Nate Milton was born with the gift of gab and a love of sports, which has led to a long career in broadcasting and podcasting, including covering Newport News Public Schools sports.

Milton has been part of the NNPS-TV sports production team for decades, serving as on-air commentator for live football broadcasts from Todd Stadium, as well as covering other sports, like basketball and volleyball.

He joined the team as a Telecom student in the 1990's and laid the foundation for his career as a commentator for NNPS.

Appropriately, Milton sent an audio file of his answers to interview questions ranging from why he signed up for the Telecom program to what advice he has to offer those seeking a career in broadcasting.

"The biggest factor in my decision to sign up for the Telecom program was my love of sports," he said on the recording. "I realized at a relatively young age that my athleticism could only take me so far. It was not good enough to take me to college or certainly the pros, so I had to find a way to connect to sports, and that was through broadcasting."

"I used to listen to people like Jim Rome or Tony Kornheiser, Michael Wilbon, Stuart Scott, Dan Patrick, and just the way that they were able to explain a game or break down stories that were happening in the world of sports, just spoke to me," he said.

"Instead of being the player on the field or the person watching on the sideline, I could be the voice in the booth, and give that experience to the person watching or listening at home," the Menchville High graduate said.

Milton's first foray into sports broadcasting was actually about five years before he came to Telecom as a student. His parents surprised him and signed him up for a promotional activity at an MLB baseball game the family attended. It was calling an inning of the game in a radio booth set up near the press box. The game featured the Atlanta Braves vs the San Diego Padres.

"The Braves were and still are my favorite baseball team," said Milton.

There was a little monitor set up, and he was given a microphone and a page full of stats, and the person in charge said, "Here you go, kid. Enjoy your inning," Milton remembered.

"I was just a kid," he said, and was "nervous, but excited at the same time."

"And, I just went up there and, and basically was winging it and again was nervous and excited and had all these conflicting emotions going on at the time. But by the time it was over, I was just kind of like, yeah, that was fun. That was amazing. That's what I want to do. That's what I want to do."

A few years later, Milton was thrilled at the opportunity to call a football game with Telecom.

"This is where I'm supposed to be," he thought.

Milton described the camaraderie of being on the student crew for live productions as the thing he values most about his time at Telecom -- the feeling of being part of something and making something that people can see and enjoy.

"It just made you feel good," he said, "to be part of a team."

Asked what he liked least about the Telecom program, Milton replied, "that we didn't do more — and we did a lot!"

"I just wish that I could have done that seven days out of the week, and maybe only done math class a couple days out of the week," he joked.

On the student crew, Milton worked various positions, which is encouraged so students get a feel for what they prefer and gain experience in as many jobs as possible. He worked as camera operator and audio technician, but mostly he was a sideline reporter or the color commentator for football games.

"And that's something that I really enjoyed doing, because, again, it was kind of calling back to what got me into this thing in the first place: people talking about sports and explaining games and relating sports to life and how everything kind of fits together. So I would say, doing the broadcasting was probably my favorite job that I had on the crew."

Milton enjoyed participating in VICA, now called SkillsUSA, where students represent their industry and come together for a convention and competitions.

The team "had a blast doing that," Milton said, "seeing what we could do as a team" and "interacting with all of these other students that are involved in this, and not just broadcasting, but other industries."

Milton continued to be involved in broadcasting after graduating from high school, including working at the Armed Forces Network in Okinawa, Japan, where he hosted a show, co-hosted a couple other shows, and was producer/editor for much of the on-base programming. His shows had to do with high schools and high school sports, sports in general, and also a nighttime interview show with guests from the community.

When he came back to the States in 1999, Milton "immediately connected back with Mr. [Ray] Price and the rest of the good people at Telecom," he said.

He has been part of the sports production staff ever since, providing color commentary alongside Greg Bicouvaris, who provides the play-by-play.

"Greg Bicouvaris and I have had a great chemistry, a great partnership," said Milton. "You know, it's kind of like being part of a dance team when you're a part of a broadcast team ... Greg knows when I zig, he has to zag, and vice versa."

The best thing about announcing football games, Milton said, "is just that live TV. Man, there is nothing like live TV where anything can happen."

"You can have a technical issue. You can have something go crazy on the field," he mused. "We could come back from commercial break while finishing eating a Snickers bar, you know?"

"And you just gotta roll with it, man, because it's live. And so my favorite thing is just being in the moment," he said.

"It's just when that light goes on, when [we're given] the go sign. It's showtime. And that's a magical time. You know, it really is a magical time," he said.

"My least favorite thing about calling football games is easy: Todd Stadium's stairs!" Milton exclaimed. "The stairs at Todd Stadium are — ridiculous. And it feels like they're getting more and more steep every year, even though I know that that's factually impossible, but it just feels like the steps get taller and taller every year."

So while Milton stresses being prepared for a game, doing research beforehand, and taking care of your voice, really the most important thing is whatever stadium you're at, you have to mentally plan ahead for "when it's halftime, how far away is the restroom and how many steps is it going to take me to get there?"

Outside of Todd Stadium and its steps, Milton has done a lot of voice acting and podcast producing.

"And for a brief time, right before the pandemic, I was a frequent contributor and guest co-host on the Bob Matthews Show on 96.5 in Norfolk."

Milton is the founder of Nefarious Media Networks, his own podcast network, which streams live shows about sports, and is available on YouTube and many other platforms as well as social media.

He says attending Telecom helped him "immensely" in his broadcasting and podcasting. "It's the foundation," he said. "It's where everything else is built ... where I was first equipped with the tools and the skills that are necessary to be a professional broadcaster."

"What [Telecom Supervisor] Ray Price and my teachers over the years ... instilled in me, number one was that work ethic," said Milton.

"Because you don't get anything in life or in this industry without ... being willing to put the work in," he said. "You also have to have a thick skin because things aren't always going to break your way," he added.

"I've learned that you just have to be able to be flexible and adaptable," he stressed.

For those interested in broadcasting work, Milton said, "my biggest piece of advice would be, just to be ready to be ready."

Besides being prepared and always saying yes to opportunities and being ready to work, being yourself is another recommendation.

"You got to be you," he said.

You can learn lessons from others and draw inspiration from them, he said, "but if I try to speak in a voice that's not my own, the audience is going to know. The audience is going to see right through it and know that it's not authentic. So be ready, be authentic. And then just, just be available. You know, the old cliché in sports: 'the best ability is availability.'"

"Bring your passion, bring your skill, bring your will, and keep going," he encouraged.

"I owe a lot of my foundation to Telecom because I always had the desire, I always had the will to want to do this from a young age, but you need skill to go along with that. And that's what I got from being a part of Telecom, not only as a student, but also to this day as a member of the adult staff."