TGIF-Prep Football Thread

Covered my first game of the season last night.

The field had no hash marks and whoever was operating the scoreboard was certainly not watching the same game I was. For example, the ball would be on the 30-yard line, the scoreboard would have it on the 40.

Stats are going to be a nightmare.

 

Give me prep football season over prep basketball season any day of the week.

 

Night went pretty easy for us and we had some decent outcomes:

- Major School B - picked to win by all six of our expert prognosticators and by all four in the nearby weekly that we print - loses at Major School A. MSB's quarterback sets a state record (71 passing attempts), ties for second in single-game completions and throws for 400+ yards and five TDs in loss.

- Major School D is up 12-0 at home and watches as Out-Of-Town High turns the ball over on each of its first six possessions (three picks, three fumbles). Out-Of-Town rallies for 20-18 win to hand MSD its second home loss of three points or less in two weeks.

- Minor School B loses on the road to a team it had beat every season - and twice last year - since 1997.

- Minor School A loses on the road. It was their 12th consecutive loss (went 0-10 last year) and 21st in the last 22 games.

We don't have a Saturday edition (although we put 8-12-inch gamers online so folks can check them out on Saturday/late Friday). We have clamored for a Saturday edition but higher-ups say it won't sell (apparently they never see how fast the nearby metro paper sells in our town on Saturdays).

 

It was the third week down here. We've officially gotten the hang of running Friday night in the new design system, so that has been a big-time boost.
I've gone to the same stadium, to cover the same team, for the first three weeks so I have no fun stories of traveling to Bumfuck. All I have to deal with is the usual cast of idiots.

 

I think my game was the only one in the area to not be affected by weather. New stat system, web interface, Web site... and it's just the first week. After I filed, I went back to the newsroom to help out with calls and input results and didn't get out until 2 a.m. and crashed into my bed at 2:30 a.m.

I must say though, after working on the desk most of the summer, it did feel a little good to get back into the weekend swing.

 

Just ten minutes before the game starts, a ref sees lightning. The game must be delayed at least 30 minutes. 40 minutes later, the game starts. At the end of the first quarter, it starts pouring and lightning strike again ... players off the field, must wait at least another 30 minutes. 50 minutes later, the game starts again. After five minutes of play, some idiot ref says he sees lightning again. Must wait another 30 minutes. 45 minutes later, the game starts again.

It took 3 hours to play the first half of the game. It finally ended at 11:30. HOORAY, right when my deadline is! Got the story done and sent. It was a thriller, too. One of the most fascinating 55-0 games I've ever seen.

 

I gotta tell ya, I miss it.

Yes, it's nuts, but I miss it.

I just moved to a new state, so I am nosing around trying to find someone who will let me string for them.

I remember the weekends that started with a Friday night game, then laying out an open local pages, and continued with a 10:30 a.m. game Saturday, a rush to get to the 1:20 p.m. game, grabbing dinner on the way to the office, writing both stories and banging out a couple of pages, then coming in Sunday to do the notebooks and the local page.

Why did I ever leave?

 

I'm dropping an extra $60 per month for internet service through my cell phone. Just plug a cable into a USB port on the laptop, punch a button and wait for the computer gremlins to do their thing.

It may not be worth the investment unless I can browbeat the beancounters into covering a good chunk, but I can get online anywhere I can get a cell signal. Since getting the service in March, it's been pretty reliable with no serious glitches on deadline.

As for my first week of the season ...

Thursday: Traveled 130+ miles (one way) as one of our two city schools opened a day earlier than normal. Game was a horrific mismatch with locals scoring on all but one possession. Seven different players had touchdowns. Game kicked off at 7:30, but clock problems caused a slight delay. It ended at 10:20 (why didn't they go with a running clock after it was 41-6 at halftime?) and we had to be off the floor by 11:25. Coach sequesters the team in the locker room for a good 15 minutes before I can get any quotes (what was there to discuss after a 55-point win? and why didn't I take my stat sheets and total the box?), but I got an 18-inch gamer and expanded box turned around in less than an hour.

Friday: Get sent out to cover an area game that ended at precisely 10 p.m. Story was significantly shorter (maybe 12 inches) because we have something like 20 games to get in, and it called for the standard box score. Got it all turned around in 45 minutes, then drove 40 miles back to the office and handled a couple of calls.

Saturday: Still feeling a little rusty with my stat keeping, went to an 11 a.m. game in the next town over just for practice.

That's three games in 42 1/2 hours.

Good thing I like football.

 

Haven't been to a high school game yet where they let you in just by saying, "I'm with the Daily Bugle." That's what they make press cards for.

 

Went out to a high school game for the first time in over two years last night to cover the game. I was overwhelmed with stats for the first half, but collected myself and did better in the second half. Boy, sometimes I miss the desk!

 

no you did not

 

yes I did too

a) The stadium is maybe 15 miles from my place

II) I've dealt with both head coaches for a while and wanted to say hidy

3) The pressbox is know to put out a pretty good spread and I wasn't averse to a free meal