54 Years with the Chiefs

By Lizzy Gomez

 

Jim Durkin selling programs to Chiefs fans. 

As fans walked up the stairs into NBT Bank Stadium for the Chiefs game against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders on Monday night, one voice projected above all the others.

“Hey, hey, hey - It’s Monday and it’s deal night!” said Jim Durkin, the man who sells programs at the top of the stairs to fans when they enter the ballpark. “You wanna hear the deal?”

For some Chiefs fans, Jim Durkin is as much 
a part of NBT Bank Stadium as the Chiefs themselves. Durkin, 78, has been working at Chiefs games for 54 years, selling everything from beer and ice cream sandwiches to programs.

Joanne Demma, a close friend of Durkin’s who has been attending Chiefs games for 30 years, says fans know when Durkin is working the game even before they enter the stadium.

“You could be out waiting in line for your ticket and you’ll hear Jim up here before you see him,” Demma said. “When he’s not here, it’s like, ‘Where’s Jim tonight?’ And then he comes back and they say, ‘Where have you been? We’ve missed you!’”

For the past two seasons, Durkin has often been missing from his usual spot at the top of the ballpark stairs. Approaching 80 years old, Durkin tried twice to retire from his duties with the Chiefs. Both times he was called back. Most recently, fans wrote letters to Chiefs General Manager, Jason Smorol, specifically asking for Durkin to return to NBT Bank Stadium for the 2014 season. Durkin, who says his only job is to please the fans, came back on Opening Day.

“Opening Day was special because everybody comes up, wants to know how you’re feeling and how your winter was.” Durkin said. “It was just like, ‘welcome home.’”

Monday night was no different. Fans walked by, shouting greetings to Durkin, and many made a stop at his booth for no other reason than to say hello and ask about his wife, Rose.

Jim Durkin with Chiefs fan and
close friend, Joanne Demma.

Durkin extended the kindness back to a number of fans who purchased programs by hinting to them which programs contained vouchers for free pizzas and other prizes. Every time a fan won, Durkin celebrated the moment with everyone within earshot.

“Hey, hey, look at here!” Durkin said. “There goes another winner! Another winner! Everybody’s winning tonight!”

As the Chiefs scored four runs in the fourth inning to take a 4-3 lead over the RailRiders, Syracuse radio personality, Clark Motondo (better known as Skip Clark), stopped by Durkin’s booth to say hello. Motondo says his 13-year-old son Zachery, who has Down syndrome, looks to Durkin as one of his heroes.

“He goes, ‘Mr. Durkin, Mr. Durkin!’” Clark said. “He can hear him coming up the stairs. He just smiles, he just glows and he always comes by and gives him a hug or shakes his hand.”

Durkin says the relationships he formed over the years with fans like Demma and the Motondos are the greatest benefits of his duties with Chiefs.

“Every customer I sell to, I talk to,” Durkin said. “I might talk to you for four seconds, but I recognize and I appreciate every customer.”

DJ Double Play Lets the Music Do His Talking

By:  Joshua Carney


SYRACUSE, N.Y.   ---  For most professional ballparks, a good disc jockey usually leads to an upbeat crowd, which makes it that much more difficult for an opposing team.

Some would even say that the ballpark DJ is the "voice" of the ballpark.

With the Syracuse Chiefs, Jeremy Hernandez, 32, also known as DJ Double Play, it's no different.

Except for the fact that Hernandez doesn't have a "normal" voice.

Dating back to 2003, Hernandez, a Syracuse native, actually lost his voice due to vocal chord paralysis from complications during a medical procedure while fighting cancer.

Now, Hernandez, sporting a red polo, white cargo pants and a fitted Chiefs ball cap, has a soft voice that is barely audible at the ballpark. For that, Hernandez turns to the music and sound bites - available on his Blazers Game Ops Commander control board - to convey his thoughts and messages.

"I try to mix things up," Hernandez said from the control room during Monday night's Chiefs game against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. "We have old standbys that you hear everywhere, but I like to mix in new stuff. I try my best to rile up the fans and get them engaged. I also like to have fun with the other team."

He did just that all night long against the RailRiders.

As the P.A. announcer provided fans with the RailRiders starting lineup, Hernandez pumped the theme music from the hit TV show, "The Office" through the stadium system. On top of that, when one of the RailRiders' best hitters, Zelous Wheeler, came up to bat, Hernandez used a play on words, blaring Gin Blossoms "Hey Zelousy" through the speakers, drawing laughs from those fans realizing what Hernandez had done.

"When it comes to players, everyone it fair game," Hernandez said. "It's all in good fun. I think the players realize that."

Away from the ballpark, Hernandez holds a full-time job with POMCO, a third party health benefits administrator for self-funding organizations. When not at either job, Hernandez spends time with his wife and kids. But long days and long nights usually keep him away from his family.

"My wife is a supermom," Hernandez said. "She's very understanding, but it's still tough to be away from them."

