We now know Clarkston will again host the Dragons in the district playoff opener this week, but last week's Rivalry Week showdown is where I found myself shooting video for TheOaklandPress.com.
It says in my bio that I sometimes cover high school sports, and here is the proof.
It rained so hard and for so long. I was wearing a winter jacket and sweating like crazy because the temperature was in the mid 50s, because I didn't want to get soaked. There's only one clip in the video where you can clearly see how hard it was raining and it's near the end.

In retrospect, it appears the original headline "Breathing Ire" for the Lake Orion-Stoney Creek boys soccer district centerpiece story in today's edition probably isn't as good as the one we went with, "Dragon Slayers."
I thought the 'Ire' head was more creative because we've used the 'Dragon Slaying' type headlines several times in the past, but I guess it's a limitless well available for use by Oakland Press copy editors. So, look forward to more similar headlines in the years to come, unless Lake Orion changes its mascot.
Last night was the first of the boys soccer districts and it was pretty crazy in the office, but we got it done and hope readers enjoy the extended coverage.
As predicted, nobody complained about the placement of the Shock farewell column by former beat writer Keith Dunlap. It did top the U-M-Penn State preview, though.

In an update to my earlier post, the Lions' latest loss puts my personal Lions losing streak at 15. It really would be nice to write a winner.
I was trying to play up the shutout using something like 'Packers blank it' and that's how I ended up on the 'Packers Blanket' headline you see because the main photo symbolizes a blanket covering the Lions' offense.
Also, the Tom Brady photo in the lower right-hand corner looks like he's throwing to Randy Moss on B6 if you turn to the page quickly. Oakland Press animation for you.
We were a little tight on space today, hence no NBA or NHL coverage.

As I shared my front page headline with friends on Facebook last week, I realized I still haven't written a game-winning Lions headline. I would estimate my personal front-page Lions record at 0-14.
Also, I was asked why we kept the 'Steel' capitalized. I left it that way because it's an obvious play on Steelers, which is capitalized.
You might even notice the graphic for this blog has the headline 'STEAL CITY', I'm a big fan of playing off Pittsburgh's NFL mascot.

Check out the final days of the Tigers' season from the front pages of The Oakland Press.

The headline says it all about the Tigers' epic collapse. I wanted to use headlines such as "Colossal Collapse" to highlight the Tigers' plight last weekend, but I was told not to because they hadn't actually blown their A.L. Central lead at that time.
Lo and behold, I wasn't designing the front page the day of the one-game playoff or the day of the postmortem column by Jim Hawkins, so kudos to Matt Mowery, who returned from his special section hiatus for summing it all up for us.

The one-game playoff we've eagerly anticipated is finally here! Usually Monday editions are centerpieced with the Lions, but on at least one Sunday, the Tigers trumped their NFL counterparts with a needlessly dramatic final game.
Also, don't miss section C today, a commemorative Brooksie Way section chronicling the second installment of the race run in the Rochester Hills area and designed by Matt Mowery.