MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – For more than seven decades, WSFA 12 Sports has been a staple in the River Region community.
Seasons change, and stories come and go, but it’s the sports directors who have left a lasting mark in the memories of our viewers.
Leroy Paul
It all began with WSFA’s first sports director, Leroy Paul, who launched one of the station’s most popular shows; The Auburn Football Review.
The University of Alabama graduate came to the capital city in 1954 at just 24 years old where he worked for WSFA radio. WSFA-TV signed on the air Christmas day of that year.
A business minor in college, Paul left WSFA in 1961 for a career in business, but his television experience still came in handy. He eventually became the president of AFLAC broadcasting in Columbus, Georgia, overseeing multiple television stations.
Earl Hutto
Hutto earned the nickname “Captain Supreme” as a young sports director in the 1950s in Pensacola.
A graduate of Troy University, Hutto worked in radio in Dothan before serving as the first sports director at WEAR-TV in Pensacola.
Between 1961 and 1963, Hutto served as WSFA’s second sports director.
Like Leroy Paul who came before him, Hutto hosted the Auburn Football Review during his time. In 1963 however, Hutto left WSFA in a dispute over compensation for the show and was succeeded by Carl Stephens.
Carl Stephens
Carl Stephens, or “Cartoon Carl” as he was known to our younger audience, started announcing baseball games (for the Class B Gadsden Pilots) when he was only 12.
Stephens graduated from the University of Alabama in June, 1957, and began working at WSFA the very next day.
For the next 42 years, Stephens served a variety of roles at the station. Hired as a booth announcer during the station’s third year on the air.
After Earl Hutto’s departure, Stephen stepped into the role of Sports Director, where he would stay for the next 13 years.
Phil Snow
Phil Snow served as WSFA’s Sports Director from 1975 to 2002.
A Southern Miss graduate, Snow landed his first job at WKRG in Mobile in 1960. Just four years later, he was on his way to WSFA.
During Carl Stephens’ time as sports director, Snow extensively covered Bear Bryant and developed a strong relationship with Alabama’s football coaches.
Snow hosted the Auburn Football Review for 28 years, working with coaches Doug Barfield, PatDye, Terry Bowden, and Tommy Tuberville.
Jeff Shearer
Jeff Shearer joined the WSFA sports department in 1991. Just one year later, Friday Night Football Fever was born.
He said it started off small. But each year, the Fever Team got bigger, and the show got better.
Jeff showed up 24 straight years after he started the Fever, people still see him around town and say, “I’ve got the Feva.”
Shearer resigned from WSFA in 2015 to take a job at the Athletics Department at Auburn University.
Stephen Gunter
Stephen Gunter joined the WSFA 12 News family in September, 2013, following a three-year stint at our Jackson, Mississippi, sister station, WLBT, as well as three years as a sports anchor in Panama City, Florida, where he met his future wife, Morgan.
Gunter covered numerous Iron Bowls, SEC championships, and national championships.
Gunter departed WSFA in 2021 to devote more time to his family after welcoming a son early that year.
At WSFA, sports have always been more than just highlights; They’re part of the station’s identity. That commitment is what has kept channel 12 on top in Montgomery for decades.
Through the years, WSFA saw several sports reporters move on to bigger markets. A number of talented sports journalists that came through this station now work on popular networks across the country.
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