September 12, 2013
Special to the NNPA from the Atlanta Daily World
Atlanta’s own multimedia personality Rashan Ali will begin her stint as a sideline reporter for CBS Sports this fall.
As the 2013 college football season gets into full swing, the network has tapped Ali, best known to Atlantans for her presence on the city’s morning radio airwaves, to provide sports commentary from the sidelines of college football games that will air this fall nationally on the CBS Sports Network. Games featured will include long-time, exciting rivalries like Fordham University vs. LeHigh University and Southern Miss vs. Marshall.
Ali worked as a Sports Reporter while at HOT 107.9 in Atlanta and was invited to become a sideline reporter for the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, which she did for four years. In 2009, Ali became one of few African American women providing sports commentary on a national scale as a reporter for the Chic-Fil-A Bowl Preview Show, which aired on ESPN 2 and ESPN U. She continued her work as the Social Media Correspondent during the 2010 & 2011 NBA Playoffs on NBA TV’s NBA Gametime Live, where she worked with analysts like Eric Snow and Chris Webber.
Most recently, Ali has been active on the HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) football Classic circuit, providing live reporting from the inaugural Nation’s Classic, which featured Howard University vs. Morehouse College in Washington, DC and the Atlanta Football Classic, which featured Southern University against her alma mater Florida A&M University. She was also a sideline reporter for Southern Conference Football during the 2011-2012 season.
“Covering college football on a major network is such an honor. I have always loved the essence of college football so to be on the sideline in this capacity is truly a dream come true,” said Ali. “There are some great teams being featured on the network that I’ve continued to follow over the years, so having the opportunity to work with their coaching staffs and players is monumental.”
In addition to her career as a sports commentator, Ali is also the host of the “Streetz Morning Grind” radio show on Streetz 94.5 FM in Atlanta, where she will continue to be featured weekdays from 6 am – 10 am. She will also continue her work with Sporty Girls, Inc., an Atlanta-based non-profit organization she founded that exposes girls ages 8 – 18 to nontraditional sports like golf, soccer, tennis and swimming to help them improve social skills and academic performance while increasing their chances for collegiate scholarships.