On top of his role with the Chiefs, Hernandez used to work as the DJ at the Carrier Dome from 2004-12 for football and men's basketball. He still DJ's for Syracuse's women's ice hockey, along with men's and women's lacrosse.

"I don't really see it as a job," he said. "It's more of a hobby. I never dread going to an event to DJ. I never get bored with it."

With plenty going on at one time during a game, it's difficult for Hernandez to communicate with others around him when the environment is loud, but it doesn't take away from who he is:  a fun-loving guy who enjoys providing entertainment through music, even if it's not his own.

Minor-league prospect Rob Refsnyder has Yankee brass taking notice

Rob Refsnyder at bat during an August 4th game between the
Syracuse Chiefs and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.

By Michael Castellano

Taking in a Scranton/Wilkes Barre RailRiders game is often more like watching aging has-beens and no name prospects rather than future MLB stars. However there is one budding player whose name fans may want to become familiar with.

Rob Refsnyder's numbers didn't dazzle Monday night against the Syracuse Chiefs at NBT Bank Stadium, going 1-5 with an RBI double, but his stats this season have landed him in MLB.com's top prospects list for 2014.

Refsnyder, 23, originally from Seoul, South Korea, won the College World Series in 2012 with the University of Arizona and was awarded tournament MVP honors.

An outfielder in college, Refsnyder has adjusted well to second base having posted a .994 fielding percentage in 39 games so far this year in AAA.

"The biggest thing for me is just getting tons of reps over there," Refsnyder said.

Refsnyder's success hasn't only come on the field, he's made improvements at the plate as well. After hitting 16 home runs in his first two professional seasons, he has hit 13 this year so far while posting a .321 batting average between the AA Trenton Thunder and the AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.

His increase in power was no surprise. Last season he altered his swing with the help of Marcus Thames, the Double-A hitting coach in Trenton. But his approach at the plate has remained the same.

"I still want to get a good pitch to drive, preferably something up in the zone and just try be more direct to the baseball," Refsnyder said.

Since Robinson Cano left the Yankees last year via free agency the second base position in the Bronx has lacked consistency. Brian Roberts who had manned the position for most of this season was recently designated for assignment and the newly acquired Martin Prado and Stephen Drew have split time there along with veteran Kelly Johnson.

Refsnyder's recent success could see him in a Yankees uniform soon.

"You never know what the Yankees are going to do whether its through trades or free agency so I just have to work hard and worry about my own business," he said.

With the Yankee second base job in flux, it wouldn't be impossible to see Refsnyder in the Bronx at the start of next season, but for now the RailRiders is where he will have to continue to progress. Without a spot on the 40 man roster Refsnyder isn't guaranteed a late season call up.

With one month left in the RailRiders season, the Yankees' prospect knows what needs to be done  to reach the next level.

"I just try to continue to get better and focus on the little things," Refsnyder said.

The RailRiders finish their season on September 1st against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

A Fairy Tale Baseball Love Story

By: Carter Sanderson

Bob Passineau & his "Honey" (Top left with yellow purse).

He doesn’t have a license, but he's been to every game. Everybody knows him, but not everyone knows his name. 

Directly behind the home team's dugout, in the very top row, all the way on the edge in seat 8, is where you will find 65-year-old Bob Passineau, known around NBT Bank Stadium as “The Candy Man”.

Passineau has been a season ticket holder of the city's minor league baseball team, the Syracuse Chiefs since 1985, and says he has attended most every game no matter what the circumstances.

“The first 20 years I didn’t miss a game,” Passineau said as he doodled on his scorecard. “I’ve missed a few in these last years because of sickness." 

Passineau carries his scorecard to every game and watches intently from the same seat every night.

“I enjoy baseball,” Passineau said. “I watch and I keep score. It’s my favorite thing to do.”

Having grown up a lover of all things baseball, Passineau has followed the sport since he was 10-years-old and was a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers during his childhood days.

Passineau made his way to Syracuse by way of the Navy and has been a Chiefs fan ever since his arrival. However, he has never had a driver's license to get there.

“I don’t drive,” Passineau said. “I failed the first drivers test and now I like to taste the beer.” 

Luckily for Passineau, he had multiple ways and connections to make sure he was present at the games with his scorecard in hand.

“I used to catch the bus regularly,” Passineau said. “I’d go to work, I’d get out of work, I’d shower, make my lunch for the next day and catch the bus to the ball park.” 

It was also convenient when his brother was a cab driver in the city. 

“He never charged me the full amount,” Passineau said.

After several years of waiting at the bus stop and relying on his brother to get around, Passineau found a new ride to the ball park.

Deanna Sauve, a widow, has always been a good friend to Passineau. 

After the death of Sauve’s husband, years passed and Passineau and Sauve eventually became ball park sweethearts.

“We went out for coffee 24 years ago and have been going ever since,” Sauve said. “I enjoy the games, I knit and he keeps the score.”

Since 1991, Sauve has been bringing “The Candy Man” to NBT Bank Stadium.

"Bob gives every usher candy before every game," Sauve said. "If you were to ask where Bob is, nobody will know, but if you ask where the candy man is, they will point him out immediately.” 

