After more than three decades inhabiting various press boxes as the University of Mary Washington’s Sports Information Director, Clint Often may be entitled to a bit of hazard pay.
“I spent time in the wind tunnel underneath the stands there [Dickinson Stadium] and got pelted by sunflower seeds,” said Often, gesturing over his shoulder toward the Eagles’ baseball stadium.
Other occupational hazards over the years included countless dust bowls, because, as Often notes, “not a single softball coach in America knows how to water a field properly,” and a hornets’ nest near the soccer field that produced more stings than a Reggae-rock themed costume party.
By contrast, Often’s workplace on Saturday afternoon was far more hospitable: a press box bearing his name.
UMW unveiled the Clint Often Press Box at the Battleground Athletic Complex during a ceremony prior to the Eagles’ home field hockey game against Gettysburg College. The press dedication punctuated a nearly $300,000 renovation to the press box.
Linda Blakemore, who played field hockey and lacrosse at UMW during the 1980s, was a top donor to the project along with her husband, Porter Blakemore, a UMW professor.
The renovated pres...