Interviewing high school and NFL coaches

[Mr. X]

Who is easier to get an interview with -- the football coach of a or the high school you cover or the market's NFL team? I vote for the NFL coach because all you need to do is email or call a member of the team's PR staff and ask when the coach will be available following practice.

With the high school coach -- especially one who teaches an academic subject -- a lot of phone calls and emails have to be sent. There's also the go to the high school option, which includes just hoping you'll cross paths with the coach.

I'm mainly asking so I can let the publisher know how difficult it is to interview the football coach.

 

[Steak Snabler]

No doubt some guys are difficult to get on the phone. That's when you have to just show up at practice. Nine out of 10 of them will stop and ask "do you need me?" when they spot you lurking. If not, you just wait for a water break and walk over.

 

[PaperClip529]

While a high school coach's schedule can occasionally be difficult to navigate, how is this even a question?

 

[Steak Snabler]

Accuse one of his players in print of fellating farm animals. That will get his attention.

[/crossthread]

 

[SoloFlyer]

It's high school sports. Suck it up and just show up to practice.

 

[Batman]

It helps to call ahead, but for the high school coaches find out what their class schedule is and find a time where they're free. Most have a free period during the day or 30 minutes before practice when (unless they're a total jerk) they'll be happy to accommodate you.
If it's a standard game week interview, shoot them a text the night before saying, "Hey, I'm Mr. X with the Podunk Shopper. I need to talk to you about your game this week with Shelbyville. Is there a good time to call you or catch you tomorrow?"

 

[Spartan Squad]

I had four high school football previews to set up. I sent out four texts and got answers immediately. I also showed up to practices during the summer. I've shot the **** with all of them. I've thrown all of them a bone from time to time knowing it would help me get them on the phone when I needed something. There are coaches out there who hate it when outlets only call them before the season starts and are never contacted again. You have to put in the work.

If you are just starting a relationship, reach out to the AD and get the coach's phone number. Find out when practice is and head down either right before it starts and introduce yourself or swing by at the end and grab the coach when he's finishing up. Go the extra mile.

Yes NFL coaches can be easier because they have set media availability and you have PR guys who can help you if you need a one-on-one. But there's nothing wrong with your publisher expecting you to get an interview with the high school football coach. If you can't do it, that's on you. You have to put in the work. There are rare instances where a coach is an asshole no matter how much you go out of your way to accommodate him, but again, that's rare. Put in the leg work. There's no excuse.

 

[playthrough]

Not every NFL PR department is in the business of saying "yes" to interview requests. Away from the scheduled press conferences and locker room scrums, it's "no" or "hell no" unless you've got a rock-solid pitch, especially from an outlet they don't deal with every day. And not a pitch for a story that's going to potentially make the team look bad.

 

[albert777]

I had four high school football previews to set up. I sent out four texts and got answers immediately. I also showed up to practices during the summer. I've shot the **** with all of them. I've thrown all of them a bone from time to time knowing it would help me get them on the phone when I needed something. There are coaches out there who hate it when outlets only call them before the season starts and are never contacted again. You have to put in the work.

If you are just starting a relationship, reach out to the AD and get the coach's phone number. Find out when practice is and head down either right before it starts and introduce yourself or swing by at the end and grab the coach when he's finishing up. Go the extra mile.

Yes NFL coaches can be easier because they have set media availability and you have PR guys who can help you if you need a one-on-one. But there's nothing wrong with your publisher expecting you to get an interview with the high school football coach. If you can't do it, that's on you. You have to put in the work. There are rare instances where a coach is an asshole no matter how much you go out of your way to accommodate him, but again, that's rare. Put in the leg work. There's no excuse.

This X a million.

I'd take about a week to just veg and do nothing, work-wise, after the All-Area Baseball Team (along with PY & COY) came out, usually the first or second weekend in June, then I'd start making the rounds at the area high schools, stopping in the coaches' office or hitting them after the "voluntary" workouts and just chatting. That's also a good time to start meeting players; they see you coming around and they start getting comfortable with talking to you, and vice versa.

And not just for football, but basketball as well. June was the month when certain schools hosted summer leagues and those were excellent opportunities to get to know and hob-nob with a lot of coaches in one setting, even coaches from outside the coverage area, because you never know when having their acquaintance will pay off down the line.

