It’s a cold morning, you get into your car and turn on the radio, you’re driving and almost falling asleep, until you turn on KNUJ and wake up to the voice of Tom Wheeler. People around our county love listening to KNUJ, and the numbers show it as well. They average about 45,000 listeners a day. I interviewed Tom Wheeler and it was fun. We discussed a range of topics. I asked Tom, “What is your favorite sport to broadcast?”

He responded, “Well, Jack, I enjoy all of them. I originally did basketball because that’s what I grew up playing and loved watching, but when you have been to so many games, high school and college, they all kind of grow on you. I get to watch young athletes perform at their best. I get to try to describe what they’re doing to the listening audience, so they can see the picture as well as to what is happening in the game. That’s probably the best thing about being a sportscaster.”

Then I asked, “Oh, you broadcast college games. What college?” Tom responded, “Gustavus.” Tom is completing his 27th year broadcasting for KNUJ. He starts his 28th year on January 4th which is an amazing milestone. Tom’s daily schedule starts with a daily sports broadcast. He then plans his schedule for the rest of the day based on upcoming games as well as meeting with coaches to discuss coaches’ shows or schedule interviews.

When asked what/who inspired him to be a broadcaster, Tom said that it was listening to Viking games, before my time, that there were broadcasters that were fun to listen to that taught him the radio aspect.  Tom said, “Getting into it was a radio commercial. I was working a different job in the cities, I had a bad morning so to speak, and a radio commercial came on while I was driving that mentioned to write a number down if you were tired of your job or if you felt you were going no where. I wrote the number down, and I called. It was Brown Institute, and I scheduled a time to meet them. This was in October. I started a class in January, and that’s how I got involved in radio broadcasting.”

I enjoyed Tom Wheeler. He has a big personality, he’s funny, and he has an entertaining voice. We are lucky to have him to keep us informed and intrigued when it comes to our local sports and information.