Ian O'Connor (born 1964) is an American sportswriter who is the author of five books, including '' The New York Times'' bestsellers ''Coach K: The Rise and Reign of Mike Krzyzewski''; ''Belichick: The Making of the Greatest Football Coach of All Time''; ''Arnie & Jack: Palmer, Nicklaus, and Golf's Greatest Rivalry''; and ''The Captain: The Journey of

Derek Jeter Derek Sanderson Jeter ( ; born June 26, 1974) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive. As a player, Jeter spent his entire 20-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...

''.

Early life and education

Raised in

Englewood, New Jersey Englewood is a city in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, which at the 2020 United States census had a population of 29,308. Englewood was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from por ...

, O'Connor graduated from St. Cecilia High School in 1982. He earned a bachelor's degree from Marist College in 1986, and in 2022 was chosen as the commencement speaker for Marist's graduate school ceremonies.

Career

O'Connor is a former columnist and senior writer for ESPN.com and The New York Post. He was previously a columnist at the ''

New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ta ...

'', '' USA Today'', '' The Journal News'', ''

The Record The Record may refer to: Music * ''The Record'' (album), a 1982 studio album by the hardcore-punk band Fear * The Records, an English power pop band * '' Their Greatest Hits: The Record'', a 2001 greatest-hits album by the pop-music group Bee Ge ...

'', and Foxsports.com, and also authored the book entitled ''The Jump: Sebastian Telfair and the High Stakes Business of High School Ball." O'Connor has finished in first place in 20 national writing contests conducted by organizations including the Golf Writers Association of America, the Associated Press Sports Editors, the Football Writers Association of America, the Society of Professional Journalists

Sigma Delta Chi Award The Sigma Delta Chi Awards are presented annually by the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) (formerly Sigma Delta Chi) for excellence in journalism. The SPJ states the purpose of the award is to promote "the free flow of information vital ...

, the

National Association of Black Journalists The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is an organization of African-American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C., by 44 journalists, the NABJ's stated purpose is to provide quality p ...

, and the

United States Basketball Writers Association The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 by National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The USBWA annually awa ...

. O'Connor is a former reporter for ''

The National Sports Daily ''The National Sports Daily'', often referred to simply as ''The National'', was a sports-centered newspaper published in the United States beginning on January 31, 1990. The newspaper was based in New York City, was printed in a tabloid format, ...

'' and the former host of weekly WEPN-FM and national

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...

shows. He was a panelist on ESPN's ''The Sports Reporters,'' and a regular contributor to many of the network's daily shows.

Personal life

He lives in New Jersey.

References

External links

* https://www.ian-oconnor.com/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, Ian American sportswriters Living people Marist College alumni People from Englewood, New Jersey People from River Vale, New Jersey St. Cecilia High School (New Jersey) alumni Writers from New Jersey 1969 births