Fantasy Sports Writers Association Newsletter
May 2006
GREETINGS, FSWA MEMBERS -- THE PRESIDENT IS BACK!
Fellow FSWA Members;
As many of you know, my family was victimized by both Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. While we lost most of our personal property, my family escaped the devastation without as much as a scratch. I can tell you that I now have a new appreciation and love for my wife and son as a result of our experience. To quote an old proverb - "What does not kill you, only serves to make you stronger." I can certainly attest to that wisdom and believe that we are a stronger family as a result.
During the last seven months we have been literally consumed with the task of restoring our home and getting our lives back to normal. I'm proud to report that our task is now complete. We have moved back into our house and things have finally returned to a sense of normalcy for us. As a result, I can once again focus my undivided attention on this organization and the membership. That my friends, is a very welcome change of pace for me.
The ability of my family to completely recover is due in large part to the encouragement and prayers of YOU. Members of this organization played a significant role in our recovery and for that I cannot thank you enough.
I would be also remiss if I did not thank the members of the Executive Committee for all of their hard work and dedication. While I was unavailable, Emil, Mike, Bob, Scott and George worked tirelessly and proved their dedication and commitment to this organization and its members. They are a great team and I would be lost without them. Thanks guys!
Now on to the immediate future. What will the next seven months hold for the membership of the FSWA? In a word -- revitalization. The leadership of the FSWA is committed to refocus, rededicate and revitalize this organization. There are plans to network and partner with other organizations to achieve our stated mission. Sponsorship opportunities will be aggressively sought out and our membership will be grown. We will continue to recognize our members’ achievements and continue to serve as advocates. We've even got a few surprises in store -- so stay tuned.
Great times are ahead my friends. If you would like to be a part, or have any suggestions to better the FSWA, please let me know.
Kirk Bouyelas, President
FSWA NEWS
FSWA Spring '06 Awards Announced
This year's Spring Awards were announced and presented March 15-16, during the FSTA convention at the Stardust Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.
Special thanks to Matthew Berry, Talented Mr. Roto, for serving as our presenter again.
The Executive Committee pared the initial list of over 70 nominees down to those included below using a blind evaluation process (that omitted all author names). The winners were then selected from the lists below in a vote by the FSWA Board of Directors. So, without further adieu. …
WRITER OF THE YEAR
WINNER: Eric Karabell, ESPN
OTHER NOMINEES: Shawn Peters, Talented Mr. Roto; Michael Fabiano, CBS SportsLine; John Nemo, Pro Fantasy Sports; Tony Finn, Pro Fantasy Sports
FANTASY FOOTBALL ARTICLE OF THE YEAR (WEB)
WINNER: Confessions of a Fantasy Expert by Lenny Pappano, DraftSharks
OTHER NOMINEES: Anatomy of a Draft by Tristan H. Cockcroft, ESPN.com; Dispelling Kicker Myths by Tristan H. Cockcroft, ESPN.com; Grand Theft Roto by Shawn Peters, Talented Mr. Roto; Passing the Torch by Mike Sheets Roto Times; XX's and OO's by Heather Cocks, Talented Mr. Roto
FANTASY FOOTBALL ARTICLE OF THE YEAR (PRINT)
WINNER: Twenty Lessons Learned by Michael Fabiano, CBS SportsLine
OTHER NOMINEES: Just How Old is "Old"? by John T. Georgopoulos, Gridiron Grumblings; Nightmare Comes at Wrong Time of Year by Matt Schauf, Oneonta, NY Daily Star; Year of the Quarterback by Chris Liss, Rotowire
FANTASY FOOTBALL ARTICLE OF THE YEAR (MAJOR MEDIA)
WINNER: Roto Addict by Ken Daube (Talented Mr. Roto), appeared on SI.com
OTHER NOMINEES: Around the AFC by Chris Harris, Talented Mr. Roto; Around the NFC by Ben Ice, Talented Mr. Roto; The Bizarro World of Fantasy Football by Michael Fabiano, CBS SportsLine; Defense Decides It by Eric Karabell, ESPN; Impact Players by John T. Georgopoulos (Gridiron Grumblings), appeared on SI.com; XX's and OO's by Heather Cocks, Talented Mr. Roto
FANTASY FOOTBALL ARTICLE OF THE YEAR (HUMOR)
WINNER: Crucial Questions Deserve Comical Answers by John Nemo, Pro Fantasy Sports
OTHER NOMINEES: Grand Theft Roto by Shawn Peters, Talented Mr. Roto; XX's and OO's by Heather Cocks, Talented Mr. Roto; Are Your for Real? by Nando Di Fino, Bob Schenks and Dale Normanson, Talented Mr. Roto
FANTASY FOOTBALL WEB ON-GOING SERIES
WINNER: Start 'em & Sit 'em by Michael Fabiano, CBS SportsLine
OTHER NOMINEES: Expert Eye for the Roto Guy by Andrew Madison, Talented Mr. Roto; Finn Factor by Tony Finn, Pro Fantasy Sports; Grand Theft Roto by Shawn Peters, Talented Mr. Roto; Platoon Watch by Jake Berry, The Fantasy Hotsheet; XX's and OO's by Heather Cocks, Talented Mr. Roto
FANTASY RACING WRITER OF THE YEAR
WINNER: Christopher Harris, Talented Mr. Roto
OTHER NOMINEES: Bob Schenks, Talented Mr. Roto; Bryan Van Stippen, Pro Fantasy Sports; Mark Taylor, Rotowire
FANTASY GOLF WRITER OF THE YEAR
WINNER: Greg Vara, Rotowire
ALSO NOMINATED: Wade Alberty, Talented Mr. Roto
Congratulations again to all winners and nominees!
