Press box horror stories

That's positively, absolutely outstanding.

 

The MEAC ain't much better. Ask anyone who had to deal with former FAMU SID Alvin Hollins. Nice guy. Horribly bad in every aspect of his job.

 

Careful, my friend ... I have photos of you beating on a beloved colleague in the Colisee press box (heh heh heh)

 

I don't care if it's cold and you're the wife of the PA announcer; get the fuck out of the pressbox, or at least have the courtesy to stand, so those of us who are working have a place to sit.

 

Had that happen about 15 years ago or so. District track meet. Started to rain -- nothing too heavy -- near the end.
After tracking down my last interview, went to the press box with other reporters to get results before heading to the office.
Lady guarding the door told us "No press in the press box" before shutting the door in our faces.

 

I once covered a nationally televised D-II football game in which a local radio crew was booted from their booth in the middle of the first quarter so that one of the school's president's wife and daughter could sit in the air conditioning. Mind you, there were 20 open seats with great views in the spacious press box. But they had to have a nice glass-enclosed room, I guess so that the reporters weren't tempted to bother them for autographs, what with them being celebrities and all.

 

Eh, one of my pet peeves is all the non-press in many press boxes. Look, I understand the big shot donors want a nice place to watch the game without getting splinters in the butt from the wooden bleachers. OK, then build a "boosters box" and make it separate from the "press box".

I really don't ask for much. Just a clean, dry place to work with enough of a desk/ledge that I can set my papers (rosters, stat sheets, etc.) and a reasonably unobstructed view of the playing area. I've never asked for free food, special chairs or any sort of special treatment. Just the basics I need to do a reasonable job.

 

In my state, the high school soccer playoffs are played in late January/early February, which is inevitably the coldest two-week period of the year. Was covering state semifinals at one local school and the press box was jam-packed with the entire boys team, who were seeking refuge from the freezing rain while waiting for the girls team to play. And of course they stayed church-mouse quiet the whole time.

 

Good heavens, that's a terrible schedule. I've worked places where soccer was a fall sport (Sept-Nov) and places where it was a spring sport (March-May), even one place where it was fall for girls and spring for boys... go figure.

But a winter sport? Those clowns are just asking for trouble with a schedule like that.

 

Except for the weather, it works out pretty well from a scheduling standpoint. There's a little overlap with football (the kickers), but not much with baseball. One of my local schools made the state finals in soccer last year. Three of their starters also started on the baseball team, which won the state championship.

 

Dealing with overlaps is almost unavoidable. Had a school once where football players played in one town on Friday night and a bunch of them suited up for the soccer team playing in a different town on Saturday afternoon.

 

Bobby Herbert escorted from press box during LSU-'Bama game.

I know, this surprises no one that he was cheering.