The Fifth Down (August 2009)
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FWAA writing contest winners The results from the FWAA's 17th Calif. Places 1-3 receive certificates and annual Best Writing Contest are listed cash prizes, and honorable mentions get August 2009 below. All places will be recognized at certificates. Winners in each category the FWAA's Annual Awards Breakfast on also will will receive commemorative foot- Vol. 47, No. 3 Jan. 7, 2010, at the BCS Championship balls. The winning entries are the focal Game Media Hotel in Newport Beach, point of this issue of the Fifth Down. Inside this issue: GAME First place: Andy Staples, SI.com Second place: Bob Condotta, Seattle Times President’s column 2 Third place: Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review-Journal Honorable mention: Eric Thomas, Carlisle Sentinel; Stewart Mandel, SI.com; Pete DePrimio, Fort Wayne News-Sentinel Column winner: Gene LOOSE DEADLINE Wojciechowski, 3 First place: J. Brady McCollough, Kansas City Star ESPN.com Second place: Jason King, Yahoo! Sports Third place: David Barron, Houston Chonicle Honorable mention: Ron Higgins, Memphis Commercial Appeal; Pete Thamel, New Game winner: York Times; Kirk Bohls, Austin American-Statesman Andy Staples, 4 SI.com FEATURE First place: Steve Wieberg , USA Today Features winner: Second place: Josh Robbins, Orlando Sentinel Steve Wieberg, 6 Third place: Gene Wojciechowski, ESPN.com USA Today Honorable mention: Jake Trotter, The Oklahoman; Stewart Mandel, SI.com; Brian Landman, St. Petersburg Times 2009-10 Best Writ- COLUMN ing Contest Rules 8 First place: Gene Wojciechowski, ESPN.com and Procedures Second place: Michael Lev, The Orange County Register Third place: Peter Kerasotis, Florida Today Honorable mention: David Teel , Newport News Daily Press; Leopold Geans, Enterprise winner: Ogsportsshow.com; David Jones, Harrisburg Patriot-News John Helsley, The 10 Oklahoman ENTERPRISE First place: John Helsley, The Oklahoman Spot news, loose Second place: Bud Withers, Seattle Times deadline winner: J. Third place: J. Brady McCollough, Kansas City Star Brady McCollough, 13 Honorable mention: Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review-Journal; Al Lesar, South Kansas City Star Bend Tribune; Cory Giger, Altoona (Pa.) Mirror Page 2 THE FIFTH DOWN President George Schroeder Eugene Register-Guard First Vice President President’s column Tim Griffin ESPN.com In the last edition ● Use and sale of photographs taken of the Fifth Down, by news organizations at SEC events Second Vice President Tommy Hicks I wrote that the would be restricted, while the SEC and Mobile Press-Register Southeastern its schools would be allowed to use Conference , those photographs in their publications Bob Asmussen more than any and on their Web sites. Champaign News-Gazette Chadd Cripe other conference, ● In-game blogging and other Internet Idaho Statesman appears to get the transmissions — with the definition to be Joseph Duarte need for good re- determined by the SEC — would most Houston Chronicle lations with the likely be prohibited. Blogs? Twitter? Antonya English media. The con- Facebook status updates? Whatever the St. Petersburg Times text was media next thing is? If the SEC deems it a “real- Tom Kensler guides — the time description,” it’s against the policy. Denver Post SEC is for ’em — Hard to know what that means, but it’s Malcolm Moran GEORGE but that wasn’t reasonable to assume a tweet — “Great Knight Foundation SCHROEDER Lenn Robbins the only evidence move by Tebow, the guy is fantastic” — New York Post that shows the might be construed as a threat. Phil Steele league is media-friendly. There’s more, and again, I’d encour- Phil Steele Magazine How then to take the latest maneu- age every FWAA member to review the Paul Strelow vers? policy, and to make sure your organiza- The State (S.C.) In late July, the SEC issued a media tion has a handle on it, even if you’re not Phil Stukenborg credentials policy that was, to be kind, covering the SEC. There are credential- Memphis Commercial Appeal draconian. Probably unenforceable. Per- ing issues with other conferences; sev- John Davis haps illegal. And for those media organi- eral intend to limit in-game Internet trans- Oxford (Miss.) Eagle Heath Dinich zations covering college sports, unac- missions (blogs, tweets, etc.). But the ESPN.com ceptable. SEC’s policy, even revised, is the most Pete DiPrimio Backlash and uproar followed, and far-reaching attempt to date by a college Fort Wayne (Ind.) News- the league backpedaled, issuing a re- sports organization to control coverage. Sentinel vised policy. It wasn’t acceptable, either The SEC’s restrictions echo the poli- Ryan Finley — at least not according to the letter cies of professional leagues; the battles Arizona Daily Star sent to SEC commissioner Mike Slive