Sports Column (How many other assignments give you the option to watch TV?)

Parts of a Sports Column 1.Headline 2.Attention-getter 3.Game summary (who won, who lost, and what did it mean to your team’s standings) 4.Set the scene 5.Description of key plays 6.Reaction by coach, players, and or fans 7.What is coming up next for your team

The Pre-Pre-Game Pick something you give a crap about! But it must be an event that you can watch on TV or attend in person Options Football Baseball Volleyball NASCAR

The Pre-Game Before you even watch your event, there is some information that you’ll need: Team rosters, where is the game being played? Background of the team – how is the team doing? Injuries Any other key details

The Big Game Watch the game! Specific things to look for: The atmosphere: size of crowd, weather, lots of excitement? hushed crowd? regular game or play off? Key plays The final plays of the game If there are interviews, listen for good quotes

Writing the Article Step 1 Headline: short and catchy – deals with the focus of your story Well ahead of the curve Didn’t see that coming Angels rally for late win Bushwacked

Step 2 Attention-getter: also short, sweet, and to the point about your focus “Call this one an early-season high school football classic.” “The New York Giants kicked off their Super Bowl title defense with what else – defense.” “Broken toe or not, Charles Woodson was kicking himself Sunday.”

Step 3 Give a game summary that includes the scores and what the results of the game mean for your team. “Will Venable hit his first career homer and the San Diego Padres beat Milwaukee 5-2 Thursday night…The Brewers’ wild-card lead was trimmed to four games over Philadelphia, and they fell five games behind NL Central- leading Chicago with 22 games left.”

Step 4 Set the scene: don’t assume the reader saw the game “The crowd of 23,441 – mostly Cubs fans – erupted in a wild ovation after chanting “Let’s go Z!” throughout the final inning.” “The grouchy Ford Field crowd of 60,285…was no longer chanting “Fi-re Mil- len!” but instead creating a deafening din.”

Step 5 Describe the key plays “The big right-hander dropped to his knees and pointed to the sky with both hands after getting Erstand to swing and miss.” “Woodson nearly intercepted Johnson’s first TD, only to watch Johnson juggle the loose ball and take it in for a score that cut the Packers’ lead to ”

Step 6 Reactions/quotes by coaches, players, and/or fans “I’m a little confused right now,” Zambrano said. “I still can’t believe it. It’s a great feeling, feeling that you can’t describe.” “I told them in the huddle when we were down at the 20-yard line, I said, ‘Now we’re going to find out what we’re made of,’” Rodgers said. “And we did.”

Step 7 What’s coming up next for the team “The Brewer’s start a three game road trip at Chicago against the Cubs tomorrow.” “Up next for the Packers, the Dallas Cowboys – bring ‘em on!”