It did not take Joe Cook long to realize that he would have switch to Plan B, because the NBA was not going to be giving him a call anytime soon. But as his hope of playing professional basketball has diminished, his desire to become a sports broadcaster has skyrocketed.

After graduating with an associate’s degree from Tidewater Community College, where he was the captain of the men’s basketball team, he transferred to Norfolk State University in Virginia.  At Norfolk he’s been able to hone his skills as an on-air personality, editor, writer and videographer.

Cook said he is a testament to how hard work can pay off. While he was an  intern at Hot 91 FM, a radio station in Norfolk, he started off doing voiceovers.

“What I really wanted to do was be on-air,” Cook said.

Eventually, a producer at the station noticed his ambition and he was able to become an on-air personality over the summer. He’s also worked for LG studios Mobile Media Co., where he assembled sets for photo shoots, which he said helped his production skills.

Cook is the one-man band of his own sports television show, “NSU Sports Connect,” which is broadcast on the university’s television station.  He also serves as the sports editor for the Spartan Echo, Norfolk State’s student newspaper.

Everything came full circle for Cook after he was accepted into an internship program with the local ABC station, 13 News. He got the chance to work with his favorite broadcaster, Brian Smith, someone he had admired since childhood.

“Since I can’t play, I still want to be around sports,” Cook said.