Steelers – Page 22 – Welcome to Steelers Takeaways!

Jay Reisinger, Sports Attorney

Jay Reisinger, Sports Attorney:

First, can you let readers know how you and your firm got involved in sports law – was this an intended focus for you all along?

Since I was a student at Allegheny College, the field of sports law had interested me. After my first year in law school, I was fortunate enough to land an internship with Sam Reich (brother of famed sports agent Tom Reich). Sam handled a number of sports-related matters for Tom and his clients.

After law school, I joined Sam’s firm full-time, and handled a number of sports-related cases, from high school eligibility matters to MLB salary arbitration. I eventually moved to my own firm in 2008, where my focus is almost entirely sports-related.

You’ve handled a number of large cases, including working with Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez and Andy Pettitte and their legal issues concerning performance-enhancing drugs and hormones. Which of your case(s) have you been most proud of, and why?

I am proud of all of them, because I feel we served each of them well with respect to their individual matters. However, I am most proud of the work that we did for Andy Pettitte. We were able to extract him from the circus-like atmosphere that surrounded the Roger Clemens matter and put him on his own path, which certainly inured to his benefit.

How do you deal with the immense media presence around these cases – how do you prevent them from being distractions?

It is our general policy and practice to refrain from making public comment in on-going legal matters. We have found that, in general, it does not serve a client’s legal interests to speak with the media.

There is a balance between an athlete’s public persona and his legal interests, and we attempt to strike that balance, however, an athlete’s legal interests always take precedence, and most often, public comment does not serve those legal interests.

How has being in Pittsburgh helped your practice?

Initially, I was mentored by two of the finest sports lawyers in the business, Sam and Tom Reich, who are both Pittsburgh natives.

Pittsburgh also has a significant number of nationally known sports attorneys, and my interaction with them has played a large role in growing my practice. On a personal note, my entire family lives in Pittsburgh and I enjoy a great deal of family support in my professional endeavors.

A good deal of your work is as an attorney in salary arbitration – including representing Pirates players. How do you prepare for these hearings- what data do you use and how heated can these hearings get?

Salary arbitration hearings for MLB players take place in February each year. I usually begin preparing my cases in September, and then continually revise my analysis in the following months. On behalf of players, we utilize a proprietary statistical program that allows us to compare even the most obscure statistics in an effort to determine a player’s proper place in the salary structure.

The negotiations leading up to a hearing can often get quite heated as each side gets entrenched in their respective positions. The hearings themselves can also get quite heated, but are always professional.

How do you avoid these negotiations getting so personal that they permanently taint the player-organization relationship – and how have you found the Pirates to be in these negotiations compared to other teams – I know you had some good battles with Pirates Counsel Larry Silverman in the past.

I have never been involved in negotiations or a hearing where it became so personal that it permanently tainted the player/organization relationship. As a player representative, you have to check your ego at the door, and act in the best interest of the player, and part of that process is to maintain the player/organization relationship.

A player’s representative has to be that buffer between the player and the organization, and take the heat for the player, and conversely, apply pressure on the organization from the player’s perspective in such a way that it comes from the representative, not the player.

I have always found the Pirates to be extremely professional in these situations. I have always had great battles with Larry Silverman (also a Pittsburgh native), they were always spirited, but professional. In almost every instance, both Larry and I left the bargaining table a little disappointed with the result, which really is the hallmark of a good deal for both sides.

Any thoughts on the issue of concussions with players in the NFL and NHL? There are a couple of lawsuits now against the NFL and the NHL could be prone to the same. What is your take on the whole concussion issue?

The concussion issue has been ignored in professional sports for far too long. Leagues and the players unions need to do a better job in evaluating the problem and creating solutions, to the extent they can be created. At the end of the day, there are always going to be concussions in professional sports (especially in the NHL and NFL), it is a risk that players assume. However, the treatment of concussions falls to the teams and their medical staffs, and that treatment needs to evolve as more research is conducted.

I also have a personal interest in the concussion issue. I have a son who plays Mite hockey and a daughter who plays travel soccer. Concussions are increasing at the youth sports level (most likely a result of increased awareness and diagnosis), and as a father, I am paying close attention to concussion issues in youth sports. I am hopeful that with increased awareness and research, concussions in youth sports can be reduced and the treatment of concussions will continue to progress.

