An Early Look at NCC Basketball

I know, it's July, and basketball isn't really a factor for another few months, what with baseball still in full swing and football coming up very soon. But yesterday, the North Central Athletic Department released the schedules for both the men's and women's teams. You can view those schedules for yourself at the links provided, but I wanted to look over the key home dates on the schedule even though we're still four months out.

1. Saturday, November 15: WBK vs Albion. This one puzzles me. Thanksgiving is kind of late again this year, so the Tip Off Tournament isn't until the following weekend. It's not the first time they've played a game before the tourney (they opened with a loss at Dominican University in the 11-12 campaign), but it's not a usual thing either.
2. Friday, November 21 and Saturday, November 22: Chicago Marriott Naperville Tip Off Tournament. Two days. Eight games. Probably a good 10-11 hours a day and 8 bottles of Gatorade over both days to sustain my voice. I've had fond memories of the last two tournaments, between the epic Hope-College of Faith battle in 2012 and last year's epic opening game for the women against Ripon College. Like in prior years, the women's bracket is unknown (and probably won't be known until maybe October), but most of the men's field is known, since North Central has predetermined matchups. They get Trinity International University on Friday as a tuneup for the biggest game at Merner since the one that decided the fate of the universe a few years back: a date with defending national champion Wisconsin-Whitewater.
3. Tuesday, November 25: MBK vs Aurora. I like this rivalry. I'd like it more if my sister-in-law who goes to AU gave a crap about sports because then I could engage in unnecessary trash talk, but whatever. Always a fun date. Strangely, the women's team doesn't have Aurora on the docket this year. Then again, the men don't play Benedictine, so maybe it evens out (the women head to Lisle on November 26).
4. Saturday, January 3: WBK/MBK vs Illinois Wesleyan. Wesleyan is one of the bigger rivals in the CCIW for me, and I think for most who bleed Cardinal red. While I'm not sure what to make of the men's team going into this year, the women's game is going to be fun. The Titans lost just twice in CCIW last year, once at CCIW champ Carthage, and the other... at home to NCC! There's probably revenge in mind this year, while you have a prideful Cardinal team that matches up well with them. Great way to kick off the Gauntlet.
5. Wednesday, January 21: WBK vs Carthage. Welcoming the conference champ to your building makes for a big game. The fact that Carthage has (relatively) struggled here the last two years should make it a fun game. Also, I'm still mad about the push off by Stephanie Kuzmanic on what turned out to be the game-winning bucket last year.
6. Saturday, January 31: WBK/MBK vs Wheaton. It's not like I have an undying, seething hatred for every Wheaton Thunder team or anything. I missed out on the Wheaton games last year. I have no intent of missing them this time around. Beat Wheaton.
7. Saturday, February 21: WBK/MBK vs North Park. This marks the end of the regular season, which means this is Senior Night at Merner. This means bidding farewell to several seniors on the women's team who I've had the honor of announcing for for four years and watched unleash hell in the Murderous Press and from beyond the arc. It also means bidding farewell to a couple guys on the men's team I've gotten to watch in recent years. Always an emotional night.

It's too early to really do a preview, especially since I'm not 100 percent sure what Michelle Roof or Todd Raridon pulled off in the way of recruiting (though I do know Coach Roof seemed pretty pleased with the class she got to commit). As we get closer to the season, I'll do an actual preview and refer back to this guide.

Shifting the NBA Balance of Power

I've been on a writing hiatus for the past... four weeks or so, between spending two weeks in Hawaii, getting back into the swing of things at the office, and adjusting to life with the new Mrs. COAS. It's been an awesome few weeks. But things have been happening in the world of sports that I need to get to.

While none of the signings actually happened until I got back from Hawaii, the frenzy that was NBA free agency started while we were down there. I heard lots of rumors but wasn't really able to follow up on much of it. I had moments of hope that the Bulls would actually land one of the prime targets of the offseason, which went unrealized yet again. But there were exciting moments in the past week or so that have shifted the landscape of the league.

