Courtesy Pan American Online

(February 17, 2011) STAA client Alex Del Barrio, director of athletic media relations at UTPA, has dreams of making it to the NBA. However, his dream doesn't involve suiting up in a uniform.

Del Barrio played basketball as a kid and realized his freshman year of high school that he wasn't going to land a career as a professional athlete. Broadcasting was one outlet that stood out to the young sports enthusiast; he began announcing softball and baseball games at Mission High School.

After graduating from high school in 2001, the novice announcer went to Boston University to study journalism. As a college student, he got deeply involved with the university radio station while also gaining experience in sports marketing. He announced games for soccer, lacrosse, wrestling, hockey, and other BU sports on campus.

In 2004, after three years, he returned to South Texas and began working full-time as the media relations contact and traveling radio announcer with the Edinburg Roadrunners, a semi-professional baseball team.

"I kind of thought my career was going to keep going that way in baseball," said Del Barrio of his transition into another sport. "But I had always wanted to work in basketball."

After two years with the Roadrunners, Del Barrio got his chance in basketball with a team he grew up listening to and admiring.

"One of the things that I always remembered growing up was listening to the Bronc games on the radio," said Del Barrio of his younger years.

In 2005, the basketball connoisseur got his break with the Bronc basketball team to travel with it throughout the season and broadcast games. He did this for two seasons until 2007, when he graduated from UTPA with a degree in broadcast journalism.

After graduation, Del Barrio began working with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, an NBA Development League team, as an announcer, for which he still continues to do radio play-by-play.

Del Barrio has established himself as a sports authority since his return from the East Coast.

The broadcaster worked two years as a sports anchor for FOX 2 News in McAllen and reported on high school football for KGBT-TV Channel 4 news. More recently, Del Barrio got the opportunity to announce eight games for the D-League Showcase at South Padre Island, which aired on NBA TV last month.

Del Barrio has also contributed his broadcasting skills to the Killer Bees hockey team, the late Dorados indoor football team, and the Coyotes baseball team that succeeded the Roadrunners in 2006 and became the Roadrunners again two years ago.

During his stint with the Coyotes, in 2007 Del Barrio was named the director of player personnel and media relations for United League Baseball.

This year, he carries on his reputation in sports in a new position with UTPA athletics, bringing a fresh, new design and enthusiasm to the job description.

As the new director of athletic media relations, Del Barrio expresses that he brings "passion" to his role and views his job as a stepping-stone.

"I'm from here. I grew up here. My degree says, ‘Texas-Pan American' on it," he said. "It means something to me to be here."

Del Barrio explained that he's "playing catch-up" and taking notes on what needs improvement in the department's marketing area. He began work in January.

"How do I do my job effectively here without burning out, but still giving all the teams the credit they deserve," said Del Barrio of his long work days. "It's definitely not a 40-hour-a-week job."

Although some days may be much longer than others, Del Barrio shares an enthusiastic outlook on the job and what it means to him.

"The work you put in now, it's going to pay off later," he said optimistically about his future in sports casting.

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