Shaking it Up—This Time, Off the Court

With a camera in his hands, Jordan Pettway ’21 is making a name for himself in the world of basketball, Barstool Sports, and beyond.

Every day, Jordan Pettway ’21 sends out content to millions of followers on social media. From reels to tweets, the alum is determined to continue and grow the legacy of the popular and sometimes controversial Barstool Sports. 

“Big companies are trusting me to have my voice out there to people. It just shows me how far I came,” said Pettway, who joined Barstool Sports as a Social Media Specialist in October 2022. 

At just three years old, Pettway learned to use a computer, thanks to his mother. At 10 years old, he was editing dancing videos with his friends. In high school, Pettway created an Instagram account with videos of his friends working out—a prelude to the career that awaited him.

But while growing up, Pettway’s life also revolved around basketball.

He said that his father played basketball in college, so the sport was part of his DNA. In high school, Pettway traveled around playing large tournaments, but everything changed once he got injured.

Pettway realized he wasn’t going to play sports forever—but with video editing experience in his back pocket, he decided to bring his two passions together.

“I could work in sports and still be around it, maybe not being the one on the field or on the court, but there are other things that I could do,” said Pettway.

He watched hours of DIY editing videos on YouTube and his love for basketball persisted, despite his injuries. Pettway was even recruited to play basketball at Endicott, where he chose a digital media major in the process.

At the College, Pettway also learned about the business side of digital media: marketing, content dissemination, and building a website. These factors would help him throughout his four Endicott internships, including at a cable access TV station, a production company, an advertising company, and SLAM Magazine.

“Looking back, that was my favorite thing about Endicott—having all those internships, all that experience,” said Pettway, who went on to do social media and editing for Overtime. “To this day, everyone’s like, ‘You have so much experience,’ and that just lines up job interviews.”

At Endicott, Pettway also gathered the tools to launch his own media company, Shake Squad Media LLC (formerly Shaky Filmz). When Pettway’s basketball season ended abruptly during the pandemic, Pettway parlayed his love of basketball into Shaky Hoops on Instagram. There, he chronicles the passion and pain of top-tier high school players—a world he knows firsthand.

“I went through the same thing growing up—the same flights, the same hotel trips,” said Pettway. “At the end of the day, we’re united by the game of basketball.”

His account was notably recognized by Lebron James, who reposted one of Pettway’s photos on his own Instagram account. The photo later became James’ profile picture, which Pettway called a full circle moment.

Now at Barstool Sports, Pettway leads social for the Pat Bev Podcast with Rone and serves as the lead voice for NBA content. He’s still learning in the role but has already realized that it’s better to just be himself—even if he is his biggest critic.

“I’ll list my goals out just to keep myself reminded that I did so much to get to the point I’m at,” said Pettway. “You’ve got to keep growing, you can’t just stay stagnant.”

Pettway isn’t limiting himself just to sports, however.

“Sports are a big part of my life, but that’s not the only thing I can do,” he said. “I want to expand beyond that. That’s something I’m still working on.”

Learn more about Pettway and Shake Squad Media.

Photos by Sean Edwards, dfritzphotos, and Soru503.