Stephen has covered local sports in the tri-state area for more than 20 years, starting at the News-Free Press as a 19-year-old reporter. He has been with the Times Free Press since its inception and has been an assistant sports editor since 2005. Stephen is among the most decorated writers in the TFP’s newsroom, winning numerous state, regional and national writing awards. He was named one of the top 10 sports writers in the nation at the Associated Press Sports Editors’ conference in Kissimmee Fla. in 2012, and won second-place at the 2012 Society of Professional Journalists awards, where his work was recognized for its high standards of ethical journalism. He also has an Associated Press national award for his season-long story following the Taft Youth Center football team.
Stephen was named Tennessee's Sports Writer of the Year for 2011 as well as being named the state’s Prep Writer of the Year. Stephen has been named the state’s top prep writer 15 times and has won 14 other state awards ranging from Best Investigative Writer to Best Feature Writer. He has also won the prestigious Lawrenceburg Quarterback Club’s Sports Writer of the Year and the TSSAA’s Sportsmanship Award for Contributor of the Year in the state.
Stephen has two children, Riley and Lauren, and lives in South Pittsburg.
Contact Stephen at 423-757-6293 or shargis@timesfreepress.com.
Recent Stories »
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Just as important as Reid Clements' strong pitching and timely hitting by the bottom of the lineup, short-term memory loss by Silverdale Baptist Academy's entire baseball team helped the Seahawks reach a state championship game for the first time in any sport for the school.
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — For a brief moment the ball popped out of Chance Brown's glove and hung in the air.
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — While they didn't look overwhelmed by the state tournament, Meigs County's young softball Lady Tigers certainly went through some growing pains here in their two games.
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — After having Tuesday off, Baylor's softball team joins the Spring Fling action today in the Division II bracket.
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Reid Clements swore he didn't feel comfortable on the mound until the fifth inning.
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — About the same time as their classmates were being handed their diplomas Tuesday night, Whitwell's three senior softball players were celebrating for a different reason.
The area's first state champion of the 2013 Spring Fling couldn't have come in more dramatic fashion. It certainly couldn't have been any closer as Baylor's Selena Popp claimed the Division II pentathlon title by a single point at Middle Tennessee State University on Monday.
Baylor’s Selena Popp is the area’s first Spring Fling state champion this week, holding on for a dramatic one-point win today in the Division II pentathlon at Middle Tennessee State University.
From her living room, hundreds of miles away from her old Soddy-Daisy home, Amy Robertson Whitaker can still close her eyes and visualize the scene.
