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Fielder’s Choice
By Barry Burleson Long time on sidelines For whatever reason, Friday night I got to thinking about how long I’ve been on the sidelines for high school football. It’s been 30-plus years. And it continues to be a blast. The fun started with coverage of my alma mater, the Hamilton, Ala., High School Aggies, the fall after graduation (1979). Good friend Les Walters gave me a chance – even before I went to the University of North Alabama and majored in journalism. He gave me a pen, a reporter’s notebook and a camera and turned me loose. He taught me how to take notes and shoot photographs at the same time. It’s
become pretty simple – camera around neck and notebook and pen in
pocket. Or sometimes, if in a big hurry, just put the pen between your
teeth. Before the play, get ready for the perfect photo. After
snapping, grab the notebook, write down the number of the player who
carried the ball or made the pass and catch, plus how many yards
gained. Then quickly put the notebook back in the pocket and get ready
for the next photo. If it sounds complicated, it was – at first. But I got so good that I could even total game statistics from my notes. I
don’t recall missing too many Friday nights since – from Marion County,
Ala., to Itawamba County, Miss., to Franklin County, Ala., to Monroe
County, Miss., to Jones County, Miss., to Marshall County, Miss. I’ve
covered Indians, Mustangs, Red Devils, Bulldogs, Panthers, Lions,
Tigers, Seminoles, Tornadoes, Braves, Patriots, Hawks, Cardinals and
probably more. I’ve followed teams all the way to
state championships. I’ve covered winless squads. All have been
enjoyable – thanks to the relationships I’ve built with players and
coaches. My method of coverage is still the same
– camera and notebook – unless I’m fortunate to have another member of
The South Reporter staff in attendance at the game. That doesn’t happen
often because the staff is small and we’re spread out among games. But some things have changed over the years, too. Several
years back I switched to a digital camera. And even though I resisted
at first, that’s been a huge advantage. Before the switch, I would take
photos at a game and had no idea whether or not I had a good shot – or
even if any were in focus. I had to wait to process the film in the
darkroom and pick out the best ones by squinting to see the negatives
or printing proofs. Now I can look at the photos
as I take them on the camera and decide if I need more or not. And then
it’s just a matter of downloading them to my computer and selecting the
best ones in good view. Most former newspaper dark rooms are now storage rooms or offices or they’ve just been demolished, I guess. Once
upon a time, when I first started covering games, I actually typed the
stories on a typewriter and turned them in to a typesetter at the
newspaper office. Later, with the arrival of desktop publishing, I would just go into the office every weekend to type my stories. Now I can do that from home – via my laptop. Call it habit. Call it enjoyable. Call it work. All
of those would be correct. But one thing is for sure, I can’t imagine
being anywhere else on Friday nights during football season.
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