FAN IS SHORT FOR “FANATIC”

By Tim Richardson

In today’s 24-hour news cycle and vast social media universe, athletes, entertainers and anyone with a public persona operates in a fishbowl. Living in the public eye is not easy and you must be conscience of how your words or actions can be construed, or misconstrued, by those watching/listening/reading you.

The world of sports reporting is not exempt from this notion as fans tend to hang on every word from writers, broadcasters, etc. This scrutiny is even greater for former players who trade in their cleats for a microphone or recorder. Forget the seven-second delay or dump button, the filter between their brain and mouth needs to work harder than the Energizer Bunny to avoid the backlash that can be sparked by their words.

ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit is the latest example of how fans can go too far with their criticism. Love him or hate him, Herbstreit is one of the best in the business today. That said, he’s also not shy about his love for his alma mater, Ohio State University, where he played football from 1989 to 1993 and was the starting quarterback as a senior. He’s been caught on camera on the sidelines celebrating when the Buckeye’s make an interception or cheering after a great play by the team, and some say his actions make him a “homer” for Ohio State.

But it’s his efforts to be objective when discussing his former school that have caused Herbstreit to make a life-changing move... literally. Earlier this week, after walking the tight-rope for more than a dozen years between national sports broadcaster and hometown kid, Herbstreit had enough and moved his family from Ohio to Tennessee.

The relentless criticism he received from what he referred to as “the vocal minority” of Ohio State fans finally got to the proud Buckeye as he was tired of defending himself to those fanatics (see, remember when I said FAN was short for FANatic) who couldn’t grasp that his job at the largest sports network in the world requires him to be objective and fair... or he will be an ex-college football analyst.

In an article in The Columbus Dispatch, Herbstreit, said “Nobody loves Ohio State more than me. I still have a picture of Woody Hayes and my dad (Jim, a former OSU player) in my office, and nobody will do more than I do for the university behind the scenes. But I've got a job to do, and I'm going to continue to be fair and objective. To continue to have to defend myself and my family in regards to my love and devotion to Ohio State is unfair."

Those in sports know that cheering is forbidden in the press box. Here’s the thing, those pictures of Herbstreit were of him as a fan or a father with his kids, not on the set of ESPN’s College GameDay in his professional role. Herbstreit shouldn’t be criticized for rooting for his alma mater on his “own time,” and he certainly does not warrant being run out of his boyhood home because a small group of fanatics are clueless to how the job is done.

Frankly, people need to get a grip on reality verses a game... which is all college football is when you strip away all of the pomp and circumstance. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE college football and my Saturdays in the fall surround Notre Dame games. But being a fan doesn’t give you the right to be a “fanatic” whose actions cause a man to uproot his family, leave the town he loves and alter the lives of his children when all he was trying to do was his job.

Ironically, Herbstreit announced his move via Twitter... but the criticism found him there too.

Tim Richardson is Executive Vice President at Maroon PR. Contact him at Tim@MaroonPR.com

Marathon Fundraising Evolves

By Pete Deluca


Last weekend, thousands of runners took part in the 2010 ING NYC Marathon. With an estimated 46,000 people, the race is one of the largest and most popular running events in the world. Most participants endure months of grueling training and arrive at the starting line eager to begin their 26.2-mile trek. But one runner, selected to start dead last.


His name is Amani Toomer, former wide receiver for the New York Giants, and his run from Staten Island to Central Park took on special meaning thanks to a unique fundraising opportunity from Timex. For every person Toomer ran by, Timex agreed to donate $1 to New York Road Runner’s Club Youth program, a local charity that promotes distance running, health, and fitness. To pass as many people as possible, Toomer selected to start very last.

He finished the race in 4:13 – just outside his goal of under four hours, but still fast enough to break the record set by Hall of Famer Lynn Swann, who previously held the mark for the fastest time in the NYC Marathon by a former NFL player at 4:23. Is it estimated that Toomer passed 20,000 people on his way to the finish line.

Raising money for charity is always a great idea. Sponsoring or donating to a particular runner is certainly not uncommon, but there is something refreshing about the way Timex went about this.

It’s interesting. It’s engaging. It makes for a great story before, during, and after the event.

My hat is off to Timex for recognizing an excellent opportunity to donate thousands of dollars to a local charity while tastefully promoting their company.

Pete Deluca is an Associate Account Executive. Contact him at pete@maroonpr.com.

