Release from KSHSAA
TOPEKA — The KSHSAA is pleased to announce the selection of Billy Watson, Devin Hanney and Tyler Smith as the 2023 Oscar Stauffer Award recipients.
The KSHSAA Oscar Stauffer Sportswriter of the Year award winner is Billy Watson formerly of the Hutchinson News.
Originally from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada, Billy Watson grew up in La Feria, Texas, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Texas Tech University in December of 2020. He discovered his love for high school sports in college while freelancing for HubCityPreps.com, an online high school sports coverage website. Watson also covered Texas Tech football, basketball and baseball working for Rivals site RedRaiderSports.com, ran social media for Texas Tech Intramural sports, and was featured on ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo Sports, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated in addition to Rivals. Prior to moving to Kansas, he was a day-time managing editor at two small weekly newspapers in his hometown while also calling high school sports for Rio Sports Live in the late afternoons, a growing live-streaming company in South Texas.
In March 2021, Watson started working at The Hutchinson News where he covered nine schools in Reno County: Hutchinson, Buhler, Haven, Nickerson, Hutchinson-Central Christian, Hutchinson-Trinity Catholic, Pretty Prairie, Reno County Homeschool, Langdon-Fairfield, as well as surrounding schools outside of the county such as Hesston, McPherson, Inman, Sterling, and Cheney. In just one school year with the paper, Watson was able to report on many state championships and state title-winning individuals such as Buhler’s Sam Elliott, and community stories that mattered, including the stories of Hadley Nelson and Ava Jones. He was able to cover Hutchinson volleyball’s state tournament runs, Buhler football’s 2021 postseason journey to the sub-state final, Buhler/McPherson boys basketball in state quarterfinals, Pretty Prairie’s first-ever girls basketball state title, Hesston boys basketball’s back-to-back state titles, Buhler girls soccer’s cinderella-like run to the 2022 state championship, Haven softball’s 2021 dominance to a third-place finish and more. Watson also covered the NJCAA men’s national basketball tournament and the national championship-winning Hutchinson Blue Dragons football team for The Hutchinson News. In August of 2022, he joined the Hutchinson Community College athletics department where he currently serves as the coordinator of events. Watson has been a KSHSAA registered basketball official in Kansas for two years.
The KSHSAA Oscar Stauffer Sportscasters of the Year award winners are Devin Hanney and Tyler Smith from KINA 910 Radio in Salina.
This is the second time Hanney has received the award, previously winning in 2019. Hanney graduated from Chapman High School and has worked in sports broadcasting since 1994 when he began at Cloud County Community College student radio station KVCO, calling basketball games. He also began broadcasting high school sports during this time period, calling volleyball, basketball and wrestling for Concordia High School.
After earning his degree at Cloud County, Hanney went on to work in the Abilene area for EBC, Inc. broadcasting area high school sports from 1997 through 2009. During this time period, Hanney called Abilene High School games and hosted weekly coaching shows featuring Dickinson County coaches on KABI 1560, announced the game of the week on KSAJ 98.5, and broadcast a daily sports update on both radio stations.
Hanney has been the “Voice of Southeast of Saline Sports” since 2009. He is also a marketing consultant and broadcasts games for the Salina Liberty Indoor Football team. Hanney has been the Sports Director for Eagle Communications in Salina since 2013.
Hanney’s broadcast partner, Tyler Smith, currently teaches Physical Education and coaches football and baseball at Salina South High School. In Smith’s 18 years of teaching and coaching, he has found a passion in helping provide student-athletes the best experience possible. In addition to his coaching duties, Smith also officiates, works youth camps, and works on various forms of media including Southeast of Saline Basketball games on 910 KINA and the Salina Post.
Smith is married to Southeast of Saline Lady Trojans Head Basketball Coach Shauna Smith and is the father of two daughters, 6-year-old Blakely and 4-year-old Everly.