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Women In Sports: CBS Sports Analyst Teryn Schaefer Sees Roles Increasing For Women In Sports

Teryn Schaefer (Photo provided by Teryn)

Teryn Schaefer (Photo provided by Teryn)

 

In a field that at one point was closed off to women, the barriers have slowly come down.  It wasn’t too long ago that women were not allowed in the locker rooms, making it hard for them to successfully do their job.  Now, more and more women are popping up all over the sports industry. You see female reporters, analysts and even women working behind-the-scenes.

For Women’s History Month, I interviewed Teryn Schaefer, a Sports Analyst for CBS Sports.  At just 26-years-old, Teryn has already accomplished so much.

She didn’t always know she wanted to work in sports journalism.  It wasn’t until Teryn was in college that she realized sports was something she really wanted to pursue. Upon graduation she started working at a local TV station.

Teryn Schaefer (Photo provided by Teryn)

Teryn Schaefer (Photo provided by Teryn)

In her short, yet impressive career, Teryn has already seen changes in the roll that women play in the sports industry.  She says that when she was an intern, she could not go into locker rooms because she was a woman.  However, it is not like that anymore.

Not only have the rules changed to benefit women, but the attitudes of both men and women have changed when it comes to working in the industry.  Women at one time were looked at as pretty faces who wanted to meet their husbands on the field, but, again, it’s not like that anymore.  Women hold more valuable roles in the industry.

“I’ve come across different men that didn’t like working with a female.  It didn’t sit well with them that a female was sitting alongside them, it was like an ego trip for them,” Schaefer says.

“Those instances have been minor on the grand scale of things.  Men specifically will help and mentor me,” she continued.

When it comes to dealing with discouragement, she says that you face it from not just others around you, but yourself.  She says, “You have to find it within yourself to prove that you belong.”

“A lot of times I over-prepare because you want to be there,” she continued.

Despite all of the impressive leaps women have made in sports, there are still boundaries that women need to overcome in the industry.

One thing that Teryn brought up was women doing play-by-play, a roll that is typically filled by men.  She feels that this could partially be because we draw inspiration from what we see and young girls don’t see a lot of women out calling games.  However, this year, Jessica Mendoza made history when she provided color commentary for a national baseball game.

Teryn ended her interview with this word of advice for girls aspiring to work in the once male dominated field.  “Do anything and everything that you can. I can’t tell you how much work I did for free. Don’t be afraid to work bad hours.  Get out there and do your best to put yourself out there.”

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Diane Quail

Diane is a Staff Writer here at DoubleGSports.com
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