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Joey Knight - Bucs Reporter
Joey Knight

Bucs Reporter

I'm a fourth-generation Floridian born at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, which makes me somewhat of a demographic outlier. My family arrived in Zephyrhills before McDonald's, and I've resided there most of my life. When I was a grade-schooler, my passions were sports and creative writing, in that order. Today I'm an old-schooler (don't be dissing on '80s hard rock), and that order has been flipped. I love telling stories, be they about first basemen or first responders. These days, I cover the Bucs, but I'll dabble in other stuff (Colleges, Rays, Gasparilla Distance Classic, etc.).

  1. Body of former USF safety Jon Lejiste found on Florida’s east coast
    June 2• USF Bulls
    Former USF safety Jon Lejiste participated in the Bucs' rookie minicamp in 2013, months after his Bulls career ended. His body was found late last week in the Intracoastal Waterway on Florida's east coast.
  2. Can Michael Penix Jr. end Tampa Bay area’s Heisman Trophy drought?
    June 1• Sports
    Fans celebrate with Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., center, after his team's 39-28 win against then-No. 11 Michigan State last September.
  3. Can Bucs rookie Rakim Jarrett create separation in the receiver room?
    May 29• Bucs
    Bucs rookie wide receiver Rakim Jarrett participates in organized team activities last Tuesday at AdventHealth Training Center in Tampa.
  5. USF baseball’s unlikely AAC tournament run ends with pair of losses
    May 27• USF Bulls
    USF sophomore Jackson Mayo (4) celebrates with teammates after hitting a solo home run Saturday against East Carolina in the American Athletic Conference tournament.
  6. How the Jesuit baseball seniors tried to take the ultimate twin bill
    May 25• HomeTeam
    Jesuit senior reliever Derek Westfall (center, leaning over rail) cheers on teammates before entering in relief against Plantation American Heritage in the Class 5A final Wednesday in Fort Myers. Westfall and his fellow seniors were attempting to win a state crown, then attend graduation ceremonies, on the same dizzying day.
  7. Miscues foil reigning state champ Jesuit High in Class 5A title game
    May 24• HomeTeam
    Jesuit starting pitcher Wes Mendes gets a hug from coach Miguel Menendez moments after the Tigers fell 8-5 to Plantation American Heritage in the Class 5A state final Wednesday afternoon in Fort Myers.
  8. Struggling USF stuns top-seeded East Carolina in AAC tournament opener
    May 24• USF Bulls
    USF junior Drew Brutcher drove in the game-winning run in the Bulls' 11-inning, 12-11 triumph Tuesday against East Carolina.
  9. Sunlake High hires veteran Jay Fulmer as head football coach
    May 22• HomeTeam
    Former Gulf and Ridgewood head football coach Jay Fulmer has been hired to fill the vacancy at Sunlake, a program that has come under national scrutiny following a violent altercation between two coaches at a recent practice.
  10. Jesuit catcher Josh Hines eyes state title, surgery within a week
    May 19• HomeTeam
    Despite a surgically mended right knee (and a left knee that will require surgery), Jesuit senior Josh Hines is batting nearly .300 this season.
  11. Who are Tampa Bay’s most durable athletes? Can the Rays clone them?
    May 18• Rays
    These days, the Rays could use a starting pitcher with the durability of James Shields, who worked at least 200 innings for six consecutive years (2007-2012).
  12. Pro women’s soccer league could be headed to Tampa in 2024
    May 16• Rowdies
    Can women's professional soccer flourish in Tampa? A group of local businessmen is banking on it.
  13. These days, your kid’s prep football coach may not even work at the school
    May 16• HomeTeam
    Hillsborough High head football coach Earl Garcia is wrapping up his 50th spring practice as a bay area prep coach.
  14. Here’s how a 3-point basket led Bucs tight end Payne Durham to the NFL
    May 12• Bucs
    Bucs rookie tight end Payne Durham talks with reporters on the first day of the team's two-day rookie minicamp Friday at AdventHealth Training Center.
  15. Sunlake moving on from head football coach after practice altercation
    May 11• HomeTeam
    Sunlake High will be seeking its third head football coach since the start of the 2022 season. The school has parted ways with B.J. Hall following a physical altercation between two of Hall's assistants at a recent practice.
  16. After losing a finger, Tampa Spartans’ Dalton Ross found a career
    May 11• USF Bulls
    Despite losing most of his right index finger in a workplace accident more than six years ago, University of Tampa senior Dalton Ross has evolved into an all-conference pitcher for the Spartans.
  17. First, Chloe Grimes stole Brett Phillips’ heart. Now, she steals bases.
    May 10• Rays
    Chloe Grimes, 9, runs toward first base during a game against Madeira Beach at Fossil Park on April 28. A cancer survivor whose stirring connection with former Rays outfielder Brett Phillips drew national acclaim, Chloe is now healthy enough to play several games on a given weekend.
  18. Bucs sign former Rams, Wake Forest quarterback John Wolford
    May 9• Bucs
    Former Rams backup quarterback John Wolford (13), seen in action in a game against the Seahawks last December, has signed as a free agent with the Bucs.
  19. Tampa Spartans hire Linc Darner as new men’s basketball coach
    May 8• USF Bulls
    Linc Darner, who led the Florida Southern men's basketball program to a Division II national title in 2015, was formally announced as the University of Tampa's new coach Monday.
  20. Randy Land rocks as Arozarena, Rays keep rolling at Tropicana Field
    May 6• Rays
    Kelly Webb (wearing sombrero), a teacher at Palm Harbor University High, cheers from Randy Land, a first-level section dedicated to leftfielder Randy Arozarena, during the Rays' 5-4 win Friday night against the Yankees.
  21. Police investigating altercation between coaches at Sunlake High
    May 4• HomeTeam
    The Pasco County Sheriff's Office continues to investigate a physical altercation between two assistant football coaches Monday at Sunlake High School. [Times files (2014)]
  22. NFL draft in Tampa? Area likely will land another Super Bowl first
    May 3• Bucs
    Bucs fans in throwback creamsicle jerseys cheer during the second round of the NFL draft last Friday in Kansas City.
  23. Goal for Dick Vitale Gala? Raise more than $11 million to fight cancer
    May 2• Gators
    Dick Vitale stands with a group of pediatric cancer survivors at his annual fundraising gala in May 2019. In 17 years, the gala has raised approximately $55 million for pediatric-cancer research.
  24. USF tailback Michel Dukes arrested on domestic battery charge
    April 30• USF Bulls
    USF running back Michel Dukes (2) carries the ball in an early-September game against Howard last season. Dukes, 22, has been indefinitely suspended from the team following his arrest over the weekend on a domestic battery charge.