What Pittsburgh athletes have you represented in non-arbitration type cases? Any interesting (and repeatable) stories from these?

I have represented a number of Pittsburgh-based athletes in both civil and criminal matters. Unfortunately, the attorney/client privilege prevents me from commenting, but needless to say, it’s always been an adventure!

What would surprise readers most about your work?

I think my clients would surprise readers. Many people have a misconception that professional athletes are, in the main, arrogant and selfish. I have found it quite the contrary.

In most of my dealings with professional athletes, I have found them to be considerate and appreciative. Many of them are different in person than they are on the field.

You write consistently for the Sports Agent Blog as well (//www.sportsagentblog.com/tag/jay-reisinger/) – what issues do you find yourself discussing most with your peers now and what are the biggest concerns behind those issues?

I often blog about labor issues in sports. I believe that the leagues, in the main, have taken the upper hand in labor negotiations (especially in the NFL and NBA), and it is detrimental to players and players’ rights.

For example, the personal conduct policy in the NFL is a sham. Without the ability to appeal league discipline to a neutral third-party arbitrator, the players are at the mercy of the Commissioner. It’s these types of issues that concern (and interest) me. I also have a personal blog in which I discuss sports issues (//www.jayreisinger.blogspot.com/).

Jack Leftridge, on Father and Former Steelers Fullback Dick Leftridge (1966)

First, as the first African-American to receive a football scholarship to play for a major college in the South, do you recall any of your father’s stories on how he became that first player? What about him made him the first and did he want to play at WVU?

My father becoming the first African-American to receive a scholarship to play major college sports in the south seems to be simply a timing thing. His eventual coach at WVU (Corum) is on record as saying that he tried to recruit African-Americans to WVU even before my father.

Continue reading “Jack Leftridge, on Father and Former Steelers Fullback Dick Leftridge (1966)”

Marshall Cropper, Steelers Wide Receiver, 1967-1969

First, can you let readers know about the Hawk Voice Educational Foundation and how you got involved?

The Hawk Voice Educational Foundation was built simply as a means of giving back to young people in the community. It was established with University of Maryland Eastern Shore and Maryland State alumni. Colleagues like Art Shell, Mack Alston, Bill Thompson, Irving Williams, and Carl Hairston here at UMES, to name a few, and many more athletes who would subsequently come together about once or twice a year to give back to our university.

We had to make sure that when people donated, they would get the right feel about making their donations and would know that it was all going toward giving back to the young people in the form of scholarships. That’s it in a nutshell. Art Shell is our major sponsor. He has led us to a number of people to talk to who are just like us. Leslie Donaldson, he wasn’t pro but was always there to work with us. Pat Alexander and Eleanor Turner was always there to help us as well.

Continue reading “Marshall Cropper, Steelers Wide Receiver, 1967-1969”

Craig Colquitt, Steelers Punter, 1978-1984

First, can you let readers know about your life after football what you are doing now and how you got involved in this?

I am a Senior Sales Director in the southern and mid western region of the county offering custodial, maintenance and grounds services to the K-12 school district industry.

You were a third round pick of Chuck Noll’s in ’78 – were you surprised to be drafted that high as a punter?

No I was disappointed because Dallas said they were going to take me in the fifth round. However, until Joe Gordon on draft day asked ‘What I thought about playing with the likes of Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Mean Joe Green, etc. After tearing up a bit I said I had not thought of the team dynamics in that way.

Continue reading “Craig Colquitt, Steelers Punter, 1978-1984”

Larry Gagner, Steelers Offensive Lineman, 1966-1969

First, can you tell readers about your art and how you got started doing this work?

Mrs. Stokley, my fourth grade teacher, always asked me to render in colored chalk any festive holiday scene, but by High School, my total involvement in athletics shadowed any time for artistic development. Later at the U of F, in a beginning painting class, I became smitten and hooked for life after having received one of the only two A’s in class. I graduated with a degree in Advertising Design in 1967, but pro football allowed me time, in and out of the season, to further develop my love for painting.

Has your playing career inspired your artwork – and was this something you were active in doing as a player too?