Sauve also shared some of Passineau’s accomplishments and game rituals over the years.

“He is a member of the fan club and he received a plaque for "Fan of The Year some years ago,” Sauve said. "He has a collection of all the souvenirs from every game,” she continued. "It's massive."

Although they don’t sit together during the game, Passineau plans to remain there in his seat with his "honey" right behind him for many years to come.

“My ride’s behind you,” Passineau said. “She’s my honey.”

Syracuse Alum Dan Wolfgang Covers Collegiate Sports From a Big Ten Perspective

Dan Wolfgang

By Geoffrey Chiles

Most people who go into sports broadcasting don’t wind up working for their favorite team’s most hated rival. But Dan Wolfgang did.

Wolfgang grew up a proud son of the Buckeye State, spending his Saturdays in Coshocton, Ohio cheering on Ohio State University. Wolfgang’s 6’8” frame lent itself well to a natural athleticism on the football field and basketball court. When he wasn’t catching passes or shooting jump shots, he was plugged into a video game console, learning about the game from a different perspective.

“My Dad got me a Sega Genesis which included an NFL game,” Wolfgang said. “In my boredom after playing the game for many hours, I started falling into a mode of doing my own play-by-play and the rest, as they say, is history.”

His focus on sports and broadcasting continued up through high school. He met Howard Chen, a Syracuse University Alumnus who happened to be working near Wolfgang’s hometown. The two struck up a friendship which continues to this day. In fact, it was Chen who steered Wolfgang out of the Midwest and towards the East Coast and S.U.

Chen now works for CSN in Houston. If it wasn’t for his mentorship, Wolfgang said, he may never have enrolled at the Newhouse School or pursued a career in radio.

“(Chen) turned me on to the student station on campus, WAER,” he said. “It became my main focus outside of homework and the occasional social life. I became the sports director my senior year.”

Wolfgang’s career took another turn after graduation. Though he didn’t see the bigger picture at first, he’s happy where he is. He currently works for IMG College, a collegiate marketing company in Winston-Salem, N.C. which organizes on-air talent and a production crew for broadcasts.

Wolfgang worked his way up to his current position as a seasonal producer and studio host of football and basketball broadcasts for The University of Michigan. He produces weekly material for air, which requires the university’s approval.

His passion for what he does transcends the rivalry, one of college football’s oldest and fiercest.

“I am charged with weekly scene-setters which include the Michigan-Ohio State game,” he said. “I grew up a Buckeye fan, and take a tremendous amount of pride in being able to put together a scene-setter that would make even Michigan fans proud even though they might not root for the same side on that particular Saturday. I love it. It’s a constant challenge.”

Wolfgang now has dreams of returning to the broadcasting side of things by doing radio play-by-play. To get to where he is, he stresses preparedness above all else.

“The most important piece of advice is preparation,” he said. “You know this, Geoff, but there might be some folks out there who don’t. You can never do too little research on a given topic or a given job or story, whatever the case may be. You can always learn more about that subject. Just having that knowledge readily accessible can be such a huge tool.”

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Dan Wolfgang Interview Questions

Q: You great up in Coshocton, Ohio. What happened in your youth which led you to a love of sports? Did you play any sports?

A: I played youth league baseball, basketball, and a lot of soccer growing up actually. What really turned me onto broadcasting as a whole was watching a lot of television. That was in the burgeoning years of massive college football exposure on TV. So, I had the opportunity to watch a lot of games. One year, at Christmas—this story might sound a little cliché—but my Dad got me a Sega Genesis which included an NFL game. In my boredom after playing the game for many hours, I started falling into a mode of doing my own play-by-play and the rest, as they say, is history.

Q: You earned your bachelor’s degree here at Syracuse University. What were your options for getting involved in student media and covering sports? How did you arrive at wanting to be on the radio?

A: I settled on radio working in high school. I actually had a job with a radio station in 8^th grade with Coshocton. I was lucky enough while growing up in that small area of Ohio to meet a Syracuse Alum (Howard Chen). He currently works with CSN in Houston. He turned me on to the student station on campus, WAER. I knew when I got on campus that that was all I essentially wanted to do. It became my main focus outside of homework and the occasional social life. I became Sports Director my senior year. It was exciting: four years of hard work at that place.

Q: We all have struggled on our way to success in the field. What were some of your struggles? What went through your mind when you struggled to get to where you wanted to be?

A: I did end up going back to my hometown and working for a website that was definitely a burgeoning idea. I had an idea that I was very much in love with, but the execution wasn’t quite to the standard that I had set for myself personally. That was the struggle graduating and going out into the real world. You are kind of taught this theory at Newhouse where superior content will always sell and be an enjoyable thing. Not only for your audience, but also for your co-workers. I think there were some cases of my being an overachiever might not have fit in with the mold of a couple of places. It was a struggle, but I was lucky enough to find a position with IMG down in North Carolina and it’s been a blast. I’m working on year three down there and I’m enjoying every day.