For almost my entire life, the balance of power in the NBA has been centered in the Western Conference. There have been a ton of juggernauts based in the East, but based on the number of quality teams, the West has long been stronger. I'd argue that now with a lot of the dust settled, the West is definitely stronger and holds the full balance of power. The defending champs reside in the West. Oklahoma City isn't going away any time soon. You have the Clippers within striking distance as well, and teams like Portland are on the rise. Houston, despite whiffing on all the major free agents, is still a team to worry about despite also losing Chandler Parsons. The odds of 2015's champion coming out of the West are pretty good.

What we did have in the last few years that we won't this upcoming season is a powerhouse in the East to serve as a counterbalance. With the breakup of Miami's "Big Three", the East has opened up significantly.

• Chicago Bulls: Geoffrey Clark over at Grabbing the Bull Horns has covered their major moves, including the signing of Pau Gasol and finally bringing over Nikola Mirotic. These moves combined with Derrick Rose coming back... again... hopefully not to get hurt again put the Bulls in a good position. If Rose is even 80 percent of the guy he was in 2011, look out. The fact that neither LeBron nor Carmelo decided to come to Chicago is kind of sad, but there's still some potential for improved offense this year.
• Cleveland Cavaliers: They got the top prize of the class to come back home. You add LeBron to a talented point guard in Kyrie Irving, plus rookie Andrew Wiggins, and some shooters like Mike Miller are on board. This team isn't as dangerous as LeBron's two title teams in Miami, but this is a young team with upside that, in adding the best player in the league, becomes a contender.
• Indiana Pacers: Two straight Eastern Conference Finals is nothing to sneeze at. But the Pacers seem to be on the downswing now, with Lance Stephenson leaving for Charlotte and the chemistry they had a couple years ago shot. Paul George is still a talented player, but unless Roy Hibbert returns to 2013 Roy Hibbert status, I'm not sure how much of a contender Indy is anymore.
• Miami Heat: Even without LeBron, you still have Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade (who is definitely getting older and his knees are a question mark), and they added a couple solid pieces in Luol Deng and Josh McRoberts. They're not as dangerous as they were the last four seasons, but this team can still make some noise both during the regular season and playoffs.
• Washington Wizards: They snuck into the playoffs last year and proceeded to run over a gassed Bulls team in the opening round. You add to that talent guys like Paul Pierce and lock up a talented big man in Marcin Gortat? These guys can contend in the East as well as long as John Wall and Bradley Beal continue their progress and Nene plays as well as he did against Chicago.

All of this stuff is big, but we're still waiting out the end of the Kevin Love Era in Minnesota (it's coming, probably not till next summer though). Otherwise, most of the big names have moved at this point. What I really enjoy at this point though: the fact that the Lakers will be irrelevant this year (an obscenely overpaid Kobe, rookie Julius Randle, Jeremy Lin, and a bunch of scrubs pretty much) makes me laugh. The whole Carmelo thing is kind of a mixed bag. I have joked for the past couple days, "Keep getting 'dem checks, Melo" with his decision to go back to New York for more money. In the grand scheme of things, it's his choice, and I don't blame him, because I'd be tempted by that amount of money. But if he was looking to win a title... he's not winning one in New York. I feel pretty safe guaranteeing that.

This might be the one season of basketball that I'm most looking forward to since LeBron went to Miami. Maybe it's also because Rose should be back and hopefully the Bulls can make some noise in the playoffs.

Overanalyzing the NBA Finals

Photo from the @spurs Twitter account

I didn't pay a ton of attention to the NBA this season compared to the NFL or the NHL. I followed the Bulls to some extent, and was, like a majority of people outside the Miami area, rooting for anyone but the Heat to win the title. So when I turned on ESPN on my way home last night to listen to Game 5, I was pleased to hear that the San Antonio Spurs were dominating the Miami Heat en route to their fifth title in 15 years. I of course had to watch the end of it. Even though I didn't see much of the series, the parts I did were just beautiful basketball.

