Editor's Note: This story first ran in the Oswego Palladium-Times, written by SUNY Oswego alum and sports editor Josh St. Croix.
Linda Cohn vividly recalls hanging out in her first semester at Oswego State University with two newfound friends — Allison and Sherri — discussing their hopes for the future.
Cohn, a self-described timid 17-year-old from Long Island in that fall of 1977, blurted out to a confused room that she wanted to be a sportscaster.
After anchoring more than 5,000 SportsCenter episodes during a trail-blazing Hall of Fame career in the field of her dreams, the ESPN star will return to the Lakers’ campus on Saturday to speak at the commencement ceremony at the Deborah F. Stanley Arena in the Marano Campus Center.
“They looked at me like I was from another planet,” Cohn recalled of that formative conversation with friends. “You have to remember, this was like 1977, and I think the only female sportscaster was a former Miss America in Phyllis George. There just weren’t any, and they looked at me like, ‘Are you kidding? Are there any female sportscasters?’ And I said, ‘I don’t know, but I love sports, and that’s what I want to do.’”
Cohn will address the graduating class at the 4 p.m. ceremony for the School of Communictions, Media and the Arts and the School of Education.
Cohn said that she is both excited and nervous, and grateful for the opportunity to speak to so many “incredible young minds” in the same position as her when she graduated from Oswego in 1981.
The former goalie for the Lakers women’s club hockey team and now record-setting sportscaster plans to speak for 8-10 minutes, aiming to share some of her experiences from her time in their shoes.
“I’m going to try to just kind of remember that moment and alleviate any kind of fears that anyone in the crowd on this big day will be having at that moment,” Cohn said. “I just want to reiterate to them that this day is what you should cherish, because it goes by really fast.”
Cohn has provided the highlights and interviews for some of sports’ most memorable moments since signing with ESPN in 1992 and anchoring her first SportsCenter episode on July 11 that year. She has also been among the most recognizable faces in the network’s NHL coverage during her tenure.
She was celebrated for anchoring her record 5,000th SportsCenter episode in 2016 and has continued to build on that mark as the show’s longest-tenured anchor. She signed a multi-year extension with the network in 2022.
Cohn was inducted into the National Sports Media Association Hall of Fame in 2017. She became the first full-time female sports anchor on a national radio network at ABC in 1987.
“Her diligence and creativity have helped SportsCenter become a destination and an iconic brand for sports fans, and our viewers continue to be the lucky recipients of her expertise, passion for sports and outstanding work, both on SportsCenter and our NHL coverage,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN executive editor and head of event and studio production, when Cohn signed her recent extension.
Cohn points to her four years at Oswego as a critical phase in setting her up for future success.
She learned the value of balancing her time with academics, playing for the women’s hockey club team and an initial stint on the women’s tennis team.
Cohn remembered going home late in her first semester and crying to her parents after being placed on academic probation. When she returned for the spring semester, she focused more on her studies and her time on the ice, and sacrificed tennis.
Over the course of her time as a student-athlete, Cohn said that she felt welcomed and embraced as her self-esteem blossomed. She spoke fondly of the college-town community atmosphere and the sunsets over Lake Ontario.
“I felt Oswego State and my four years there were a game changer, for so many reasons,” Cohn said. “I was not a big fan of high school, I was not great at high school, I was not popular in high school. When I got to Oswego State, everything changed.”
She added, “Everything I didn’t have in high school, I had at Oswego State — community, friends, an interest in my classes, and the excitement and camaraderie of being part of a sports team, which went a long way.”
Cohn was initially drawn to Oswego for the chance to play women’s hockey.
She developed a love for the game at a young age, watching the New York Rangers with her father and taking trips to ice rinks out of town with her mother for a chance to try her hand in the sport.
She excelled as a goalie for the boys team at Newfield High School before committing to Oswego for the chance to finally play on an all-women’s team, where her confidence soared on and off the ice.
“Before I got to Oswego, I had tremendously low self-esteem, and sports basically saved me,” Cohn said. “To have that avenue and that outlet at Oswego, and that camaraderie and being part of a team, I appreciated the sport more that way.”
That passion for hockey has been evident in Cohn’s countless contributions to the NHL coverage at ESPN through the years.
This past season, she worked for 15 games on the NHL’s Seattle Kraken broadcast team in the market where she received her first big break in sports broadcasting.
“It was a huge part of my collegiate career at Oswego,” Cohn said. “I don’t know, if I didn’t have the hockey, who knows. I think it’s important to be balanced in college, and I think that’s one of the secrets to success moving forward.”
Cohn is set to return to the area for the fourth time since graduating. She attended a class reunion, spoke at a torchlight ceremony in the 1990s, and most recently visited soon after her 5,000th SportsCenter when the Oswego Sub Shop named a sub in her honor.
This time, she is eager to visit all her favorite places while also leaving the next generation of aspiring sportscasters with some calming words of wisdom.
“The biggest thing is — don’t worry so much. I spent so much of my life worrying about things that never happened, and everything worked out in some way,” Cohn said of her advice to graduates.
“I truly believe, but it took me decades to figure this out, I didn’t know when I was sitting there graduating, and it sounds crazy I know, but the universe is going to put you where you need to be. If you don’t get this job opportunity, you’re supposed to be at another job, or if you think you missed your only opportunity for something you perceived as magical, an even better future awaits you. You just have to be patient.”