Rachel Baribeau

She's Seeeing Sports Upclose
Troy Johnson
Feb 22, 2008

This was supposed to have been a workout for skill players, but the diminutive wide receiver in the mud-spackled No. 5 jersey didn't display a trace of know-how Thursday morning.

The will and the want-to were there, of course, but No. 5 didn't catch a single pass during the Columbus Lions' workout at A.J. McClung Memorial Stadium.

The passes thrown in No. 5's direction did many things, but they never rested comfortably in the grasp of the aspiring wide receiver. They squirted between the hands and ricocheted off the face mask. They skimmed off the tips of outstretched fingers and skittered along the muddy turf.

And those routes?

Choppy, tentative, halting steps that didn't allow for separation from a defensive back or necessarily send No. 5 in the direction prescribed inside the huddle.

"You're going to catch one," Columbus Lions coach Jason Gibson told No. 5 after practice.

How can Gibson be so reassuring toward some guy who can't catch?

Well, the he is actually a she.

Rachel Baribeau may spend most of her days talking the game with Mike Venafro on "In the Zone," which airs locally on WEAM-AM 1580, but she may soon stand apart from other female broadcasters for playing the game. Or trying to, rather, since there's no chance of Baribeau showing up on the Lions' roster in time for their American Indoor Football Association season.

Gibson wants to win games, after all, but he wanted Baribeau to be able to obtain an insider's perspective about the sport by going through two-a-day practices with the team.

"They caught me on radio one day and put me on the spot," Gibson said. "She's learning. I'm not doing anything different with her than I am with anyone else."

That may be the case, but Baribeau is taking on the sort of challenge few broadcasters (or sports columnists) - male or female - would dare attempt. She stands a half-foot shorter and weighs in a linebacker shy of most of the Lions, but received a welcome-to-football bump or two during Thursday's non-contact practice in a 48-degree chill and persistent rain.

"It's just as tough as I thought it would be," said Baribeau, 28, who studied broadcast journalism at Auburn. "I knew it was going to be tough. I expected to be puking on the sidelines. I'm concentrating on staying upright.

"They haven't been afraid to hit me. They've knocked me down, obviously a little bit less than they would (another player)."

They have, however, resisted applying friendly pats on the rear. Even so, she built a sense of camaraderie with the team when Gibson introduced her in a team meeting and explained her presence.

"She addressed them and let them know that she is a hard worker and that she just desires to be the best in broadcasting, just like they want to be the best in football," Gibson said. "She wanted them to understand that this is not a joke and not a gimmick. She's trying to understand the game better."

Baribeau would eventually like to find work as a TV sideline reporter, a role she developed an affinity for while seeing Southeastern Conference football from just outside the chalk lines. It certainly beat covering house fires and car accidents.

"I love the sidelines, the crunch of the helmets, the speed of the game," she said. "I was completely seduced the first time I worked the sideline for an Auburn game. It was addictive. I was down there early and stayed late."

Going the extra step and running through two-a-day practices with a pro football team provides a stamp of credibility that female sideline reporters so often struggle to obtain. The common perception is that those jobs are landed by great heads of hair, blindingly white teeth and ample cleavage. While male TV viewers may initially be drawn to those superficial qualities, serious sports fans will eventually look elsewhere if a sideline reporter has nothing worthwhile to say.

The thought of a woman reporting on football may have been a novelty when former Miss America Phyllis George joined "The NFL Today" gang in 1975, but that's no longer the case. So many of those who followed, including Lesley Visser, Michelle Tafoya, Bonnie Bernstein and Erin Andrews, have succeeded by working hard and being well-informed.

Chances are, however, that none of them ever ran a fade route against press coverage, as Baribeau tried to do against Damian Daniels, last season's World Indoor Football League co-defensive player of the year. Gibson and wide receiver Silas Daniels spent portions of practice reminding her of the little details she'll need in order to make that first reception.

Hands out in front in a diamond pattern as the ball arrives. Asorb the ball is if you're catching an egg.

"I'm trying to think about where to turn, how to cut," Baribeau said. "There's so much to think about - what route am I running? Where am I supposed to break? Are my hands in the right place? Where's the defender?"

And, later, there was one more question that female sportscasters don't typically get to ask in the line of duty:

Where's the ice bag for my aching quad muscle?

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Baribeau gives indoor football a woman's touch
Patricia Babcock McGraw
March, 1, 2008

What does a 5-foot-nothin', 100-pound-nothin' woman know about football?

