When Michele Tafoya drops her young daughter off at school each morning, the NBC sideline reporter says, ‘Don’t be afraid to be … ” and allows Oliva to finish the sentence: “…great.”
For Tafoya, the fun exchange with her daughter is more than that. It’s a message she lives by – as a reporter, as a wife and as a mother.
Tafoya spent much of her sports broadcasting career not wanting to be singled out because of her gender, but if there’s one thing she’s learned in her life and hopes to impart to others, it’s “put one foot in front of the other – even when sometimes you can’t seem to pick up that one foot.”
The youngest of four children, Tafoya felt a drive early on to follow her dreams, set goals and achieve them.
“Take advantage of every opportunity that is ever placed in front of you,” Tafoya’s father told her.
And she has.
“My whole focus was to get to the NFL sideline,” Tafoya said. “I wanted to work with the NFL.”
From producing, to a radio job in Charlotte, North Carolina, to the Vikings sidelines, to a sideline reporter for Monday Night Football, Tafoya never took her eyes off her goal.
She never stopped moving forward, and the Emmy-award winning reporter now works alongside play-by-play announcer Al Michaels and color commentator Cris Collinsworth on Sunday Night Football, the most-watched show on prime time television during the NFL season.
Anyone who has watched Tafoya as a sideline reporter understands the passion she has for her job; anyone who knows her as a wife and mother understands she has an equal passion for her family.
“I end up at NBC, I end up marrying the man of my dreams, I end up with these two children, and suddenly I don’t want to work anymore,” Tafoya said, laughing. “I don’t want to leave the house – it’s like, ‘I love this.’ But I also love my job. It’s all about finding balance, and that’s become the new focus of my life: making sure I’m listening to my priorities.”
To read the full article visit Vikings.com where it was originally published
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
