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Quotes You Never Could Print

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by editorhoo, Sep 30, 2008.

  1. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    I was covering a game where a team that finished 1-9 was losing 3-0 to an unbeaten state-ranked opponent. There were like 3 seconds left, and the 1-9 team had the ball at the unbeaten team's 5 on fourth down. Coach goes for the TD, and a completed pass ends up just short of the end zone. Game over.

    The other team's beat guy and I were discussing the game before we talked to the coaches, and he told me he was going to ask the losing team's coach why he didn't kick the field goal to send the game into OT. I warned him not to because I knew the coach well and knew what his strategy would be in that situation. He failed to heed my warning and asked the question anyway. The coach's response as to why he went for the TD:

    "Because I wanted to win the fucking game."

    Same coach, different story: I asked him what he thought of a rival coach (coach "Smith") and his response was that, "He's a fucking prick. We've got a lot of pricks in this league."

    Said coach then looks at his schedule on the wall and adds, "Well, that guy's OK, this guy's OK, that guy's new so I don't know about him. Maybe "coach Smith" is the only prick in this league."

    This was a coach at a Catholic institution, so a team prayer from the priest was the last thing they did before leaving the locker room. I heard a story from a trainer on that team that once, the coach's pregame speech ended like this:

    "Now, I want you to go out there and knock their dicks off! Father, take it away!" The prayer commenced.

    I'd like to hear some stories about things coaches have told you that you know never could make it to print.
     
  2. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    I don't understand why you didn't want the rival reporter to ask the question. Just because you know (or think you know) what the answer is going to be is no reason to ask a key freaking question.
     
  3. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    Because I knew it would piss off the coach. And it did.
     
  4. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    I can't imagine the coach would have been too happy anyway.
     
  5. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    Why do you care if the coach gets pissed off
     
  6. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    ^^^
    No, he wasn't. He was in a bad mood already. I basically told my colleague to not ask the question because I already knew the answer.
     
  7. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    NFL player about a former teammate playing for another team

    "Fuck, him. He's a fucking fuck."

    I got it one-on-one on a Monday. He refused to talk to the media the rest of the week.

    I turned it in as "(Expletive) him, he's a (expletive) (expletive)."

    Our copy desk actually argued whether it was better as "Bleep him, he's a bleeping bleep."

    The quote made it to the proof and then the night editor pulled it.

    I was disappointed, but I understood.
     
  8. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    any decent journalist needs to ask that question. You don't think your readers want to know why he didn't kick the field goal.
     
  9. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    Don't care at all. I guess it's more of a let's-dispense-with-the-pleasantries type of thing. Already knew what the answer would be, so let's get to talking about something I don't know.
     
  10. forever_town

    forever_town Well-Known Member

    Maybe, but the question still needed to be asked.
     
  11. Ace

    Ace Well-Known Member

    Knowing it ain't the same as being able to quote someone saying it.
     
  12. editorhoo

    editorhoo Member

    I commend you for actually trying to get this to print. I, too, understand why it got axed, but I wish we would publish stuff like this. It truly describes how the people we cover feel about the things we're writing about.
     
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