Winners in 19th annual Best Writing Contest named September 2011 Vol. 49, No. 3 Jon Solomon of The Birmingham Kerasotis, most recently of Florida To- News became a unique double winner day, picked up a first place in the Column when the results of the collegepress- category and also added second place in Inside this issue: box.com 19th annual FWAA Best Writing Game Story. The other first-place winner Contest were announced. was Curtis Eichelberger of Bloomberg Solomon won in the Game Story and News in the Enterprise Category. President’s column 2 Feature Story categories, along with fel- The FWAA will announce a new fifth low Birmingham News writer Don category winner, “Best Beat Writer for Kausler Jr. in the latter category. Peter the 2010 Season,” later in the fall. Game winner: GAME Jon Solomon 3 First Place: Jon Solomon, The Birmingham News The Birmingham News Second Place: Peter Kerasotis, Florida Today Third Place: Brett McMurphy, AOL FanHouse Honorable Mention: Kevin Armstrong, New York Daily News; Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review-Journal; Parrish Alford, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Column winner: COLUMN Peter Kerasotis 4 First Place: Peter Kerasotis, Florida Today Florida Today Second Place: Pat Forde, ESPN.com Third Place: Bud Withers, Seattle Times Honorable Mention: Gene Wojciechowski, ESPN.com; Stewart Mandel, SI.com ENTERPRISE Enterprise winner: First Place: Curtis Eichelberger, Bloomberg News Curtis Eichelberger 5 Second Place: Pete Thamel, The New York Times Bloomberg Third Place: Al Lesar, South Bend Tribune Honorable Mention: Pedro Moura, ESPN.com; Michael Casagrande, The Decatur Daily/Anniston Star; Charles Robinson and Bryan Fischer, Yahoo! Sports FEATURE Feature winners: First Place: Jon Solomon and Don Kausler Jr., The Birmingham News Jon Solomon 8 Second Place: David Hall, Freedom ENC Newspapers and Don Kausler Jr. Third Place: Kevin Armstrong, New York Daily News The Birmingham News Honorable Mention: Brian Hamilton, Chicago Tribune; Dave Matter, Columbia Daily Tribune Page 2 THE FIFTH DOWN President Tommy Hicks Mobile Press-Register President’s column First Vice President And we're off. the Week voting and the National Defen- Lenn Robbins The beginning sive Player of the Week voting. New York Post of the college Many members have asked about the football season– progress of the FWAA's negotiations Second Vice President and the latest with the Marriott to reinstate the discount Chris Dufrense round of confer- program previously available to our Los Angeles Times ence realignment members. Trust that all efforts are being Board of Directors stories – is in the made toward a resolution and we will Kirk Bohls books (and news- make everyone aware of the results of Austin American- papers, blogs, those efforts when an answer has been Statesman Tweets, emails, reached. Buddy Davis sports radio talk If you have a moment in the coming Ruston Daily Leader podcasts). I trust days, I would appreciate your feedback Cory Giger TOMMY everyone made it concerning a possible future project. Altoona Mirror through the sum- Over the years I have been asked to par- Kate Hairopoulos HICKS mer. As with all ticipate in media awareness or freshmen/ The Dallas Morning News things in our pro- team media orientation sessions at vari- Wally Hall fession, it is time to push forward to the ous schools. Often, I (or another sports- Arkansas Democrat- next game, the next story, the next web writer) am joined by a TV and radio rep- Gazette post. resentative to speak to college or high Mike Huguenin This has been a busy time for the school teams or freshmen classes about rivals.com FWAA as well. Our membership roster is our jobs and how we go about conduct- Tom Kensler holding strong at about 1,200 and while ing interviews. The main area of concen- Denver Post the focus of our recruiting efforts for new tration in these sessions has been to Iliana Limon members has passed, keep in mind that educate athletes, not only on how we go Orlando Sentinel we accept new members throughout the about our jobs, but what to expect in an Kelly Lyell year, so continue to encourage your co- interview situation. Fort Collins Coloradoan workers and friends who may not be Mock interviews can be used to Brett McMurphy members to join our number. It's a sim- demonstrate the difference in questions cbssports.com ple online process and is beneficial to asked on deadline and those asked in Jorge Milian the members and the organization. non-deadline situations. We have the Palm Beach Post I'm sure you have all received your chance to let athletes and coaches know Malcolm Moran copy of the 2011-12 directory and have the types of questions they might expect Knight Foundation noticed that