I never expected to be writing this letter. Many times I thought to myself about how lucky I am to have this job and that I had no intentions of ever leaving it.

In the summer of 2015, I walked into Kevin Williamson’s office at the Hattiesburg Impact nervous as all get out. I had just graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi and was hoping for a full-time opportunity. Imagine my excitement when those hopes became reality. I’ll always be grateful to Kevin and Zach Buckley for taking a chance on me.

Honestly, those first couple weeks were pretty tough. I lived only 30 minutes away, but I felt like a complete outsider in the beginning. I didn’t know much, if anything, about the schools, teams, athletes, coaches, etc. in the Hattiesburg area. But as I continued to reach out and form connections with those coaches and athletes, it got a lot easier and funner. In retrospect, it’s clear I was never an outsider to you guys. You accepted me with open arms, and I’m forever grateful for that as well.

August 1 marks four years that I’ve been at the Hattiesburg Impact. I’m smiling from ear to ear because these past four years have been four of the best years of my life. My face may not show it, but I’m also a little sad. As many of you already know, August 1 is also my final day at the Impact.

After much thought and consideration, I’ve accepted a job with Sanderson Farms in North Carolina. Leaving this field, this job and this place was the toughest choice I’ve ever had to make, but I have zero doubts in it being the right move for my future. I’ve got my whole life ahead of me, and I feel like a fresh start would do me some good.

That being said, it hasn’t really sunk in yet that I won’t be on the sidelines anymore. I’m imagining that first Friday night feeling really weird, but I’m gonna try to compensate by keeping up with everything through social media, radio, etc.

And you can rest assured that Sports601.com will continue to be the Pine Belt’s premier sports website. I know that James Pugh will continue to do great things in Laurel, and I’m confident that whoever is hired to replace me will do the same in Hattiesburg. The show must go on.

I consider myself very fortunate that I was a part of it and your lives. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.