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Name: Dan O'Brien
Degree and Year: BJ '77
Title: Freelance Writer and Media Relations Consultant
City and State: Greenwood, Ind.

Donoho and O'Brien at a 1992 Missouri reunion.

Donoho and O'Brien in September of 2004, in front of their booth at Faurot Field.

When they graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism in 1977, best friends Todd Donoho and Dan O'Brien had no idea that 27 years later, their passion for Tiger football would bring them back to Missouri for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

In 2004, Donoho and O'Brien authored and edited MizzouRah! Memorable Moments in Missouri Tiger Football History, a coffee table book featuring photographs and film images of Missouri's 30 most notable feats on the gridiron. Several of the images have never been published before.

For Donoho and O'Brien, the book is more than just a reunion trip down memory lane. It is also a tribute to the University that launched them into successful careers in journalism.

Meeting at Mizzou

Both graduates of the School's broadcast news sequence have fond memories of their time at Missouri and the world-renowned journalism education that brought them here. Donoho, who was a sports editor for his high school paper in Indiana, knew he wanted to build upon that experience in college. He did his research and decided that Missouri was the best journalism school for him.

"I had great professors and a great experience," Donoho says. "I made many friends that I have kept in contact with since then."

One of those friends, O'Brien, saw Missouri's facilities and reputation and loved the fact that he could anchor his own 10 p.m. KOMU sports broadcasts to Columbia and the surrounding areas.

"Our class of '77 was a really good group," O'Brien says. "We worked hard and were very competitive with one another. I liked and respected my fellow broadcast journalism students."

Because of the class's well-known work ethic, competition for the prime anchor jobs at KOMU was intense, O'Brien says. Other members of the broadcast class of 1977 now work as online producers for TV stations, own their own strategic communication companies and work in marketing and sales departments for major organizations throughout the country.

Although their schedules were busy, both students found the time to be devoted Missouri football fans.

"I remember the Missouri v. Nebraska football game in 1973 that Missouri won 13-12," Donoho says. "I rushed the field and jumped into running back Ray Bybee's arms. It was a wonderful celebration. I was hooked on Mizzou football from that time on."

Branching Out and Coming Back

Upon graduating, Donoho started his career as a news photographer at WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids, Mich. He climbed the ranks to news reporter and ultimately weekend sports anchor at WOOD-TV. Donoho kept moving forward in the sportscasting profession, eventually arriving at KABC-TV in Los Angeles. Donoho also has worked for Fox Sports Net and ESPN Radio, both in Los Angeles. Currently, he hosts the Missouri Tiger post-game show on the Tiger Radio Network. Among other accolades, Donoho's work has earned five Emmy awards.

O'Brien also has led a long and successful career in television sports anchoring, reporting and producing. His first jobs out of college, WSFA-TV in Montgomery, Ala., and WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids, Mich., launched him into major markets, including WCKT-TV, Miami, Fla.; WJLA-TV, Washington, D.C.; Home Sports Entertainment and WPXI-TV, Pittsburgh, Pa.; and WTHR-TV, Indianapolis, Ind. He then decided to use his extensive experience as a freelance writer and media relations consultant.

In 2004, Donoho and his wife, Paula, decided to move back to Columbia, where their story together began almost 30 years before. After spotting her in line while taking their senior pictures in 1976, Donoho saw Paula Gerber, BS '77, later the next week at a Halloween party.

"I walked up to her and asked, 'Haven't I seen you somewhere before?'" Donoho says. "She answered, 'Can't you come up with a better line than that?' We would end up marrying each other a few years later."

Donoho says he and Paula wanted to be closer to where they met each other and closer to the University. He says he wants to give back to the University, especially to the School of Journalism.

Looking for a way to support his alma mater, Donoho spoke with O'Brien, and the two friends decided to author a coffee table book to commemorate Missouri's football program and its fans. Thus, in 2004 the idea for MizzouRah! Memorable Moments in Missouri Tiger Football History was born.

Reliving Tiger History

The men decided to select the 30 greatest football moments to include in their book, and they did not waste any time getting started.

"We came up with a list by looking at games and using our own knowledge," O'Brien says. "Tigerboard.com and the fans added a few games that we had not thought of. It came together very quickly. Being from the broadcast background, it was bang, bang, bang, and we got it done."

Altogether, the book took six months to create from the time of conception to the time of publication. The most difficult aspect of the project became gathering the photographs for all of the moments, Donoho says.

"The athletic archives are not the most organized, and we really wanted to find the photos of all of the moments," Donoho says. "We took old game tapes and froze the frames. Many pictures have never been seen in print before our book came out because they have never existed as photographs before."

Donoho and O'Brien's new status as co-authors only strengthened their long-standing friendship.

"We have the same background, and we usually think alike," O'Brien says. "We have the same writing styles as well. We took the lead separately on different chapters, but it was a collaborative effort. I have co-authored another book about the Washington Redskins with another friend, and that also went well. It is nice to have your first two books be with your best friends and still be best friends when it is all over."

The response from Missouri football fans has been enthusiastic. The book became a regional best seller, and when it first hit bookstores, it was the biggest-selling regional title for the 2004 Christmas season.

Now that the book is completed, the college pals have moved on to other projects. Donoho is currently marketing and distributing True Sons, a book about 100 years of Tiger basketball. That book, along with MizzouRah!, can be found at bookstores throughout Missouri.

O'Brien is equally busy. He is living in Greenwood, Ind., a suburb of Indianapolis, and recently wrote a screenplay called "Rube," which is based on the life of National Baseball Hall of Fame member George Edward "Rube" Waddell, a comic-tragic figure considered to be one of the most colorful characters in the history of professional sports. O'Brien also is on the publicity staff for the Kentucky Derby and is dabbling in marketing and photography as well.

What started out as a college friendship at Missouri 30 years ago has grown into a lifelong friendship between two much-admired journalists and Tiger football fans.