Q: You work as a seasonal producer and studio host at IMG College in Winston, N.C. What are some examples for you of earning satisfaction from your job? How did you feel?

A: I think that’s one of the big keys. You’re constantly being challenged to express your creativity and move into a couple different areas that you might not have had a lot of experience in previously. A lot of what I did in my early years with the company involved Midwest schools and were essentially production elements for a lot of broadcasts in the Midwest. The biggest one I had my name attached to was the Michigan football and basketball broadcasts. I was charged with weekly scene-setters which included the Michigan-Ohio State game. I grew up a Buckeye fan, and took a tremendous amount of pride in being able to put together a scene-setter that would make even Michigan fans proud even though they might not root for the same side on that particular Saturday. I love it. It’s a constant challenge. I’m learning more and more about the business side of it as well. This job is a bit more marketing than broadcasting. We are essentially approached by the schools, and with the schools, try to work out a broadcast that fits everyone’s dreams, goals, and desires. It’s a ton of fun to be able to do. Not only the marketing side of it, but once you get to the on-air, there are a tremendous amount of opportunities from doing Michigan hockey and UCLA basketball this past season, to now get a chance to cover West Virginia football this year.

Q: You mainly work on University of Michigan hockey broadcasts. How do you sustain momentum and stay alert and charged for every single game?

A: A big part of it is the people you work with. Michigan hockey is a great example. Al Randall and Billy Trainor, our radio crew, are two characters. It’s always a blast to be able to work with those guys and to listen to Al’s radio call, especially. That kind of pulls to the broadcasting side of my goals and dreams to sit there and listen to two of the better guys we have in the building doing a game of play-by-play. It is a challenge when you first get involved with teams like that. I hadn’t really followed much of the college hockey scene before being placed with Michigan, and two years later, by no stretch of the imagination am I an expert on it, but I feel comfortable enough that I could give a little bit of the history of Michigan. It’s obviously, as you know Geoff, a very prestigious history. It comes with a ton of research and being able to work with the crew that I’ve been able to means it’s not hard to get fired up for a broadcast. Like I said, Al Randall with Michigan hockey, Tony Caridi who’s a Syracuse grad with West Virginia football, and even guys like Chris Roberts for UCLA basketball, Matt Shepherd for Michigan basketball. It’s just a tremendous honor to be working with those kinds of guys.

Q: What are you planning on doing in your career in the future? What advice would you have for young broadcasters?

A: The most important piece of advice is preparation. You know this, Geoff, but there might be some folks out there who don’t. You can never do too little research on a given topic or a given job or story, whatever the case may be. You can always learn more about that subject. Just having that knowledge readily accessible can be such a huge tool. In terms of career aspirations, I’m comfortable with where I am at the moment. I’d like to be a radio play-by-play man down the road at some point. I’ve always kept my options open in terms of what sport I’d like to do. I consider myself to be as good, if not better, at sports like soccer than basketball. It definitely leaves my options open. I think that’s another piece of advice for anyone aspiring to be a sports broadcaster: it can be very easy to fall into that mold of the “big four,” but those are also sports where getting jobs reporting on those sports—even play-by-play gigs, especially—can be uber-competitive. So, you have the opportunity if you are a soccer fan, for instance, or even a lacrosse fan, you can get jobs doing major league lacrosse, even college games. You can get a job doing Major League Soccer and find a niche in there that maybe a lot of people hadn’t thought about.

Donna Ditota: A Sports Writer with a Lifetime of Stories

Donna Ditota- Photo Courtesy of Syracuse.com

By: Danielle Kennedy 


The squeaky sound of basketball sneakers scuffing across a freshly waxed court makes some people cringe and squirm. For Donna Ditota, that noise is her mantra. 
 
Ditota is a sports writer for Syracuse Media Group, covering the Syracuse University men's basketball beat for the Post-Standard newspaper and Syracuse.com. Even as a little girl, Ditota says she knew she wanted to be a sports writer. "I came from a very sporty family and my dad encouraged my brother and I to play sports...I was a good student and one of the things I really liked to do was read and write so I just figured that was a good marriage of the two things."

Ditota grew up in Syracuse, New York and attended college at St. Bonaventure University where she studied Mass Communications and Journalism. During her time there, she was a four-year starting forward on the women's basketball team and the sports editor for the school newspaper, The Bona Venture. Immediately after graduating, Ditota worked as a business reporter for the CNY Business Review for three years. For the past 28 years she has been covering a variety of sports at the Post-Standard. When the beat writer for Syracuse University men's lacrosse left the paper in 1996, she took a chance and accepted the offer to cover the team for a year until the paper could find a replacement. "I had been to maybe three lacrosse games in my entire life and I knew nothing about it," Ditota said. "It was a process of watching a lot of games and reading a lot about it."

Now that she's back on the basketball beat, Ditota says she also loves finding stories that happen off  the court. "I like doing profiles of people and I like breaking down complex issues to a way that people can gain new insights into them."

