Drew Magary

"I think that good writing and reporting are really welcome to people."
You could rightly categorize Drew Magary ’94’s writing career as extremely successful. The acclaimed author, columnist and co-founder of Defector, a media startup, writes columns beloved by sports fans across the country, including his “Why Your Team Sucks” NFL preview and weekly “Funbag” Q&A. His writing is irreverent yet relatable, 100 percent authentic and unapologetic.
But behind the highlights of Magary’s résumé is a compelling story of innovation, against long odds, in today’s digital media landscape. It began at the Academy in 1993. “When I was a student at Exeter, I became a smart person,” Magary says, self-effacingly. “I wouldn’t be a smart person without Exeter. It’s also where I discovered that I wanted to become a writer.”
In fact, Magary’s first column, Couch’s Corner, appeared in The Exonian. Emulating the sardonic style of his favorite sportswriters and comedians, he wrote caustic takedowns of campus life that once earned reproach from Kendra Stearns O’Donnell, the principal at the time, during a morning assembly.
In class with English Instructor Harvard Knowles, Magary found his career inspiration. The “stand out moment” happened while reading Joseph Heller’s satirical Catch-22. “I thought, ‘Hey, wait, I’m laughing.’ Thanks to Knowles’ class, I learned assigned reading could be fun,” Magary says. “Then I thought, OK, well, there’s something I’d like to do.”