Buffalo News sports writer Tom Borrelli died last week from injuries sustained on Nov. 8 when he fell off the ladder leading to the press box at Buffalo's All High Stadium. He was covering a high school football game at the time. And high school football wasn't even Borrelli's main beat. He was a highly respected lacrosse writer. The National Lacrosse League even named its "Writer of the Year" award after him.
The story is at http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/499559.html
Those of us who are old enough to have covered Texas high school football in the late '70s, early '80s, probably remember the type...it's like the ladder to the top of an RV. The stands don't go all the way up to provide access to the press box, so you have to climb the ladder to get there. Perhaps some really small schools still have this. The worst I've seen recently was at Class 1A Blue Ridge High School, where a metal staircase led to the press box.
The weird thing about Borrelli's death: The stadium was renovated in 2007, but a new press box was not installed for budgetary reasons. How different from Texas, where a new press box is among the priorities, so the superintendent and school board can have a suite to entertain VIPs, and so scouts can have more room.
Feel very lucky that most of these new/renovated high school stadiums are solidly built structures, with elevators, electrical outlets for laptops (most places), free food and drink, etc. Even those that don't have elevators have easy access to the press box from the grandstands.
So don't complain when you're shunted off into a small little corner of the press box; or when Coppell makes you go to the auxiliary press box on the visitor's side because the main box is used for entertaining; or when you have to pay for your food at Texas Stadium during playoff time; or when a 3A press box isn't air conditioned, or even has windows.
Those are minor inconveniences.
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3 comments:
Dave...Do I detect a bit of sarcasm in this piece? A day will come when they just set up a media table in the stands so there can be more room for other more important types in the press box. I overheard an AD complaining last week about "having to sit with the writers in the press box" at Texas Stadium. He wanted a suite. And people get after sports writers for their sense of entitlement to a countertop, phoneline access, and above all some peace and quiet. For the most part people are very hospitable to the media...but whatever happened to scouts doing their jobs from the stands?
No sarcasm at all. I just think we have it pretty good at most places, compared to the poor guy who fell off a ladder. But I totally agree that the day is near when they make writers sit at a media table in the stands. 25 years ago, there was a place at the scorers table at HS basketball games for two writers. Not any more.
That's why I like Plano. The Wildcats still have two seats on the table labled for media and padded courtside seats. For 4-5 years my seat was right next to the Plano bench for volleyball and basketball. If someone was in my seat they made the person get up and move. You go on the road and its totally different. Maybe some media outlet should publish a list of the most media-friendly schools to cover. Plano would be far and above my No. 1, followed by Mesquite...but you already knew that.
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