Marlins to sports writers: Pay $3 for some pop

This reminds me of covering HS football back in the 90s. There were like 8-10 schools in the general area including the city and nearby census-designated spots and you knew who were was good or bad by the spread. The worse the team, the better the in-game munchies. The best team in the area barely had a working water fountain. The worst of the bunch, it was a school in a high income area that dominated the country club sports and baseball but would get their asses stomped in football and basketball. One of their big boosters was a local businessman who owned a few restaurants and would cater all the games. Late in the season I'm getting people's choices for what they want to cover and my best stringer that I eventually hired full time once he graduated from college said he wanted this horrible school against an out-of-town cream puff. I asked why, because I needed him on a game that was going to decide a playoff berth. He said it's a chance to cover said school's first win in two seasons. I get that. But WHY? He stared at me for a second and goes..."I heard they are having Spud Shack cater the game tonight, and that steak and cheese stuffed potato is some of the best shit I've ever eaten."

 

Covered a football game at UTEP. Didn't do this often but showed up really hungry. Noticed they had pizzas and several other things out but weren't letting anyone eat. Asked a lady if I could get something but was told they didn't start serving until the homemade food showed up. About 10 minutes later, they brought in two or three carts filled with food. Amazing food.

 

So… did you let him go?

 

A few years ago, I was covering the BBVA Compass Bowl at Legion Field in Birmingham. I rhetorically asked the guy next to me, "Are these hot dog rolls crunchy because they're toasted or because they're stale?"

 

One time I covered a breakfast for donors of Nebraska football where coaches would come to talk. This event happened every week and could be anyone from the head coach to a grad assistant. Well attended every time and the donors soaked it all up.

I was young, but not inexperienced, and not sure what I was thinking but I grabbed a plate. I guess I was conditioned that we got that food! Also, I am almost certain one of my editors told me to as a perk for covering the god awful, crack of dawn event. One of the organizers ripped me a new one, even after telling him why I was there. I didn't really know how to respond. It was just crappy hotel food too. Opened my eyes to that stuff, although I am sure if name beat writer was there they'd yuck it up with him.

Later my editor asked how breakfast was before anything. I just said it was good or whatever. I covered that stupid thing a few more times and always timed it to not even worry about the food (probably not a bad thing). With the state of that program now, I wonder if they even still do crap events like that and if people even go? I would definitely assume they aren't covered by the media much any more.

 

I know the answer that one. Obviously, so do you.

 

There was a local football coach (had already retired from teaching) who insisted on taking the weekly sports editor out to breakfast every Tuesday. He had been coaching forever. I'm sure he had the cash. I almost never ordered anything other than a juice or Diet Coke, because I felt weird about it. Not sure if I'd look at it differently now.

 

I ended up covering the game I wanted him to cover. In return brought me back some of Spud Shack's amazing poppers that were stuffed with mozzarella and bacon. Those things were dangerous

 

Because they're left over from when Alabama still played there regularly?

 

Weathervane is seriously underrated. I made sure to hit the one in Dover multiple times while covering Loudon.

 

Legion Field still has rusted chemical drums sitting on bare ground next to the ramps underneath the stands; probably filled with God knows what substances that were banned a half-century ago. Never eat anything from that stadium that isn’t pre-packaged.

 

The same season (hell, probably within three days of each other, but I'm too lazy to look up the dates) I covered the Independence Bowl in Shreveport. It was raining outside, and because it was raining outside, it was also raining inside the press box, where the roof was mostly functional, but porous in some places. That said, compared to Legion Field, the Independence Bowl looked like a palace.