Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media Alum to Serve as Keynote Speaker at the 2024 ASAT Conference

We are thrilled to announce that Baylor Journalism, Public Relations & New Media alumnus Drake Toll, a prominent figure in sports media, will deliver the keynote address at the 2024 American Studies Association of Texas conference.

Toll has spent six years in sports media and is an award-winning podcaster, play-by-play broadcaster, studio host, and writer. He graduated from Baylor University with a degree in journalism, where he hosted the highly successful “Locked On Baylor” podcast on the Locked On Podcasts Network. In the summer of 2022, he shouldered play-by-play duties for the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod Baseball League and managed one of the most successful high school football broadcasts in Texas for the China Spring Cougars. 

Toll covered the Baylor beat for Sports Illustrated via “Inside the Bears” and was awarded the Arkansas Broadcaster of the Year in 2019. His excellence was further recognized in 2022 when the Verne Lundquist Scholar Award was presented to him by the Headliners Foundation to an exceptional sports broadcast student.

Today, Toll is a Broadcast Entertainer with the Savanah Bananas, a collegiate summer league baseball team in Savannah, Georgia. The Bananas are renowned for their out-of-the-box antics and non-stop entertainment, striving to create the best Fan Experience in the world. To get a taste of their unique style, check out  Banana Ball here: https://youtu.be/Y-pMH348z3k?si=FjkSSblToBaX-BvFSubmissions.  

Toll's presentation is a perfect fit for ASAT's conference's theme, "Harmony & Discord," a thought-provoking continuation of last year's exploration of Death and Rebirth. His insights and experiences in the world of sports media will provide a unique perspective on this theme, sparking engaging discussions and new ideas. 

ASAT is committed to exploring the rich territory of contrasting ideas. It welcomes the submission of academic and creative proposals for panels, papers, and visual presentations that reflect a contemplative inquiry of the conference theme from an interdisciplinary perspective. 

The organization values the contributions of professionals in their field and graduate and undergraduate students, who are encouraged to submit proposals endorsed by a faculty mentor. 

The organizers are inviting potential presenters to submit abstracts exploring the intricate relationship between harmony and discord. However, they are also open to presentations that address topics related to American culture, particularly those centered on Texas, the South, or the Southwest. Below is a list of suggested areas of study that prospective presenters may want to consider:

• African American/Black Studies 
• Health & Wellness 
• Agricultural & Rural Studies 
• Hispanic Studies 
• Art (visual/performing) and Music 
• Historical and/or Political Perspectives 
• Asian American Studies 
• Journalism 
• Communication Studies 
• Language & Literature 
• Creative Writing
• Native American Studies
• Environmental Studies 
• Philosophy 
• Fashion Design 
• Popular Culture 
• Film/Theatre Studies 
• Sociology 
• Folk Lore Studies 
• Technology 

Submissions open May 20, 2024, and close September 30, 2024.

Email submissions to john.schulze@msutexas.edu and place ASAT 2024 as the Subject.