>>The FSWA Fall '06 Awards will honor those in the fields of Baseball, Basketball, Hockey and Golf. Watch for more on these awards -- and how to nominate your articles/writers -- in upcoming issues of the FSWA newsletter.
JOB OPENINGS
>> KFFL Fantasy Sports Editor accomplishes KFFL objectives by being part of a team of editors managing and supervising KFFL's fantasy content, news service, leagues and website; writing original content; working with, ghost writing and editing work from volunteer and freelance writers. Full-time position with a move to San Diego area required.
KFFL HOTW Research Analyst accomplishes KFFL objectives by searching, gathering and analyzing reports, articles, interviews and sports radio; includes concise write ups on any major breaking news.
Please contact Ronnie Puedam via e-mail at "positions@kffl.com" or fax in a resume to 760-743-4600.
>>Pro Fantasy Sports is searching for an AFC and NFC writer for the 2006 NFL season. These are paid positions. Looking for experienced fantasy writers able to commit to a busy summer and fall schedule. If interested, please send your resume and a few sample clips to: Mike Beacom, senior editor at mikebeacom@profantasysports.com
Pro Fantasy Sports is searching for hockey and golf writers. Paid positions. If interested, please send your resume and a few sample clips to: Mike Beacom, senior editor at mikebeacom@profantasysports.com
INDUSTRY NEWS
>> Coca-Cola has teamed up with SportingNews.com to be the presenting sponsor of Fantasy Source for 2006. As part of this sponsorship, this year's Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit, which still includes all the same features it previously had (rankings, dollar values, projected lineups/rotations, player updates, injury news, etc.), is FREE to all who wish to access and download it.
>> While retaining our commitment to100% free fantasy football information, we are excited to announce some new features to our site, www.FFToolbox.com , this spring. Our biggest announcement is the launch of our real-time online fantasy games. We also have extensive NFL draft coverage. Finally, we are pleased to have six of our writers back with us for this year; they will begin submitting articles next month and throughout the year.
This spring we launched an online fantasy games section to our site. We have partnered with Bullysports (www.bullysports.com), who provides the back end development of these games. Leagues for every major sport including football, baseball, and racing are featured using Bullysports' fantasy games engine. Our recent launch of March Melee (a NCAA Men's Basketball Bracket Game) attracted thousands of new users to our site. We currently also have baseball, racing and golf as featured games. Most of these games are free games with prizes. The fee-based games have prizes as well and are also under the direction of Bullysports. Look for free fantasy football mock drafts and pay-based fantasy football leagues this summer. Bullysports maintains the sign-ups, fees and prize payout for each sport's game.
Another section has also been recently improved: NFL Draft. Our NFL draft coverage has been very popular. We are thankful to have Ken Becks, our resident college football expert on staff. Ken has written over 900 player profiles found here: www.fftoolbox.com/nfl_draft/profiles.cfm. In addition to the profiles, Ken updates his first round NFL mock draft weekly shown here: www.fftoolbox.com/nfl_draft/index.cfm.
While fantasy football cheat sheets and rankings are our bread and butter, we also provide regular fantasy football columns starting in April of each year. Our paid staff of six fantasy football writers (Jack Clifford, Bryan Collins, Daniel Kalles, Vin Sadicario, Chad Waldron, and Chris Weeks) will be posting their consensus keeper rankings in the next month. They will also be providing player profiles and weekly articles during the football season. We are happy to have them all return from last year.
While we currently have no positions available, if you feel you have a specialty that you would like featured at FFToolbox.com, please feel free to submit a writing sample. We are always looking for new ideas and ways to improve our free site. If we feel your specialty would complement our current information, we may consider developing a new position to feature your work.
Comments or Suggestions may be directed to FFToolbox.com LLC
Becky Christiansen - becky@fftoolbox.com or 703-772-6457
