Hello, Scorum.
This is my first post on the site. Alexei Belov contacted me about it on LinkedIn and I was excited to find out about such an innovative way to write about sports. I'm looking forward to being a part of the community.
A little about me: I am a sports writer for the La Salle NewsTribune in La Salle, Illinois, USA. I graduated from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan where I was the sports editor of the student newspaper, The Lanthorn, where I covered the top NCAA Division II football program in the country, among other things. While in college, I was also an intern at the Holland Sentinel in Holland, Michigan, where I covered local and professional athletics.
To start, I thought I'd share a little story about something that happened in college that involves the one and only T-Sizzle.
During my senior year, the photo editor and I made plans to attend a Baltimore Ravens practice. Matt Judon, GVSU's all-time leader in sacks (34 total), was drafted in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. In two years with the Ravens, he has amassed 12 sacks and indirectly ended Geno Smith's career with the New York Jets -- Smith tore his ACL after Judon sacked him, which happened to be the first sack of his career.
I texted Judon and he helped us get in contact with the Ravens, who were more than happy to host us.
The night before our 6 a.m. flight out of Grand Rapids, Mich., the Chicago Cubs were engaged in a thrilling World Series Game 7 duel with the Cleveland Indians. Everyone in the office at the school paper stayed after deadline to watch the end of the game, which didn't end until well past midnight.
I had just watched history. There was no way in hell I was going to sleep that night.
I pulled an all-nighter and in a few hours after the Game 7, I was on a plane headed for Baltimore, MD.
Upon arriving at team facilities, I watched the Ravens practice while our photographer shot it for our photo package. I saw Joe Flacco throw. I watched the team do drills. I watched kicker Justin Tucker attempt to punt the ball through the uprights. I mingled about with Ravens personnel and other members of the media on the patio overlooking the practice field.
Trying to toe the line between a professional and a total NFL fanboy took quite the effort.
After practice, the team headed into the locker room. I followed the intern who was running the show back into the team HQ and our photographer went back to the lobby to edit photos. We stop at a door in this long, dimly-lit hallway. I saw other media personnel go through the door, and the intern turned around and said, "Alright, you can head into the locker room. Matt knows your coming, then we can arrange the other interviews."
Wait, what?
He was saying I, this college kid from Michigan, this 21-year old dude who still played Madden and slept through 8 a.m. classes was worthy of entering the Ravens' locker room? I had to pinch myself.
I said, "Seriously? I can just walk in?" The intern laughed and told me to go on in. Upon entering, I made eye contact with Devin Hester, whose locker was the first one closest to the door. I saw HOF receiver Steve Smith literally five feet away from me. I walked to the middle of the room and just stood there, at a loss for words.
It's a strange feeling standing among naked NFL players.
Judon rounded a corner and I talked to him for a good 15 minutes. His teammates made joking remarks and snapped wet towels at him, but the whole time he gave me his undivided attention. I still respect the hell out of him for that. After we were done talking, I went back to the middle of the room and just relished in what was truly an incredible opportunity.
Suddenly, someone grabbed my press badge. I snapped out of my daze and looked to my left, where Terrell Suggs -- THE Terrell Suggs -- was holding my badge, looking at me.
"Who are you?"
"Wh-what? Uh..."
The intern saw this going down -- God bless this man, hopefully they promoted him -- and quickly came over to our side of the room."
"Terrell, it's okay, he's good."
"He's good?"
"Yeah, he's good."
"Ok." Suggs let go of my pass. "I was just makin' sure you weren't no spy for Belichick or nothin'."
His teammates laughed.
I said, "No man it's all good, I'm a Raiders' fan."
Suggs stopped and looked at me. "Raiders? They just kicked our ass!"
Ho. Lee. Shit. I could have died in that one moment and been perfectly content with my life's accomplishments. (The Raiders had defeated the Ravens 28-27 a few weeks prior). I had not only just met T-Sizzle, but been accused of being the henchman of the Sleeveless Sweatshirt God himself.
After that, I talked to Elvis Dumervil, another talented pass rusher with an impressive career. He was very accommodating and gave me some great stuff. Really cool dude.
I was told that Suggs had fulfilled his media obligation for the week and wouldn't be giving any quotes. That's when I made a decision: There's no way in hell I'm leaving without a Suggs quote. Seeing as this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I mustered up my courage and approached Suggs on my own.
He was standing at his locker with a pair of gym shorts pulled down past his ass for some reason. He's T-Sizzle, though, so I didn't question it. I asked him for a quote and told him I would really appreciate it. He looked at me -- he's even more intimidating than he is on TV when you're standing two feet from him - and he said, "Alright, but just one," holding out his index finger as he did so.
He proceeded to give me a hell of a quote. I thanked him and went back to the lobby.
I tried to contain my excitement through gritted teeth as I told our photographer what had just happened. Every time I think about that day, it brings a smile to my face.
We proceeded to spend the rest of the day checking out downtown Baltimore. We had a beer later, and I have to say it was one of the most rewarding beers I've had in my entire life.
We flew back to Michigan the same night. I hadn't slept in 48 hours, yet that night was one of the more sleepless nights ever.
The story and photo package went on to be a front-page story. We sent PDFs of it to the Ravens and from what I heard, everyone was really impressed. They had told us they put together a packet of national press clippings for everyone in the organization every week, and it was cool to know a student newspaper in West Michigan was included in that.
The experience reaffirmed my career path and reminded me why sports are an amazing aspect of our culture.
You can read the story on Judon here: http://www.lanthorn.com/article/2016/11/judon-baltimore-feature.
Thanks for reading, and I look forward to getting to know everyone else on here.
Cheers!
P.S.: Shameless plug -- You can view my portfolio here (https://bvtportfolio.journoportfolio.com/) and view my other work if you'd like.
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