I don’t cater to athletic subject matter per se, but art critics have still described my representational painting as kinetic and engaging, paralleling it to the “controlled violence” of pro football. I’ve had one-man art gallery shows and also exhibited in numerously in Florida’s sidewalk art festivals receiving many prizes and awards. I have also continually exhibited in the annual NFLPA’s Smocks and Jocks Art Exhibitions.

Continue reading “Larry Gagner, Steelers Offensive Lineman, 1966-1969”

Jerrol Williams, Steelers Linebacker, 1989-1992

First, can you let readers know what you are up to these days?

I’m living in Las Vegas now taking care of my three kids. I coached a little semi-pro ball and some youth ball, but that’s really the extent of it.

I’m not working now due to injuries I got playing. I hurt my shoulder in San Diego – and a few other injuries along the way too. I was on disability for a while through the NFL and am re-applying. I was approved the first time and am trying now for permanent and total disability. because of all the craziness over the Summer everything was backlogged so I’m getting all my paperwork together now.

Continue reading “Jerrol Williams, Steelers Linebacker, 1989-1992”

O’Brien: Rooting for Charlie Batch and Hines Ward

Rooting for Charlie Batch and Hines Ward

Pittsburgh sports author and Valley Mirror columnist Jim O’Brien

I was so happy for Charlie Batch. He looked like a kid on Christmas Eve who started opening his presents early.

Batch came to the sideline on Saturday afternoon as the skies were starting to darken over Pittsburgh and saw Steelers smiling at him, so happy for his success, and he smiled back at them. He jumped up and bounced against one of them to celebrate a victory and all that had gone right for him that day. Batch blushes, yes he does, and his complexion turns rosy on his cheeks, nose and forehead. It’s like make-up for Santa Claus.

Big Ben Roethlisberger was hurting and Batch, the backup who hardly ever plays, had to go in there and he did the job. Charlie Batch didn’t remind any old-timers of Charlie Connerly of the Giants or Charlie Johnson of the Cardinals, or current Steelers’ fans of Terry Bradshaw or Tom Brady, but Charlie Batch was good enough.

He directed the Steelers to a 27-0 victory over the St. Louis Rams. He passed for 208 yards, had only one interception, and nearly had a touchdown throw when he hit Mike Wallace for a 46-yard gain that was as good as anything Big Ben has done, perhaps short of his Super Bowl-winning pass into the deepest right corner to Santonio Holmes against the Arizona Cardinals.

Batch threw the ball into some tight spots and looked terrific at times, and other times he looked like a backup, throwing the ball astray. But, hey, Big Ben does that, too.

Batch had become a hometown hero in Homestead several years ago, though he seldom took a snap in a real Steelers’ game, because of his efforts to keep kids active in sports and, hopefully, out of trouble, and for attempting to turn things around in the Steel Valley.

He’s bounced back from bankruptcy caused by overextending himself in real estate ventures and he’s done enough in his own community and Pittsburgh at large to be a serious contender someday in the political game if he chooses to pursue a political career. I could see him being the mayor of Pittsburgh and that’s not because Luke Ravenstahl hasn’t set the bar that high.

Fans were also rooting for Hines Ward. They want him to get his 1,000^th career catch in regular season play. Ward came up with four catches to inch closer to his goal. There had been rumors and rumblings all week that Ward might be playing his last game as a Steelers’ player at Heinz Field.

Ward needs five more in Cleveland this coming Sunday and I hope Mike Tomlin and Bruce Arians find a way to do that once a victory is assured. I believe Ward is still a go-to guy when you want a first down or a defensive back knocked on his keester. There’s a strong assumption that the Steelers no longer need Ward, not as a fifth receiver with top receiver compensation. When Ward suspects anyone is short-changing him or underestimating his ability, he tends to wander into a blame game and starts saying the wrong things.

Ward has the best numbers of any receiver in Steelers’ history, surpassing John Stallworth and Lynn Swann, and is a sure bet to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame some day and to have his bust in the same room at Stallworth and Swann and so many other Steelers’ stalwarts.

But the Steelers have so many talented young receivers these days. I always credit Mike Tomlin for talking a thoughtful game, for understanding the psyche of his ballplayers so well, but I think Tomlin has said some less than supportive stuff when Ward’s name comes into the conversation or press conference, and it has been unsettling for Ward.