But let's not forget that she is a woman in a man's world. When asked if that affects the way she approaches her job, Ditota stressed the importance of having 'thick skin.' "I think a lot of what drives journalism, for women, is what you look like, how you're perceived, how you dress, or a lot of things that people don't think about when they're thinking of male reporters," Ditota said. "I think you have to be pretty confident about yourself and pretty aware of yourself in the world and not let any of that bother you."

With even more platforms to share information on, Ditota said that quickly producing more content for Syracuse.com is sometimes a challenge for her. "I try to think of things that I can do in a fairly brief amount of time that will be engaging, but that's the biggest battle of my beat and the biggest battle of my job- the churn of it. It's just a constant battle of trying to figure out how to update that website," Ditota said.

Despite the day-to-day challenges of trying to find a story or an interview falling through, Ditota says she loves her job. When asked about the most memorable moment in her career, Ditota paused and said, "31 years of writing and reporting and to pick out one thing...I don't think I could do it."


___________________________________________________________________________

Donna Ditota Interview Transcription

Q:  Donna, what made you want to pursue a career in sports journalism?

A: Well, you know, I was a good athlete and I went to college on a basketball scholarship so I was always interested in sports. I came from a very sporty family and my dad encouraged my brother and I to play sports and I just really liked sports.  I was a good student and one of the things I really liked to do was read and write, so I just figured that was a good marriage of the two things.

Q: When you were reading, did you have a specific journalist that you looked up to or admired their work?

A: You know, I wish I could say that I remember from back then.  I’ve always been a voracious reader, even as a kid.  I was just always somebody who did a lot of reading.  I read a lot of fiction and I read a lot of non-fiction; I just read a lot.  I spent a lot of time reading.

Q: Can you tell me a little about what a typical day is like for you?

A: The good thing about my job is that I don’t really have a typical day, that’s what I really like about it! Every day is something different! Sometimes I go to the office, sometimes I don’t go to the office, sometimes I go and cover games and sometimes I don’t.  My job right now, now that the basketball season isn’t in session, is a lot different than what my job is like when basketball season is in session because I’m a lot busier during basketball season.  During the off-season, I’m busy in a different way.  I’m busy trying to figure out what I’m going to do.  I try to structure my days and I try to come up with story ideas and that’s a lot harder in the off-season so my days in the summer are dramatically different than my days in the winter.

Q: Which ones do you prefer?

A: I work a lot during the basketball season, I mean, I work everyday during basketball season, but the thing I like about it is that there’s always something to write about and I don’t have to manufacture something to write about.  I don’t have to find something to write about because there’s always something going on.  In the summer, I used to like the summers a lot more until our company changed its philosophy a lot and now we’re focusing on online stuff and that requires a churn of a lot of copy.  So, in the summer, I have to think of a whole bunch of things to write about because we have to get stuff up on the website and there’s not as much to write about.  I like the summers because they are a little more laid back, but I like the winters because there’s more stuff to write about. 

Q: When you sit down to write a story, whether it’s web copy or writing an article that’ll print in the paper, what’s the first thing you think about before you start to write?

A: With probably 70 percent of my stories I know the lead before I sit down and I already know how I’m going to start it, just by whatever I’m researching or whenever I’m interviewing people, I already know how I’m going to start it.  As soon as I get the idea in my head as to how I’m going to start it, the rest of it comes pretty easy so that’s the first thing I have to do- how am I going to lead the story and that’s the first thing I’ll do and write the lead to the story.

Q: What do think defines a great sports piece?

A: It’s something that makes you think about something or moves you in some way.  Something that makes you think about something in a way that you haven’t thought about it before.

Q: When covering Syracuse basketball, how do you develop a rapport with the athletes and the administration but then you have to go and write about them and sometimes the facts may be unpleasant.  How do you handle that?

A:  The first thing is the most important thing: trying to establish relationships with people that you deal with on a daily basis and deal with quite frequently.  I think you want people to know that you’re fair, and that’s the most important thing, that you’re fair about how you treat them and how you treat the subject and how you go about your work, you don’t have any biases, and you want to get to the truth of what happened and get to the cornel of what it is that you’re reporting about.  I think that establishing those relationships is different for different people, but I’m just a fairly, naturally gregarious person so I will essentially chat anybody up about anything.  That’s what I do.  If see them at practice or if I see them at any place, I just talk to them about whatever.  I don’t necessarily talk to them about basketball, even though most of the time I talk to them about basketball, I can talk to them about anything.  I think you try and establish a level of trust and that’s established by what you write and how you interview them, and a level of respect so that when some things do happen that they don’t necessarily want to talk about, and those are never pleasant situations where you’re the person that’s writing them or the person who its being written about, they will trust you and know that you’ve treated them fairly in the past and that they will talk to you about whatever situation has come up that’s not quite as pleasant. 

Q: As a woman in the sports journalism industry, what do you think are some important qualities to have in order to be successful in this industry?