it is perhaps the best direc- from us as well as explain our jobs to Randy Peterson tory the FWAA has produced. The return them in more detail, which I have found Des Moines Register of the school listings in alphabetical or- often leads to better communication Randy Rosetta der regardless of conference affiliation among all parties. Baton Rouge Daily has been overwhelmingly well-received My question to the membership is Advocate and the information provided in its pages this: is there any interest among our Zach Silva is of great value to everyone. For that, number in creating a list of members Toledo Blade we extend a huge pat on the back and who would make themselves available Andy Staples attaboy to our friend Ted Gangi, who for such sessions? The plan would be to si.com worked tirelessly to produce the directory have a few writers in each area of the Phil Steele and its contents that help us all do our country who would be willing to partici- Phil Steele Publications jobs in a more efficient manner. pate in a media awareness/orientation Jake Trotter Throughout the season some mem- session if requested. Obviously, the espn.com bers will be called upon to participate in more participants the better so that no Ex-Officio projects closely associated with our or- one writer or one news outlet is slammed Charles Bloom ganization. These projects not only con- with requests. The FWAA would make Southeastern Conference tinue to keep our name before college schools aware that member writers in John Paquette football fans, they are also additional their area were available for such pro- Big East Conference ways in which we play a part throughout jects and would assist in connecting the Joe Hornstein the season. These efforts include the school and writer. Central Florida Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of (Continued on page 7) Page 3 THE FIFTH DOWN Game winner: Jon Solomon, Birmingham News Comment by the judge, Gene Duffey: Tastefully handled Jon Solomon story of player’s passing without being too maudlin. The Birmingham News Good quotes from the player’s sister and also the Missis- Age: 35 sippi State athletic director. Worked in good information College: Maryland explaining the rare disease. Background: I am approaching six years at The Birmingham News, By Jon Solomon where I am a columnist and enter- The Birmingham News prise reporter. Despite difficult eco- nomic times for newspapers, I am TUSCALOOSA -- Little things remind the family of extraordinarily grateful to my sports Bessemer's Nick Bell that he's gone, such as Mississippi editor, Tom Arenberg, for giving me the time to dig into State buses pulling up Saturday to Bryant-Denny Stadi- meaningful subjects, even if it means no stories from me um to the echo of cowbells ringing. for a period of time. Tom is as good a sports editor as Few experiences replicate the pageantry of the pre- you will find, in terms of editing copy, challenging report- game sendoff in the South. For players and their fami- ers and fighting for stories. Before Birmingham, I cov- lies, that moment can validate that the player is making it ered the Clemson beat for seven years at the Anderson in life. (S.C.) Independent-Mail and The (Columbia, S.C.) Monica McAlpine, Nick's sister, would normally wait State. I also previously covered high school sports at for the bus with her 3-year-old son Zion so they could The Washington Post. My amazing wife, Mandy, gra- see Uncle Nicky, a starting defensive end for Mississippi ciously accepts the life of a sportswriter's wife while pur- State. suing her own goals. We have two cute boys, Daniel, 4, ''It has started to hit me this is the first game without and Josh, 2, who put up with their dad's crazy schedule. him,'' McAlpine said Saturday. ''My stomach is starting to hurt because I don't see No. 36 and my brother get off me going,'' said Linda Bell, Nick's mother. ''He's still the bus.'' alive.'' We interrupt Alabama fans grieving over the end of One day, Bell's death may keep someone else alive. their SEC West dominance to remember Nick Bell, who Birmingham's Children's Hospital has created a fund to died Nov. 2 after a battle with cancer. We pause the help fight against synovial sarcoma, the rare cancer that Cam Newton saga for a moment to remember there are killed Bell only five weeks after his diagnosis. worse things in life than allegedly shopping a player for Approximately 30 percent of patients with synovial money. sarcoma are younger than 20. Because it's a slow- Alabama's 30-10 rout of Mississippi State was as growing tumor, a person may not notice symptoms for much about the Bulldogs still grieving as it was about the some time or mistake them for conditions such as arthri- Crimson Tide still having pride.