NFL reporter comes home to cover Steelers for KDKA
Covering the NFL on a national scale did nothing to lessen A.J. Ross’ Steelers fandom, which explains why she’s excited to be back covering her hometown team.
The CBS Sports utility player and “NFL on CBS” sideline reporter was born in Homewood and moved with her family to Highland Park when she was a toddler. Some of her earliest memories involve sitting down with her father every Sunday to watch the Steelers. Her extended family has season tickets not too far back from the 50-yard line, so she’s had some great views of the action over the years.
“I talk like I’m on the field, and I know better than the coaches at times,” Ross told the Post-Gazette. “I feel extreme emotions when we win and lose. I love the atmosphere in Heinz [Field]. I’ve been to many stadiums professionally and just for fun, and no other stadium compares to Heinz and the passion and enthusiasm of our fan base.”
Ross is currently back in Pittsburgh helping out KDKA-TV with its coverage of Steelers’ training camp and preseason, a serendipitous cross-promotion with KDKA’s parent, CBS. For a Pittsburgher like Ross, this was an opportunity a lifetime in the making.
“I didn’t even think twice because I am a diehard Steelers fan and I would literally do this for free,” she said. “It was a match made in heaven.”
Ross developed her love of sports in Pittsburgh at the Boys & Girls Club of Western Pennsylvania in Shadyside. She played “every sport under the sun,” including soccer, basketball, hockey and even football with her friends in Highland Park. She eventually focused on basketball and enjoyed plenty of WPIAL success playing for coach Suzie McConnell-Serio at Oakland Catholic.
After leaving Pittsburgh for Washington, D.C., and Howard University, Ross became the manager of Howard’s men’s basketball team after a fortuitous run-in with a few of the school’s assistant coaches at a Fuddruckers restaurant in Chinatown. She walked on to
Howard’s women’s basketball team her sophomore year but had to quit after her father developed prostate cancer. He’s in remission now.
Her journalism career kicked off at ESPN cutting highlights and writing scripts for the network’s anchors. Wanting to be on the air herself, Ross left ESPN after about two years to become a reporter at WMBF-TV in Myrtle Beach, S.C. She left after a few years for another on-air position in Columbus, Ohio, that was followed by a brief freelancing stint at WTAE-TV and eventually the decision to go behind enemy lines at a Cleveland station.
From there, she went on to WABCTV in New York City and spent four years there while also occasionally freelancing for CBS Sports. CBS kept asking about her availability to the point where she had to make a career decision. She was beginning to find hard news to be “emotionally draining,” so a few years ago, Ross went full time with CBS Sports as a college football and
NFL reporter.
“I have to say overall, it doesn’t feel like work,” she said. “That’s the biggest blessing of it all. Everything they ask me to do is incredibly fun. ... I always find some amazing stories in each game. That’s what we’re tasked to do. I always find inspiration in athletes overcoming adversity and their amazing journeys.”
The COVID-19 pandemic brought Ross back home to Pittsburgh, which is where she reconnected with KDKA Radio’s Lynne Hayes-Freeland, who went to high school with her father. Hayes-Freeland connected her last summer with KDKA news director Kathy Hostetter to see if there were any freelance spots open while she waited to see what would happen with the 2020 NFL season.
It didn’t work out then, but Hostetter reached out again a few weeks ago and asked if Ross still had interest in working with KDKA covering the Steelers’ training camp and preseason. She started her temporary gig Wednesday, talking to fans gathering at Heinz Field for the first full day the stadium was open to all since the pandemic started.
Although no one can question Ross’ ability to put on her “unbiased hat” when
it comes to NFL reporting, she was decked out in a gold top and black shorts for her inaugural KDKA performance.
“I felt like I was with my people,” she said. “There was a palpable feeling of excitement, like a family reunion. ... It’s fun seeing how passionate we are and can all come together despite our differences and cheer for the Steelers every Sunday.”
Some of her new KDKA colleagues praised her early contributions on Twitter Wednesday, including longtime anchors and reporters Ken Rice and Rich Walsh.
As a Pittsburgher who grew up watching those two, Ross is still stunned by that sort of thing. But on a professional level, she said it “makes you feel like you’re a part of the team.”
“Everyone has embraced me since day one, and I can see why KDKA for decades has been a perennial winner in the local market,” she said. “Even though my tenure with them is pretty temporary, it’s cool to assist however I can, and I’m just enjoying the ride.”