A: I think you have to have a fairly thick skin.  I think a lot of what drives journalism, for women, is what you look like or how you’re perceived or how you dress, or a lot of things that people don’t think about when they’re thinking of male reporters.  I think you have to be pretty confident about yourself and pretty aware of yourself in the world to not let any of that bother you- number one.  Number two, the rest of it, I don’t think is anything different from anybody who is male.  I think I approach my job, I assume, is the way I would approach my job if I were a man, but never having been a man, I don’t know, but I think my personality is my personality and I think that’s how I relate my job in that sense.

Q:  You’ve covered a wide range of sports throughout your career.  How did you educate yourself and learn more about each of those sports and make sure that you were comfortable enough to write about them?

A:  Basketball is an easy one because I played and I know a lot about the game, but I’m always reading stuff about basketball.  One of the new things is analytics and that has come along in the last few years and I’m fascinated by it.  I read a lot of stuff about analytics and I read a lot of explanations about why analytics are important and I read a lot about analytics themselves.  I read about how those processes are done and it fascinates me.  It’s a new area of a way that I can do my job so I ask a lot of questions and I read a lot of stuff and I think that’s an important thing for young people to understand when they get into the business is that there isn’t a stupid question you can ask and there isn’t a question that you should feel embarrassed to ask because the only way you’re going to learn more is to ask about it.  I’ll give you a quick example- I covered basketball for a long time and I got off the basketball beat and the guy who was covering lacrosse left the paper so they asked me if I would cover lacrosse for a year until they found someone to cover lacrosse so I said sure but I literally knew nothing about lacrosse…I had been to maybe three lacrosse games in my entire life and I knew nothing about it.  It was a process of watching a lot of games and reading a lot about it.  I was lucky in this situation because when I covered Syracuse lacrosse, there were a lot of guys on that team and the coaches were great.  I would ask them a question and their answer would be lacrosse jargon and I would have no idea what they were talking about so I would say, ‘you’re going to have to break that down for me in layman’s terms because I don’t know what you mean.’  There were times when I had people diagram things for me on paper to explain what it was that they were talking about and I never felt bad about it.  I always felt that my job is to, in some ways, educate and entertain people, but if I don’t understand it myself, how am I going to be able to convey to someone else the truth of what’s happening in these circumstances.  I don’t you should ever be ashamed to ask something that you think might be stupid because there are no stupid questions…ask away!

Q: Why did you decide to make the transition and teach for a little bit at SU?

A: Because somebody asked me to do it.  Honestly, I wish I could give you a deeper and more philosophical answer, like I wanted to help young people in their careers, but in the beginning, somebody said, ‘this job is opening and I think you’d be great for it,’ and that’s how I got the job.  I haven’t taught in a long time and I loved it and I would love to come back to it but I haven’t taught in five or six years. 

Q: What’s your favorite part about your job?

A: My favorite part about my job is interviewing people and sort of getting the germ of that person and who that person is and then conveying it through writing.  I like doing profiles of people and I like breaking down complex issues to a way that people can gain new insights into them.  I like the interview process a lot and that’s probably my favorite part of my job, and in the writing process, I like to tackle big, complicated stories.  I like that process and it’s more challenging than writing a 10-inch or 15-inch story, but I like doing that too.

Q:  What’s the most challenging part of your job?

A:  The most challenging part is the way journalism has evolved and that you’re always at the churn of the business, and trying to come up with ideas that you aren’t necessarily sold on them yourself but you have to get something up on the website, so you have you come up with something that won’t be totally embarrassing to put up there, but Sometimes it’s a reach and sometimes I do things that I would prefer that I was not doing.

Q:  How do you work through that?

A:  I try to think of things to do and I try to think of things that I think would be compelling.  I try to think of things that I think I can do in a fairly brief amount of time that will be engaging, but that’s the biggest battle of my beat and the biggest battle of my job is the churn of it and it’s just a constant battle of trying to figure out how to update that website. 

Q: What’s the most memorable moment for you in your career?

A: The most memorable moment in my career…I’m actually coming up with a complete blank, I don’t remember anything particularly memorable, I mean, I’ve done a lot of stuff and written a lot of stuff but it’s been a long, career.  31 years of writing and reporting and to pick out one thing, I don’t think I could do it. 

Interview with Donna Ditota

Ryan Recker: Bringing Sports to Morning People

By: Tim Durr

Photo Courtesy of WTAE.com

Sometimes it seems like sports journalists are only focused on stats and scores.

Ryan Recker is the morning sports anchor at WTAE in Pittsburgh where he does things differently.

“The audience I’m talking to in the morning is a lot of women, school teachers, and moms, they don’t want to know [advanced stats and numbers]” Recker said. “They want the basics and they want a light hearted spin on sports.”

Recker, 35, started his career in Pittsburgh sixteen years ago for the now defunct WPGH Fox 53, where he was a producer for sports reporter Alby Oxenreiter.

After graduating from Robert Morris University, located just outside of Pittsburgh, Recker took a job in Steubenville, Ohio with WTOV.