I'm on the record here as hating the Miami Heat. I do. I respect the talent on that team, especially LeBron. But I hate the collusion that took place to build that core. I hate the arrogance they displayed once assembled. I don't like that LeBron rarely gets called for traveling despite traveling on a semiregular basis. I hate that he and Dwyane Wade flop. I hate that the two of them whine like there's no tomorrow. I don't have as big a problem with LeBron as a I do with Wade, but that combination... I hate the Heat. So I was thrilled with how the Finals turned out. If that makes me a "hater", so be it. I'm not ashamed of it.

Photo from Reuters

So what does this mean for various legacies among these two teams? For the Spurs, I'd argue that it makes them the best franchise in the post-Jordan era (it's either them or the Lakers). A lot of knowledgeable basketball fans already had him here, but he's cemented his place as the best power forward of all time. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili become arguably the best players from France and Argentina, respectively, and are in the conversation for best foreign-born player. And with the youth on this team, even if Duncan were to retire, this team still has a pretty solid core around to reload. They've kept proving people who call them too old or too boring wrong for years now. And they put on one of the best performances in the history of the NBA Finals to win their fifth title.

On the other side, a lot of people are, whether you think it's fair or not, blaming LeBron for the loss. Honestly... I can't do it. Let's look at the numbers:

• LeBron James: 28.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 4.0 apg, 2.0 spg, 0.4 bpg; 57% FG/52% 3PT/79% FT (while he falls just short of Bill Simmons' "42 Club", can you really complain about these numbers? This doesn't account for the cramps in Game 1 or his leaving for good with about 6:30 left last night, but I can't really blame him for those either. Especially when you consider...)
• Dwyane Wade: 15.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.6 spg, 0.0 bpg; 44% FG/33 % 3PT/69% FT (as I was compiling these stats... they aren't horrible, but for someone who's supposed to be a "superstar", it's not good, especially when you see how much he fell off the table in the final two games.)
• Chris Bosh: 14.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.0 apg, 0.8 spg, 0.2 bpg; 55% FG/38% 3PT/82% FT (Again, he did almost nothing here, though his shooting numbers aren't terrible. He had minimal shots in Game 3, and other games he was so-so.)

Photo from Andy Lions (NBAE/Getty Images)

One of the big takeaways is that LeBron did pretty much all he could, he just got no help from his supporting cast. The troll in me would like to point out that Game 6 of the '98 Finals was pretty much singlehandedly won by MJ as a counterpoint, but I'm not sure how apt that comparison is. Ultimately though, this year's Finals reminded us what it takes to win an NBA championship, and it's something I tackled in the NBA Tournament of Champions I ran last summer. The Spurs are the essence of a team, and they proved it throughout this series. It's arguably one of the most one-sided Finals in history, especially in recent memory.

It also means that the Heat need to go back to the drawing board, and maybe try to add a couple role players to help out. LeBron can't do it himself. Either way, I considered last night a victory for not only San Antonio, *puts on "hater" hat*, but for America and the good of basketball everywhere. To me, this series was a restoration of the balance of the basketball universe for the reasons stated above. I'm legitimately happy for this Spurs team. They proved they were the best team in the league this year in a major way these past couple weeks. And they earned an invitation to next summer's NBA Tournament of Champions II, which I will hopefully have the time and energy for, since I'll have access to all 64 teams invited this time.

COAS Picks the 2014 MLB All Stars

It may be a little early for this, but I'm going to be on a writing leave in about a week for a while. You know, getting married is kind of a big deal. Balloting for the MLB All Star Game is open until July 3rd and last year I waited until right before the deadline to make my selections, but given that I will be preoccupied, I'm voting early.

Of the four major sports, I'd say baseball has the best All Star Game. You get to see the best players in the game on the field, and they're all trying. That said, the fact that the All Star Game decides home field advantage for the World Series is a joke. Either decide by better overall record, or for a possibly better barometer, use their records against common opponents or something. But that's a post for another time.

Since the reality is that the game decides so much, having the fans vote on the starting lineup makes the starters something of a joke. I take this vote seriously though, and only intend to vote for the guys who deserve to start. Below you will see the starting lineups I voted for 75 times (you get 25 votes per email address, and I'm using the three I have. Sue me.) Stats included with the line are in average/homers/RBI's format and assumed to be the stat lines after all action on June 14th since the voting was conducted on June 15th.

