Are you a fan of sports? Do you like to watch a favorite player or team? Do you know anyone who plays a sport? Are you an athlete yourself? Are you unsure about playing due to this pandemic or your school or parents are preventing you from performing? That is very understandable, but there are athletes who are brave and courageous to perform during these tough times. They are not letting coronavirus stop them from achieving their ultimate goal which is to play college sports. However, only a slim percentage of high-school student-athletes get recruited to compete at the collegiate level. With COVID-19 hitting the U.S., grabbing the attention of recruiters has become even harder. But for those with dreams of playing at the next level, the constant grind continues.
My cover athlete named Lucas Hammeke is not only playing 1 sports but 2 which are basketball and football. Lucas is from Hutchinson and is a senior at Trinity high school. Right now he is currently in football season as Trinity high’s quarterback and has helped lead them to an undefeated 2-0 start this season. I had the opportunity to interview Lucas and I asked him why he played football and he said “I always played growing up and wanted to continue to finish it during my time in high school.” Lucas loves the Green Bay Packers and his favorite player is Aaron Rodgers. Lucas has a great support system. He looks up to his older brother and his father. Lucas also discussed the difficulties of playing this year through the pandemic. He stated “just the part of wearing masks and not being able to play certain games really hurts our recruitment process.” He also is a phenomenal basketball player. He hopes one day he plays at his dream school which is Kansas University. Lucas likes to play basketball more than football, but hopes to get recruited in either sport. He plays point guard for his team and is praying that they have a season this year. His motivation which is wanting to win and bravery is what helps him get through adversity and it can do the same for you as well, but you got to want it.
It is a very difficult time for athletes all over the world right now. However, when it comes to high school athletes it is a different situation. You can say college athletes are struggling but they are still on scholarship and able to get their degree. High school athletes are still trying to make it and get recruited. Recruitment for high school athletes is going to be a different time this year for athletes and also the coaches. Due to this current pandemic, it is going to be very hard to attend games, play games, athletic visits and even face to face interactions. High schools do not have the same resources as colleges so it is more stress on the parents to handle situations rather than college coaches. Lets not forget to mention the mental state and attitude of the athletes. Not knowing if they will have a season or be able to have the opportunity to perform in front of scouts is draining and can result in loss of motivation to play.
While the questions you pose in your lede are good, and honestly questions a lot of people are probably asking themselves during this time, try to avoid using questions in your lede unless there is a very specific reason. Instead, use statements that convey those thoughts/questions such as something like:
The world of sports at every level has been greatly impacted by COVID-19, and with uncertainty surrounding the safety of playing, blah blah blah…. That gets the same info across in a different way
Try to keep words like “me, you, I, we, us, etc” our of your stories. Often the same statements can be made without saying one of those words. For example, your first sentence in your second graf could go this way
Lucas Hammeke is one such athlete, who is not only playing one sport, but two.
You won’t need to introduce the interview with saying “I had the chance” instead just go right into the quote or use background information to set up the statement. For example.
Hammeke said playing football when he was younger helped motivate him to continue playing in high school.
“I always played growing up….’
You have a ton of good info in that second graf, try to separate out the thoughts into smaller grafs and put a little more detail into each one. That way you aren’t just mentioning a quick hitting thing like the recruiting then moving on. Instead you can spend a little more time on each subject and flesh them out a bit.
What Nick said in his email holds true and I would suggest taking those ideas for story development. You have a great start here, and with a little fine tuning you will have some really nice stories!
Thank you for posting such amazing information. That’s really helpful.
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