondent for www.holyturf.com, (a website designed for people that have a strong passion for football), and joined the Ole Miss chapter of Society of Professional Journalists.

“After living abroad and then working for ESPN, I feel like I’ve got a really good perspective on life,” Croghan said. “It’s about having fun, and as long as you’re doing something you love, you’ll be willing to get up every day and do it.”

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