American League
1B: Miguel Cabrera (DET)- .325/12/55
2B: Robinson Cano (SEA)- .331/3/36
SS: Alexei Ramirez (CHW)- .309/7/36
3B: Josh Donaldson (OAK)- .250/17/50
C: Kurt Suzuki (MIN)- .305/2/29
DH: Victor Martinez (DET)- .329/17/43
OF: Jose Bautista (TOR)- .311/15/46
OF: Mike Trout (LAA)- .299/13/49
OF: Michael Brantley (CLE)- .319/10/44

Miggy is the obvious choice for first base, with all due respect to the damage Jose Abreu has done on the South Side. Second is a little tougher, but Cano has done fairly well in his new digs. Derek Jeter will end up starting at short based on sentimentality, which would be fine were this just an exhibition game, but Alexei deserves the start based on numbers. Josh Donaldson has the worst average of my starting lineup, but he's been mashing, so it's fine. Catcher was tough, but Suzuki has done a decent amount of damage for the Twins so I'm in. In the outfield, Bautista and Trout were the no-brainers, and I opted for Brantley over Adam Jones of the Orioles. I almost didn't vote for a DH out of principle (the designated hitter is for sissies), but since I have to, I can't argue against V-Mart's eye-popping numbers.

National League
1B: Paul Goldschmidt (ARI)- .309/14/50
2B: Neil Walker (PIT)- .280/11/35
SS: Troy Tulowitzki (COL)- .355/17/43
3B: Todd Frazier (CIN)- .272/14/35
C: Evan Gattis (ATL)- .293/15/35
DH*: Giancarlo Stanton (MIA)- .302/18/54
OF: Carlos Gomez (MIL)- .310/12/38
OF: Andrew McCutchen (PIT)- .323/11/41
OF: Yasiel Puig (LAD)- .318/11/40

Goldschmidt is the best choice at first, though I did consider Anthony Rizzo. Second base is a little shallow, but I think Neil Walker had the best, most balanced numbers. Tulo is having a monster year, so he's a no brainer at short. Third base was kind of tough too, but Todd Frazier has had a good year, so he's in there. Evan Gattis is hitting really well behind the plate, so he gets the nod there. With the outfield, I cheated a little bit. Stanton was a for-sure pick, as was Puig. I omitted Puig last year based on lack of service time, but that's not an excuse this time. I was torn between McCutchen and Gomez for the third outfielder. Ultimately I decided to cheat; Stanton will be the unofficial DH since the game is being played at an American League park, and the other three outfielders got my vote. Considering Stanton is second among NL outfielders at last update, I think he'll be fine, and all four of these guys will make the team one way or another anyway.

The Official COAS All Star Ballot

Proof of my lack of bias here: no Cubs are starting. Let's be honest, none of them deserve it. They'll get at least one rep obviously, though there might be a shot at a couple. Rizzo might be a backup at first, and I think Jeff Samardzija, even though he's come back to Earth a little bit, could get a nod as one of the pitchers. That's probably it for them, though. On the South Side, I already gave Alexei the starting nod even though Jeter will win. Ramirez will probably still make the team though. Chris Sale will be a pitcher almost definitely. Jose Abreu has a shot, and while I'm considering asking where the love for Paul Konerko is, he's done nothing this year to deserve making the team. Too bad, I actually have a lot of respect for Paulie.

On this Father's Day, enjoy spending time with your dad. To those of you readers who are dads, especially mine, thank you for everything that you do. Enjoy this day, you deserve it.

Unwritten Rules versus Thug Baseball

Photo by Greg Fiume (Getty Images)

There's a lot of tradition in baseball, considering it's been a major American sport for 150 years. Over all that time, a lot of unwritten rules have popped up, some of them good, others stupid. And I think over the weekend in Baltimore, an incident Friday night over a "breach" of unwritten rules turned into what I think can accurately be described as "thug baseball".

