Mark Howard. Photo: Courtesy of 104.5 The Zone

Nashville broadcaster and former 104.5 The Zone host Mark Howard passed away on Sunday (July 24) at the age of 65.

Howard, born Howard Mark Levenson, was a native of West Hartford, Connecticut, and become a Nashville sports mainstay while at NewsChannel 5 where he spent 20 years before transitioning into radio.

In 2004, Howard became co-host of the “Wake Up Zone” on The Zone 104.5-FM, along with Kevin Ingram and former Tennessee Titan Frank Wycheck. The show was extremely popular, becoming the No. 1-rated show in Nashville, but Howard and Ingram left the show in 2020. Howard spent a total of 21 years employed by The Zone.

Howard also made appearances hosting the Nashville Predators pre-game and post-game shows on then-Fox Sports South, and was an occasional fill-in host for 102.5-FM The Game this past year.

“Tough news. Had a lot of fun working with Mark for a lot of years. Still talked to him on a regular basis, will miss our chats about baseball and everything else. A good friend who was always encouraging and supportive toward my career. Condolences to his family,” Ingram shared on social media.

With the news of Howard’s passing, an outpouring of remembrance came in though social media from the Nashville sports media.

Titan’s writer and longtime Nashville reporter David Boclair tweeted, “Sometimes it is no fun to break news. It is with great sadness that I must report that Nashville television/radio sports personality Mark Howard passed away this afternoon at home… Mark was a friend and supporter, and his voice (booming and knowledgable) will be missed.”

George Plaster, credited as one of Nashville sports talk radio’s founding fathers honored Howard on Twitter as well.

Absolutely stunned and heartbroken over the news of Mark Howard’s death. He was an incredible talent and a really good human being. I will miss our phone conversations about my Braves and his Yankees. Loved talking baseball with him. This is a really tough piece of news. pic.twitter.com/eM2AbNYT5C

— George Plaster (@georgeplastertn) July 25, 2022

“No matter what the topic was; kids, Yankees, Preds, NY food…It was always fun talking to Mark because those conversations were never superficial. He genuinely cared about people and showed it with each interaction. Rest In Peace Mark, and thank you for being so kind to so many,” said Nashville Predators President Sean Henry via Twitter.

Former 104.5 The Zone host and current co-host of OutKick 360 Paul Kuharsky wrote a tribute to Howard on his website talking about their friendship and his long career in the Nashville sports world.

Howard is survived by his wife Debra and their two sons. No funeral arrangements have been confirmed.

Johari Matthews. Photo: Courtesy of the Tennessee Titans

The Tennessee Titans have added Johari Matthews to its Community Impact team and she will serve as the Titans Foundation’s Programs Director.

The Programs Director role was recently established by the Titans to grow the breadth and depth of the organization’s community impact efforts. Matthews will serve as a primary liaison for the Titans Foundation community partnerships, including neighborhood and community stakeholders.

“Johari’s passion for serving the community and establishing a strong level of social responsibility makes her a perfect addition to our Community Impact team. Her work at the Northwest YMCA is an inspiring example to all of us,” says Adolpho Birch III, Titans Senior Vice President of Business Affairs and Chief Legal Officer. “She has a demonstrated record of creating programs and outreach efforts with focus and impact, something we intend to continue to grow here at the Titans.”

A Nashville native, Matthews has 18 years of experience in the nonprofit space, most recently serving as Executive Director for the Northwest Family YMCA in North Nashville. During her time at the YMCA, she led a team of 90+, managing the day-to-day operations of a facility serving a membership base of nearly 4,000.

She also provided key strategic direction and oversight to develop community outreach programs for individuals and families throughout North Nashville. Matthews was recently recognized through her collaborative work with The BlueCross BlueShield Foundation and the YMCA of Middle Tennessee as they opened a new $6.5M state-of-the-art, inclusive BlueCross BlueShield Healthy Place Park in Bordeaux.

“As a Nashville-native, joining the Tennessee Titans is truly a dream come true both personally and professionally. After almost 20 years of serving in a variety of nonprofit capacities, I have learned the key to amazing programs is creating them with intentionality and with the community at the forefront,” says Matthews. “The Titans have an already established reputation for giving back to the community, and I look forward to working alongside the team as we continue to grow those efforts across the entire state.”

In 2020, she was named by the Nashville Business Journal as one of Nashville’s Top 40 Under 40 emerging leaders, and in 2022 was selected as an Athena award Young Professional nominee by Nashville CABLE. She is a graduate of Tennessee State University and has participated in leadership programs at the New Leaders Council and Lipscomb University’s CEO Connect.

