Paving his own way, Hunter Sheppard has become one of Oklahoma’s top prep sports reporters
PORUM, Okla. (BVM) — When someone looks for sports coverage, one may look to a big-name reporter like Ian Rapport or Adam Schefter. But for local stories, there are a lot more reporters people can look to. In Oklahoma, everyone can look at Hunter Sheppard, who has become one of the best local reporters.
From a young age, Sheppard has always had a love for athletics. But a diagnosis of Asperger’s hasn’t stopped him from playing a lot of sports growing up. He didn’t let that stop him from covering them, however, and now his love for athletics has blossomed into something outstanding.
“I always had the idea of [covering sports] after I graduated high school,” Sheppard said. “I really got into it during the 2020-21 [high school] season. And the Mustang Holliday Classic is really how I got my upstart.”
But before that event, Sheppard was on his own, filming, writing, and helping out Porum High School, his alma mater.
“I filmed for Porum from my sophomore year through my senior year,” Sheppard said. “I was a manager from my seventh grade to freshman year. I said to myself, ‘I should do more research on the teams,’ and get my feet wet.”
For Sheppard, who is only 22, that experience has paid dividends. He nearly has 2,000 followers on Twitter, and he does everything independently. That could be a bit daunting for those trying to get into covering sports, but Sheppard has a method that he always follows.
“I’d always say you really want to do research on the teams in the area,” Sheppard said. “Get information from players and coaches. Then you can always watch film from afar.”
In addition to Sheppard inspiring others, there is a very special group that continues to support his venture: his family.
“My mom has been very supportive,” Sheppard said. “Same with my dad. He lives out of state but he still follows what I do. Whenever I wanted to go out to Mustang, my mom was the one I asked to get me out there the first time. And when I go to the city, if it’s [the event] on a weekend, she’ll get me up to Tulsa, so I can take a bus. But my family has been very supportive for the most part.”
Sheppard is truly one of the up-and-coming sports reporters in the Sooner State. He’ll undoubtedly continue to provide coverage for high school sports in Oklahoma. And with an abundance of athletic stories to be told, Sheppard can be relied upon to tell those stories and cover future events extremely well.