In case you haven't been paying attention (though I'm sure just about everyone has at this point), it all started in Friday's third inning when Machado was tagged out on a fielder's choice advancing to third base. Machado made an effort to get out of the way of Josh Donaldson's tag, but fell off balance. Somehow, he felt this was grounds to throw his batting helmet in the direction of Donaldson, then get in his face. Next time Donaldson stepped up, Oriole starter Wei-Yin Chen decided to throw at him, and got him on the elbow the second time.

Photo by Greg Fiume (Getty Images)

Look, I don't have a problem with protecting your teammates. A purpose pitch to the back is a part of the "unwritten rules", and it's not something everyone is a fan of, but either that or a brushback pitch is a good way to let an opponent know, "Hey, we don't respect what you did," and let everyone get on with it. Problem here is, Donaldson did absolutely nothing wrong. If you're going to try to dodge a tag, the fielder might make an added effort to make sure the tag is applied. But Donaldson's tag was in no way too hard; I watched the replay. It's a blatant overreaction by Machado that put bad blood into a series where it didn't need to be.

If that were it, I wouldn't be writing this post. Instead, things continued on Sunday when Manny Machado injured A's catcher Derek Norris with not one, but two consecutive backswings. Supposedly, this is a part of Machado's swing (I don't watch him enough to know for sure), but the fact that it happened twice in a row is suspicious. Then, when you add in the fact that he was caught smiling after hitting Norris one of those times instead of checking to see if he's okay... that's not right.

So of course, the next time Machado came to bat, A's pitcher Fernando Abad threw in tight at Machado. This is much closer to a "protecting your teammates" incident, and actually is since Machado took a player out of the game. Potential problem was, the pitch was thrown low and in, towards Machado's knee, which he hurt last year. I can understand being upset about it. But then he reacted.

Photo by Gail Burton (AP)

Supposedly, the bat slipped out of his hands. I don't buy it. I'm not convinced that Abad should have thrown the second pitch in tight, and for that, I could see why he got tossed on Sunday. But that in no way excuses what Manny Machado did in throwing the bat. It's completely indefensible. It is, like the title suggests, "Thug baseball".

Machado did apologize yesterday, though for a lot of people the authenticity of it is debatable. I'm willing to accept it, but still believe that he needs to punished. Harshly. His defenders (who should all be ashamed, because this really is indefensible) say that "He's just a kid", or that "Abad should be suspended too because he was throwing at Manny's injured knee", or some other nonsense. I don't get it.

An old friend of mine from my WONC days shared the following post on Facebook, and I think this is the major thing to talk about from this weekend:

"People like Machado and Carlos Gomez actually make baseball more exciting. All the baseball purists need to chill bc (sic) watching a hitter flip his bat after a home run or stare down a pitcher after a bomb is good theater and likewise a pitcher striking someone out at a crucial time and letting em know about it just makes things more exciting in a game that's lacked some of that lately."

I wasn't thrilled with the comparison of Machado to Gomez. I don't really have a problem with Go-Go, other than his use of his helmet as a weapon a month or so ago. Later comparisons were made with young stars like Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, and Yasiel Puig. They all wear their emotions on their sleeves, something that isn't a problem. I don't really have an issue with bat flips or celebrations on the field or anything of that nature. But to put Machado's name in that argument is to compare apples and oranges. If throwing a hissy fit over a tag, then injuring an opponent while showing no concern, and then throwing a bat into the field of play is "exciting", I don't know where his line for dirty, unsportsmanlike play falls. This goes far beyond "cockiness", as my friend put it. This is downright thug behavior that needs to be nipped in the bud now.

I'm not really sure what the precedent for this sort of behavior in terms of punishment. But ESPN put up a poll question asking what Machado's punishment should be. At posting time, 85 percent of people felt that he deserved a suspension, and a majority felt that he needs at least five games. I'm in that group. I would go so far as to say he deserves at least 10 games off, if not more. The argument that he's only 21 and "still a kid" has no bearing. He should have known since he was a kid that you don't throw a bat like that. If it were just the bat, I'd be more willing to be lenient. Considering his whole weekend, he needs a long break to realize that he needs to calm down a little bit. He can still play with some passion. He just needs to channel it the right way.

