Happy Friday, and welcome to the Legacy Library Newsletter.
We are only days away from the start of fall sports, with high school football camps kicking off (pun not intended) the action. At some point within the coming weeks, some student-athletes will likely be asked to answer questions for the media, whether it’s a newspaper writer using the old-fashioned recorder or a television station that just splurged for new equipment.
I’ve been the one holding the recorder or camera hundreds of times. That said, I believe these are the best tips I can give student-athletes — and no, these aren’t the typical public speaking cliches.
- Don’t be afraid to pause before or during your answer. Ignore anyone who tells you otherwise. Trust me, it’s not awkward silence. It’s someone thinking before they respond.
- Don’t worry about saying things like “um” or “like.” You’re not giving a speech to the country on national television. You’re answering questions about scoring a touchdown or recording seven strikeouts over five innings. Besides, that stuff always gets edited out.
- Same thing with profanity, so long as you’re not cursing at anyone. We’re all adults.
- Ask for clarification if you don’t understand something or you’re confused by the question.
- Stand your ground. There is no shame in declining an interview request. Alternatively, talk to your coach and the interviewer about possibly sending answers over text if it’s not a postgame story. And if the interviewer says no, then that’s their loss.
- Roll with the punches. An interviewer may get something wrong when they’re talking to you. Don’t feel bad about correcting them. And if they do it on social media, then make yourself heard!
- And just remember that it’s not the end of the world if you stumble over your words. I still stumble over mine sometimes, and I’ve been interviewing people for nearly 15 years.
I just want to get back to that point about saying “um” or “like” in an interview. This is where teachers and professors get things wrong. Even politicians will say “um” or a similar phrase during a speech.
It’s natural as a human being. And in the end, that’s what an ideal interview with a student-athlete is: a conversation between two human beings with the goal being to create great content and properly platform them.
Another big week on Legacy Library so far. I have a couple of in-depth features in the works similar to the recent story on what it means to play football in Florida.
Some of this week’s stories:
- Grace (Minn.) Guard Malachi Hill Adds Purdue University Fort Wayne, Jacksonville State Offers
- East Stroudsburg University DB Lawrence Campbell Jr. Remains Driven by Family
- How a Former First-Round Pick Led Darrell Sweeting to Choose UAB
- Saint Joe (Ind.) Guard Elijah King Has Mastered the Best Way to Stand Out
The Malachi Hill recruiting updates are another type of story you’ll frequently see on Legacy Library. When we initially write about an athlete or team, we are committing to following their recruitment process and their highlights.
This is where community support is vital. If you subscribe to Legacy Library, you can enter your athlete’s info to receive updates on them throughout the season. So if they’re a high school senior and they get offered, we’ll write something, and anyone who “follows” them will get an email letting them know we just published something.
So in Malachi’s case, we’ll continue to write about his journey. We’re looking forward to doing this for athletes nationwide!
Rest in peace to Jake’s second PS3, which appears to have finally met its end on Thursday night. This follows PS3 No. 1 (2008-12) and comes as I was midway through Year 3 of my FAU dynasty on NCAA 13.
This PS3 lasted me close to 10 years, because I know for a fact that it’s the same one I had in college. Sad times.
Publix has had the chicken tender subs on sale lately. That was one of my favorite post-practice meals when I was still on the FAU and high school beat. A full-sized toasted Pub Sub with bacon, cheese, and hot sauce.
Oh man, that actually sounds so good. And I do have to stop by Publix later…
A friend of mine only does veggies on hers. Meh. But she’s all about pizza so it evens out.
Finally, I loved the new “King of the Hill” season. The animation is still weird, but the writing and voice delivery took such a significant jump this year. And they managed to make Peggy likable for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Alright, I’ll talk to you guys on Monday. Have a massive Pub Sub this weekend, because I know I won’t be.
Pizza, on the other hand…
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