Jordan Strack, who became a fixture on the Toledo sports coverage scene over the last 14 years, has left WTOL-TV, Channel 11, in what he called during a Friday interview with The Blade as a “mutual decision” with the station.
WTOL general manager Brian Lorenzen didn’t immediately return an interview request in regard to Strack’s departure.
“It was the hardest decision of my life,” Strack, 37, said. “I poured everything I had into WTOL for the last 14-plus years. I loved the place; they were so good to me. I had such an incredible experience and loved every second of it. … I’m not going to get in the mud; that’s not who I am. So, I’m going to leave it at that — it was just the right time.
“I told Brian Lorenzen I’d never say a bad word about them,” Strack said. “I’m blessed that I was able to do what I love in my hometown, covering sports that I love.”
Strack won two local Emmys and four Associated Press awards for best sports features and treasured such experiences as covering the Detroit Tigers in the 2006 and 2012 World Series, the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 World Series, and Michigan in the Fiesta Bowl 2022 national semi-final game.
“Part of the reason I got into this was Ernie Harwell,” he said of the late Tigers Hall of Fame announcer, “and I got to interview Ernie Harwell twice.”
Strack added covering the University of Toledo in two football bowl games in the Bahamas, as well as going to Europe with the Rockets’ men’s and women’s basketball teams, and Walleye hockey games as other highlights.
“I was only the fourth sports director in WTOL history,” said Strack, who grew up in South Toledo and graduated from Maumee High School. He started as the weekend sports anchor in 2008 after graduating from Bowling Green State University.
He succeeded Dan Cummins, who is now a noon anchor at the station.
“Dan — I love that guy and will forever love that guy,” Strack continued. “Dan taught me everything and I am forever indebted to him. He pushed to hire me.”
He also credited former WTOL anchors Chrys Peterson and Jerry Anderson.
“I get emotional when I think about those guys,” he said, pausing. “Dan Cummins, Chrys Peterson, and Jerry Anderson. I got to work side by side with all of them, and that’s the coolest thing in the world for me because I was such a huge fan of the work they did.”
Strack said he was excited to be able to spend more time with his daughter, Kennedy, 11.
“The schedule we work is brutal and I have missed so many dance recitals, cheer events, and plays,” he said. “I don’t want that to be the driving factor [in leaving the station], but it’s part of it.
“I would never rule out getting right back into TV somehow. But it was the right time and the perfect storm. I couldn’t say a bad word if I tried. It’s the station I grew up watching as a kid …I wouldn’t change anything that I’ve ever done for half a second. I was very fortunate and very lucky to do this for so long in my hometown.”
And as for his next step?
“I have no idea what the future holds just yet,” Strack said. “It was just time. I’m going to take some time and try to figure out the next step. I’ve had people reach out to me already — which I’m flattered by. That’s probably the greatest compliment in the world.
“But I promise it will be in northwest Ohio. I can’t leave here. I’ve had bigger markets call, and I have turned everything down because I love northwest Ohio and my whole family’s here.”
Contact Steve Kornacki at skornacki@theblade.com or on Twitter @SKORNACKI.
First Published February 24, 2023, 11:45 p.m.
