Need help

[Oscar Madison]

Hey all. Been lurking for a while, but making this my first official post. Here's the deal. I'm a sportswriter in my first job out of college, working at a weekly newspaper in a Southern state. Part of my section each week is a column, and usually during football season I make predictions of the local high school games - typical stuff really. This year, for the local team's opening game, I picked them to lose 33-30 on the road to a rival in a neighboring city. The game was played tonight, and the home town team won in triple overtime. After the game, I went to the coach for comment and was told off with a curt, "I'm not speaking to you, you can go talk to (other team's coach) if you want comment." Attempts to get quotes from assistant coaches were also unsuccessful.

After the game when the team was leaving the locker room to get back on the buses, I met the coach again. He explained that he was not commenting because I "would expect our home town paper to pick the home town team." I said that I wrote an objective column and said it would be a close game - it wasn't like I picked the team to get blown out in a loss. He then said, "If it's a close game, I expect you to pick the home town team. I'm not commenting this week, but you can talk to me after the next game as long as there's no further problems."

Yuck. This is the first major fiasco I've been involved in. How do I handle this? I did get quotes from the losing coach.

My guess is this will blow over quickly. Don't worry about it. Tell your editor what happened and if it continues to be a problem, go to the AD, principal, superintendent, etc. Just continue to do your job and don't be intimidated by this guy.
That said, predictions are lame. I would nix them after this season. It's probably too late to do so now.

I wouldn't say lame. Predictions for high school football are one of the most read part of any newspaper. It's a shame it's the jerk coaches like this one that ruins it for everyone.

 

[Rambler]

Forget getting quotes from coaches all together. Kids don't want to read quotes from coaches. Talk to the kids.

 

[Gold]

I would call the coach and try to work it out and work out some sort of an agreement, but if it were me I would point out that you aren't a dummy and you can go to the AD and/or principal. It needs to be pointed out that the coach acted in an unprofessional manner. There are a number of ways he could have handled it. He could have ignored it, he could have teased you about it, he could have said it was close, he could have said your pick inspired the team. Any of those ways would have been better than what he did. He's trying to muscle you because you are a new guy - I'm 52 and work part-time as a sportswriter, and I can guarantee he would not have done that to me.

Having said all of that, I would state my opinion that, in principle, it is not a good idea to have predictions on games where high school students are involved. I really have a problem creating expectations about what 15 or 16 year old kids are going to do. I think it runs counter to educational purposes.

 

[DyePack]

Just tell him he sucks and move on.

 

[expendable]

I would nix the predictions after this season, but until then have fun with it. Go to a magic 8 ball and ask the winner. Perhaps flip a coin. Heads, home team wins, tails, the visitors get an upset. Then on the third week, go somewhere they have lab rats and place a pellet of food on the left (home) and one on the right (visitor). Which ever pellet gets eaten first, there's your winner. Maybe on Halloween (or for Friday Oct. 13), you could consult a ouija board.

After that, things might get so stupid sounding that the ME or publisher asks you to cease the prediction column, and then you're out before the end of the season.

 

[Ace]

I would nix the predictions after this season, but until then have fun with it. Go to a magic 8 ball and ask the winner. Perhaps flip a coin. Heads, home team wins, tails, the visitors get an upset. Then on the third week, go somewhere they have lab rats and place a pellet of food on the left (home) and one on the right (visitor). Which ever pellet gets eaten first, there's your winner. Maybe on Halloween (or for Friday Oct. 13), you could consult a ouija board.

After that, things might get so stupid sounding that the ME or publisher asks you to cease the prediction column, and then you're out before the end of the season.

I like expendable's thinking. If you are going to do predictions, have fun with it.

 

[sartysnopes]

Every time I've had a situation like this, where a coach won't comment because of a perceived "negative" story, I've shut out the coach. I talk to his kids. If he shuts them out, I say fine. I can tell the story from the other side. And besides, it's only a high school game. The world will keep turning if he doesn't comment. But from then on, I don't talk to him about anything until he comes back to me. It works almost every time.
Nine of 10 coaches love being in the paper. They feel a sense of importance from it. So demonstrate that he needs you more than you need him. He's a high school coach in small town. Remind him that he's nothing special.

 

[Ace]

Every time I've had a situation like this, where a coach won't comment because of a perceived "negative" story, I've shut out the coach. I talk to his kids. If he shuts them out, I say fine. I can tell the story from the other side. And besides, it's only a high school game. The world will keep turning if he doesn't comment. But from then on, I don't talk to him about anything until he comes back to me. It works almost every time.
Nine of 10 coaches love being in the paper. They feel a sense of importance from it. So demonstrate that he needs you more than you need him. He's a high school coach in small town. Remind him that he's nothing special.

A real Snopes would burn down the coach's barn.

 

[spaceman]

Next week, predict that the coach will get caught forking a goat.

 

[Kaylee]

I'm all for not letting the terrorists win, but this is just one reason prediction columns on preps ain't that great an idea. Really, what does it gain you? Preview the game, talk about both sides of the ball or whatever ... but leave out the score prediction.

Well put.

Thing is, prep coaches may not always be as media savvy as college coaches, because they sometimes don't HAVE to be. That's not to say all of them are turd souffles like this guy...some can be very frank and honest and well aware that ultimately they're just coaching a kids game.

This is why you can sometimes get away with doing columns and pickems for colleges but not necessarily for preps. I know it sounds ridiculous to anyone in this business, but in the mind of a guy with a buzzcut, gout, a four-tin-a-day Cope habit and a PE degree from East Central Blueball State College, a local paper SHOULD back the local team.

You can rally against how irrational it is, which it is. But you can also take steps to avoid these dustups. It's only my $0.02, but I think pickems are quite possibly the dumbest invention in the history of mankind's existence.

The only thing worse: Working with a guy who takes that stuff seriously. I used to work someplace where this moron would constantly belch out stuff like "Ooooohhh, this'll be a big week. I can catch XXXXX for second place if Northwest Magnet beats Sylvan Creek Ass Spelunking Academy."

I hated him.

 

[Vic Mackey]

Be professional. Just continue to do your job as if nothing happened. Would you stop doing predictions if the coach had reacted positively or nothing had happened?

Of course not.

Continue to do your job properly. Continue to ask him for comment, even if he ignores you. Continue to cover the team as you would under perfect circumstances. Don't let his idiocy affect your job. Don't make a 72-0 pick just to make a point. When it's all over, you should be able to look back and say, "At least I did my job professionally."

 

[expendable]

Be professional. Just continue to do your job as if nothing happened. Would you stop doing predictions if the coach had reacted positively or nothing had happened?

Of course not.

Continue to do your job properly. Continue to ask him for comment, even if he ignores you. Continue to cover the team as you would under perfect circumstances. Don't let his idiocy affect your job. Don't make a 72-0 pick just to make a point. When it's all over, you should be able to look back and say, "At least I did my job professionally."

Yeah, but it's nowhere near as fun. Seriously though Vic, you do have a point.