TBR Q&A with Cliff Mehrtens- Charlotte Observer Sports Coordinator

Cliff Mehrtens has covered high school, college and pro sports at the Charlotte Observer since 1992. A graduate from the University of New Orleans, Cliff covered Piedmont sports for 5 years. In June of this year, Cliff was promoted to high school sports coordinator. This means Cliff is now “King of Preps” in the Charlotte area and is responsible for changing anything we insist when it comes to coverage of high school sports.

Seriously, I invited Cliff to take part in a Q&A to give us a “point man” in building a relationship with the Observer. He has been instrumental in gaining more attention for the high school players and to their sports. I hope everyone will enjoy getting to know Cliff better and I look forward to his participation on TBR


Can you tell us how you became a sportswriter?

I answered a classified ad for a sports department agate clerk in my hometown newspaper, and still vividly recall the phrase about "knowledge of sports helpful." Since I began every day reading the sports section, I applied right away. Soon, I was writing stuff about a wide range of topics.

Where did you originally come from and how did you come to Charlotte?

I grew up in New Orleans. Met my wife at the paper there. She, being the more talented journalist, got a better job with the Charlotte Observer, and up North we went.

How did you get involved in the prep side of sports?

It's where I broke in at the New Orleans Times-Picayune, which put a heavy emphasis on covering prep sports (football is king down there)....plus, I was a former (struggling) high school athlete.

I tell people that I batted .600 or more every year in high school. Of course, us guys on the bench counted all our hits in batting practice before the game, so many times I went 8-for-12 or something sweet like that. ...Ha !

What have been your best moments covering professional sports? Preps?

I got to cover Carolina Hurricanes' first Stanley Cup Final, and see three games in Detroit (Hockeytown!)....man, seeing the Cup, Steve Yzerman and all the other Red Wings, I felt like a giddy little kid. I could sense the history seeping through the moment.

The best moments in prep sports are when I see a player we've covered make it to the next level(s) - college or the pros.....you smile and say "I knew him/her when," as others marvel at a Chris Leak or Will Clark.

What would you say to those that believe the Charlotte Observer does not give nearly the coverage to HS spring sports?

I'd say two things - brother, you're preaching to the choir, and check around, our paper does a pretty good job compared to others.
All fans want the same thing - their team to get the spotlight. Problem is, we have a daily battle of fitting 10 pounds of sausage into a 5-pound casing. In Charlotte, there's NBA, NFL, NASCAR, two thousand different colleges (all the Northern folks want their conferences covered), etc......a lot of sports to fit in.

It doesn't help that there are seven prep sports going on at the same time in the spring; eight if you count lacrosse. So we do the best we can. Sure, we'd like more space, time and soldiers, but that ain't happening.

If you could change anything about HS sports, what would you change?

Basketball scheduling. It's ridiculous to play four games at the same site, and kids arrive home around midnight sometimes.

The transferring issue has become a hot topic. Do you have any thoughts about this?

Families change schools for dozens of different reasons. Who am I to judge?

My American Legion friends are wondering how they can get more attention?

Same way the high school sports do - give us a compelling human-interest story to tell.....every team has a kid hitting .490 with power. Tell me about a kid who might be returning from a serious illness, or something that will appeal to more than a hardcore sports reader. I did a story this spring on Waddell girl who played on the baseball team because there weren't enough girls to form a softball team, and a Lake Norman tennis player who organized a drive for tennis shoes for poor children in Africa.

Tell us something about the newspaper business that most don't know as it involves sports?

We don't have an evil hidden agenda against your favorite team. Honest. We're not that organized. Really.

I really believe since you have been assigned to covering HS baseball, the attention to the sport has increased. Would it be correct to assume that you enjoy it?

Baseball is my favorite sport. I try to be fair to all the ones we cover. But I feel good that we reinstated the Observer baseball Sweet 16 poll, and the weekly hitting and pitching stats during the season. If I can get a few deserving players' names in the paper/online, that's a good thing. In any sport.

Have you thought about your future? What would you like to do next?

Same goal as when I was 11 - play centerfield for the Boston Red Sox !!!

Is there anything you would like to say to our members at TBR or to Larry Davidson?

Keep reading the Observer. Check us out online, too. Please don't hesitate to offer suggestions, criticisms or whatever. I might not agree, but I'll listen. We try to be fair.

I enjoyed working with Larry D. at the paper. He had - prolly still has - a wicked sense of humor.

Thanks Cliff for taking the time to do this. I hope we can continue to help each other, when needed, for information or questions answered.

Oh… and I know for a fact that Larry’s humor remains wicked.

 

Good Interview Braves ...

... and I agree, the coverage in the Observer has seemed to improve over the years.

... I'd like to see a weekly HS/College Wrap up section running every Saturday or Sunday ... I'm sure they end up with some good stories that are on the cutting room floor as the week progresses. Instead of tossing them, save them for the HS/College weekly wrap.

 

Cliff, I've noticed a lot more prep coverage since this spring, keep it up. I realize the Observer is a regional paper who has to cover the Bobcats/Panthers/NASCAR etc. But NASCAR fans are the greatest, they don't care about the paper, they'll be at the races anyway. Whatever you're doing with the Bobcats/Panthers now is not working, those 2 franchises have PR problems which has a lot to do with W/L records, something you can't do anything about. The Bobcats just hired a winning coach (LBrown) so they are making strides.

My suggestion would simply be to cover the local kids more, because it makes sense. If local people are more happy because they read in the paper about a game they had last night, they will have more sports interest, and then they are more likely to buy those Bobcat/Panther tickets. Just a thought.

Keep up the good work.

 

tj brings up a good point. If the sponsors are there, why can't the CO run a weekend Prep section...much like the Atlanta Journal does.

But, I understand that the CO is facing major financial restraints (just like all businesses in these economic times), so I can't see them investing in anything new to spark reader interest

 

cliff is a great guy and deserving of the promotion. good to learn that we both started our careers the same way -- i, too, answered an ad in the paper for a sports agate position (back in 1990) and met my wife at the paper.

always loved to see cliff's story come in at deadline. he wrote to length, had a good lead and told the story with squeaky-clean copy. he'll do well in this new position.

there were three -- maybe four -- of us in the department who shared the same sense of humor and daily need for an ab-workout, tear-inducing laugh.

those were the days...

 

Thanks Cliff! I laughed while reading several of your responses. And that's a good thing. It's an accomplishment to inject humor into something as important as high school sports.

 

CLIFF-

I read in the N&O that the Charlotte O and the N&O may be combining sports coverage so as not to duplicate and consolidate efforts. How might that affect high school coverage across the state. I personally believe you and Tim Stevens do a really good job and wonder what may hapen there. I realize that both are regional papers so it is difficult at times to cover most high school sports.

 

Great question. I can see them consolidating the Pro teams, Nascar, etc....but I would think you would not see too many changes on the HS end. I hope Cliff comes on and discusses this.

 

Not sure how the merger will affect each newspaper; details still being worked out ... in both cases, obviously, we still want to tell good prep stories.

Stay tuned.

Cliff Mehrtens
Charlotte Observer

 

Has the CO thought about having people call in scores like they do for HS football?

I thought that would help have people at every game or most every game call in and give scores and winning/losing pitchers and also some key layers for both teams. It would have to be done with fairness to both teams but I think many people would love to do that.