Ward has always walked on the kind of railway tracks one finds in a subway, where there’s a third rail that can electrocute you if you totter and step on it. Ward does that sometimes and says the wrong thing. He fires up his personal motor or mojo that way and it’s worked so far, but I hope he’s careful.

I want Ward to finish his career as a member of the Steelers. He should talk to Franco Harris, who made the mistake of getting mad at the Steelers because they wouldn’t come up with a better contract at the end of his career, and he bolted for the Seattle Seahawks. They, in turn, released him at mid-season, something the Steelers never would have done had he stayed here. It took Harris quite a while to heal the wounds here.

Players always have a hard time letting to and that was true with Joe Greene, L.C. Greenwood, John Banaszak and Mike Webster, to name a few. Coaches have a tendency to keep players one year longer than they should.

Maybe Ward was watching Steven L. Jackson on Saturday. Jackson has rushed for over 1,000 yards for seven straight seasons of his eight seasons with the team, and the Rams have won something like 31 of his 108 starts.

That could have happened to Jerome Bettis had he remained with the Rams who drafted him out of Notre Dame. But he came to the Steelers and had a chance to play for a team that won more often than it lost and was always a legitimate contender.

I believe Steven Jackson is better than any running back in the Steelers’ current lineup, and even better than Bettis, but he can’t enjoy playing pro ball as much as Bettis and Ward.

I’d love to have Steven Jackson carrying the ball for the Black & Gold. He’d help the Steeelers win and get those tough two-yard scores.

Ward should keep that in mind. He’s done well by the Steelers and they have done well by him. He’s been a Pittsburgh favorite for a long time – women especially love him and Troy Polamalu and are even forgiving toward Big Ben despite his bad behavior off the field in recent years.

I don’t want Ward to walk away mad, or spoil his reputation or the love he enjoys with Black & Gold devotees. Batch turned 37 earlier this month and Ward is 35 and they are two of the oldest Steelers. Maybe that’s why I root for them. We’re so familiar with them; they have stayed the course. They’re great competitors and they still come through in the clutch.

Batch has been with the Steelers for ten years, picking up a nice paycheck for doing a great imitation of Cliff Stoudt with a clipboard on the sideline. In recent years, he hasn’t even had to carry a clipboard. That wasn’t a clipboard Ben Roethlisberger was holding in his hand on Saturday. He looked like another kid in the shopping mall minding his iPod or texting a friend.

Batch has always been ready, always preparing himself to play, just in case. He’s been popular with his teammates. They elected him their team representative. He has been a clubhouse lawyer, but in the best fashion and not in a disruptive way.

I caught Batch filling in for LaMarr Woodley at the Coaches Corner Luncheon last month. Batch learned an hour before the luncheon was to begin that his services were needed, and he made a U-turn in his car and did a fine job of representing the Steelers.

There were coaches and players from several local high schools being honored at the luncheon, and there are always players from Summit Academy there. They are second-chance kids who’ve gotten into trouble and are going to a school that addresses their behavior problems and tries to get them headed in the right direction.

Those kids recognized Charlie Batch. He’s been to their school many times to talk to the kids. Batch has been involved in a lot of community service activity since he returned home from Detroit. Batch was lecturing everyone in the room this time around.

The best part of it was that Batch sounded sincere. He’s for real. A month later, the lecturer at the luncheon would be Todd Graham, in his last day as the Pitt head football coach. Todd Graham thought he was Billy Graham that day.

He preached a sermon about integrity, loyalty, commitment – something a man who jumps jobs routinely and has been married three times should know a lot about – and Todd Graham came off more like Billy Sunday or Elmer Gantry. He came off, as the sports talk radio station in town suggested, like Fraud Graham.

He was gone the next day to Arizona State. So much for loyalty and commitment and his “dream job” at Pitt.

Batch was a 14-year NFL veteran and he commanded attention. He had found a way to stay around.

He said from the time he played at Steel Valley High he has always loved the game and played the game because he loved it.

He said he always looks at the scores in the paper on Saturday morning to see how Steel Valley fared on Friday night.

Batch believes high school coaches can have the greatest impact on young players. “High school coaches have the ultimate power to influence kids,” he said. “You can’t take that responsibility lightly. Every coach has his own philosophy. Mine would be to work hard and have fun and win!”

