Skip Wood has over 30 years of experience in journalism, primarily covering sports. He has worked as a reporter for several prominent publications including USA TODAY, WJLA.com, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Wood broke numerous impactful stories over his career involving college athletics scandals, NFL investigations, and major events. He brings expertise in a wide range of subjects from politics to pop culture and an extensive list of professional contacts and sources.

1. Skip Wood1
5213 York Rd., Alexandria, VA 22310
703.863.8941
skipw84@gmail.com
Professional Experience
Reporter, WJLA.com, Arlington, VA June 2011–February 2015
• Covered politics in Virginia, Maryland and D.C., including extensive coverage of the 2013 VA
gubernatorial race. I was the first reporter to ask – and get a direct answer – from candidate
Terry McAuliffe about whether he believed he did anything illegal in his involvement with the
GreenTech venture.
• Wrote analysis pieces and an early morning news digest (nearly 20,000 subscribers) that was
the brainchild of former WJLA owner Robert Allbritton, and a daily pop-culture roundup that
consistently was one of the primary drivers of traffic to the website.
Freelance Writer/Reporter November 2010–June 2011
• Published contributor to POLITICO and FOXSports.com.
Sportswriter/General Reporter, USA TODAY, McLean, VA July 1998–October 2010
• Covered and broke national award-winning stories about the NFL.
• Contributed to a wide variety of other beats, including sports-related issues on Capitol Hill.
• Approached sports coverage with a hard-nosed, investigative perspective that attempted to blur
the lines between the relative frivolity of sports entertainment and larger issues in society –
writing cover stories on everything from the Virginia Tech shootings, the Saints’ return to
Katrina-ravaged New Orleans, the shooting death of former Washington Redskins safety Sean
Taylor, the 9-11 terrorist attacks and the death of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt that prompted
upgraded safety measures.
• Helped political desk write state-by-state blurbs about various election results.
• Developed extensive list of sources and contacts in a wide variety of fields.
• Covered 12 Super Bowls, as well as the NBA finals, men’s and women’s NCAA Final Fours,
Daytona 500s, the 1999 college football national championship game and the Olympics.
Sportswriter, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Richmond, VA February 1989–July 1998
• Covered college sports, NASCAR and the NFL. In first year on job, exposed a college football
combine scam, a story that earned a national award in the Associated Press Sports Editors
Association news category. I was part of a team that exposed NCAA violations in the University
of Virginia athletics department, and a pattern of misbehavior by Virginia Tech football players
that ultimately resulted in an official code of conduct policy at the school. Won numerous
Virginia Press Association awards for reporting and writing.
Sportswriter, Daily News-Record, Harrisonburg, VA November 1984–February 1989
• Covered college sports, and contributed to everything from writing headlines to paste-up. Broke
the story of basketball coach Left Driesell’s hiring at James Madison University; also took
volleyball scores called in to the office. You name it, I did it. Won numerous VPA rewards for
reporting and writing.
Education
Virginia Tech, BA in Communications Studies, 1984
References
David Kihara, Senior Web Editor, POLITICO (702-372-6749)
Bill Millsaps, retired Executive Editor, Richmond (VA) Times-Dispatch (804-288-0996)
Scott Blanchard, Sunday Editor, York (PA) Daily Record (717-771-2099)