Does this irk anybody else about preps coverage?

[DirtyDeeds]

The actual kick or fumble is included, but the kid's name is not. Actually had a situation recently where a kid missed a long (almost desperation) field goal that would have won a very big game, and we could not identify the kicker in the front-page cutline as the other team celebrated in the background. To me, it's just stupid. All his friends, family and teammates saw it, so what, it's going to embarrass him in the rest of the community? It's just a football game.

 

[shotglass]

"It's just a football game" is never going to be your best argument against that. It's always going to be more than "just a football game" to somebody -- or nobody's going to be reading you.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

You can't do that! How dare you glorify a freshman? The seniors have worked hard for four years and the coach has no right to bench them!

Not only do the journos get nailed about this, it's more fun being a coach in this situation.

"Why isn't Susie playing?"
"Because she never shows up at workouts, and has never improved her skills in three years, and all of these freshmen have passed her up."
"But she's a senior."
"And that's supposed to be important to me because ... "
"She's entitled to playing time. She's a SENIOR."
"That's nice. But in two months, your SENIOR turnover machine isn't going to be in our program anymore. That freshmen who spent the entire offseason showing up at workouts and now scores 8 points, grabs 5 rebounds and guards the opposing team's best player is. Want to watch the game film?"
"But, but, but ... I'm going to the superintendent."

What's really funny is when parents call you and want you to do an article 'investigating' why the freshman is getting more PT than the senior. They think the coach and the freshman's parent are meeting in a parking garage and exchanging money, or something to that effect.

 

[JakeandElwood]

You can't do that! How dare you glorify a freshman? The seniors have worked hard for four years and the coach has no right to bench them!

Not only do the journos get nailed about this, it's more fun being a coach in this situation.

"Why isn't Susie playing?"
"Because she never shows up at workouts, and has never improved her skills in three years, and all of these freshmen have passed her up."
"But she's a senior."
"And that's supposed to be important to me because ... "
"She's entitled to playing time. She's a SENIOR."
"That's nice. But in two months, your SENIOR turnover machine isn't going to be in our program anymore. That freshmen who spent the entire offseason showing up at workouts and now scores 8 points, grabs 5 rebounds and guards the opposing team's best player is. Want to watch the game film?"
"But, but, but ... I'm going to the superintendent."

What's really funny is when parents call you and want you to do an article 'investigating' why the freshman is getting more PT than the senior. They think the coach and the freshman's parent are meeting in a parking garage and exchanging money, or something to that effect.

They're getting together and writing plays for the freshmen, leaving me out!

 

[Inky_Wretch]

If the kid's name would get in the paper for scoring the winning TD, basket or goal, then the kid's name goes in the paper when his fumble, bricked FT, botched PK results in the other team winning.

 

[DirtyDeeds]

"It's just a football game" is never going to be your best argument against that. It's always going to be more than "just a football game" to somebody -- or nobody's going to be reading you.

But the people to whom it's more than just a football game (his parents, friends) likely already know what happened. And as others have pointed it out, if he scored the winning TD or whatever he'd be named, so it cuts both ways. Now, I'm not in any way advocating ripping the kid, but if it's a crucial play either way it should be included. I just don't think it's going to scar the kid for life to say he missed a field goal in one football game when he was 15 years old. Sure, he'll feel like crap about it for a few days, but he knows it happened and there's no reason to hide it.

 

[nmmetsfan]

When I was in sixth grade, our kickball diamond was on the far end of the playground. Our teacher always told us boys not to kick the ball on the roof of the school, but you know we had to try.

And wouldn't you know it, the one day I managed to do it, the photographer of the West Bo**** Bugle was there and got a shot of me doing it. I had to manually rewind film strips for the next three weeks after my teacher saw that in the paper.

**** newspapers. THIS is why they're dying. **** 'em.

What paper covers sixth-grade kickball? Do they run agate?

 

[Inky_Wretch]

When I was in sixth grade, our kickball diamond was on the far end of the playground. Our teacher always told us boys not to kick the ball on the roof of the school, but you know we had to try.

And wouldn't you know it, the one day I managed to do it, the photographer of the West Bo**** Bugle was there and got a shot of me doing it. I had to manually rewind film strips for the next three weeks after my teacher saw that in the paper.

