It’s a rare opportunity to find your passion while building your career in your hometown. Very few people get the chance to plant their flag and shine in the same place they grew up and will always call home. When Michele Steele walked away from her 14-year chapter at ESPN in the summer of last year, speculation followed about where the Chicago native would land.
Luckily for the self-admitted Chicago Bears and Cubs fan who graduated from the University of Illinois in Champaign, her next opportunity landed in her own backyard.
“I had been handling a lot of ESPN assignments out of the Chicago bureau for some time since 2016,” explained Steele. “Then I was called in for a meeting with Mark Hulsey (senior VP of production, Big Ten Network), and Quentin Carter (VP studio production, Big Ten Network) to talk about the opportunity to contribute.”
That meeting sold Steele on the chance to stay home and break new ground with a network centered on celebrating the teams, players, and coaches of the Big Ten Conference. With the network’s offices rooted in downtown Chicago, Steele says she leapt at the opportunity to join a network that highlights the conference she knows so well.
From ESPN To BTN
She noted that the transition, now nearly seven months removed from ESPN, has been practically seamless. Steele added that staff members welcomed her with open arms, making her adaptation feel as though she has been with the Big Ten Network for years.
“What is so great about Big Ten Network and the job I have is you’re really giving people an escape. There’s a lot of really heavy news out there, but we exist to celebrate these programs,” said Steele.
Steele also pointed to the conference’s recent success as a key reason she was drawn to the role. With the Big Ten claiming national championships in football and both men’s and women’s basketball, she says the conference is riding an all-time high in many respects.
When Steele exited ESPN in August of last year, she viewed the moment as the closing of a significant chapter in her career. Over 14 years, she ran the gauntlet at ESPN, taking on nearly every role the network had to offer. From the sidelines to SportsCenter, Steele says that although she was saying goodbye to ESPN, she wasn’t leaving sports behind.
“For me, I always wanted to stay in sports,” said Steele. “I was not done with sports when the chapter at ESPN ended. I was actively thinking what the next chapter certainly would look like… Now I’m really happy to be hosting and contributing at the Big Ten Network and getting to do things across the board where they need me.”
Adapting To Change
The Big Ten Network has long served as a destination for fans to connect with the stories of the conference’s teams, players, and coaches. Its content approach differs in philosophy from Steele’s previous work at ESPN.
“Sometimes at ESPN or any other sports network, you’re not necessarily rooting for one conference or another. At Big Ten Network, you are rooting for the conference and celebrating the success across so many programs,” explained Steele. “I’m not saying one [approach] is better than the other, but it’s just a different vibe. It’s a privilege to bring that type of vibe and celebration to fans.”
With seven additional universities joining the conference since the turn of the century, demand for conference-specific content has never been higher. With a coast-to-coast reach, Steele understands the importance of creating a destination that meets fans in their day-to-day connection with these programs.
This is where Steele’s experience in both journalism and studio roles proves most valuable in delivering content.
“The SEC gets a lot of ratings headlines. But the Big Ten has an incredibly strong fanbase,” said Steele. “From my vantage point, the storytelling opportunities are everywhere. The Indiana football story alone is very energizing to me. That means it can happen to any other program within the Big Ten. It’s an incredibly rich field to mine for us to tell the story of this conference.”
With another football season ahead, as Indiana attempts to defend its national championship, Steele’s role with the network remains somewhat fluid. She describes her role as doing whatever is needed, always willing to raise her hand for new opportunities.
However, she does have her personal favorites.
“It’d be a lie that I wasn’t so happy and energized to be in studio again. Being back in studio, putting on that mic, and talking about Fernando Mendoza. Getting into where he’ll go in the NFL Draft. Those fun conversations again have been great,” said Steele. “I was one of those reporters in the field who relished the time I got to be in the studio.”
So far in her time with the Big Ten Network, Steele has worked in the studio and appeared on the sidelines for the Nebraska spring game. She is also slated to work the Ohio State spring game broadcast on the sidelines this Saturday.
Business Is Sports Business
Steele’s journey in media didn’t begin in sports, but in the business world. She spent years working for Forbes and Bloomberg, establishing herself as a respected journalist.
While working at ESPN—and now with the Big Ten Network—Steele also hosts a program for StocktwitsTV, where she discusses the latest financial and business developments.
That background has given her a distinct advantage when covering sports.
“You can’t cover college sports without understanding the business of sports. That’s a new sentence that rings true that didn’t maybe a decade ago,” said Steele. “I understand how to read a business story, and how to ask the right questions about money, structure and strategy… That context is always going to make you a better interviewer and make the storytelling that much richer for the viewer as well.”
Steele says she plans to continue balancing her roles with Stocktwits, her weekend appearances on NPR, and her work with the Big Ten Network.
“For now, I would like to continue as multi-dimensional as I can for the time being. These relationships and platforms I currently work in matter to me. Staying connected to those business conversations makes me better at everything I do,” explained Steele. “It’s excellent I get to stay sharp on both sides.”
Now settled into her role with the Big Ten Network, Steele continues to embrace a philosophy she has carried throughout her career: make the work fun and positive. It’s a message she hopes to pass on to the next generation of media professionals—stay curious, be fearless, and always support those around you.
She believes success comes from balancing preparation with patience.
“I’d like to think I’ve always been easy to work with and always prided myself in no matter what the assignment is. It’s sports and let’s have fun,” said Steele. “Every job I’ve had, I’ve been so lucky that throughout my career I have genuinely liked what I was doing at every job I’ve had.”
In an industry that often demands relocation, reinvention, and constant movement, Steele’s story serves as a reminder that sometimes the next chapter doesn’t require going somewhere new—it requires seeing home in a new way.
After years of building a national profile, Steele has found something just as meaningful in telling stories that hit closer to where it all began.
Because for all the miles traveled and roles embraced, there’s still something uniquely special about doing the work you love in the place that first made you love it. And in Steele’s case, that rare opportunity has come full circle—right back where her passion first took root.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
