Jeff Gordon | Post-Dispatch
Online sports
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The journey began in June of 1986. The Blues hired Jacques Martin to replace Jacques Demers as coach, so the sports department’s new guy jumped into action.
“When it comes to hiring head coaches,” I wrote, “Blues general manager Ron Caron has a Jacques itch.”
Alas, that paragraph did not reach print. My editor reminded me I was at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. This was big league journalism. I was working for a nationally respected newspaper with high editorial standards.
A series of lucky breaks and undeserved opportunities brought me here. I arrived unpolished, but I got to work for patient people who invested in me.
The following decades brought world championships in baseball and football, the Blues’ astonishing Stanley Cup run, Gary Pinkel’s resurrection of Missouri football, Truman’s recent resurgence under Eli Drinkwitz, and March Madness for Mizzou, SLU and Illinois.
It was never dull with The Professor, Stormin’ Norman, Whiteyball, the Wizard, Woody’s Wagon, Spoonball, Hull and Oates, McGwiremania, The Greatest Show on Turf, Iron Mike, Mad Mike, Coach Q, Chopper, Prongs, El Hombre, Yadi, Waino, Goldy, Big Rig and Chief.
There was Braggin’ Rights and Arch Madness, World Team Tennis (Anna Kournikova!), and NASCAR, IRL and NHRA racing. We finally got Major League Soccer after supporting indoor soccer for decades. The Battlehawks brought football back to the Dome, giving fans a battle cry against that idiot Roger Goodell.
St. Louis attracted huge events like the Final Four, Frozen Four, Big 12 Championship Game, MLB All-Star Game, NHL All-Star weekend, Winter Classic, PGA Championship and too many national championships to count.
Working here has been so rewarding — but now the adventure ends.
As legendary Rams public relations director Rick Smith would put it, I’ve been “sniffing the breeze” for some time. Grandpa needs a break, so this week, I retired from newspaper work.
Athletes want to go out on a winner, and so do sportswriters. Post-Dispatch reporters, columnists, editors and photographers produce one of the nation’s finest sports sections.
I hit the bricks with my head held high and many memories to savor, especially Mark McGwire’s historic homers, Mike Jones’ title-saving Super Bowl tackle, David Freese’s World Series blast and Pat Maroon’s double-overtime playoff goal.
The recollection replay loop is a blend of good and bad:
Gridbirds owner Bill Bidwill telling lame jokes. Gridbirds executive George Boone pranking us at the NFL draft via picks like John “Automatic” Lee, who could not kick without a tee. Bidwill moving his team to the desert to bake at Sun Devil Stadium.
Barclay Plager soldiering on as an assistant coach while brain tumors ravaged him. Bob Plager finishing his family’s quest while proudly riding in the Stanley Cup parade.
Vince Coleman, Ozzie Smith and Willie McGee running wild. Marshall Faulk, Issac Bruce and Torry Holt running wild.
Neil Lomax coming up short and Kurt Warner going long. Seeing Quin Snyder’s stunning demise and Dennis Gates’ uplifting rise.
Danny Cox shutting down the Giants for the pennant. Donovan Osborne definitely NOT shutting down the Atlanta Braves for the pennant. Anthony Reyes outdueling Justin Verlander in the World Series.
Land-hoarding recluse Stan Kroenke helping steal the Rams from Los Angeles. Kroenke returning those Rams to Los Angeles.
So many rivalries had juice: Cardinals vs. Cubs, Missouri vs. Kansas, Blues vs. Blackhawks, Jack Quinn vs. Judge Ed Houston, Tony La Russa vs. Dusty Baker, Lou Henson vs. Bobby Knight, Brett Hull vs. Mike Keenan, and Charlie Spoonhour vs. his buddy Bob Huggins.
Over in the edge, there was Perry Turnbull fighting some guy while skating with the St. Louis Vipers; Darryl Doran sacrificing his knees for the St. Louis Steamers, Storm, Ambush and Illusion; the Stampede rumbling into the Arena Football League playoffs; and Doug Smith filling hoops for the St. Louis Swarm.
There was plenty of weirdness, like the Ornest family dog roaming the bowels of The Arena and leaving poop for 90-year-old Maple Leafs owner Harold Ballard to step in.
There were great moments in sports reporting, like a hot tub interview with a synchronized swimmer at the epic Olympic Festival and that locker room interview with WWE wrestling heel Doink the Clown.
The decades brought fan engagement through “sights and sounds” stories, sports talk radio and our live chats on STLToday.com. There was time spent with Get a Life James, Hockey Bob, Big Al, Moses, chat room warrior Roy Hobbs, Baby O, Marty “Sign Man” Prather, Rich From Maryland Heights, the late Caller Lou and scores more.
My enduring Post-Dispatch memory comes from walking the Stanley Cup parade route and soaking up the unrestrained joy of the fans as the team rolled by. They deserved this beer-soaked party, and they damn well were going to enjoy it.
Well-played, folks. And thanks for letting me write stories for you.
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Jeff Gordon | Post-Dispatch
Online sports
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