Senior Writer/Columnist for The Ball Out: David Dawson is the Communications Special for the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, and is a freelance sports writer. A veteran of the newspaper business, Dawson spent 15 years at the Rome News-Tribune in Rome, Ga., including 10 years as a sports writer and five years as sports editor. He has also worked at Vanderbilt University, where he served as the sports information director for the women’s basketball team and the cross country teams, along with being the editor of the school’s athletic magazine, Commodore Nation. During his time in Rome, Dawson spent five seasons as the beat writer for the Class A Rome Braves. He has been published in Baseball America, Chop Talk and has recently covered high school sports for the Tennessean and the Williamson County Herald. Dawson lives in Nashville with his wife, April, and their two young sons.