With the end of my tenure drawing near, I couldn’t help but think of what all I have been through during this crazy year of being sports editor for The Flor-Ala.

I think the rest of The Flor-Ala staff would probably agree with me that this was one of the most stressful years we have ever had. Time management was probably the most difficult thing to deal with, especially since I had three jobs.

Despite all the hardships that occurred, I couldn’t be more thankful to Student Media for giving me the opportunity to hold this position. This year has taught me so much I probably would have never gotten.

Having this position has taught me how to deal with pressure situations ranging from covering big stories to dealing with high-ranking officials on campus. In terms of my career, it was something I needed to improve on if I wanted to be successful.

I also wanted to say how thankful I am to have worked with an extremely talented staff: Josh Skaggs, Andy Thigpen and Alex Lindley. I think each of them should have no problem making a lot of money once they are out in the job market. Normally, I wouldn’t think too highly of my bosses, but working under my Executive Editor Lucy Berry has been a real honor.

She is a very talented writer, and I have learned so much by watching and taking as much advice as I could from her. If it weren’t for her and the rest of the staff, I probably would not have made it through the year. I’m really going to miss coming in on Mondays and having our karaoke moments as we work on our pages.

I would also like to thank the writers I had for my section who helped me cover many games and issues that occurred during the year. Without them, it would have made it very difficult to do my job as best as I possibly could.

As for the new staff coming in for next year, I hope nothing but the very best, and I know they will help make the paper even better than we did this year. The new group is extremely talented, and I know they will get the job done.

Again, I am very thankful to all of those who helped make this year’s paper possible. It has been an amazing run being the sports editor for The Flor-Ala, and my goal coming in was to leave it at a better place than it was before. I hope I achieved it.