War On the Rooftops

It seems like a lot of my favorite teams have interesting quirks that make them unique compared to any other franchise in sports. For Green Bay, it's the fact that they're publicly owned. More relevantly, for the Cubs, it's that they're a team with neighborhood ballpark and a tough contract with some of the neighbors.

Last week, Cubs owner Tom Ricketts decided that he'd had enough shenanigans with the city and the neighborhood, and decided to file his proposal for the much-needed renovations of Wrigley Field. Problem is, he opted to file the original plans for the ballpark, involving the jumbotron and ad signage for the outfield. And as anyone who's been paying attention knows, this means the owners of the rooftops on Waveland and Sheffield are going to fight.

I've never been to a game on one of the rooftops, and sure, it provides a unique experience and adds something different to the area around the park that others don't have. And up until 2004, the rooftops admitted people and paid nothing to the Cubs for the rights to the view. Finally the old administration decided to allow the rooftops to operate without any blockages to views in exchange for 17 percent of their revenue. At the time, I didn't really have much of an opinion one way or the other, other than noting that proposed "wind screens" to obstruct their view was a stupid idea, and thankfully that didn't pass. But it didn't really hurt the Cubs. At least, not until talk of renovation and modernization came up.

Today, I saw some proposed plans for how the ballpark would look after the renovation. I'm not super crazy about some of the signs there (the green Cubs logos are just kind of meh), but the jumbotron ideas look good. It's something I think the ballpark needs to get to the 21st century. I saw someone on Twitter who laughed about one fact with the signs though: all of the rooftop views are now to some degree obstructed. It's like the ultimate middle finger to the people that have held up the renovation plans.

It's all but a certainty that the rooftop owners will sue over this for a breach of contract. They may have a case, as the deal runs through 2023. But Comcast SportsNet's David Kaplan got to see the contract, and the case comes down to one provision.

"6.6: The Cubs shall not erect windscreens or other barriers to obstruct the views of the Rooftops, provided however that temporary items such as banners, flags and decorations for special occasions, shall not be considered as having been erected to obstruct views of the Rooftops. Any expansion of Wrigley Field approved by governmental authorities shall not be a violation of this agreement, including this section."

Would you consider this project an expansion of Wrigley? Since it's not just advertising but also a video screen that can be used for in-game purposes, I think it would be. And if a judge agrees, there go the rooftops.

I had no problem with them for years, even though until 2004, it could have been argued that they were thieves. Even with the deal, I didn't really have anything against them. It wasn't until they meddled in the affairs of ballpark renovations that I had issues. The Cubs are a Major League Baseball club that has the right to fix up its home park as it pleases, with approval of the city of Chicago. No other Major League team has to bow to the pressure of neighbors over what they can and can't do to their ballpark. And the Cubs shouldn't have to either. I understand that the rooftops are businesses and they're trying to protect their "product", but their "product" involves someone else's business, and they don't have the right to dictate terms like that to a sports franchise. Call me vindictive if you will, but I hope they get shafted. Wrigley has needed fixing up. This will finally put an end to the interference of allowing that to happen.

Webucator Asks Confessions of a Sportscaster

In the two and a half years since I started writing Confessions of a Sportscaster, I've been involved in a lot of shenanigans. Most of it has been legitimate talks of what's going on in the world of sports and commentary on major issues on and off the varying playing surfaces, predictions that haven't really been super accurate, documentation of yelling "THREEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" over a hundred times in the span of three months in an effort to be the greatest home court advantage in the CCIW, to convoluted attempts at running logistically impossible tournaments due to either the fact that time travel doesn't exist or the tournament I'm running is frowned upon by elitists with way more money than I could ever dream of having. Maybe someday I'll actually try to do a study to see how feasible the latter is, but that's a story for another day. Today, I have people to help.

It's May, which means we're in the thick of graduation season, primarily at the college level (unless you're a North Central student, in which case you poor saps still have like three or four weeks left). It also means that another group of young adults is getting ready to transition into the real world, which is a scary thing. It can be especially so if you're like me and majored in broadcasting. It's a very hard field to get into. I know a few friends from my time at WONC have found work or internships of some sort in broadcasting, and I'm thrilled for them. For others, it can be more of a struggle.