He told the kids the window of opportunity is small and that they must make the most of it. “A lot of people want to tell you what you can and can’t do. You have to become what you want to become.

“We have three quarterbacks on our team that played in the Mid-American Conference. It’s not supposed to be as good as the Big Ten or even the Big East, but tell that to Ben Roethlisberger, Bryan Leftwich and myself. We’re all MAC alumni.

“I’m from Homestead. I went to Steel Valley. I want to Eastern Michigan. I’m living my childhood dream every Sunday.

“There are a lot of distractions these days for young people. You have to keep your nose clean. You have to be a leader, not a follower. I wasn’t always the best student, but I did what I needed to do to stay eligible. I think I’d be a better student today, knowing what I know now.

“Some people will say you’re not smart enough. I heard that, too. But I refused to sell myself short. Most people from here when asked where they’re from say ‘I’m from Pittsburgh.’ But I love saying I’m from Homestead.”

No wonder I was rooting for Charlie Batch last Sunday. We got off to a bad start, back when he was playing for the Detroit Lions. I made plans to interview him at a Damon’s Restaurant near Century III Mall.

Charlie Batch blew me off that day because he was with old friends. I felt like somebody had kicked me below the belt when I left him that afternoon. He would not be in my book Hometown Heroes. I didn’t think I’d ever write about him again.

When he came to the Steelers I walked up to him one day at St. Vincent College and recalled that earlier fiasco and disappointment. I told him that I couldn’t root against him if he was going to be playing for the Steelers.

He didn’t apologize but he agreed we’d get along just fine. He has kept his word. He has acknowledged me and my support – as well as that of my fellow columnist Darrell Hess – when he sees us in the audience at the Coaches Corner. He has thanked us for standing by him.

That’s why I smiled when I saw Charlie Batch smiling last Saturday. That’s why I want Hines Ward to be careful about what he says, and not let the media lure him into a bad place with the Pittsburgh Steelers’ organization. They’re my kind of guys. The late Art Rooney would say they were real Pittsburgh guys.

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Pittsburgh sports author and Valley Mirror columnist Jim O’Brien will be appearing next weekend at the Pittsburgh Remodeling Show at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

Neil Graff, Steelers Quarterback, 1976-1977

First, can you let readers know what you are doing with yourself these days?

Since my retirement from the NFL I have been in the investment business. When I was playing football I went back to graduate school one semester per year for four years at my alma mater, Wisconsin, and received a MBA in Finance. So, it was natural to go into the investment advisory business after my NFL career ended.

How, if at all, did your time in the NFL impact your post-NFL career path?

One thing I experienced in the NFL was the fact that players did not prepare themselves for ‘life after football’. They enjoyed the money and the notoriety of playing in the NFL, but did not think about what the quality of their life might be like when they concluded their careers.

Continue reading “Neil Graff, Steelers Quarterback, 1976-1977”

Christina Rivers, Independent Journalist Covering the Steelers

Christina Rivers, independent journalist covering the Steelers for Examiner.com and SteelersDepot.com

First, can you let readers know how you got started as a writer – what got you involved in sportswriting?

I have been a writer since I was young. My grandmother, Gloria Elaine Richardson, was a writer and poet. She published several things, and she was always introducing me to books, writing and creative outlets like art work.

I have been an athlete nearly my entire life. I was a student athlete from grade school through college. I studied sports medicine (Exercise Physiology and Psychology with an emphasis in sports psychology) at Brigham Young University (from 1990-1993). After three years, I was drawn to another calling. I went to college and became a medic and worked for a private ambulance company, then in two major medical centers. My medical career stalled in 2003 when I became seriously ill and could no longer work in the field.

I decided that I wasn’t going to just let my new handicaps become just that, handicaps. I went back to what I loved. I re-opened my graphic arts business and I started writing. At first, I was covering local news in Iowa. Then my breakthrough to sportswriting happened.

I wrote a piece about Troy Polamalu for Examiner.com, and they enjoyed it enough that they asked me to sign on as the Pittsburgh Steelers Examiner in Pittsburgh. I have been a die-hard Steelers fan since I was about five. It’s a funny story, but one worth telling another time.

I have been covering the Steelers for Examiner.com for almost two years now, and I can say it has been absolutely my dream to be able to meet not only fans, but people involved with the team directly. Just recently, I joined the writing staff at Steelers Depot as well, and that is additional joy.