Even the most prickly coaches were more relaxed in the early summer, and they all want publicity for their team and themselves, even if they don't like or trust the media. Plus, it gets you out of the office. But even during the season, I was never shy about going to practice. I might have to wait around a bit, but they'd talk to me when they got a chance, and call over any players I might need for an interview.

 

[HanSenSE]

I believe it was the late Jimmy Breslin who said sometimes you've just got to get out of the office. Won't kill you on a high school beat.

One year for the football tab I drew the biggest PITA coach for the preview tab. Dude never called in scores or highlights and didn't even have voicemail on his home phone. A couple of days before deadline, I told the desk I was headed out to their practice the next day and would come back with a story come hell or high water. So went out about the time I figured school was out and when I got there, bumped into one of the JV coaches, who was also softball coach and a good guy, who let me know the varsity was practicing in a couple of hours and also said he'd give me a hand getting an interview. Came back later and, after the varsity coach grumbled a bit, got my story.

 

[DanOregon]

Hanging out with someone and watching them do what they do - whatever it is - is the best way to get them to talk to you.

 

[Batman]

This X a million.

I'd take about a week to just veg and do nothing, work-wise, after the All-Area Baseball Team (along with PY & COY) came out, usually the first or second weekend in June, then I'd start making the rounds at the area high schools, stopping in the coaches' office or hitting them after the "voluntary" workouts and just chatting. That's also a good time to start meeting players; they see you coming around and they start getting comfortable with talking to you, and vice versa.

And not just for football, but basketball as well. June was the month when certain schools hosted summer leagues and those were excellent opportunities to get to know and hob-nob with a lot of coaches in one setting, even coaches from outside the coverage area, because you never know when having their acquaintance will pay off down the line.

Even the most prickly coaches were more relaxed in the early summer, and they all want publicity for their team and themselves, even if they don't like or trust the media. Plus, it gets you out of the office. But even during the season, I was never shy about going to practice. I might have to wait around a bit, but they'd talk to me when they got a chance, and call over any players I might need for an interview.

It's also a good time to get to know the assistant coaches, who often run the summer teams and who you should never blow off for three reasons:
1) The most obvious being they hear things, and if you talk to them you'll hear things too.
2) They often have important jobs within the program you might not know about, like being the stat guy or the recruiting guy. One of our big football programs has a mid-level assistant who handles both of those jobs. Getting to know him a bit in those relaxed settings has paid off on a lot of levels.
3) Today's assistant is tomorrow's head coach, particularly at small schools or in sports with smaller staffs like basketball and baseball. Big name coach leaves, a lot of times they turn to the next guy in line to step up. If you've gotten to know the assistants, you've got a leg up.
They might also wind up going to another school and can help you out in a pinch. Several times over the years I've called one of our former local coaches who had moved on, but still played the local teams, or even another coach in the same district that I've become friendly with. Can't get the local guy for whatever reason? Call the other one and see if they can help you out.

 

[TexasVet]

sometimes you've just got to get out of the office. Won't kill you on a high school beat.

I can't agree more with that saying. I mean, who wants to sit at a desk all day anyway? When I ran newspapers, it worried me when I saw writers and ad sales people at their desks all day. They weren't out getting photos, stories or ads by sitting at a desk.

High school ball is about building relationships. Go and watch a practice. Go during offseason workouts on the track or in the weight room. Cover their bad seasons as thorough as you'd cover a great season. If you're at a small-town paper, show up for the first half of the JV home game to grab a couple of photos, and ask the JV coach to get you the scoring summary the next day. Talk to the coach during down time. Building relationships is a big thing when dealing with high school coaches. When you become the authority in covering their school, no matter which sport, then it's a lot easier to get scores, stats, features, etc. And that also will make your job a little easier.

Good luck!

 

[Cybersport2015]

Most high-school head coaches are pretty accommodating; they know the media needs preview material. Where it comes to football, I'll ALWAYS go to practice to get my preseason stuff. I'll usually try to do it as early in the preseason as possible so it's less of an intrusion. The coaches have a pretty good idea of who their mainstays will be and they know what you're looking for. Generally the best time to schedule interviews is right after practice, or in between workouts if they're in two-a-days. I leave it up to the coach as to the time that works for him and set my schedule accordingly.

When it comes to other sports, I end up doing a lot of it by e-mail because of time constraints.

