Our Best Pitch

The following was submitted to us by our old friend, SMD. The timing of the piece was perfect as Jerricho Cotchery was featured last night in a FANTASTIC piece on ESPN’s television show, E:60. If you didn’t see it, you need to find a replay of it and watch it. It was summed up by New York Jets Head Coach, Eric Mangini, “It’s hard to get better than Jerricho Cotchery”

Television producers in the NFL have it hard. Each game is such a big event that there are many different story angles to cover. How can they possibly decide which stories to highlight? If only there were some sort of professional who could pitch them story ideas. If only there were some sort of document that producers could read over, that has the research for a given story already completed. This document might look something like this;

RIVERS AND COTCHERY REUNITED IN BATTLE ON MONDAY NIGHT

Raleigh, NC – When the San Diego Chargers and New York Jets meet on Monday night, one of college football’s greatest passing combinations will once again share the field, but for opposing teams. Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers and Jets wideout Jerricho Cotchery played at NC State together from 2000-2003 and provided fans with many wins and a lot of excitement. Rivers threw for 13, 484 yards while wearing a Wolfpack uniform and 3,119 of those yards were passes to Cotchery. While Rivers was finishing fourth on the all-time NCAA passing yardage list, Cotchery was breaking school record for career receptions and 100-yard receiving games. Cotchery’s 3119 yards are second in NC State history only to another NFL great, Torry Holt of the St. Louis Rams.

“The Rivers to Cotchery connection was special,” said NC State Sports Information Director Annabelle Myers. “They had a sixth sense of where each other was at all times. Whenever the defense jumped offsides, Cotchery would take off on a go route and more often than not, Rivers got him the ball. It reminds me of the relationship that Rivers is establishing now in San Diego with Vincent Jackson.”

Though the two Wolfpackers will be wearing different colors tonight, they’ll no doubt greet each other like old friends after the game because they know – the strength of the wolf is the pack.”

For exclusive footage of Rivers and Cotchery in action while playing for NC State, please contact the NC State Sports Information Department.

Of course, this is a mock press release and I am being a little tounge in cheek, but watching the game last night between the Chargers and the Jets, I saw no mention of the special Rivers-Cotchery connection. While it’s possible I missed it, at most the reference was made in passing, the story was certainly not highlighted. And while I don’t have first-hand knowledge of how the NC State SID operates, I do know public relations work and know that television producers LOVE ready-made in-game stories like Rivers-Cotchery, so it’s a pretty safe, but not certain, bet that no serious effort was made to pitch the story.

With more Wolfpackers in the NFL that ever before, these opportunities exist every week. For example, this week’s NFL schedule features the Jets against the Cardinals, aka Jerricho Cotchery against Adrian Wilson. To be sure, not every story is as good as Rivers-Cotchery and many will not get aired. But we at least have to try. If we don’t promote ourselves, no one else will.

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48 Responses to Our Best Pitch

  1. DAMangum 09/25/2008 at 1:39 PM #

    I saw the E:60 piece and it was great, but I’m dissapointed that MNF did not mention anything about Rivers and Cotchery past greatness at State.

  2. CarnifeX 09/25/2008 at 1:52 PM #

    I do want to add that Tirico did make mention of the Wolfpack after discussing that Rivers started 51 games, he said that the Wolfpack pulled off a big win on Saturday. It wasn’t ground breaking, but it was a reference to the Pack outside of anyone on the field.

  3. swedish 09/25/2008 at 1:54 PM #

    MNF did mention how rivers started all games in college and broke a bunch of records. Then they mention how State beat ECU 🙂

  4. McPete 09/25/2008 at 2:18 PM #

    I remember that MNF mention of nc state by tirico as well. since tirico has an espn radio gig with scott van pelt (maryland grad) and they cover college football alot, i figured that was the reason he mentioned it. still nice to hear the wolfpack spoken of highly. now if we could get lou holtz to say one nice thing about us.

    “It reminds me of the relationship that Rivers is establishing now in San Diego with Vincent Jackson”

    i’m just waiting for my friggin’ fantasy football team to reap the benefits of this emerging relationship. this was my ‘i’m more clever than you’ draft pick and so far hasn’t gotten me much.

  5. gopack968 09/25/2008 at 2:45 PM #

    There was also this great article from the San Diego Union Tribune on Saturday.

    http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080921/news_1s21chnotes.html

    Rivers-Cotchery paths converge again

    Even before they’d met and become trusted teammates and friends, they’d met.

    In addition to being the Alabama Player of the Year in football his senior year at Athens High, Philip Rivers was a hot-shot basketball player whose greatest challenge one night was just to get the ball up the court against the quicker, smaller guy covering him, Jerricho Cotchery of Birmingham Phillips High.

    “I was checking him the whole game,” said Cotchery, now a receiver with the New York Jets. “I shut him down.”

  6. wolf2003 09/25/2008 at 3:02 PM #

    Here’s a link to the E60 feature.

    http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/e60/news/story?id=3602380

  7. wufpup76 09/25/2008 at 4:37 PM #

    I was kinda surprised (not necessarily disappointed) that there was no mention of ‘Rivers to Cotchery’ … I thought it would have at least been mentioned and guessed that the ESPN crew either overlooked it or paid it no mind (due to salivating over Favre’s b*lls … Brett Favre = Tyler Handsjobs of the NFL)

    I would not be surprised at all, however, to find that there was no promotion at all from the NC State side to pump this storyline a bit (or at least get it mentioned in passing) as speculated in the post … I think the bet is very safe … NC State – ACHIEVE!