Whistle Blowers

By Tim Richardson

Two weeks ago, I read a story on Yahoo! Sports about dozens of high school football referees potentially being penalized by the Washington Officials Association (WOA) for using pinks whistles in a series of Thursday night games to raise awareness about breast cancer. The refs also donated their game checks to a nonprofit dedicated to breast cancer education and research.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States, other than skin cancer. According to the American Cancer Society's (ACS) most recent estimates, there were over 207,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer in women in the U.S. in 2010. Additionally, there were more than 50,000 new cases of carcinoma in situ (CIS), a non-invasive and earliest form of breast cancer.

Another article in USA Today cites WOA Commissioner Todd Stordahl as saying the refs “didn’t ask permission and disregarded official rules for appropriate uniforms.” He continued by adding that the refs actions “set a bad example for players.” The Commissioner also said the organization might keep these refs from officiating playoff games…which would result in them losing two game checks.

The ACS estimates that approximately 40,000 women lost their lives to breast cancer in 2010…and Mr. Stordahl is concerned about whistles not being black and the refs not getting “permission” to bring attention to an extremely noble cause? What type of example is that setting for players?

Look, I get it. We live in a world that has rules, policies, laws, etc. But sometimes, rules just don’t work. Now don’t be ridiculous and say I’m calling for a world with anarchy. I’m not saying that at all. The “rules” that I’m referring to are trivial things like…well, the color of a football referee’s whistle.

This story quickly reached the masses and the outcry of support for the referees grew, while the consternation toward the WOA swelled. This is a highly sensitive issue, so within hours Mr. Stordalh’s email address and contact information were being shared via sites such as Facebook. I certainly don’t agree with posting the man’s information all over the Internet, but it makes you wonder how much the public uproar and negative attention in the media factored into the WOA’s decision not to penalize the referees.

On October 25, SeattleTimes.com posted a story in which Mr. Stordahl reiterated that the WOA's issue was that the officials “did not follow proper procedure in electing to change from the standard black whistles, considered part of the uniform.

To the WOA’s credit, they have allowed officials to use pink whistles at other sporting events, including volleyball, soccer and basketball. But their rationale for deciding against the use of pink whistles at football games was “to keep the focus on the players and games.” So they weren’t concerned about people being focused on the players at the volleyball, soccer and basketball games…huh?

The WOA did inform the referees that there were consequences for rules violations if they went ahead with their plans to use pink whistles. But the officials already had the whistles and pledged their game checks to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

I guessing the two and a half million breast cancer survivors in the United States, along with their families and friends, are thankful for people like these referees in Washington.

To me, the big picture is way more important…not to mention life altering.

Tim Richardson is Executive Vice President. Contact him at tim@maroonpr.com.

Bill Simmons Accidently Breaks Moss News via Twitter

By Stefen Lovelace

The latest NFL news is that mercurial wide receiver Randy Moss will be traded from the New England Patriots to the Minnesota Vikings for a third round draft pick.

Every major outlet is reporting this is a done deal. News of the deal was announced late last night, when outlets were reporting that Foxsports.com had broken the story.

The story may have actually been broken by ESPN.com columnist Bill Simmons by accident. Last night Simmons tweeted “Moss vikings”. The tweet didn’t make a lot of sense, and Simmons clarified a couple of minutes later that he meant to send the tweet as a direct message, as he had heard a rumor that a Moss trade to the Vikings might be in the works. He had no intention of sending the tweet to his one million-plus followers. He deleted the tweet a few minutes later, but was too late.

Moments later, ProFootballTalk tweeted “Unintended tweet sparks rumors of Moss to Minnesota” in reference to Simmons‘ mistake. Then Foxsports.com’s Jay Glazer tweeted “Yes, vikes and pats have been working on trade that sends randy moss to vikes and r very clode (sic) but can't be done ...” Once that was tweeted, every major outlet started reporting it and credited Foxsports.com on the story. To Glazer’s credit, he later acknowledged via tweet that Simmons beat him to the story, but he had been following it all day.

Simmons has always maintained that he’s not a reporter, but rather a columnist. He hails from Boston, and part of his persona is that he writes from the perspective of a fan and just comments on what he sees. But through Simmons writing, expertise, and platform, he’s managed to make some pretty major contacts in sports. If Simmons says something about the NBA or a Boston sports team, there’s a good chance there’s some truth to it.

This is probably the first actual story Simmons has broken since working for ESPN. I’m pretty sure he never thought it would be like this though.

Stefen Lovelace is an Associate Account Executive. Contact him at stefen@maroonpr.com.

