"Are you new here?" Indiana University women's basketball head coach Teri Moren asked bluntly, her words reverberating through the overhanging speakers. "Yes," a shaky-voiced first-time reporter murmured from the third row. Professional athletes often talk about their “welcome to the big leagues” moments; this was mine. Being called out by a tenured college basketball coach wasn't how I envisioned starting my sports reporting career, but there I was, face turning red as a Michigan cherry, regretting the question I'd so bravely raised my hand to ask. Before I continue, allow me to introduce myself. Hello! My name is Quinn Richards and I'm the new sports editor for The Daily Telegram. While I can't wait to tell all sorts of stories across Lenawee County, I'm going to take full advantage of this rare opportunity to talk about myself. I got a new job, I'm allowed to be a little selfish just this once, right? Put simply, in a series of fun demonyms, I'm a Michigan-born Buckeye turned Hoosier. I was born and raised in nearby Dearborn. Despite my status as a Michigander, I was fostered into Scarlet and Gray fandom by my parents, both alumni of the Ohio State University (boo-hoo I’ve heard it all already).
I can attribute my early love of sports to my middle school lunch table, where I would effortlessly fend off Wolverine and Spartan cohorts as the lone Buckeye delegate. After graduating from Divine Child High School, I took my keen interest in pursuing a sports media career to another red-hued Big Ten school in the Midwest – Indiana University. My freshman year, I watched from the stands as Indiana football became the first Division I team to reach 700 losses and – accordingly – the all-time losingest program in the country. Three years later, I stood on a confetti-littered field at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, covering the final chapter of the Hoosiers' storybook national championship run. But before all of that, I had some learning to do. There I was, my first post-game press conference on the Indiana women's basketball beat, getting called out by the coach in a room full of seasoned reporters, wondering what kind of self-inflicted torture I'd signed up for. I got through the rest of the press conference – albeit with my head buried in the laptop sitting in front of me – and scrounged up a game story that I'm sure I'd cringe at today. It's fair to say that my debut semester at the Indiana Daily Student was not a flawless showing. As Teri Moren effortlessly pointed out, I was "new there." But the student paper soon became my home. That same season I covered Indiana steamrolling Caitlin Clark's Iowa squad in front of a sold-out Assembly Hall and went to Albany, New York, for the Hoosiers' NCAA Tournament appearance. The next year I moved to the men's basketball beat where I helped break news of former head coach Mike Woodson stepping down. At the start of my senior year, I was offered a position to cover Indiana football, a much more tempting proposition after the success of new head coach Curt Cignetti. It was an offer I couldn’t pass up and, thankfully, I didn’t. During the 2025 college football season I wrote stories about students who stayed for the entirety of a 73-0 blowout win, Rose Bowl marriage reunions and – ultimately – a behind-the-scenes look at Indiana’s locker room following the Hoosiers’ national championship win. It was an incredible journey that I was privileged enough to cover and behind it all was that same wide-eyed sophomore who was still learning the fast-paced, hectic world of sports media. So, that’s what you need to know about me. Now it’s time for me to learn about you. I’ve already discovered so much about the lively sports culture in Lenawee County. Sports make their mark on the community each year, from the intense rivalry between Adrian and Tecumseh to the annual festivities of NASCAR at Michigan International Speedway, But once again, I’m new here. I know now that people can usually tell when that’s the case. So, feel free to reach out! Don’t be a stranger. Bring stories you want told, and I’ll do my part to tell them. Give me some recommendations on where I should go for a bite to eat or a coffee to sip. And can somebody please, please, tell me where I can find a maple doughnuts around here? Contact sports editor Quinn Richards at QRichards@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @Quinn_Richa. This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Meet The Daily Telegram's new sports editor Quinn Richards, a true Midwesterner