  8. highstick 09/25/2008 at 4:52 PM #

    This is totally off topic, but I was watching ESPN after playing golft this afternoon. Erin Andrews is on doing a piece on the upcoming Georgia-Alabama game and made a comment about the “Death Battan March”!!!!!!!!! I’m guessing she was trying to say the ‘Battan Death March”! I guess she doesn’t get to make an appearance on the History or Military Channels!!

  9. OwenDorm83 09/25/2008 at 6:12 PM #

    SMD,

    Who’s Philip Rivers, anyway? Did he go to NC State?

    Sincerely,

    Annabelle

  10. b 09/25/2008 at 6:15 PM #

    Just saw the injury report, Clem Johnson is listed as probable! In other almost good news Wilson is upgraded to doubtful.

  11. Dr. BadgerPack 09/25/2008 at 8:26 PM #

    Do we expect clairvyance from ESPN now? It is well established most of the people who work with them are idiots. Good speakers, yes, but idiots. I am sure the researchers are smart. However, the speakers we all see on television have the final say in what is spoken and they wait for the appropriate segue. Or, as is the usual case, suck up to the lowest common denominator. We know I love Favre. But Kornheiser kept kissing his butt way too much. Even for me. I am however surprised they didn’t bring up the Rivers/Cotchery connection simply because that would have given them two seconds to bring up Notre Dame… Oh, wait… I guess that would have sucked. 🙂

  12. ktpritch 09/25/2008 at 8:55 PM #

    The E60 piece was great. If you watch the whole episode, also be sure to watch the piece on the wrestler who went back to school in his 30’s, after years of drug abuse and jail time, and ended up competing in the nationals. Fantastic story…I was watching with my kids and we were all impacted.

  13. b 09/25/2008 at 9:24 PM #

    Oregon State? holy cow Ohio St. and UVa must suck worse than I thought.

  14. Greywolf 09/25/2008 at 9:25 PM #

    9 OwenDorm83
    Sep 25th, 2008 at 6:12 pm
    SMD,

    Who’s Philip Rivers, anyway? Did he go to NC State?

    Sincerely,

    Annabelle

    He was the honky from Alabama, Annabelle.

  15. wufpup76 09/25/2008 at 9:28 PM #

    Well hellooo Beavers!

  16. SidtheKid 09/25/2008 at 9:44 PM #

    This is NOT good for college football, unless you want an all SEC championship.

  17. Dr. BadgerPack 09/25/2008 at 10:00 PM #

    based on the schedules, the chances of an all-SEC championship are slim to none.

  18. SidtheKid 09/25/2008 at 10:06 PM #

    If USC loses this game, how can you justify them playing in the title game with one loss over a 2 loss SEC teams?

    We already put a 2 loss SEC team in the game, why not two?

  19. SidtheKid 09/25/2008 at 11:18 PM #

    I rescind my previous comment, USC has lost more than the game tonight. They do not intimidate the PAC-10 apparently .

  20. b 09/25/2008 at 11:27 PM #

    This is great for college football, the more solid teams with losses the more controversy at the end of the year.

  21. packpigskinfan23 09/25/2008 at 11:46 PM #

    BYU all the way!!!

    =)

  22. BJD95 09/25/2008 at 11:53 PM #

    We should go ahead and give the SEC champ the national title.

    This is the same Oregon State team that Penn State beat by about 50.

  23. Ismael 09/26/2008 at 1:54 AM #

    wasn’t it the Rattan Death March?

    {edit: nevermind, i googled, it, “Bataan Death March”, good catch highstick}

    That play that Oregon State kept running where the WR would come in motion and the ball was snapped just before he got to the line and he would block the DE, was awesome.

    That RB tonight, Rodgers, showed that if you freakin run North and South, be patient, follow your blockers, wait for the seams to open, you can destroy teams, i really really hope Andre watched that just to further cement what an even bigger more powerful back can do.

    That RB reminded me alot of the way Eugene ran the ball last year.

  24. Dr. BadgerPack 09/26/2008 at 6:47 AM #

    The SEC has two problems (if you can call them that). The first is Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Florida and Georgia (in no particular order) are freaking good. Vandy isn’t bad at all. SC and the Miss’s can probably make teams break a sweat as well. So, getting through the season unbeaten is probably not going to happen, and 1 loss will be tough as well.

    The big concern however isn’t beating one another up in the standings- it’s the actual physical beating on the field. I would be amazed if some big injuries aren’t seen amongst these top teams.

    Working in the SEC’s favor, is the media love-fest. So 2 and 3 loss SEC teams will continue to be highly ranked; this will help in the BCS standings. I still don’t see an All-SEC championship game though. Big 12 and/or Big 10 can get a team in there. Heck, Penn State’s RPI just went up a crapload I would imagine.

  25. Noah 09/26/2008 at 8:31 AM #

    Oklahoma has a fairly straight-forward path to the title game. Their great, they have a reasonable schedule…but it’s not brutal. No one is going to complain if they’re 12-0 and in the game.

    If Georgia or Florida or LSU emerges with one loss, no one is going to complain about them being in there.

    Penn State is going to lose two games this year.

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