Who have been some of the most interesting interviews you’ve had, and what made them so?

I don’t generally conduct interviews with the players. I do interact with them through social media however. Erin Cox runs Ben Roethlisberger’s website, Facebook and twitter account. She contacted me regarding an article I wrote, and it has been a great experience to get to know her and Ben through her.

I think one of the best times with a player using social media was a live chat with rookie tight end Weslye Saunders. He’s funny, personable, and I really expect him to be a breakout player for the Steelers soon. One of the favorite interviews I have conducted is with Max Starks, a high school senior, who runs ProInterviews.com. He is very mature for his age. He has his own business doing interviews with pro football players from all teams.

What are the plans for your site?

I have my own web site that is being worked on, but my sportswriting is done for Examiner.com and SteelersDepot.com right now. I don’t have plans to change that anytime soon. My intention is to create the best Steelers coverage for both of those media outlets as an independently contracted writer. In the future, that may change. As for my NFL artwork, that will all be placed on my personal website for people to purchase at a later date.

Have you had the opportunity to meet any of those players in person – how was that experience if so?

I haven’t met any of the current Steelers players in person yet. I would love to, but right now I am sticking to contact with them through social media like Facebook, Tout, live chats and Twitter.

In the past, I corresponded with retired Steelers kicker Craig Colquitt. It was a great experience because he wrote me back and introduced me to his son, Dustin. I had asked if he’d ever had a kick blocked while he played in the NFL and was surprised to find out he never had. I understand Dustin and another son are now playing in the NFL – that’s great. Following in their father’s footsteps. Their family is a big University of Tennessee backers and alumnus, so go Vols!

What would surprise fans most about the players you’ve covered so far?

I think that fans are surprised when they find out who I have contact with the most. I got a tweet from a player one night, and the friends I was with were like “who’s that?” When I told them, one of my friends said, “Yeah, I follow him on Twitter too.” I laughed and said, “Yes, but do you get direct tweets from him?” I think a lot of people have this idea that if you’re not a native of the ‘Burgh then there is no way you can understand the city, the people or the team.

I think what I cover, who I cover…it shows that there is a stronger connection than people give me credit for. In the future, I hope to have more access, but anyone will tell you that working with PR and agents to get interviews with players isn’t always easy. I find that social networking makes it more personal for the players to be able to reach out…and I try not to be up in their faces like a lot of media types. I know they have personal lives and they don’t want cameras or people begging for sound bites all the time.

I have written several articles dedicated to a certain player – the most recent on Roethlisberger overcoming his ankle injury against Cleveland to lead the Steelers to a win. I know that athletes like those kind of articles a lot better than ones that have headlines about how many mistakes they’ve made personally on or off the field.

What has been the hardest issue for you to cover personally and why?

Probably the two hardest issues for me to cover has been fines against James Harrison and players who ‘go rogue’ so to speak. For example, it’s pretty hard not to be an outsider and look in and see why James Harrison feels that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is targeting him. He was pretty verbal this week about a hit that another team’s player took on a quarterback … and how there was no fine handed out. I think there is some legitimacy for his complaints.

There is also legitimacy for the league saying that if he continues to play the way he has been – he’s going to keep getting fined and/or suspended. I think it is a lot like Suh of the Detroit Lions. Whether they like it or not, the league is going to pick people as examples. It isn’t necessarily fair or just, but football isn’t really a fair or just game. That’s why they need refs on the field, and even they don’t always make the correct calls.

After Hines Ward won Dancing With the Stars, he was charged with drunk driving. Although there hasn’t been any follow-up news as to whether or not he was convicted, it’s hard to keep telling people about his charitable works (which are many) and in the next sentence say, “Oh, and he was allegedly driving drunk”. I try not to overreact like the main stream media when a player Tweets frustration (ie. Rashard Mendenhall over the death of Osama bin Laden) or gets attacked for expressing their opinions. To me, they have as much of a right to express their feelings as I do – we’re all human. Whether people get it or not, players are people with private lives off that football field. I try to give them privacy and respect in that area.

