Tom VanHaaren, an ESPN.com reporter who had been with the network since 2011, announced Friday that the Worldwide Leader would not renew his contract in June.
VanHaaren has covered college football, recruiting, golf, and more for ESPN for the better part of a decade. He is originally from Michigan and started his career covering Michigan Wolverines football and recruiting. VanHaaren wrote a book titled “The Road to Ann Arbor: Incredible Twists and Improbable Turns Along the Michigan Recruiting Trail” back in 2018.
Before today’s announcement, VanHaaren had recently penned articles about the top players in the NCAA transfer portal and the most promising college football freshmen of 2024.
He took to social media to announce his upcoming departure.
“Some personal news: I was told today that ESPN won’t be renewing my contract in June. I’m sad, but I’ll move forward and will find some peace in the fact that I gave everything I had,” VanHaaren wrote. “Thank you to everyone who read my work, and thanks for always indulging in my dessert tweets.”
“I always tell people that I wanted to do three things when I was a kid; I wanted to be a golf pro, I wanted to be on Saturday Night Live and I wanted to work at ESPN. I got one out of the three, so I’m thankful for that.
“I worked my tail off to get here and took an unconventional route, but found a way to make it happen and had an incredible 11 years. I’m thankful for everyone who helped me to this point and for everyone who read my work. I don’t know what’s next, but I’m going to take some time to reflect on the last 11 years here and the experiences I had. I have no regrets, knowing the effort I put in.”
VanHaaren received an outpouring of support from his colleagues on social media:
One of the hardest workers, most talented colleagues and absolute best dudes I know. Hate this day but it has been an absolute pleasure working together for 10+ years. Love you, brother ❤️
For media outlets: Hire Tom. You won’t regret it. https://t.co/KTmhFv9AG6
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) January 19, 2024
It’s always hard when you lose selfless teammates like Tom, the kind of journalist who makes us all better. Some organization is going to get an incredibly talented and hard-working journalist who does his job with pride and integrity. A total honor working with you Tom. https://t.co/rhCT6RMFpU
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) January 19, 2024
An excellent teammate, reporter and all-around good dude, Tom is going to make wherever he goes next better. https://t.co/4hsXZ8bJ71
— Alex Scarborough (@ByScarborough) January 19, 2024
What’s next for VanHaaren remains to be seen. But clearly, he’s a valued voice in the college football media landscape.
[Tom VanHaaren on Twitter/X; image from an interview he did with Detroit ABC affiliate WXYZ in 2022]
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.