The college baseball season is just around the corner and schools are in the finishing stages of practicing and determining lineups.
Florida A&M University's baseball team is no different. Last year, amid multiple distractions, the Rattlers finished with an abysmal record. It culminated with the firing of then-coach Robert Lucas.
There's been a few changes this season, notably in the head coaching position. I talked to pitcher and third baseman David Duncan who not only supported the decision, but now sees a significant turnaround under the new direction. Here's my package on the team's goals this season, and what new coach Brett Richardson expects from his players.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Favorite vs. History
I was torn watching the Australian Open women's final at 3:30 a.m. earlier. You see I was caught between rooting for the darling of the WTA in Belgian Kim Clijsters and pulling for history to be made if China's Li Na became the first Asian player to win a Grand Slam (Michael Chang, who won a major, is of Asian descent, but was born in and competed for the U.S.)
Under normal circumstances, I'm a Clijsters fan. She has the perfect blend of skill and tennis IQ, coupled with genuine respect for her competitors, which puts her in at least a neutral zone with everyone on the tour. She's gracious in defeat, but just as complimentary of her opponents when she wins. And mostly, she's proof that having a child doesn't signal the end of a career. Cheers to all women who balance both!
Then there's Li Na, who at 29 is enjoying a late surge in her career. She's shown she can win the big matches coming back from a first-set loss. She's also shown a personality uncharacteristic of Chinese players, whose careers are closely managed by the Chinese government. A good example was making fun of her husband's snoring habits on TV and pretending to forget--or maybe genuinely forgetting-- her wedding anniversary during a post-game interview after her semifinal win. Her husband, also her coach, watched from the stands, laughing.
As everyone probably knows by now, Clijsters won the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, and in her words, finally earned her nickname "Aussie Kim." Her opponent, a gracious loser, playfully jabbed at her husband one more time before bowing out. All's well that ends well.
Now the stage is set for the men's final, which I'll be watching at about the same time as the women's at 3:30 a.m. And I'm faced with the same dilemma: favorite Novak Djokovic vs. potential history maker Andy Murray.
I have nothing against Murray, but Djokovic, like Clijsters, has won the hearts of tennis fans by not taking himself too seriously. He's famous for mimicking himself and other players on tour, to the delight of fans. He's previously won the Australian Open, his lone Grand Slam, while Murray is in search of his first. On the other hand, Murray has the entire United Kingdom on his back. Winning would make him the first Brit since Fred Perry to win a major in 75 years.
I'm not the only one who favored Clijsters and is picking Djokovic. Critics have picked Djokovic as the more likely winner, just as was Clijsters. Which bags the question, will history repeat itself tonight with the favorite trumping the history maker or will a different kind of history be set, bringing down 75 years of a nation's agony?
I'd love for the curse to be broken and for Murray to set history. It'll undoubtedly generate tons of publicity for tennis. I'd also love to see another player avoid the no-Grand Slam curse, especially when its a player of good character. So I won't be upset if Murray pulls of the win. In fact, I'll be quite happy. I, however, can't imagine rooting against my favorite.
Under normal circumstances, I'm a Clijsters fan. She has the perfect blend of skill and tennis IQ, coupled with genuine respect for her competitors, which puts her in at least a neutral zone with everyone on the tour. She's gracious in defeat, but just as complimentary of her opponents when she wins. And mostly, she's proof that having a child doesn't signal the end of a career. Cheers to all women who balance both!
Then there's Li Na, who at 29 is enjoying a late surge in her career. She's shown she can win the big matches coming back from a first-set loss. She's also shown a personality uncharacteristic of Chinese players, whose careers are closely managed by the Chinese government. A good example was making fun of her husband's snoring habits on TV and pretending to forget--or maybe genuinely forgetting-- her wedding anniversary during a post-game interview after her semifinal win. Her husband, also her coach, watched from the stands, laughing.
As everyone probably knows by now, Clijsters won the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, and in her words, finally earned her nickname "Aussie Kim." Her opponent, a gracious loser, playfully jabbed at her husband one more time before bowing out. All's well that ends well.