He spent more than six years as sports director in Tucson, Ariz. with KVOA, then decided that he wanted a new challenge in his life.

“I wanted a challenge and got it,” Recker said. “I’m challenged to go and cover things like the opening of Mellon Square Park downtown and I have to do live reports all morning and I better research the park, which has nothing to do with sports.”

Recker said the reason he decided to leave his job as a sports director to return to anchoring is because he had no further room for improvement at KVOA.

"I was in the same position when I left there as I was when I got there," Recker said. "I got there as sports director and I couldn’t go any higher. I couldn’t advance in the company or locally."

Now as a morning sports anchor, Recker said he's faced with different challenges of covering unrelated topics. He said that sometimes he gets jealous of radio guys that get to spend a whole episode focused on a topic when he only has 45 seconds to cover a mix of topics.

“Sometimes I struggle with watching the competition and seeing guys on 93.7 The Fan getting deep into a subject and I wish I had 5 minutes in the morning to sit and talk about all of this,” Recker said.

Through all of the struggles and challenges that Recker has taken on as a sports journalist, he said he keeps a few things in mind that are care values, he’ll never stray from.

“For the most part I try to play it down the middle,” Recker said. “I refuse to say ‘we’ or ‘us’ or ‘let’s go Bucs’ or ‘Here we go Steelers’. I refuse to do it. I just don’t have it in me.”

Recker was born in South Park, which is about 20 minutes south of Pittsburgh, and attended Seton La-Salle High School. Recker was on the football team at Seton La-Salle and got his start with sports anchoring through a created TV show for the school.

"We created this fake TV show," Recker said. "Me and some other football players would interview a cheerleader, another player, or a coach or basketball player. Then [the football players] said why don't we make this and put it on the morning announcements."

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Ryan Recker Interview Transcription

Q: What were some things you did early in your broadcast career before graduating college that helped you gain experience?

A: Almost by happenstance, in my senior year of high school. There were a group of football players, and I was on the team. We created this fake TV show, for lack of a better term, where we would do it at a gathering or party and just get a video tape and gather around a small audience. Me and some other football players would interview a cheerleader, another player, a coach or basketball player or whoever. And from there, at the same time, they wanted to create an in-house TV program. Then they said why don’t we make this and put it on the morning announcements. That wasn’t really professional experience, but it got me comfortable with being on camera, with working without a script, with coming up with ideas, and it got me the chance to have feedback from people, to be criticized, hear that people like that or didn’t like that and have that instant feedback. That was certainly a learning tool.

Then when I got to Robert Morris University, with Eric Hall (Sports Editor at Beaver County Times), we hosted a weekly sports show, with highlights, interviews and feature stories. That got me more and more comfortable. Don’t get me wrong, now when I look back on those early days, and those early tapes…wherever they are, if I were to do that it wasn’t anything great, I was heavy, overweight, stiff, but that experience as a freshman on camera was incredibly valuable. As a sophomore I did an internship at Fox 53 WPGH (Pittsburgh), they no longer do their own news casts, they’re produced by WPXI. Back then they had their own news department. In the summer of 98, Alby Oxenreiter hired me as an intern to be one of his producers up until 2001, then I got a job in Steubenville when I graduated from Robert Morris.

Q: What were some challenges you faced in your first professional job in Steubenville? Or, even before that while you were an intern?

A:  I’ll start with the internship. I would say with being 19 years old and having to work under real pressure and real deadlines for a professional organization taught me a lot right off the bat. This wasn’t college TV where you got a week to put something together. You’re in the field to put a story together you have a couple of hours. Learning how to get comfortable asking athletes questions. I was intimidated as hell back then. That was a challenge in the internship. Learning how TV is produced and the timing of it and how everything fits. Knowing what stories are good and what to put in and what to eliminate and what good TV is and what isn’t. Then once I got to Steubenville, it was a whole new set of challenges, because now I’m on the air, and these are my words and my content, and I’m in a new area where I don’t know all these high schools. There are new names, ethnic names, and new schools with different mascots, learning how to get to the schools and what county they’re in, and in that market, it’s a high school based effort for sports. That became a challenge for me, as well. The biggest challenge of all when you’re a new face or a new name is gaining the respect of the viewers. That’s something that has to take time and you have to be patient with it. People just have to get used to you. It’s not going to happen in two weeks or two months. I’ve been in Pittsburgh a year now and I don’t think people are used to me or incredibly comfortable with me, or would say they know me very well. I know some people do, I hope they like me, I don’t know for sure. It’s just something that takes time. And, how do you gain that, stay simple off the bat, stay credible, be reliable and be likeable. Don’t be a jerk on the air, don’t be a know it all, come in, do your thing, be likeable, if you have a chance to be funny or creative then do it, but don’t overdo it. Over time, once people get to know you and your personality more, then you can take more chances. That’s just my approach and my philosophy.

Q: What do you think led you to come back to Pittsburgh?

