He’s a home-town guy covering his own home-town teams. Yikes. Sounds challenging – but no worries, Matt is a half-glass-full kinda guy. We caught up with him for our latest Spotlight interview.
Q: Tell us how exciting it is to work in your own hometown!
A: It’s absolutely incredible and I realize how fortunate I am every day. When you go to school a lot of people tell you you’re going to have to move away to get your first job, so to be able to get started in your hometown makes things a lot easier and less stressful. It’s amazing what is happening in the city and I think we’re all lucky to be apart of it. You know what they say, there’s no place like home.
Q:Â The switch from news to sports, was it a tough choice?
A: It was and it wasn’t if that makes any sense. I always thought I was going to end up doing sports, so the opportunity to make the transition was something I couldn’t pass up. That being said, I started to really enjoy covering news, so it was a little risky. There are without question days that I miss news, but at the end of the day 12-year-old Matt BovĂ© would be so jealous that 24-year-old Matt BovĂ© gets paid to talk and write about hockey.
Q: What are your thoughts on the Bills right now? It must be challenging covering a team that you’ve been watching (and likely frustrated with) for years!
A:Â It’s tough because I know how bad these fans want a good team. It’s pretty crazy to think that I was seven-years-old the last time the Bills made the playoffs. It seems like every year they do the exact same thing, they give you hope and then come up short right at the end. I like to consider myself a pretty glass half full kind of guy, but until the Bills get a franchise quarter back I feel like they’re stuck in limbo. Maybe this new coach can turn things around, but I don’t have very big expectations for next season.
Q: Do you miss the morning show? Those hours… yuck!
A: I miss the people, but I don’t miss the hours at all. There’s something special about the bond that you make with your coworkers at 3:00 a.m. — but there’s also something special about the bond with your bed at 3:00 a.m. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I was going to end up becoming a morning show news reporter, but it’s funny how things work out. Some of the people who work the morning show are still my best friends at the station, so I miss seeing them all the time. We still catch up on the weekend every now and then, but I’ll always miss our road trips to the south towns to cover snow storms at 4:00 a.m.
Q: I hear you’re a big hockey guy? Are you good?
A:Â Nope, but that’s why I play with guys who are older than me! A bunch of us play together on Saturday and Sunday morning (Aaron Mentkowski, Pete Gallivan, Dave Jickster, Jim Fink, etc.) and we always have a great time.
Q: You’re fairly new – but do you have any good bloopers yet??
A: I’ve got a few, but I’ll always remember the time when I forgot where I was. When the segment was over I had to say “Reporting live from [Grand Island], Matt BovĂ©, 7 Eyewitness News” so I asked my photographer on-air “hey Jeff, where in the world are we right now?”. It was a morning when we were going from place to place, so I completely forgot where we ended up. Looking back, that wasn’t the worst thing in the world and it was pretty funny, but I’m sure I’ll have some more as my career goes on.
Q: You’ve seen first hand the resurgence of the Queen City – what are your thoughts on how far we’ve come?
A:Â When I graduated college I had a lot of friends move out of town so they could get a job. Some of those friends have already come home because there’s exciting things and opportunity right in our backyard. I don’t think that was the case ten years ago and it looks like the resurgence is just beginning. It seems like every week a new restaurant or building pops up and that’s exciting. As someone who covers the Sabres I spend a lot of time at the arena, and I think it’s the coolest thing when you see everything that’s happened right there. When I was a kid HARBORCENTER was a parking lot and Canalside was abandoned — I’ve never been more proud to say that I’m from here, and that puts a smile on my face.
Q:Â Is Jack Eichel the Sabres savior?
A:Â I don’t think he’s the lone savior, but he’s so incredibly good at hockey and at 20-years-old is already the Sabres most talented player. If the Sabres are going to become a serious contender they’re going to need a lot more than Jack Eichel, but he’s definitely a guy they can build around moving forward. It has been an up and down year, but regardless of what happens I think the Sabres future is bright.
Q:Â What makes you totally Buffalo?
A:Â That’s a tough one, but wings go hand and hand with Buffalo and they’re my favorite food, so yeah, I guess that makes me Totally Buffalo (Hot, extra crispy with extra carrots on the side)
Thanks, Matt.
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