Now the stage is set for the men's final, which I'll be watching at about the same time as the women's at 3:30 a.m. And I'm faced with the same dilemma: favorite Novak Djokovic vs. potential history maker Andy Murray.
I have nothing against Murray, but Djokovic, like Clijsters, has won the hearts of tennis fans by not taking himself too seriously. He's famous for mimicking himself and other players on tour, to the delight of fans. He's previously won the Australian Open, his lone Grand Slam, while Murray is in search of his first. On the other hand, Murray has the entire United Kingdom on his back. Winning would make him the first Brit since Fred Perry to win a major in 75 years.
I'm not the only one who favored Clijsters and is picking Djokovic. Critics have picked Djokovic as the more likely winner, just as was Clijsters. Which bags the question, will history repeat itself tonight with the favorite trumping the history maker or will a different kind of history be set, bringing down 75 years of a nation's agony?
I'd love for the curse to be broken and for Murray to set history. It'll undoubtedly generate tons of publicity for tennis. I'd also love to see another player avoid the no-Grand Slam curse, especially when its a player of good character. So I won't be upset if Murray pulls of the win. In fact, I'll be quite happy. I, however, can't imagine rooting against my favorite.
Rattlers Basketball Package.
Here's a package I made for my school's live newscast "News 20 at 5." Overall, I think I did a pretty good job, but I learned through experience why my professor warned us, in a previous class, to stay away from pure black.
I was wearing a black turtleneck sweater, with a splash of white, but it didn't come out as intended on the camera because it made me look darker. Lesson learned. The solution: If you're going to wear black, then throw on a different color, preferably brighter toned, as a jacket or overall.
Well here's my package.
I was wearing a black turtleneck sweater, with a splash of white, but it didn't come out as intended on the camera because it made me look darker. Lesson learned. The solution: If you're going to wear black, then throw on a different color, preferably brighter toned, as a jacket or overall.
Well here's my package.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Venus Williams down but not out
Say what you want about how the quality of Venus Williams' game has deteriorated as she's transitioned into the elder stateswoman of the WTA, but don't question her commitment to tennis.
Not after her big comeback in last night's second round match against Czech Republic's Sandra Zahlavova.
With defending champion Serena Williams unable to compete due to an injury, Venus entered the Australian Open as the only ranked American woman at the No. 4 seed. She cruised to a straight-set first round win, and then came her battle in the second round.
Locked in a first set tie-break against Zahlavova, Williams appeared to pull a groin muscle, forcing a shrieking yell uncharacteristic of Venus, who's known to show very little emotion during matches. After losing the next point, and the set, Williams left the court on an injury time out to get her upper right thigh wrapped.
During the course of their lengthy careers, the Williams sisters have been accused of losing their commitment to tennis. Serena dabbled in acting amongst other things while Venus began a career as an interior and fashion designer. But after Tuesday's match, the older Williams silenced her critics.
Not only did Venus return, she went on to take the next two sets 6-0, 6-4. A couple of her rallies produced more shrieking noises and replays showed Williams repeatedly wincing as she went for shots. But no excuses. Commentators even noted that Williams waved off the trainer who was waiting to provide more treatment at the first break of the second set.
I've been watching tennis matches for decades now, and following Venus' career since it began, but I never realized one fact. In 257 Grand Slam matches played, Venus has never retired from a match. As injury-prone as she is, it is a remarkable feat for Venus to accomplish.
At 30, Venus is no longer the quickest player on tour. Once able to get to every ball, Venus can barely keep up with the younger crop of players on the tour. And while her name, along with her her sister's, will always be dropped among contenders at majors, she is hardly considered the favorite anymore. Her place in tennis history has been set so she could retire any day now and get the full credit she deserves for advancing the popularity of the sport. She's got nothing left to prove.
So it makes Venus' decision to continue playing even more commendable. We've watched as peers Lindsay Davenport, Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters have retired from competition at some point in their careers. But with all their off-the-court commitments, Venus and Serena have never walked away from the game.
Venus has never won the Australian Open and she isn't favored to win this year. But with younger promising players like Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina crashing out in the early rounds, she may have a shot. Clijsters, the heavy favorite, lost in the final of a warm up tournament leading up to this week, so there are signs that she could crack under pressure.
