Bleary-eyed and filled with near-comical dread, I stepped out the doors of 744 Ostrom Avenue at 4 a.m. on Jan. 29 and threw my duffle bag and backpack into a cab.

We were midway through a stretch of working 16-of-21 nights — the most daunting I can remember — and I would be covering the Syracuse-Wake Forest men’s basketball game in Winston-Salem, N.C. at 9 p.m. that night.

I was exhausted.

On my way to the airport, the cab driver and I got talking about Syracuse basketball, and when he learned that I covered the team, he picked my brain on players and matchups.

He too would be working a long night with little sleep, and for those few minutes we connected. He reminded me why I love writing and reporting on sports: the job allows me to take in experiences first-hand that most others can’t. And it allows me to share those experiences.

Many of my peers were inspired by family members or childhood experiences. I don’t have a sob story to tell or a sole inspiration to praise. Instead, I have a memory bank full of prized moments, as well as the close friends who I was lucky enough to share them with.

From covering the final SU swimming and diving home meet, to the women’s lacrosse team’s furious Final Four comeback two springs ago. From standing up in shock at Tyler Ennis’ 35-foot stunner of the Steel City to having the chance to write a column off Jim Boeheim’s first-ever ejection.

Through the semesters, I also covered the field hockey and tennis teams, and assisted on bigger projects whenever I could.

This year, especially, was incredible. Reporting on a football season highlighted with a last-minute game-winning Texas Bowl touchdown, and a hoops season complete with more memories than I can recall today, I can say without a doubt that I wouldn’t take back a wink of sleep for any of it.

What a ride. What a f*cking ride.

At one point — somewhere around Ennis’ buzzer beater at Pitt — it seemed like it would never end. Traveling up and down the East Coast with beat partners David Wilson and Trevor Hass. Chasing stories. Getting to meet some of the finest professionals in the journalism industry.

The moment I turned to look at two of my fellow press members after Rasheed Suliamon’s buzzer-beater in the Dome is one I’ll never forget. Same goes for the seemingly endless 23.3-second span in which Syracuse missed six shots against North Carolina State in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament quarterfinals.

But after spending more time driving to and from Greensboro, N.C. that weekend than covering the tournament, I watched from my couch as Dayton shocked Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament.

Instead of going to Memphis, my next couple weeks’ schedule was wiped clean. Road trips were replaced by weekends with friends. Postgame interviews turned in to talks of graduation. Deadline writing became papers and projects.

The end was jarring, but my time spent writing at The Daily Orange is treasured. Even the bleary-eyed moments during which the next rest point wasn’t even on the horizon yet.

Thank you to everyone who helped me along the way — even that cab driver.

Sorry if I forgot to tip you.

Stephen Bailey is the sports editor at The Daily Orange, where his column will no longer appear. He can be reached at sebail01@syr.edu or on Twitter at @Stephen_Bailey1.

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Published on April 29, 2014 at 1:00 am