Jaden Knowles has known he wanted to be a broadcast meteorologist as far back as he can remember. His father, Al, is floor director at KXAS-TV, the NBC affiliate in Fort Worth, Texas.
“I used to always be up there with him,” Knowles said. “The green screen and a guy in front of it talking about the weather. … I just always thought that was pretty cool and wanted to know more about it.”
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Knowles, a walk-on running back at Oklahoma, still has NFL dreams. But if that doesn’t work out, he wants to be a meteorologist. He took lots of math and science classes at Kennedale High School, where he also rushed for more than 4,000 career yards and scored 52 touchdowns. Before transferring to OU, he played two seasons at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford, rushing for 395 yards and three touchdowns.
Due to transfer requirements and his intense football schedule, he’s an interdisciplinary studies major with a heavy emphasis on meteorology. The University of Oklahoma’s meteorology program is widely recognized as one of the best in the nation. Oklahoma is also home to unpredictable weather; the 1996 film “Twister” was set and filmed in the state.
Knowles rushed for 31 yards and a touchdown in the OU spring game, but also started on the path toward his other dream this spring. Knowles began working with OU Nightly, the university’s student-run TV news broadcast. He worked behind the scenes on some days, preparing graphics, and did the on-air weather report on Thursdays.
Storms for this weekend ⛈ @CNN @CBSNews @NBCDFW @GMA pic.twitter.com/XJ45aN0DdJ
See AlsoOne person is killed as turbulence hits UK flight to SingaporeWikiLeaks' Julian Assange faces final decision on US extraditionOSPREY AIRCRAFT OF THE ACES Spitfire Aces of Northwest ... - [PDF Document]Football Fundamentals: 2x2 and Mirrored Passing Concepts— Weatherman J (@JadenKnowles2) March 11, 2021
Knowles spoke to The Athletic about his path to Norman, his passion for weather and his future plans.
(Note: Questions and responses have been edited for clarity.)
What made you interested in weather?
From as far as I can think back, I’ve always just been around it. My father works for NBC5 in Fort Worth, Texas, so I used to always be up there with him. Watching the meteorologists, I always thought it was cool and wanted to know more about it. I just developed a passion for it.
Was your dad on the air as a weatherman or an anchor?
He’s a floor director, actually. So he’s behind the camera. Growing up, he always told me I should be in front of the camera.
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Were you preparing for this before college?
I had the opportunity to talk to some meteorologists through my dad. While I was in high school, they told me to start taking a lot of classes because that’s what I’m gonna have to take during college. I got involved in some physics and math classes in high school. At SWOSU, they don’t have a meteorology program. So I ended up doing the nursing program there. But after finishing my second year of football there, I knew I was gonna come to OU. I started trying to put together a schedule of classes that would transfer over here so I can be in the meteorology program. I was looking at the recommendations for OU and building my classes around it.
I knew OU has one of the best meteorology programs in the nation. I knew I was gonna make my way out here somehow.
How do you manage that class load with your football schedule?
It’s very difficult. OU has so many resources to be able to help you with on- and off-the-field things. You’ve just got to learn how to use them. Those older friends that I have who are in the program or already have their degrees, they’ve got jobs in different cities. So I’ve talked to them about how they made it through the classes. You just have to have the willpower and the want-to, because not too many people can do a sport and meteorology at the same time.
Did you have to get used to being in front of the camera?
I’m a very outgoing person. I want to be in front of the camera. It was kinda easier for me, but I know a lot of my friends who also do OU Nightly get a little nervous the first time going out there. I like it. I like getting to show my personality off.
How quickly after you came to OU did you get involved with OU Nightly?
It took a while because I didn’t really know about it when I first got here. Once I started making friends, they told me to get involved with OU Nightly. My teachers told me to get involved with it if I wanted to be a broadcast meteorologist. It took about a semester and then I finally got involved in it.
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What do you like about the OU meteorology school?
Definitely because of the location, right in the center of tornado alley. Then also, the National Weather Center is located on our campus. A lot of professors from around the world and meteorologists from around the world come here. Our classes are located right in that building, so we’re being taught by some of the best teachers the world has to offer. Everybody wants to come to OU because of that. There’s no reason for you not to be prepared for the next step after you graduate.
What do your teammates and coaches think about all of this?
They love it. Right before the spring game, Coach (Lincoln) Riley asked me how the weather was gonna be. Some of my teammates give me a hard time, ask me what the weather’s gonna be like for practice, ask me what the weather’s gonna be like over the weekend. I’ve always gotta be on my toes; somebody’s gonna ask about the weather so you’ve gotta always know it.
Spencer (Rattler) gave me the nickname “Weatherman J.” I kind of like that. Credit to him. They’re all very encouraging.
What do you see yourself doing in the future?
My career goal is to make it to the NFL. If that doesn’t happen, I wanna be a broadcast meteorologist, on the air. I really wanna work for a place like CNN and be a national weatherman. I don’t mind going local, just wherever there’s an opportunity. But the end goal is to be national.
So you wanna be the next Al Roker?
Yeah, definitely. I look up to him as a meteorologist. Something big like that. I feel like my personality can fit anywhere. Al Roker, he was in a couple of movies, too! I feel like I can do all of that.
(Top photo courtesy of OU Nightly / University of Oklahoma)
