Fall 2002

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WCJB sports director Joe Girvan chooses ‘quality of life’ over career

Larry Vettel, TEL 1981, (second from right) is a play-by-play broadcaster for Gator football, basketball, volleyball and other sports on Sunshine Network, Florida’s oldest and largest cable sports network. He also reports for Nextel Florida Sports, co-hosts a weekly TV show “Gator Zone” and co-hosts a morning radio show on WGGG-AM. He was WRUF-AM/FM sports director from 1981-98. He and his wife, Quenta, have two daughters. His “mentees” have included (l-r) Joel Hartley, TEL 1994, videographer at WCJB-TV; Joe Girvan, TEL 1995, sports director at WCJB-TV; Kevin Benjamin, TEL 1991, assignment editor at WUFT-TV.

by Marc Quadagno

When Joe Girvan, TEL 1995, graduated, the last place he thought he would end up after seven years was back in Gainesville.

The 29-year-old, who looks more like 17, was hoping for a fast break to the top of his field.

“I thought it would be a quicker trip to the top,” Girvan said. “I thought I’d be in New York or Boston.”

Girvan is WCJB-TV’s sports director and anchors the weeknight sports report. While he claims he does not make much money, he is happy as far as his quality of life.

“The further I go in my career, the less my career becomes important to me,” Girvan said. “Quality of life is much more important to me.”

Girvan admits that there was a time when his career was everything. One of his first jobs out of college was as sports director at WPMI-TV in Mobile, Ala. However, when he moved to Gainesville, he took a cut in pay and now reaches a smaller audience.

“I came back to Gainesville for a lot of different reasons. It was a big step backwards in terms of market size,” he said. “But it was the smartest thing I ever did in my life; I’m so glad to be out of Mobile.”

Even though he is out of Mobile, he realizes that Gainesville is not a final destination.

“For me to advance, I’m going to have to leave Gainesville,” he said. In fact, he’s considering a move out West.

But advancing is not high on Girvan’s list of priorities. One of the major drawbacks, he claims, is the fact that he looks so young.

“I don’t think it’s holding me back now as much as it may have three or four or five years ago, but when I send out tapes I get about 15 seconds on a VHS tape to impress someone,” he said. “And their first impression is probably, ‘Wow! That kid looks young!’”

The bottom line is that in sportscasting, the white male is not in demand. Girvan realizes this, and uses it to his advantage to keep his life as positive as he can.

“Strive to be happy,” he said. “It’s all about happiness.”