Matthews currently serves as Board Chair for Corner to Corner, as well as board member for The Community Foundation’s Women’s Fund, New Leaders Council and Nashville Teacher Residency. She is a member of Junior League of Nashville, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and devotes her volunteer time to organizations such as Nashville Young Lives, a local ministry for teen moms.

Pictured (Top): David Gale; (Bottom): CJ Preston. Photo: Courtesy of Vanderbilt Athletics

Vanderbilt men’s basketball head coach Jerry Stackhouse is adding David Gale and CJ Preston to his staff for the 2022-23 season. Gale will serve as the Director of Scouting and Recruiting, while Preston is promoted to Assistant Video Coordinator.

“We are excited about the familiarity and continuity that David and CJ will bring to the staff,” Stackhouse shares. “David has worked professionally in the NBA and Europe for several years, including a stint on my staff with the Raptors 905. He most recently served on the staff at Georgia and brings SEC experience to our program. He is a talented and detailed coach that will positively impact our program in scouting, recruiting and many other areas.”

Gale served on Stackhouse’s Raptors 905 staff which won the NBA G League championship in 2017. He makes his way to Nashville after spending the 2021-22 season at SEC opponent Georgia, serving as the Associate to the Head Coach/Director of Strategy.

“I am extremely excited to be joining the coaching staff at Vanderbilt and to be working with Coach Stackhouse again,” Gale notes. “Having worked for Coach in Toronto and having won a championship with both him and Coach [Nicki] Gross, I know firsthand how talented coach is as well as what he stands for and expects every day. I have prior connections with most of the staff, either from our time in the NBA or coaching against this group last season, which makes the transition here seamless. I’m thrilled to be a part of a team with the ability to do some special things this year and a program with an extremely bright future.”

Prior to his time at Georgia, Gale spent the previous three seasons coaching in Europe. He was the head coach of BC Nevezis Opibet in Lithuania’s Lietuvos krepšinio lyga (LKL) for the 2020-21 campaign. He was previously an assistant coach for MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), helping the franchise improve from 10th during the 2018-19 season to second place in the league standings in 2019-20, with an appearance in the tournament finals.

From 2018-20, Gale also was the head coach for Porsche BBA, which he led to the German U-19 National Championship in 2020 and was named NBBL Coach of the Year and Coach of the Year by Eurobasket.com. Before his time in Europe, Gale spent more than a decade working within three NBA franchises–Los Angeles Clippers, Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers–from 2007-18.

Preston was elevated to the full-time position after spending the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant for the men’s basketball program. In his current role, he supports the video and scouting efforts for the Commodores in addition to aiding in recruiting efforts.

“I’m extremely excited about this new opportunity and new chapter of my life,” says Preston. “Vanderbilt has been my home since 2014, and I feel extremely blessed to be able to continue working at this prestigious university and for this basketball team under Coach Stackhouse’s leadership. I’m excited to continue serving our student-athletes and look forward for what is to come.”

Preston has been a mainstay with Vanderbilt athletics since he arrived on campus in 2014 as an undergrad. He was a student manager for the men’s basketball program from 2014-18. He went on to serve as an intern for the communications and marketing departments for Vanderbilt athletics during the 2019-20 academic year before becoming a graduate assistant for men’s basketball in 2020.

He is a two-time graduate of Vanderbilt University, earning his bachelor’s degree in human and organizational development in 2018 before completing his master’s in leadership and organizational performance in 2022. He was a member of the Dean’s List three semesters as an undergrad.

Former Midday 180 and current OutKick 360 crew, which includes Jonathon Hutton, Chad Withrow and Paul Kuharsky, will be joining the newly branded 94.9 The Fan, announced 102.5 The Game program director Chase McCabe.

“One of my goals as the new PD (Program Director) was to figure out a way to add OutKick 360 to our talented lineup,” says McCabe. “Re-imagining 94.9 as The Fan made that possible because not only do we add three voices that Nashville knows, but we are able to bring Dan Patrick and Colin Cowherd back to the Music City. It’s a huge win for us and for our city.”

Pictured L-R: Paul Kuharsky, Jonathon Hutton and Chad Withrow. Photo: Courtesy of OutKick 360

The station will become The Fan from 94.9 ESPN on June 13. The station will have nationally syndicated shows such as The Dan Patrick Show from 8-11 a.m., The Herd with Colin Cowherd from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the return of the OutKick 360 crew from 2-5 p.m.

The trio have been together for nearly 10 years, spending almost all of them with 104.5 The Zone before leaving for OutKick in 2021.

“The opportunity to partner with Cromwell Media and 94.9 The Fan is in sync with the vision and direction we have for OutKick 360,” says Hutton. “We live in Nashville and broadcast from downtown, and now we’re thrilled to be back on the radio providing the same entertaining show for the most loyal listener base in sports radio.

OutKick 360 will continue to stream on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.