Terrell Owens: Risk vs. Reward

By Pete Deluca

News broke late Tuesday night that free agent wide receiver Terrell Owens reached an agreement to play for the Cincinnati Bengals this fall. Owens spent the offseason out of the NFL spotlight after a one-year stint with the Buffalo Bills, resulted in the worst statistical season of his 14-year career.

Even through all the struggles that the Bills’ faced last season Owens still managed to flash signs of being the T.O. we all remembered.

In his prime, he was arguably the most dominant receiver to take the field. If he never played another down, he would retire third all-time in both receiving touchdowns and receiving yards. He is one of only 6 players to have 1,000 career receptions and the high level of play he maintained throughout his career earned him five All-Pro selections, six trips to the Pro Bowl, and a starting spot on the NFL 2000’s All-Decade team.

Now… to the other side of the coin. The national attention he’s received off the field made “TO” a household name for all the wrong reasons. He had press conferences where he’s called out his quarterbacks for everything from their performance to their sexuality. Other bizarre incidents include a risqué Monday Night Football skit, a mysterious hydrocodone overdose, and a public meltdown during a postseason press conference. In 14 seasons, Owens racked up thousands of dollars in fines – which included a $35,000 punishment for spitting in the face of Atlanta Falcons cornerback DeAngelo Hall.

Like Owens, the Cincinnati Bengals are no stranger to off-the-field controversy. In fact, since 2000 the Bengals lead all NFL teams with 31 arrests. Their current roster is littered with high risk players including Tank Johnson, Adam “Pacman” Jones, and Cedric Benson - who was arrested for assault one month ago after he punched a bartender in the face.

Owens had his share of controversy, but he does not have a criminal record. He claims to have never drank alcohol, smoked cigarettes, or done drugs and, in spite of being one of the oldest receivers in the league, he still has the raw talent to take over a game. The Bengals, who were Super Bowl contenders headed into the season, may have just made the move that puts them over the top… or it may destroy their whole team.

Either way - get your popcorn ready!

Pete Deluca is an Associate Account Executive. Contact him at pete@maroonpr.com.

Tim Richardson Discusses New Autograph Rules

By Tim Richardson; Video by Abby Draper



Tim Richardson is the Executive Vice President of Maroon PR. Contact him at tim@maroonpr.com.

In the news for the wrong reasons… AGAIN

By Matt Saler

Once again, NFL quarterback Michael Vick is in the news for all of the wrong reasons. On June 25, Vick was at his own birthday party in Virginia Beach, Va. At some point during the evening, shortly after Vick left the venue, a shooting took place at the restaurant. Vick is denying any part of it. To date, evidence has been shown that Vick was indeed not at the venue at the time of the incident. But that being said, why is Michael Vick in the news again? Why are we even discussing this? Why on earth is Michael Vick putting himself at a place where an incident of this magnitude would occur?

These are questions that the public wants answers to… particularly his employers, his fans and the general public. Vick is still deeply entrenched in the stage of repairing his image. Why is Vick surrounding himself with these individuals? Do we ever see Peyton Manning or Donovan McNabb in situations like these? One would think that spending a year under McNabb would help Vick make “common sense” decisions about staying away from these incidents.

I want to be clear… by no means am I accusing Vick of having something to do with this incident. I am not. All evidence shows the contrary. I am simply stating that Vick needs to use significantly better judgment in whom he surrounds himself with, particularly during this delicate time.

The other day, Vick released a statement to the media regarding the event:


"On June 25, 2010, I attended a birthday party held in my honor at The Guadalajara's Restaurant in Virginia Beach, Va.," the statement read. "After I left the event, I learned that a man was shot outside the restaurant.

"I want to assure everyone that I had nothing to do with that incident. I left the restaurant prior to it occurring and did not witness what happened. Following the incident, I reported it to the Philadelphia Eagles and to representatives of Commissioner Roger Goodell of the NFL. In addition, I cooperated with and answered any and all questions from law enforcement officials investigating this matter. My statements, from the beginning, explained that I was not there at the time of the shooting and had no knowledge of the events surrounding it. I have been completely truthful and fully cooperative from the very beginning and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement and the NFL as this investigation continues."


The statement reads well and expressed his cooperation in all aspects of the investigation. But nowhere does it state that he will use better judgment in avoiding these situations in the future. One can only hope he will. His future depends on it.

Matt Saler is an Account Executive. Contact him at matt@maroonpr.com.