A: For me it was wanting a new challenge. I had been in Arizona for six and a half years. I was in the same position when I left there as I was when I got there. I got there as sports director and I couldn’t go any higher. I couldn’t advance in the company or locally. I branched out and tried my own website and did a podcast and had some fun with that. I did some radio there, but there was no advancement for me in that market. Then came a challenge to do sports in the mornings which was a different shift. It was working on a morning show where it wasn’t hardcore sports. It allows me the opportunity to do different things. Restaurant reviews, tours of restaurants, coffee shops, the opening of Cedar Point and Kennywood. It’s been more than just sports. It’s allowed me to exercise that challenge. I wanted a challenge and got it. I’m challenged to go and cover the opening of Mellon Square Park downtown and I have to do live reports all morning and I better research the park, which has nothing to do with sports. To answer your question simply, I wanted a new challenge and I got it. It was an adjustment of getting out of that mode of constant sports with ERA, batting average and there’s still plenty of that stuff there now and again. The audience I’m talking to in the morning is a lot of women, school teachers, moms, they don’t want to know that stuff. They want the basics and want a light hearted spin on sports. Today, we had at the end of broadcast, a shot of the woman from the White Sox game who turned 104, and the Padres game at a woman who was 105 throw out the first pitch. It’s stuff like that, that we are in a sports sense, trying to draw viewers in with relatable things and the personal end of things. It doesn’t happen every day, it’s all dictated on content and the news of the day. I still do a lot of news, with Maurkice Pouncey stuff, the Oscar Pistorius trial, stuff like that I still cover that as well on that shift. It’s a pretty good base of the day’s sports news. Tomorrow I’ll go in and show a few clips of the Pirates game and give the basics for people who went to bed, this might be their first opportunity to find out what happened in the Pirates game and get a feel of what took place. So that’s different from a traditional sports cast, and the thing is there aren’t many stations doing sports in the morning like we are. There are probably 5-10 stations nationally who have live morning sports. Most of them record it. It’s a different element and different animal. Morning TV is personality driven, and it goes back to that likeability factor. People are waking up and getting ready for work and they want to be informed. They want to be entertained a little bit, they want it to be funny, and something they can grab quickly. Morning TV is succeeding these days because of consumption habits of people. Throughout the day people are able to be on their iPad, computer or tablet. In the morning, they’re busy. They’re getting kids ready and don’t have to time to sit there on Twitter. We’re a good avenue to bring it to them, even if it’s just background noise while they’re getting ready in the morning. I don’t know many people who get up three hours before they have to be at work. Most people get up and are rushing so they’re occupied with a number of things.

Q: Do you think that plays better into your personality in the morning that you don’t have to be a stiff sports guy reading the stats?

A: I think about that often. It’s tough for me because when you’re in a competitive business like we are. Everybody wants to have some level of authority to where the average person here, on TV, writing or radio, people turn to you and expect you to have tons of information about whatever subject. Like Steelers draft, Pirates trade deadline, Penguins prospects, sometimes I have to switch hats and know the audience I’m talking to doesn’t need all of that. They don’t know Pirates minor leaguers. Sometimes I feel like I’m robbed of expanding my depth when talking about these particular subjects because that’s not what they want. So I have to adjust and give them what they want. Then whenever I cover a Steelers practice or do something different. So morning is more headline based, feature based, more fun, so that’s an adjustment period for sure. Sometimes I struggle with watching the competition and seeing guys on 93.7 getting deep into a subject and I wish I had 5 minutes in the morning to sit and talk about all of this. So sometimes I have 45 seconds to show the score for the Pirates, what they did, and who they play next and who pitches for them. At the same time, I don’t like all of that minutia, I don’t know how you are. I respect advanced statistics, some of these people, I feel like they need to go on a date with a girl, go ask a girl out, go for a job, go to a movie, I just…sometimes it’s just too much.

Q: Do you ever notice more of a local affiliation from stations where they want you to be more of a homer or to do your job journalistically?

A: I think each story is different. The story dictates that. If tonight McCutchen hits a two-run homer and the Pirates win 6-5 and I go on tomorrow and I’m monotone, (McCutchen hits a home-run, the Pirates win) [in monotone voice] then I’m not doing my job of capturing the emotion of that moment and the emotion of the fans and the city. In that moment it’s my job to get excited about when you’re a local sports journalist on TV, when you’re capturing images, sights, sounds and pictures. So, conversely when they lose you have to capture the disappointment. For the most part, I try to play it down the middle. I won’t say ‘we’ or ‘us’ or ‘let’s go Bucs’ or ‘Here we go Steelers’, I refuse to, I just don’t have it in me. If you want eternal credibility, and especially if you want to move on, you can be local Joe Schmo in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and wear a grew sport coat and crimson tie on your sportscast, for example I try to make sure I don’t wear Black and Gold when I’m doing something with a Pittsburgh team involved. I know some places encourage that. They want their on air talent wearing black and gold. We’re not employed by these teams. We get paid the same whether they win or they lose. I mean, it’s like I said. It always goes back to credibility. That doesn’t mean you can’t be excited when a team does well. And say what a night last night for this team or this city.