I was approached by Bob Clary, the Community Manager over at Webucator.com, a company that "provides onsite and online training on technologies such as Microsoft ASP.NET, XML, Windows, Java, Adobe Flash, HTML5, JavaScript, Dreamweaver, and much more," according to their website. Bob asked me to share advice for the upcoming graduating class in the form of skills I think are important to know when searching for a job in this market. It's something I'm more than happy to do.

When it comes to just about any job, having a resume is obviously important, but having demonstrations of your skills available is just as important. In many professions, this means having a portfolio. In broadcasting, it means having demo reels or airchecks ready to send to potential employers. I have DVDs of some of my work from video and TV classes from North Central, and have access to find old airchecks from my time at WONC. While those are good to have, you want to stay up to date, so being able to use a studio while you still have time to go build new airchecks is a must. Not only does it showcase what you can do in an on-air setting, it also gives you some practice in production, which in today's radio market, you MUST have. As important as Microsoft skills are in the corporate world (hence why in May Webucator is focusing heavily on it, including offering a free Powerpoint class), skills in programs like Adobe Audition or Pro Tools (if you're more Mac-centric) are a necessity. Of course, knowing how to use Microsoft Office helps out too, so if you want to brush up on certain things, these guys might be a good resource.

When I was first asked to do this post, my first thoughts actually went to more intangible things, and it's something that I think applies across all fields. First of all, don't be afraid to try something new or go out of your comfort zone. When I first started college and joined WONC, I'd intended to only do sports-related activities, but needed to do about three hours a week of shifts, so I picked up a Saturday afternoon music shift. I was nervous and kind of shy, even being on the radio with that level of listener interaction, but I had mentors who pushed me and encouraged me to experiment around a little bit, and before long I found that I absolutely loved it. It became a cornerstone of my experience there.

I added to that experience piece by piece, and during my junior year, talk of who the station's senior staff the following year came up. I said to myself, "Why not go for the top?" I applied to become the station manager for the 2010-11 school year, and got the job. It came with challenges certainly, but I'm proud of the fact that I oversaw the day to day operations of 70 people being on air 24/7 and the fact that the faculty mentor who I reported directly to felt comfortable enough with how I was running things to take a pro term my final trimester and only be on campus two days a week. Heck, my public address work only started because a nervous, awkward 16-year-old me decided that in addition to running the statistic portion of Aurora Christian's scoreboard for the girls' basketball team I'd announce the game as well. I'd always loved doing it back to my days of apparently reciting Ray Clay when I was three, but that was when I started actually doing it.

I think this last piece of advice is the most important one though: network yourself. It seems like who you know has as much of an impact on your ability to land a job as what skills you've developed. During my college years, I interned for both ESPN 1000 and WGN-AM in Chicago, and loved my time at both. While I'm sure my experience at North Central and WONC was a major factor in getting internships at both stations, having a North Central grad and WONC alum as ESPN's internship coordinator and having fairly close connections with a TV producer from WGN (and Dean Richards) didn't hurt. The WONC connection has also helped me land the gigs I've gotten since I left college. I worked for about six months at WROK in Rockford for program director Scot Bertram, another WONC alum who I'd some some stringer work for a couple years prior, and having the connection there certainly helped. While not in broadcasting, my current full time job with HERE Traffic in Chicago was probably helped by the fact that one of the people I interviewed with is married to another WONC alum. This one was probably more subtle, but I don't think it hurt my chances. Heck, even my current career as North Central's women's basketball announcer was a result of the school's Sports Information office looking for a body for a tournament my senior year that I snatched up and haven't looked back at since they offered me the gig full time after I graduated. Simply put, if your program offers alumni networking events, by all means go. It can create a relationship that could help you out down the road.

Graduates, you're entering a scary time in your life. No matter what your field, these tips and some others that other Webucator folks have for you as a part of their Marketable Skill Campaign can help you out as you plan for your futures.