If Venus is able to recover from the injury before her next match, and make a run into the second week, then we could witness the resurgence of her career; a fitting accomplishment to achieve in Australia, also known as the Down Under.
Not after her big comeback in last night's second round match against Czech Republic's Sandra Zahlavova.
With defending champion Serena Williams unable to compete due to an injury, Venus entered the Australian Open as the only ranked American woman at the No. 4 seed. She cruised to a straight-set first round win, and then came her battle in the second round.
Locked in a first set tie-break against Zahlavova, Williams appeared to pull a groin muscle, forcing a shrieking yell uncharacteristic of Venus, who's known to show very little emotion during matches. After losing the next point, and the set, Williams left the court on an injury time out to get her upper right thigh wrapped.
During the course of their lengthy careers, the Williams sisters have been accused of losing their commitment to tennis. Serena dabbled in acting amongst other things while Venus began a career as an interior and fashion designer. But after Tuesday's match, the older Williams silenced her critics.
Not only did Venus return, she went on to take the next two sets 6-0, 6-4. A couple of her rallies produced more shrieking noises and replays showed Williams repeatedly wincing as she went for shots. But no excuses. Commentators even noted that Williams waved off the trainer who was waiting to provide more treatment at the first break of the second set.
I've been watching tennis matches for decades now, and following Venus' career since it began, but I never realized one fact. In 257 Grand Slam matches played, Venus has never retired from a match. As injury-prone as she is, it is a remarkable feat for Venus to accomplish.
At 30, Venus is no longer the quickest player on tour. Once able to get to every ball, Venus can barely keep up with the younger crop of players on the tour. And while her name, along with her her sister's, will always be dropped among contenders at majors, she is hardly considered the favorite anymore. Her place in tennis history has been set so she could retire any day now and get the full credit she deserves for advancing the popularity of the sport. She's got nothing left to prove.
So it makes Venus' decision to continue playing even more commendable. We've watched as peers Lindsay Davenport, Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters have retired from competition at some point in their careers. But with all their off-the-court commitments, Venus and Serena have never walked away from the game.
Venus has never won the Australian Open and she isn't favored to win this year. But with younger promising players like Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina crashing out in the early rounds, she may have a shot. Clijsters, the heavy favorite, lost in the final of a warm up tournament leading up to this week, so there are signs that she could crack under pressure.
If Venus is able to recover from the injury before her next match, and make a run into the second week, then we could witness the resurgence of her career; a fitting accomplishment to achieve in Australia, also known as the Down Under.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Newscast producer debut
I had the honor of producing the first live newscast of the year today, and I'm sure you may be expecting me to brag about how effortless the show was as proof of my natural ability to produce news shows.
It wasn't the case.
I had everything that could possibly go wrong, happen. And when I mean wrong, I mean not having videos to go along with most of my stories because there was an issue with the way the videos were formatted. This meant that many of my stories were readers* or even worse, dropped. You know what happens when stories get dropped without back up stories to replace them? You guessed right, I was grossly under my allotted time for the show. Fortunately we were able to get by on re-running a weather wrap and having our anchors chat about the stories.
In retrospect, I can breathe a sigh of relief like everyone suggested I do. Afterall I just produced a show with no black holes in them and all my stories (I believe) read cleanly. But I think the embarrassment of not coming as close to the quality of work I set for myself was hard to swallow; even for a first try at it. So much that I shed a few tears of anger. Yes, you read right. And now you know a little personality trait about me, I tear up whenever I'm very upset.
But after a few words of encouragement from two of my professors, I am ready to move on and give this another shot next week. Although with about 15 weeks left to the end of the semester I really have no choice but to.
*Reader: An anchor reading a script on camera with a graphic picture on the top left or right corner of the screen illustrating the subject of the story.
It wasn't the case.
I had everything that could possibly go wrong, happen. And when I mean wrong, I mean not having videos to go along with most of my stories because there was an issue with the way the videos were formatted. This meant that many of my stories were readers* or even worse, dropped. You know what happens when stories get dropped without back up stories to replace them? You guessed right, I was grossly under my allotted time for the show. Fortunately we were able to get by on re-running a weather wrap and having our anchors chat about the stories.
