Searching for the fitting words in a farewell column can be rather frustrating. Just now I’ve done about a baker’s dozen worth of intros, trying to make the last words of my Minaret experience count.

My very first instinct is to thank all the great people who I’ve worked with at the paper. Peter Arrabal is a solid sports editor. If people wonder why the sports section, which in my opinion is the best section in the entire paper, is so captivating, a lot of it has to do with his story ideas and his hard work. As sports writers we were given a lot of free range to write what we want. He accepted suggestions and ideas and never ignored giving advice when it was called for. I had a lot to learn when I first starting writing for the paper, and he made the transition fairly easy.

Then there are my fellow sports writers. Mike Jones is as consistent a journalist as there could be. Week in and week out, he had great articles. From covering the volleyball national championship run to his “Sermon on the Mound” story, it was a combination of thorough investigative work and interesting writing style. He always seemed to have a good eye for spotting great stories, and that’s something I hope to have some day.

Jordan Chariton has the makeup needed to be a successful sports writer. You’ll never find him at a loss of words to discuss any sports topic. Not too long ago, he had a blurb in his column discussing the sports marketing promotions at one of the UT baseball games. It was one of the more humorous things that has come out of the sports section this year. If he elects next year to have a weekly run column, it should receive a lot of attention because of his clever writing style.

If I can offer one piece of advice to all these writers, if sports journalism is the path we decide to pursue for our careers, let us not forget what we did at The Minaret, as it was our first step towards that journey. We did it strictly because it was something we enjoyed and to suddenly look at it as just a “job” would be make us lose sight of the satisfaction that it can offer.

I would be remissed if I didn’t offer two more thank yous. Editor-in-chief Victor O’Brien has done a great job with the entire paper. Since I’ve arrived here at UT, The Minaret has gone through an intense transition to a legitimate, informative newspaper. Victor’s leadership and hard work has a lot to do with that.

Also, Professor Charles McKenzie is a big reason I got involved in journalism. I started the year with zero reporting experience, and I feel I’ve made tremendous strides over the past few months. Professor McKenzie had a lot do with that, including persistent and beneficial AP style quizzes and making himself available for questions and ideas on articles. If there were a professor I had to pick who had their biggest impact on me in college, it would be him.

So in closing, it’s been a great experience. My only regret is I wait so long to become involved. My time at The Minaret offered me countless opportunities and a focus on my career path for the future.

Editor’s note: The Minaret would like to thank Andy Sullivan for his hard work and dedication to the Sports section for the last two years.