Menu
Nuzum named Oscar Stauffer Sportswriter of the Year
Scott Nuzum's most recent award came as a surprise to the long-time sports editor at The Fort Scott Tribune.
"I was floored," Nuzum said of his reaction upon learning he is the recipient of the 2010 Kansas State High School Activities Association's Oscar Stauffer Sportswriter of the Year Award for his coverage of interscholastic sports. "My reaction was, I didn't know what to think. I never thought it was something I'd be considered for."
Nuzum, sports editor at the Tribune since 1996 with the exception of a 13-month period in 2002-03, received the award during a ceremony Friday following the Fort Scott High School Tigers girls basketball game against Iola High School. Nominations for the award were made by high schools across Kansas with the final selection being made by an executive committee of the Kansas Coaches Association.
Although surprised that he had won the award, Nuzum said he "liked getting the award" and the recognition that comes with it.
"It was the opinion of coaches and athletic directors who thought I have been doing a good job of covering sports and promoting schools," he said.
Nuzum was nominated for the award by FSHS Athletic Director Larry Fink, who said that Nuzum has "gone above and beyond for quite a few years."
"To compile stats and share them with all the coaches and newspapers, to keep track of league championships ... he's helped schools, coaches, administrators, and gone above and beyond what, in my opinion, a sportwriter would normally do," Fink said. "And he's been doing it for a long time. It's time somebody stepped up and said, 'Good job, Scott.'"
Concerning his attention to detail, especially when compiling and reporting statistics, which is one of the reasons why the selection committee chose him to win the award, a humble Nuzum said he considers it to be "doing part of the job."
"I try to give the numbers context, to take stats and turn them into a story everyone understands, to make them mean something to people," he said.
KSHSAA Executive Director Gary Musselman said the Oscar Stauffer Award has been presented each year since 1975 to honor a sportswriter and sports broadcaster for their work covering high school sports programs. Nuzum was chosen to win the award from a group of about 10-12 nominees, Musselman said.
"It's nice to give these people an award who don't get a lot of attention," he said.
The KSHSAA does not get directly involved with the process of selecting the winner of the sportswriter award, who is chosen by the KCA committee, Musselman added.
"It's their peers choosing who it is that is doing a good job," he said.
The award selection process consists of two steps; the sportswriter being nominated for the award and then the chairperson of the KCA considering all of the candidates and making a selection, Musselman said.
KCA Executive Officer Ginny Honomichl explained how Nuzum's work stood out from other nominees and why he was chosen to receive the award.
"He definitely has demonstrated his desired involvement to go beyond just one school district and major sports-only coverage," she said. "He shares with other Southeast Kansas papers and media."
The KCA committee also made telephone calls to fellow educators, coaches and administrators in the region to get their opinion of Nuzum as a sportswriter and as a person, and all of the feedback was "very positive," Honomichl said.
Senior high school administrators throughout Kansas have the opportunity to nominate someone for the annual sportswriter award. The number of nominees varies each year. Since its inception, the award has recognized sportswriters from every geographic part of the state and nearly every size of newspaper, Honomichl added.
When asked what he likes best about his job, Nuzum said it is "rewarding when someone tells you that you wrote a good story. I want to provide good info; it's satisfying."
Nuzum added that not much has changed with the way he has approached coverage of area sports since he started working in the profession nearly 15 years ago.
"It's pretty much always the same," he said.
The Oscar Stauffer Sportswriter of the Year Award recognizes excellence in the field of sports writing and acknowledges meritorious service through coverage of interscholastic sports programs in Kansas.