DALLAS — Veteran sports anchor Joe Trahan took the reins Wednesday night as weeknight sports anchor at WFAA following the retirement of Dale Hansen, who spent 38 years with the station. Trahan has been a valued member of the WFAA sports team for 18 years and joined Cynthia Izaguirre, Chris Lawrence and Pete Delkus on WFAA’s weeknight 10 p.m. newscast beginning Sept. 8, 2021.
“No one is more well liked or more respected, by both our team and by the DFW sports community than Joe Trahan,” said WFAA President and General Manager, Brad Ramsey. “His deep connections with the community and with key sports figures throughout North Texas, along with his vision for innovative sports storytelling, make for a very exciting future.”
Trahan came to WFAA as weekend sports anchor and reporter in 2003. He has led the station’s Dallas Cowboys beat, covered multiple Super Bowls, World Series, NBA Finals and a Stanley Cup Final, as well as told hundreds of stories showcasing North Texans.
“I'm thrilled with this opportunity. The bar is set high and I'm looking forward to elevating what we do and continuing the great legacy of WFAA Sports,” Trahan said. “This is home for me and my family and I know firsthand sports means a lot to people of North Texas. When I’m at the hardware store or coffee shop the conversations are passionate and I know people care. I'll do my best to inform, entertain and have some fun along the away while being of service to our community.”
Trahan has won 15 Lone Star Emmy Awards, receiving the honor for six consecutive years in the sports reporter category. He has also won two regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for sports reporting in 2008 and 2014. Trahan continues the legacy of two legendary sportscasters, Verne Lundquist and Dale Hansen, that led WFAA’s sports coverage for a combined 50 years.
“We are so grateful to have someone of Joe’s caliber take on this role,” said WFAA Vice President and Station Manager, Carolyn Mungo. "His years of experience and knowledge of the market, combined with his natural ability to connect with an audience is a win for both our staff at WFAA and for all of North Texas. I can’t wait for him to grab the spotlight.”
Trahan is a fixture in the community. He has hosted WFAA’s broadcast of the American Heart Association’s Dallas Heart Walk for the past several years and he has also hosted the North Texas Food Bank Telethon. He is on the Northern Texas PGA Charity Foundation Board and he works closely with the First Tee of Dallas.
“Joe is a really good person, plain and simple” said WFAA Executive News Director, Leslie McCardel. “What we all admire about him is how he connects his deep knowledge of sports to the spirit of what makes us all root for someone.”
Trahan is a native Texan. He grew up in Houston, playing basketball and lettering in baseball at Strake Jesuit and is an alumnus of Loyola University in New Orleans. He began his career in television in 1989 on the production team at TEGNA owned WWL-TV in New Orleans. His first job as an on-air anchor and reporter was at WCBD-TV in Charleston, S.C. in 1991. He returned to New Orleans in 1994 as sports anchor at the Fox affiliate, WVUE-TV, where he spent 9 years.
Joe, his wife Amy and their two daughters make their home in Frisco.