In retrospect, I can breathe a sigh of relief like everyone suggested I do. Afterall I just produced a show with no black holes in them and all my stories (I believe) read cleanly. But I think the embarrassment of not coming as close to the quality of work I set for myself was hard to swallow; even for a first try at it. So much that I shed a few tears of anger. Yes, you read right. And now you know a little personality trait about me, I tear up whenever I'm very upset.
But after a few words of encouragement from two of my professors, I am ready to move on and give this another shot next week. Although with about 15 weeks left to the end of the semester I really have no choice but to.
*Reader: An anchor reading a script on camera with a graphic picture on the top left or right corner of the screen illustrating the subject of the story.
Monday, January 17, 2011
What to look for!
Happy New Year!
I know it's almost three weeks into the year, but I'm starting off the year with a new blog that combines several projects I have in the works; almost all revolving around my career in sports.
As many of my friends know, and I hope others getting acquainted with me will find out, I have been passionate about sports since I knew how to walk. Once it became obvious that I wasn't going to have a professional career in any of the seven sports I played up to high school, I became passionate about covering the athletes who do.
Since leaving my job as a sports editor of a newspaper to pursue a master's in broadcast journalism, I've learned how to use a video camera to tell stories I'd normally tell in print, on video. And while I'm becoming more experienced as a broadcast journalist, I want to continue to do what I've loved doing best: writing.
So the purpose of this blog is to combine all of these elements. I'm in my last semester of graduate school and working on a documentary as my graduate project. I hope everything will go smoothly, but anticipate the possibility that there may be a few hiccups. I'll share the journey to its completion.
Last semester, my documentary Ke Nako, was selected to air in the spring semester's "J School Journals." It means I'll have to cut the 27-minute documentary to 15 minutes. So I'll also document some of that process through my blog.
I came back to school to get a world of experiences that would prepare me for a career as a multimedia journalist. Covering the World Cup in South Africa is one of them. Becoming a producer for FAMU's News 20 @ 5 is another. It's something I've never done, and I'll also be a reporter on a day that I'm not producing, but I'm up for the challenge.
Lastly, you'll be getting my thoughts and opinions about stories that capture my attention in sports. Some of them will be the biggest news in sports, but others may be the stories no one's giving the attention it deserves
So here's to the new year and new experiences. I'll leave you with my trailer for Ke Nako (It's Time,) about South Africa's journey from independence from apartheid to hosting the World Cup.
Enjoy!
I know it's almost three weeks into the year, but I'm starting off the year with a new blog that combines several projects I have in the works; almost all revolving around my career in sports.
As many of my friends know, and I hope others getting acquainted with me will find out, I have been passionate about sports since I knew how to walk. Once it became obvious that I wasn't going to have a professional career in any of the seven sports I played up to high school, I became passionate about covering the athletes who do.
Since leaving my job as a sports editor of a newspaper to pursue a master's in broadcast journalism, I've learned how to use a video camera to tell stories I'd normally tell in print, on video. And while I'm becoming more experienced as a broadcast journalist, I want to continue to do what I've loved doing best: writing.
So the purpose of this blog is to combine all of these elements. I'm in my last semester of graduate school and working on a documentary as my graduate project. I hope everything will go smoothly, but anticipate the possibility that there may be a few hiccups. I'll share the journey to its completion.
Last semester, my documentary Ke Nako, was selected to air in the spring semester's "J School Journals." It means I'll have to cut the 27-minute documentary to 15 minutes. So I'll also document some of that process through my blog.
I came back to school to get a world of experiences that would prepare me for a career as a multimedia journalist. Covering the World Cup in South Africa is one of them. Becoming a producer for FAMU's News 20 @ 5 is another. It's something I've never done, and I'll also be a reporter on a day that I'm not producing, but I'm up for the challenge.
Lastly, you'll be getting my thoughts and opinions about stories that capture my attention in sports. Some of them will be the biggest news in sports, but others may be the stories no one's giving the attention it deserves
So here's to the new year and new experiences. I'll leave you with my trailer for Ke Nako (It's Time,) about South Africa's journey from independence from apartheid to hosting the World Cup.
Enjoy!
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