The Morning Haul: 9/13

Good morning everyone. Yesterday was the first day back at home for me, and it felt great to be able to sit at a desk and write all day. That will be the routine from now on. As I discussed in this article yesterday, there is a real sense of tension surrounding the new ban on media at practices reporting information on injuries or game planning. It will really change, at least moderately, the way the various members of the media cover the team. For daily blogs like Bob Condotta’s Husky Football Blog over at the Seattle Times, daily practice reports were a big part of the in-season routine, and this new policy will make his job more difficult.

For the Husky Haul, the change is a little less straightforward. Because I am not a credentialed member of the media working for a newspaper or something of that sort, most of my original content is based on opinion or analysis. I’ll write about how I feel about a decision, or what I think will happen in a game. As for news, such as a recruit committing or something from practice, like an injury, I don’t have the access to “break” those stories. I will report them so that Husky Haul readers can stay absolutely up to date, but I will usually be a handful of minutes behind the very first person to release the info. Now that those sources can no longer report what they see at practice, I won’t be able to report it either. While they will still see things occur and have the information, but just not be able to report it, I will often be totally in the dark just as much as anyone else.

The policy somehow manages to even out the difference in coverage between a traditional beat man and a site like Husky Haul while also still putting forth a whole new set of challenges. It will be interesting to see how the landscape of in-season reporting changes going forward.

Stories Especially Worth Reading:

For anyone that is a little worried about the Portland State game this Saturday, don’t be. They just fired their defensive coordinator a few days before the game…

Gregg Bell talking about Keith Price’s role as a team leader and do everything star.

Week 2 Pac-12 picks from the Dawg Pound. A few key differences from my own picks.