**** newspapers. THIS is why they're dying. **** 'em.

What paper covers sixth-grade kickball? Do they run agate?

No agate, but it is Twittered.

 

[shotglass]

Home runs: Johnson 7 (112), M. Wilson 11 (184), B. Wilson 15 (273).
Sacrifice flies: None. Sacrifice hits: None.
Girls crying after hit by kickball: Langston, Holtry, L. James, S. James.

(That last one is the undervalued GCAHK for you sabermetricians out there.)

 

[sirvaliantbrown]

The coach rails on kids? That seems a bit strange to me, but I'd run with it.

Here's my coach-railing story. The local girls team, a great team, was playing poorly in a national championship tournament; it needed near-perfection in three consecutive games to get back in contention. I asked the coach whether he thought they could do it - just wanted the cliched "it's never over 'til it's over" quote. Instead, he said something like, "Usually, in the past, I'd say absolutely. With this particular team, I don't know. They don't really show much heart."

This wasn't the type of sports-mad town where a coach could have been attempting to, you know, "motivate his squad through the press." (Actually, does that happen anywhere? With 17-year-old girls?) He was just an ass. But I quoted him - made it the lede. The girls proceeded to lose the tournament. Two weeks later, I was a spectator at another championship tournament - boys - and I happened to be sitting directly behind three of the girls team's stars in the bleachers. None of them saw me...they proceeded to spend something like fifteen minutes ripping the coach. (I contemplated acknowledging my presence two feet behind them...obviously, I decided against it.) Eventually, the best player said, "After what he said? No way I play next year if that ****er is back."

I don't have a point. It was just immensely entertaining to be a fly on the wall for a gossipy team conversation related to an article I wrote.

 

[steveu]

Two examples of prep coverage, one that I wrote and one that I didn't (but it came from our same shop)...

1. I didn't write this... It was a prestigious track and field relay held in our area, and it was a couple years ago. Apparently someone thought it would be a cute idea to use, instead of a baton, a banana during a relay. So here they are passing a banana. Obviously someone sees this (or the judge may have seen it on his own) and the relay team is DQ'd, and I believe it cost the team the overall title. Players are named, coach talks to us and voices his disappointment that his kids would resort to something so stupid.

2. I wrote this several years ago... during a girls basketball game, team doesn't do a good job shooting free throws or building a huge lead, so of course the game falls on the shoulders of one girl at the line. Needs two freebies to tie, but she misses the first (I believe there was under a half-second remaining, so no chance to get the ball back) and she makes the second. She's crying after the game. Coach talks to me afterwards, of course I explain I have to put the end result in the paper and he told me she never should have been in that position (shooting FT's) because the team did a bad job overall from the field and the line and put the pressure on her at the end. End result, her name made it in print, but said coach (now retired, class act) took all the pressure off.

 

[daytonadan1983]

I actually had parents come up to me and tell me I wasn't writing enough negative comments about one player.

Two years later, that player went D-1

 

[pseudo]

I actually had parents come up to me and tell me I wasn't writing enough negative comments about one player.

Two years later, that player went D-1

Let me guess ... not their kid?

 

[Ace]

I actually had parents come up to me and tell me I wasn't writing enough negative comments about one player.

Two years later, that player went D-1

I've heard that tune. I have to resist the urge to say, "Jealous much?"

 

[fossywriter8]

Co-worker of mine, when he was editor years ago, took a call from an irate parent about the game story saying his son was harried into throwing another (the kid threw picks like the D-backs were his receivers) interception. Apparently, the dad was not only upset about his kid being named, but also because he (the dad, not the kid) didn't know what the word "harried" meant; claimed he couldn't find it in the dictionary.
He received no pity from the other end of the line, only confirmation that, yes, "harried" is an actual word and was used correctly.

