Richard Cannon may not have been the star player on the basketball court, but he hopes to use his success in the classroom to become a broadcast journalist.
Cannon, a 2020 Coahoma County High School graduate with a 3.7 GPA, earned his associate’s degree from Coahoma Community College in general studies in one year. He is the 2021 salutatorian at CCC with a 3.89 GPA and missed being valedictorian by a half a point. He will be a broadcast journalism major when he continues his education at Alcorn State University in the fall.
Cannon began taking courses for his associate’s degree as a junior at CCHS with biology and psychology dual enrollment courses. He took western civilization I and II dual enrollment courses during his senior year of high school and took summer school after graduation.
Cannon, the son of Arthur Cole and Carol Brooks, learned virtually and online since last year due to the COVID pandemic.
“For me, it was kind of easier because I told my mom, when COVID first started, I thought it was going to be over quickly,” he said. “I said, ‘Mom, if I do good in summer school online, could you let me do all of my classes online?’ She said, ‘OK’ and next thing you know everything has been online anyway.”
Cannon said the teachers were very helpful.
Helping Coahoma County High School basketball coach Derrick Moore inspired Cannon to go into broadcast journalism.
“Actually, it started in high school with Coach Moore when I started doing the stats and the book for him,” Cannon said. “Then I watch a lot of NBA and NFL and the commentator. But, once I got hurt, it made me realize, even though I might not be able to play the game anymore, I would still love to be around it. With broadcasting journalism, hopefully, I can take it in the sports direction. It will give me an opportunity to still be around the game even if I can’t play anymore.”
Cannon said he also enjoyed keeping statistics for the basketball team because the “cool kids” played and he wanted to be around them. He continued to keep statistics for CCHS as a freshman at CCC. He has a system where he has categories for each statistic. When a player collects a rebound, his or her number goes under the rebound category each time. The same goes true for points and steals. Then Cannon adds up all the numbers after the game.
“When I was doing stats, I had an actual stat sheet, but I left it at school,” Cannon said. “So I had an old stat sheet of paper. I turned the paper on the blank side and I just started doing it and I found it was actually much easier to do it that way. So I’ve been doing it ever since.”
Cannon never played basketball in high school. However, at one time, he was on the football team, played all five positions on the offensive line and on the defensive line for a little bit as a sophomore until he got injured.
Basketball will still be his focus in broadcast journalism.
Moore has won four state championships as a high school basketball coach, but was not the star of the team as a player.
Cannon, a power forward and center at Lyon Elementary School, sees the similarity between his path to broadcast journalism and Moore’s path to being a basketball coach.
“It’s very similar,” Cannon said. “Even though I didn’t play basketball in high school, I played in elementary. I love the game, I studied the game under him. His story and my story will be very similar. It’s just I won’t actually be coaching probably. I’ll just be behind the camera, but it will be very similar.”
Cannon said his family has a very strong athletic and academic background. His cousin, Dell Cannon, also a CCHS graduate, is a basketball coach at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff. His cousin, Danielle, has a doctorial degree and is teaching at Texas Tech University. His mom is an administrative assistant at CCC. His aunt, Mildred Moore, is a retired business manager in the Coahoma County School District.
“They started on me early,” Cannon said. “My mom stayed on me strong, especially academically. She showed me if I do good in the classroom, then I could go play athletics or do whatever I wanted to do.”
After graduating from college, Cannon hopes to work for ESPN, Fox Sports or NBC Sports.
He said, to be an effective journalist, it is important to study the game of basketball, not just watch.
Starting higher education at CCC was crucial for Cannon.
“A lot of people said, ‘Why Coahoma?’” Cannon said. I said, ‘Why not Coahoma?’ because I’m from Clarksdale and it’s at home. It’s very affordable. It was just much easier. I feel like you can get college experience at home why not do it? And then to be able to do it in the timely manner I did, I say I made a very great decision.”
Cannon hopes to give the Delta publicity as a broadcast journalist.
“I feel like we’re living in a double standard in Clarksdale especially,” Cannon said. “In America, a lot of people overlook Mississippi, not just athletes, but all over. Then in Mississippi, a lot of people look over the Delta.”
One story Cannon thinks the sports media could tell more about is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in football.
“I don’t feel like people give them enough credit for what they’ve done this year,” Cannon said. “I feel like there’s more to it than people express to it. I feel like people are still writing them off. I feel like there’s some more details left behind.”
A basketball story Cannon mentioned was The Last Dance dealing with the Chicago Bulls of the 1990s.
“I feel like there was a lot exposed, but there’s still more things to uncover,” Cannon said.
Cannon currently works for Murphy USA gas station by Walmart 20 to 30 hours per week. He was a dual enrollment student in high school and helped out with CCHS basketball as a CCC student, but still managed to accomplish all of his goals.
“You’re all about want to,” Cannon said. “I heard a saying you do it because you want to, not because you have to. And I wanted to do it. I had to get me some money. I had to go to school and I enjoy being around Coahoma County. That’s my family, so I make time for everything and I get it done.”
Cannon said learning virtually helped him manage his time with keeping CCHS’s stats and going to work.
