Nick Zaccardi
The sports reporter who stayed awake to scoop the sleeping national media
What others are saying...
Jenna Marina, reporter for The Independent Florida Alligator
For as long as I've known Nick, he never takes a minute off. He's constantly checking tips, message boards, anything to get that breaking news story. The day he broke one of the biggest stories of football season has to rank as his defining moment. Percy Harvin did not travel with the Gators to South Carolina because of migraine headaches, which ended up becoming a two-week ordeal. Nick broke the original story from a hotel room in Columbia, S.C., because while everyone else was probably sleeping, he managed to get Harvin's mother on the phone. The news went national, and everyone referenced Nick's story.
Michael McCall, sports editor for The Independent Florida Alligator
This semester when I was sports editor, he brought me a copy of the paper every day that he had edited for grammar, style, cohesiveness and appearance to help me improve since I'm a sophomore and the youngest to hold that job. Nick's sole interests are in making The Alligator the best paper it can be and improving everyone around him, all the while doing his best to avoid any praise or credit.
Lindsay Jones, reporter for the Palm Beach Post
Nick is without a doubt one of the most talented and driven college journalists in the country. I've worked with Nick for the last year since I've been the Florida beat writer for the Palm Beach Post, and he has been my college correspondent.
Highlighted work
Calathes bonds more than skin deep
Source | Sporting News
You wouldn't think Nick Calathes as the tattoo type. His father still calls him "Nicky." His coach hates it when Nicky refers to him as "sir." Nicky is scared stiff of roller coasters.
Remembering Michael "Sunshine" Guilford
Source | Sporting News
Michael Guilford was a walk-on football player at the University of Florida, but he had begun to make a name for himself.
The Chosen One
Source | The Independent Florida Alligator
He dives head-first into concrete, bowls over linebackers and stiff-arms pesky cornerbacks to the ground. He also cradles babies, uses the word "giggles" in press conferences and plays video games.
Noah going through growing pains in NBA
Source | Sporting News
You could say Joakim Noah was doomed the day he set foot in Chicago. "Damn, I hated Michael Jordan," Noah, representing disgruntled Knicks fans everywhere, told reporters following the 7-footer's pre-draft meeting with the Bulls in June.
Hut, two, three, fore!
Source | CommercialAppeal.com
"You can (talk) while you're at practice, but once you go back to the campus, you can't say a word." Wesley Carver on combining college golf with basic training at West Point.
