STEVE MCGRAIN
Sports Editor
mcgraist@plu.edu
I have always been infatuated with how a game plays out. Each of the nuances and the vision of the athletes is remarkable, and at times it seems as though they can see into the future. This is why I fell in love with sports writing.
I came to Pacific Lutheran with the ambition to succeed in the classroom and on the football field.
After moving from defensive end to left tackle, I thought I was going to play alongside my EMAL brothers for four years and ultimately retire when I graduated. Instead, I received my fifth concussion sophmore year and had to stop playing due to the injury.
But I always knew I wanted to remain in the game, even if it meant not putting forth any physical exertion.
Unless an athlete has unbelievable abilities, we will more than likely not go professional-just enjoy recreational leagues where we show up after grabbing a beer or two.
Since fifth grade, I have wanted to be a sports broadcaster. To feel the energy from the crowd and have that excitement carrying throughout the game is what I have aspired to do. Being able to tell the story of a play as fast as it happens is a skill that I yearn to perfect. It’s not as easy as it sounds, speaking as fast as the eyes can scan the field not missing anything important.
In sports, there is no room for error. The simplest play of a quarterback stepping through his five-step drop-back and throwing to a receiver on a curl-route can be incomplete with the smallest of mistakes.
The quarterback could throw it too early, deliver the ball on the wrong shoulder, a second too late the defender could intercept the pass, a receiver could turn to the inside and not toward the sideline.
In basketball, a point guard dribbling down the court on a fast-break.
Being able to deliver a pass to his teammate sprinting on the left wing and throwing a pass before he is even there, but having it ultimately end with his teammate catch it on his hip and lay it up for two points. It’s something to marvel at.
Athletes who are able to have a vision as to how a play may unfold are valued the most.
In soccer, a striker waiting patiently for the perfect moment to attack the center after the forward on the outside kicks it into the middle, hoping for a header.
In tennis, trying to figure out where the serve is going to be and where the return is going to end up.
This attention to detail is what I look to write about. It is easy to point out the big mistakes as to why a team lost a contest, and I want to find the one that no one caught. Whether I am a fan of a team or not, I enjoy witnessing how each player brings their own unique traits to the game that they are playing in.
Sports writing is an art, and the players, as well as coaches, are artists performing their craft with the desire to create a masterpiece that can be unmatched by anyone else, pure perfection.
