Derek Schultz: Getting to know rising Indy sportswriter James Boyd

It’s been a rapid rise for James Boyd.

At just 27 years old, Boyd has covered the two biggest pro sports teams in the city and now finds himself as the sole Indianapolis Colts’ writer on the roster of The Athletic, an online sports news organization owned by The New York Times.

IBJ talked to the Romeoville, Illinois, native about his career journey, earning the trust of Indy sports fans and being his authentic self.

Do you feel accepted by Indianapolis fans now as opposed to when you first came to town?

I think it’s always a challenge to come to a place you don’t know anything about and replace someone established. That was the case for me with J. Michael [at The Indianapolis Star] and Stephen Holder [at The Athletic], so I felt like I had to show everyone what I was about.

Originally, I was sending out trash talk tweets for fun to IU basketball fans. People didn’t know me or that I was joking around, so it got very contentious. I’ve been more mindful of not aggravating the audience I’m trying to attract. I’ll talk my trash here and there, but people realize now that I’m kidding. I’m not “the new guy” anymore.

That took some time, but through the hard work, the stories I’ve been able to tell and the joy that I try to spread through my experiences, the relationship has gotten better.

How difficult is it to transition onto a beat when you’re not familiar with the team history or even the league?

I’ve felt more comfortable the last few months having stronger opinions about the Colts, making educated arguments and understanding some of the historical angles, like what Chris Ballard is going to do in the draft and things like that.

I don’t have to lean on Mike Chappell [Colts writer at Fox 59/CBS 4) or Zak Keefer [at The Athletic], who have been here forever as much as I used to.

That said, I didn’t grow up here. I couldn’t tell you some Bob Sanders play that everyone remembers. There are things I am having to learn on the fly while continuing the Indianapolis transition. Plus, previously not being a big football guy in general, I think I’ve grown a lot in that space by being around the league more.

How did your professional career get started?

I started at The Times of Northwest Indiana covering high school sports. That’s the only place that gave me a shot out of college. I knew barely anything about Indiana and wasn’t very familiar with the Gary area. I spent a lot of hours driving all around the region and went to just about every high school. I wanted to share the positive stories happening for folks in places like Gary and Hammond, because they’re not often shown in that light. I put a lot of miles on the car, but those region kids changed my life.

You mentioned some of the Twitter arguments. How important is it to you to be your authentic self and stand your ground in that space?

I had a social studies teacher in high school who told me to always have an opinion. I don’t like people that ride the fence. Pick a side, state your argument and have some guts. If you’re wrong, you’re wrong. Who cares? It’s just sports.

In life, I have my absolutes. I won’t debate humanity or bigotry on social media, but I don’t mind giving my take on sports because in the grand scheme of things, sports don’t matter.

I’ll be very thoughtful about heavy topics in sports—player misconduct, league misconduct, the Colin Kaepernick saga—things that I think require a more serious approach. But if I fire off a tweet about a Caitlin Clark technical foul or something like that, it’s just to engage.

I’m on Twitter mainly to report Colts’ news, and I’ve had to learn to tone it down a bit. But I want to show people I’m a sports fan just like them.

It would be easier for a person of color to play it safe on social media. How have you been able to stay so steadfast in publicly voicing your beliefs?

I’m an opiniated Black person because of my family. Growing up, we talked about how the world is for people with our skin color. I get a lot of backlash when I discuss race, so there’s some risk in bringing it up.

I’m still guarded in a sense because you have to protect your career and what you’ve earned. But I’ve gotten pulled over before and been asked, “Whose car is this?” and “What are you doing in this neighborhood?” The people who dismiss those issues are the ones who aren’t affected by them, but I have a hard time not calling out things that matter.

It would be easier to be quiet and move up the ranks by placating the other side of the audience, but that’s just not me. If I can’t speak up for people who are wronged, then what am I doing? When you become complacent in denouncing hatred and injustice, things shift even further in the wrong direction.

I love my job, but I don’t care about it nearly as much as I care about being a good human being.

We still haven’t quite busted the dam on non-athlete, young, Black representation in sports media. So are you proud to have broken through?

In my opinion, you can’t call yourself a news outlet and have no one that looks like the people you’re supposed to be covering.

Since a majority of players in the NBA and NFL are Black, there should be more Black media representing them—and not exclusively former athletes. That’s the way it should be in the WNBA, too, with including female journalists in that space.

You still don’t see a lot of people who look like me in a newsroom, so I’m very proud to have been in this lane for a while now being a non-athlete and covering athletics.

You talk openly about your dad loading trucks for decades and your grandmother’s time as a sharecropper. How has learning about their life experiences shaped you, both as a professional and as a man?

It’s all about perspective.

As a kid, my grandma would pick cotton for $2.50 a day. Sometimes, they’d mistake her for someone older and pay her $5. She thought that was livin’ back then. She never finished high school and later moved to Chicago for a better life.

My dad didn’t graduate college, and I saw the physical toll his job took on him. But again, those are sacrifices that they made to better their situations.

When I reflect on all of that, it makes my job easy. I might have bad moments, but I never have bad days because I realize what my family did to allow me to be in the position I’m in. I had family support, a nice suburban upbringing and didn’t have many hardships because of my parents. I have no excuse not to succeed, and I want to take this opportunity as far as I can.

My family thinks this [current job at The Athletic] is the pinnacle, but I’m like, “Nah, you think this is the top? Catch me in 10 years.” That’s my mindset.

I know making your family proud is No. 1, but as far as motivations are concerned, are you also motivated to stick it to the people who have doubted or been jealous of your success?

Honestly, most of my journey has been about proving people right. I have had so many people in my life tell me that I could do it and who have wanted to see me win. I try to never focus on the negativity. I see those opinions sometimes, but I don’t value them.

All I’ve ever wanted in my life is a shot, and I don’t need anything else given to me. I’m not cheating the grind and honoring every opportunity that comes my way.

Being a Colts’ writer, I guess I should ask you an actual Colts’ question before we wrap this up. With such a wide range of possibilities on the table for him, how excited are you to cover new Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson?

Whether it’s a good or bad bet remains to be seen, but Anthony Richardson is the definition of excitement. We’ve never really seen anyone like him.

His performance at the NFL combine was like something you’d see in a video game. He’s so dynamic and talented, yet so raw. It’s the ultimate roll of the dice, but I’m excited about seeing what he’s made of and documenting his journey.•

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From Peyton Manning’s peak with the Colts to the Pacers’ most recent roster makeover, Schultz has talked about it all as a sports personality in Indianapolis for more than 15 years. Besides his written work with IBJ, he’s active in podcasting and show hosting. You can follow him on Twitter at @Schultz975.