by between media organizations and those Pete Fiutak a combination of heavy-hitting media leagues have been going on for a while College Football News groups (the American Society of News now. It’s also the SEC’s attempt to deal Kevin Gorman Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Editors, Associated Press Managing Edi- with new, ever-changing technology. Anthony Hanshew tors and Associated Press Sports Edi- We’ve seen how newspapers have Huntington Herald-Dispatch tors). struggled to deal with the Internet — why Dave Matter At press time, with less than two are we surprised to learn others can’t Columbia (Mo.) Daily Tribune weeks before kickoff of football season, harness it, either? Mick McGrane there hadn’t been further revision. It While this battle should be fought by San Diego Union-Tribune would be worth your while to review the individual media organizations — your Rodney McKissic entire policy, which can be found at this publisher should already be involved — Buffalo News link: http://www.secsports.com/ the FWAA agrees philosophically with Adam Sparks Daily News (Tenn.) Journal doc_lib/0910_media_credential_policy.p the ASNE, APME and APSE. We’re Jimmy Watson df hopeful the SEC will revise the revised Shreveport Times But as laid out in the letter from policy, and return to its former status as ASNE, APME AND APSE, here are the conference that gets the need for Ex-Officio three major points of contention: good media relations. Mike Finn ● Newspaper Web sites would be Reminders, odds and ends Atlantic Coast Conference prohibited from using video or audio ● The final FWAA membership count Charles Bloom highlights from SEC games and re- for 2009-10 is more than 1,100, which is Southeastern Conference stricted in use of audio/video from inter- Joe Hornstein views. (Continued on page 5) Central Florida Page 3 THE FIFTH DOWN Column: Gene Wojciechowski Comment of the judge, Mickehy Spagnola: Really good job of reporting here, yet incorporating all the facts GENE WOJCIECHOWSKI and all sides of the story into a commentary-type piece – ESPN.com to give the reader a real feel for this strange, strange Age: 52 College: Tennessee episode in high school recruiting. Background: Wojciechowski By GENE WOJCIECHOWSKI was part of the original ESPN ESPN.com The Magazine staff in 1998 The small-town football player involved in the most and in 2005 became bizarre recruiting story, well, ever, answered the phone ESPN.com's Senior National on the third ring. Columnist. Among his career "I'm not going to make any comment on it," said highlights: taping a segment Kevin Hart, his voice subdued, almost sad. "I don't mean of ESPN's now-deceased to be impolite. I'm just going to hang up the phone." ``Halftime Blitz'' on the first A moment later, click. take at a local junior college — and doing so as play- Thursday was not a good day for Hart. How could it ers mooned him as they walked by the camera. Wo- be? The sheriff's department wanted to talk to him again. jciechowski came to ESPN from the Chicago Tribune But Wednesday was worse. Wednesday is when the and also has worked at the Los Angeles Times, Dallas pride of Fernley High School admitted that he had lied to Morning News and Denver Post. He has authored or the police, to his family, his friends, his teachers, his co-authored eight books, the most recent being The coaches, his teammates, his classmates, and anyone Bus, a New York Times bestseller' with Jerome Bettis. else in a small Nevada town who thought Hart was going Wojciechowski and his wife, Cheryl, live in Wheaton, to be the first Vaqueros player to receive a Division I Ill., where, sadly, the tile floor in the family laundry football scholarship. room features the orange and white checkerboard pat- "I've been with the Lyon County Sheriff's office for 18 tern of Neyland Stadium’s end zone. His other weak- years," said Lt. Rob Hall, "and I've never seen anything nesses: golf, the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Cubs like this." and anything written by P.J. O'Rourke and A week ago, in front of television cameras and a Dan Jenkins. packed high school gymnasium, the 6-5, 290-pound of- fensive guard placed two baseball caps on a table -- a Not long after Hart received a standing ovation at the Cal Bears cap on his right, an Oregon Ducks cap on his school assembly, word of his decision made its way to left -- and then, after a dramatic pause, put the blue-and- the recruiting chat rooms. A sampling from The Bear gold Cal hat on his head. Insider.com: "They really won me over," Hart told reporters. "1st DI player to come out of that high school? He "Coach [Jeff] Tedford and I talked a lot, and the fact that must be a superstar at the school." … "I think this quali- the head coach did most of the recruiting of me kind of fies as a KABOOM." … "Yes, I have seen him play.