During an afternoon appearance on the ACC Network earlier this month, Richmond Times-Dispatch sports columnist David Teel humbly told Mark Packer he wasn’t sure he deserved the Marvin “Skeeter” Francis Award, given for coverage of and contributions to the conference.
A long line of the league’s most influential figures respectfully disagree.
“I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this award,” former ACC commissioner John Swofford said. “David is as good as it gets in his profession of sports journalism. He has covered the ACC and college sports for decades with thoroughness, integrity, fairness, insightfulness, professionalism and extraordinary capability. Nobody works harder at understanding the issues than David, which subsequently shows in his reporting. He is highly respected because he has earned that respect. On top of it all, David Teel is simply one quality guy.”
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Teel and former Duke player-turned-broadcaster Mike Gminski were named co-winners of this year’s award, given annually since 1990.
“What an incredible honor for two of the media icons that helped establish the ACC as the preeminent basketball conference,” former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “David and Mike are consummate professionals who earned the trust and respect of countless coaches and players throughout the history of our league. There are few journalists and broadcasters that have covered the ACC more thoroughly and with as much passion and humility. I’m proud to call them each colleagues and friends.”
Teel, in his third year with the Times-Dispatch, graduated James Madison in 1981 and worked at a trio of papers in the ACC footprint before joining the Newport News Daily Press in 1984.
This year marked the 40th consecutive ACC tournament that he has covered, and he is at the Men's and Women's Final Fours for The Times-Dispatch this weekend.
“David Teel is a hall of fame reporter who is an even better person,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said. “His character and fairness are always on display and he’s an incredible ambassador for his profession. David is extremely well respected and the consummate professional. More importantly, he’s a loving husband and father to Jill and Laura.”
Teel, a 14-time NSMA Virginia sportswriter of the year honoree and a member of the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, has chronicled the Commonwealth's biggest sports moments, from the career of UVa basketball star Ralph Sampson, through Michael Vick leading the Hokies to the brink of a football national championship, to Tony Bennett’s team cutting down the nets in Minneapolis after winning the 2019 national title.
“Most people that meet DT would mention 'admired, respected, well-liked, inquisitive, hard-working, knowledgeable, and most of all, friend' as qualities for which he's known,” former Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage said. “Nationally he's among the sports journalists fans, particularly ACC fans, rely upon for accurate reporting. The ACC has benefitted from Dave's insights into the issues of the day as he's reliably helped educate ACC followers across all sports.”
Respected by those he covers, trusted by his readers and popular among his colleagues, Teel has been, and remains, the gold standard of sports writing in the Commonwealth and beyond.
“David Teel has been a force in Virginia sports writing since his days as a student at James University in the late 1970s and it wasn't long afterwards that he became an ACC fixture,” said former Roanoke Times sportswriter Doug Doughty, last year’s recipient of the award. “His eagerness to work with school and ACC officials has been important in maintaining good relations with the media.”
