Handling Coaches

Showing respect to coaches is important in getting and keeping access to a team. Even if I am shooting for a home team and I have shot many games from their dugout, I always ask first for permission each game to shoot from the dugout. That space belongs to the team and the coach will dig you for respecting that. If I need to shoot from an opponent’s dugout to get a different angle, I ask, “Coach, may I slip in back here out of the way and shoot for a minute?” I have never been refused.

Also, keep your distance when a coach is having a post-game meeting with the team. Position yourself between the meeting and the dugout or between the meeting and the field house and be ready to respectfully approach the coach when they break.

Never talk to a coach or player during a game. A coach may chat with you a bit during a game, but that is just to relieve tension, but don’t ask a coach or player a question about the game during the game. When it comes time to get quotes after a game, don’t walk up and start asking questions. My best approach: “Is this a good time to ask a quick question, Coach?” It will help your access to the team and the coach.

Out At Second. I got to a game late, leaned
over the first base side fence and 60 seconds
later I took this picture. A lot of great
photography is just plain luck.

If you need to speak with a coach by phone, that is if you can get a coach on the phone, don’t begin with the questions. Always “Is this a good time to ask a quick question, coach?” and end with “Thank you for your time.”

Bury your ego. Coaches get 100% respect from players, parents, fans and other coaches and you will be an alien from another planet if you are a pesky reporter. Only once in my hundreds of interviews with coaches did I get a flat “no” and a go-to-hell look from a coach after a team suffered a miserable loss. I was flustered and said as he walked away, “Maybe I can give you a call tomorrow if that is OK with you.” I think I sounded like a scared puppy, but my respect paid off and the coach talked with me briefly the following afternoon. Come to think of it, that one time was not a varsity coach. Most head coaches know the routine and are respectful to give you a little time.

Have simple and relevant questions ready. Do not ask shallow questions like “What do you think about the win?,” and don’t be foolish enough to ask, “What do you think about the loss," or you can expect a go-to-hell look. I often take a few side notes during a game to ask a coach later based on key players or key plays. I sometimes open by asking a coach to explain a key play that helped the team, because coaches like to explain their strategy when their strategy goes right. And don't worry if you are not an expert in that sport, because you are a reporter, not a sports analyst.


Always ask permission from a coach to speak with a player. Sometimes that involves catching a player quickly after a game before you lose them. “Hi. My name is Chris from the paper. I want to ask you about that great catch you made, but first, can you come with me while I talk to Coach real quick.” Then you do a quick interview with the coach and end with. “Thanks for your time coach. I’m going to talk with Kim here about his defense if that is OK.”
 

Things usually happen pretty fast and interviews will differ, but be quick, be professional and be polite. I have been asked to wait outside a locker room or field house until a coach is finished taking with the team, but if you can, get your work done right after a game it will save much time.
 

When I was covering a lot of sports I tried to always get a couple of quotes from a coach and one from a player.

 

The Body of a Game Story

My game stories typically opened with an interesting synopsis of the game and final score in one or two paragraphs, like the score and how the win or loss is relevant to the season or something significant about the win like a come-back, high score, key player or winning play. I then normally get right into inside insight of the game and the main quotes. I would end with a brief of the main plays in order and the scoring order, kind of a Readers Digest play-by-play, and I would insert a coach or player quote in relation to a play.  I would often end with a brief about the upcoming game. I put insight and quotes early and play-by-play last because if it is a college or high school story, most people interested were in the stands watching and don’t need to told what they already know. However, the brief play-by-play is important to get a lot of names in the story. This is especially true with college and high school.  Also, if you are covering the same team or teams a lot, make notes during the game of players that make a difference that are not the same two or three stars of a team that get in the paper all the time.

You will figure out what works best for you and you will change it over time. My style used to be to get a quote in a story fast, like paragraph two or three. However, changed that over time and started sliding quotes in later in my stories.

A rocking reporter looks for opportunities to write sports features, but that is going to have to come at another post. Thanks for reading. Don't be stingy - share this blog.