Check out this article: //www.examiner.com/pittsburgh-steelers-in-pittsburgh/the-nfl-should-be-embarrassed-by-the-sunday-night-game-between-steelers-ravens

I rarely write opinion pieces, but this one struck a chord in a major way – especially with Steelers fans. Even some Ravens fans participated in helping me with the piece. Do I like writing about negative things? No. I wrote the article because I truly felt the NFL had done a terrible job and it needed to be brought to light. That article had one of the largest responses of any I’ve written for Examiner.com.

What has been the most interesting story for you to write and why?

I think one of the most interesting stories I’ve written was after I read ESPN ‘The Magazine’s’ Boston Issue.

//www.examiner.com/pittsburgh-steelers-in-pittsburgh/speaking-truth-and-loyalty-as-a-steelers-fan

I compete every day with big media outlets like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. I get tired of the trash they put out there many times about players and call ‘news’. Sometimes they actually do a great story about a player or team, but they are far and few between in my opinion. Most of the time their articles and editorial schedule are driven on a similar one to TMZ and Entertainment Tonight (if you know what I mean). Trends, what’s hot, what’s not.

When I read the Boston issue…well, you can take a look at it … I realized that I should cover a story about the City of Pittsburgh, the fans of the Steelers (but also the other PGH teams as well — although mainly the Steelers because that is who I cover)…how Boston fans may rail against their teams, but how many of them travel across the country on a Monday to watch their NFL team play in such force (massive fan-base) as the Steelers fans? I enjoyed covering the angle of true sports fans, not fair-weathered ones.

Otherwise, I would say that my most interesting stories have been about the players themselves, as people. I recently wrote one about Max Starks coming back from injury and receiving the (@19th Annual Arthur J. Rooney, Sr. Courage House Luncheon) Ed Block Courage Award as voted by his teammates. It was great that Max got that recognition, especially after he’d been cut from the team and then re-signed to fill a hole in the offensive line emergently.

//www.examiner.com/pittsburgh-steelers-in-pittsburgh/steelers-offensive-tackle-max-starks-to-be-honored-for-philanthropy

What’s your dream story or interview?

I have two actually. First and foremost would be to do an article with all of the sons of Art Rooney, ‘The Chief’…get them all in one room and really let them talk about the evolution of the team in their lives. Throw in the kids and grandkids – it’d be too much. I want those men to be in that room releasing the ghost of players and teams past so I can capture it.

I’ve always been a big Terry Bradshaw and Franco Harris fan. Who isn’t a fan of the World-Champion Steelers in the 1970s? Well, a true dream interview would be to get all of the Hall of Fame Steelers players together in Canton and not only see their items there, but to talk about why they think they were enshrined, what their favorite aspects of being a player and a member of the Steelers was, etc.

I would love them all to get together in a reunion of sorts and just let the memories flow. Those guys are way too often forgotten. I am hoping that Donnie Shell gets inducted this year for sure.

What’s your ultimate goal as a writer?

A lot of people would tell you they write for the money. If that’s the case, they’re lying. People who love to write know that you aren’t going to become a billionaire writing, unless you’re lucky and some company publishes your collection of short stories and puts it on the New York Times Best Seller list. Sports writers can write books, and many have. There are a ton of great books out there about the Steelers in fact.

My ultimate goal as a sports writer is to reach those who read my material in ways that keep them coming back for more. It isn’t dissimilar to an author writing a series of books (ie. C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia), except that I want to dig deeper and provide information that you can’t just get from a Google search online. I am not trying to become the Wikipedia of Steelers information, if you know what I mean. I want content that resonates.

BTW – yes, I am writing a novel. Is it about sports? No, it’s a thriller!

Steve Conley, Steelers Linebacker, 1996-1998

First, can you let readers know about your work as a sports medicine coordinator -what you do and how you got involved?

My job as The Sports Medicine Coordinator for Northwest Health Systems is to support local high school athletic programs through prevention, education, treatment and rehabilitation of sports related injuries. We also offer a Sports Performance Program for athletes to safely achieve new heights in athletic performance.

I became involved with sports medicine because of my background in sports. I always had a passion to become a football coach or train athletes. I was approached one day by Dr. Chris Dougherty of Dougherty Sports performance about helping start a Sports Performance Program at Northwest Health in Bentonville, Arkansas. I was excited about the offer and accepted the job. The program is called SMART Sports and we currently service four high schools and one Jr College in the Northwest Arkansas area.

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