 

[micke77]

i love covering high school sports because--drum roll if you would--it still remains basically pure, although the landscape has reached 'big business' proportions in the last, oh, decade. it's the parents that i have trouble dealing with...i work for a small daily where i know practically every parent who has a son or daughter playing or they know me at first glance (or grimace) at the local Wal-Mart. and they have no qualms about showing up at our office to lodge a complaint that their son or daughter got shafted in a gamer or went unquoted. they're usually, nine out of 10 times, pissed because somebody else's child got quoted and made the headlines. several weeks ago, i got a letter ripping the local class 5-a coach for not playing a certain QB enough and then blasting us because we didnt give said player enough pub so people would appreciate him more. i mean, the dude got on us big time. naturally, he or she didn't put their name at the end. oh, they had our name and address, but nah....better not sign this letter.
usually when i do features on prep athletes, i get more gripes than positive or encouraging feedbacks becauses the usual response is that we're building one player up more than the next one. hey, i can't help it if the guy has thrown five no-hitters and is averaging 11.0 K's pesr game. he's a stud and, thus, he warrants a feature. but oh yes, some parents absolutely freak out when "my son" or "my daughter" is overshadowed in the media by somebody else's.
i really try and help a high school athlete as much in possible in how he might say things after a game, etc...etc...in the heat of battle, emotionally distraught over a loss, etc...they're still youngsters, no matter what some might think and they're still learning to deal with a "fishbowl" existence in some casses.

 

[digger]

You can't do that! How dare you glorify a freshman? The seniors have worked hard for four years and the coach has no right to bench them!

Not only do the journos get nailed about this, it's more fun being a coach in this situation.

"Why isn't Susie playing?"
"Because she never shows up at workouts, and has never improved her skills in three years, and all of these freshmen have passed her up."
"But she's a senior."
"And that's supposed to be important to me because ... "
"She's entitled to playing time. She's a SENIOR."
"That's nice. But in two months, your SENIOR turnover machine isn't going to be in our program anymore. That freshmen who spent the entire offseason showing up at workouts and now scores 8 points, grabs 5 rebounds and guards the opposing team's best player is. Want to watch the game film?"
"But, but, but ... I'm going to the superintendent."

A coach of a volleyball team I'm very familiar with (a lot of the players play for my club team) has a policy of cutting any kid who isn't likely to start as a senior - or at least play some kind of role - when they are juniors. It saves him from those kind of parent problems, and also saves the kid from being embarrassed sitting there on the bench doing nothing, or having to decide for himself if it's worth going through all the practices and not get much playing time. Plus it allows the coach to give the younger players more of a chance to develop.

 

[micke77]

digger...honestly, really the few, few times i get put out with being a sportswriter --and i love being one-- is dealing with these parents, so many now who are absolutely fanatic...and it doesn''t help when, now when you tune into any ESPN televised college game in particular, they give the parents in the stands as much air time as the studs on the field. i know they are proud of their sons or daughters and all, but i don't know..it's a little too much at times. i've had so many through the years come up to me out of nowhere and, without even being tactful enough to introduce themselves, lower the boom on us for not putting their child's name in the paper. please...there's starvation in Ethiopia, a war in Iraq, etc...perspective, folks, perspective.

 

[crimsonace]

A coach of a volleyball team I'm very familiar with (a lot of the players play for my club team) has a policy of cutting any kid who isn't likely to start as a senior - or at least play some kind of role - when they are juniors. It saves him from those kind of parent problems, and also saves the kid from being embarrassed sitting there on the bench doing nothing, or having to decide for himself if it's worth going through all the practices and not get much playing time. Plus it allows the coach to give the younger players more of a chance to develop.

Most programs that have any kind of numbers have that policy. We don't keep juniors on the JV, so they usually figure it out sometime during their junior year and "cut themselves." But there's always that one kid that doesn't seem to understand that the best five get on the floor, and that they don't just get to play a lot of minutes (or any minutes) just because they're a senior. They saw the seniors in the classes ahead of them playing, and didn't understand that the 10 other kids who weren't very good in their classes moved on a long time ago ... they also didn't understand the off-season time those kids put into their games.

 

[highlander]

My favorite game interview of coach comes from a district game where the team I cover is winning a girl's basketball game by 40 points at the start of the fourth period.

With about six minutes to play, the coach walks down to where I'm sitting at the end of the scorer's table. She kneels down and says "Got any questions?"

We do the post-game interview while the game is going on, and I actually get back to the office at a decent time.