As part of our celebration of WWMT’s 75th anniversary, we’re asking “Where are they now?” about some of the people you may remember watching through the years.

The 1990s was a great decade for sports in our state and in West Michigan, with Derek Jeter becoming an all-star shortstop with the New York Yankees, the legendary Indy car racer A.J. Foyt winding down his career and sponsorship with Kalamazoo’s Jim Gilmore, and the Western Michigan men’s basketball team springing a big, March Madness upset taking down number four seed Clemson in Chicago.

The WWMT sports director who brought those highlights to life was John Koch, who as at the station from 1990 to 2004. Koch says it was a very different media world then compared to today.

Where are they now?

“The media has changed, obviously. It’s more on computers now, but back then, we were really the first to show highlights for people and it was an exciting and a fun time,” Koch said.

Among Koch’s best memories are covering the Fab Five and the University of Michigan men’s basketball team that made headlines around the world with their electric style of play. Koch also got to know Derek Jeter, who went from teenage baseball phenom at Kalamazoo Central High School to starting shortstop with the New York Yankees.

Koch says Jeter was always kind and willing to do interviews, but was always careful with what he said.

“Derek Jeter, I always said, is great because he was was accommodating, but he never really said anything. Even now, his sound bites are pretty much the same,” Koch said. “You know what you’re going to get. He was very smart in that regard because if you’re in New York dealing with the New York media and you ramble on…you end up getting in trouble.”

75th Anniversary Special Report:

In 2004, after fourteen years of chasing sports highlights, working late nights, weekends, and holidays, Koch decided it was time for a change.

“Sportscasting in my mind, back then, was for the young and single guys,” he said. “But I had a three-year-old and a five-year-old at the time. And I said, ‘I just don’t want to start over in another city.'” Koch transitioned to a career with State Farm, where he has worked as a local agent for the past 21 years.

Koch says he’s happy with his decision to stay in West Michigan, where his children graduated from Portage Central High School, and his oldest earned a Master’s degree from Western Michigan University.