 

[studthug12]

that saying. I mean, who wants to sit at a desk all day anyway? When I ran newspapers, it worried me when I saw writers and ad sales people at their desks all day. They weren't out getting photos, stories or ads by sitting at a desk.

High school ball is about building relationships. Go and watch a practice. Go during offseason workouts on the track or in the weight room. Cover their bad seasons as thorough as you'd cover a great season. If you're at a small-town paper, show up for the first half of the JV home game to grab a couple of photos, and ask the JV coach to get you the scoring summary the next day. Talk to the coach during down time. Building relationships is a big thing when dealing with high school coaches. When you become the authority in covering their school, no matter which sport, then it's a lot easier to get scores, stats, features, etc. And that also will make your job a little easier.

As spread out and thin as the staffs are now, if you're sitting at your desk ....

 

[Doc Holliday]

I had four high school football previews to set up. I sent out four texts and got answers immediately. I also showed up to practices during the summer. I've shot the **** with all of them. I've thrown all of them a bone from time to time knowing it would help me get them on the phone when I needed something. There are coaches out there who hate it when outlets only call them before the season starts and are never contacted again. You have to put in the work.

If you are just starting a relationship, reach out to the AD and get the coach's phone number. Find out when practice is and head down either right before it starts and introduce yourself or swing by at the end and grab the coach when he's finishing up. Go the extra mile.

Yes NFL coaches can be easier because they have set media availability and you have PR guys who can help you if you need a one-on-one. But there's nothing wrong with your publisher expecting you to get an interview with the high school football coach. If you can't do it, that's on you. You have to put in the work. There are rare instances where a coach is an asshole no matter how much you go out of your way to accommodate him, but again, that's rare. Put in the leg work. There's no excuse.

This is all excellent advice. Getting to know a coach, calling him, going by to visit with him, watch some practice, make sure you see him and he sees you. If you do these things, these guys will help you 10 fold. It's all a matter of putting in a little extra effort.

As for sitting at your desk all day interviewing people on the phone, who does that ****? I really must be old school. I do 95% of my work in person. This business was built on relationships.

 

[Dog8Cats]

I agree with the posts recommending face time with coaches and players, even if the payoff is not immediate.

When I was in the newspaper biz, however, I also know that sometimes, it really was NOT worth the 75- or 90-minute round-trip drive (and then the on-site time to build relationships) to do some face-showing just to build rapport with coaches and players. Not worth it in the sense that I needed to keep my hours to minimally over 40 per week.

It's one thing if you're a dedicated high school reporter, with no demands other than generating copy on that beat. If you also have desk duties and/or multi-beat demands, real analysis must be done. Also, remember that summertime frequently means short-staff time.

 

[joe_schmoe]

Unless you work for a major media outlet,getting an interview (at least one on one) with an NFL coach isn't exactly a piece of cake. You are pretty much on their schedule, either the hour-long (if you're lucky) presser or a set time and time limit individual interview (coach may agree to see you at 6 a.m. and give you 10 minutes). HS coaches usually are much more flexible. "Come after practice, come at lunch, come before practice, what time works best for you?, etc). Most HS coaches want the publicity and the press for the team and they understand your needs. Most NFL coaches don't care if you talk to them or not, because people are going to watch the games anyway.

 

[MNgremlin]

This X a million.

I'd take about a week to just veg and do nothing, work-wise, after the All-Area Baseball Team (along with PY & COY) came out, usually the first or second weekend in June, then I'd start making the rounds at the area high schools, stopping in the coaches' office or hitting them after the "voluntary" workouts and just chatting. That's also a good time to start meeting players; they see you coming around and they start getting comfortable with talking to you, and vice versa.

And not just for football, but basketball as well. June was the month when certain schools hosted summer leagues and those were excellent opportunities to get to know and hob-nob with a lot of coaches in one setting, even coaches from outside the coverage area, because you never know when having their acquaintance will pay off down the line.

Even the most prickly coaches were more relaxed in the early summer, and they all want publicity for their team and themselves, even if they don't like or trust the media. Plus, it gets you out of the office. But even during the season, I was never shy about going to practice. I might have to wait around a bit, but they'd talk to me when they got a chance, and call over any players I might need for an interview.

No longer the case at one MN high school.



UPDATE: So apparently this is a misunderstanding of the policy, and a committee will look into it.