Remembering Thurman Munson

Obviously, I had to use a respectful tone for this blurb about the late Thurman Munson. The story was unique in that George Steinbrenner wrote it. I wanted to make it clear that he was the author and then just summarize what he was saying and explain why he was saying it at this time (for the 30th anniversary of Munson's death.)

They call him Coach

I wanted to play the top story headline and blurb pretty straight because the story would sell itself: a ranking of the top 50 coaches of all time. I debated whether or not to reveal the No. 1 coach in the blurb -- withholding it might have enticed people to click and find out -- but I decided to mention that Wooden topped the list because readers would realize it was credible and would then want to see how other greats stacked up.

Football and futbol

It's not often soccer is featured on our home page, but it was on this day. I think the top story right headline conveyed the idea that the interview subject could speak intelligently about David Beckham, unlike a lot of people in the American sports media (because he literally did write a book on Beckham). I thought the top story blurb would draw readers because it claimed, contrary to popular opinion, that the Cardinals' run to Super Bowl 43 was not a fluke.

I can even write about bullfighting

Managing the home page this particular day, I got to write blurbs for a variety of sports in a variety of tones. In the left side of the Sporting News Exclusives section at the bottom, there's a blurb that had to be pretty straightforward due to the recent death of Steve McNair. On the right side of that same section, I was able to be a little more creative describing a photo of a bullfighter getting tossed (he was OK).

It's better than 'March of the Penguins'

I chose "Tip of the ice-burgh" in the top story for three reasons: 1. It was fairly original, unlike some of the trite and predictable headlines on other sites after the Pens won the Stanley Cup. 2. The non-standard spelling of iceberg was a nod to the Cup-winning city, and 3. It fit well with the story's argument, which was that this could be the first of many titles for the Pens.

The top story right headline works on a couple of levels. Obviously it's a riff on "cure for the common cold," but it works because the Red Sox struck out 20 times the previous night (so Ks were common). Plus, they were facing a struggling pitcher in their next game, which could be the "cure" for their hitting woes.

Getting Shakespearean on the home page

I included this screen grab more for the top story right than the main top story, which is pretty straightforward. The TSR headline combines my loves of literary references and alliteration. As for the photo, Calvin Borel, who was going for a jockey's triple crown at the Belmont, had been on the page for a while, and we wanted to change up the art. I had to take someone fairly anonymous -- in this case, a trainer for another Belmont horse -- and make people care about him -- in this instance, by turning him into something of a villain who was trying to prevent Borel from accomplishing his feat.

Basic but effective

All of these blurb and headlines -- and I wrote them all except for "Man of mystery" in the Sporting News Exclusives -- are fairly direct and to the point. I thought the top story would sell itself -- people want to know whether their college football team will be better -- so I thought it best just to explain what they'll see if they click. Bethlehem Shoals, featured in the top story right, can write some fairly high-minded NBA columns that are difficult to explain in a brief blurb. I just tried to let readers know the question he was asking in the column, as well as the evidence he would use to support his opinion.

A little rest for The King

Here's another screen grab from SN's home page. If, like me, you watch tons of ESPN and have been bombarded by promos for "Kobe Doing Work," then you might find the top story headline clever. I thought it worked especially well in light of the Kobe-LeBron rivalry (and in light of the fact that Kobe's Lakers were at the time having to work unexpectedly hard to put away the Yao-less Rockets).