KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A well-known photojournalist, sportscaster, and VFL has retired.

Link Hudson was the Assistant Athletic Director of Video and Broadcasting at the University of Tennessee working a combined three decades on Rocky Top.

“I started at UT as a sophomore in college,” said Hudson. “That was 1991.”

From student to a media specialist, to the Assistant Athletic Director of Video and Broadcasting, Hudson worked his way up to the top of Rocky Top.

When asked what made him want to get into the business in the first place, he said, “I was always a bit of a goofy guy. I loved cameras. I thought I was going to be a radio DJ and then I heard my voice for the first time. So that was out. But I really liked cameras and I found out that I loved editing. But the hook was Barry Rice and those music videos.”

Hudson has earned several Emmy nominations for his work but he says his greatest accomplishment is creating content fans enjoy.

“I think the greatest reward is the feedback from the Tennessee fan base. When you put something out and it goes viral, quote on quote, and it lives for a day or two out there in the space and people are just raving about it, that was my greatest reward and the feedback, that’s really why we did it. We did it to tell a story, the stories of the student-athletes, and made sure we did right by them, and then certainly we did it to entertain the fans,” said Hudson.

He’s interviewed athletes and coaches who have changed the game of college sports including Pat Summitt and Phillip Fulmer.

Hudson added, “Peyton was one of those, Charles Davis who is a legendary sportscaster now is one of those, Christian Coleman, one of the fastest men in the world to this day, got to do some stuff with him. All the lady vols, Chamique Holdsclaw, Tamika Catchings, its been a who’s who of being exposed.”

After 30 years, he’s seen a lot of changes in the industry.

“Social media, we had to get shorter, we had to get more nimble, we had to crank out more content, you had to be responsive to this ravenous fan base that wanted more content, and that’s a hard adjustment, especially for older guys who didn’t grow up with social media. And we hired on really good content creators who have helped us and that’s who we’ve turned this thing over to now,” he added.

Now, he’s passing the torch on to a new generation and says he’s excited to see what content they create for UT athletics.

Although Hudson is retiring from UT, he’ll be teaching a TV production class at William Blount High School. He says his best advice to those wanting to get into the business is that collaboration makes every project better.