Rachel Baribeau says she knows a lot. But the sports-talk-radio host used to be able to prove it only with her words on air. Now, she can show people her bruises, or run a post route with precision.

On a dare from her co-host, and to quiet all the doubters out there who proclaim that female sports journalists couldn't possibly know anything about football since they've never played it, Baribeau decided to attend training camp for the Columbus Lions, an American Indoor Football Association League team based in Columbus, Georgia.

"I'm a real student of the game," Baribeau said. "But I can't tell you how many times I've heard, 'Missy, what do you know about football? You're a woman.' Those are mostly old, antiquated men who say that, but I still wanted to break that stereotype and prove something."

Baribeau's challenge was to complete a week of two-a-day (noncontact) practices, which she wrapped up Monday despite suffering a pulled hip flexor and quad muscle. She is the first woman to participate in an indoor professional football training camp. "It was just an amazing experience," Baribeau said. "I have bruises all up and down my arms, but I wear them like a badge of honor. This has been one of the all-time best experiences of my life."

Baribeau, who works for the ESPN Sports Radio affiliate in Columbus (WEAM 1580-AM), practiced mostly with the wide receivers and defensive backs. She says that on her first day of practice, which involved heavy doses of running and conditioning drills, her main goal was simply not to pass out and fall down.

"I consider myself to be very fit," Baribeau said. "But practice was way more than I expected. There's pretty much nothing you can do to get yourself ready for it. By the end, my knees were like jelly and I just kept praying, 'Lord, don't let me be the one who falls down.' "

But if she had fallen down - by the way, she didn't - Baribeau is convinced she would have had 30 guys rushing to pick her up. Just as she was surprised by the intensity of the practices, Baribeau says she never expected the guys to take to her like they did. After completing two-a-days, she returned to camp just to say hello to all of her "teammates," and they begged her to go out and eat dinner with them.

"I couldn't believe that," Baribeau said. "When I first thought about doing this, I figured the guys would probably just look at me like a joke. But that's not how it was at all. Other than the fact that they were a little afraid to pat me on the butt after a play, they treated me like one of the guys. They got physical with me, they went hard in the drills and they cheered me on."

At first, there wasn't much to cheer. Baribeau says that she didn't catch a single pass on her first day of practice. "Everybody was telling me to wear these gloves... and I wasn't catching a thing," Baribeau said. "So I took the gloves off, and I started catching passes. It was amazing.

"The best thing was that my teammates wanted me to succeed so badly. If I didn't catch a pass, they'd be like, 'Ohhhhhhhhh!' But if I did, they'd be yelling and cheering and slapping my helmet. Now I kind of understand why they call football a fraternity." And if anything, that's the one way Baribeau - a self-described football fanatic who has been reporting on the game for eight years - has become more knowledgeable about the game.

She says she didn't realize how close football players are.

"You know, football is such a team game, and every guy is important, and when you bleed and sweat together, you just become really close," Baribeau said. "I really learned how deep the emotions run in this game."

So does that make Baribeau a better sports journalist?

"Maybe," she said. "But I still don't think you need to play football to be able to know it and report on it. I know a lot about the game just from watching it for years and doing a lot of research on it.

"The only difference is that now I'm able to relate to it a little more. I can not only describe a play, I can go out and run it. And I also understand the emotions behind the game a lot more."

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Player's Perspective
Editor's note: Local sports talk show host Rachel Baribeau participated in preseason training camp with the Columbus Lions, an indoor pro football team. She agreed to share her experience with Northland Neighbors readers.

I've often been asked, as a female, what drove me to cover sports for a living. It seems that I was born to cover sports, not play them. Some athletes have their talents genetically passed down. Others need sheer determination to overcome what they weren't blessed with by nature. I can relate to the latter.

I was born in Atlanta, but my father was in the Army, so we lived in places as exotic as Ishmir, Turkey, and as down-home as Pell City, Ala. I went to Auburn University and majored in mass communications. My senior year, I decided to switch from general reporting to sports broadcasting. Being an extremely emotional person, I didn't think I could take covering house fires and car wrecks for a living. For the most part, sports brings joy to people, and I would rather be the bearer of joyful news than bad news.

I grew up with two brothers that participated in archery, swimming, football, baseball, basketball, soccer, wrestling and BMX racing. If I wasn't watching sports in person, I probably was watching them on TV. Sports broadcasting is a journey that has tested my intelligence, grit and gut. I am working in a man's world. I have to work twice as hard to be respected half as much. But it was and is something I accept with a happy heart.

You see, I love a challenge. More importantly, I have been blessed in my career. I have had the opportunity to operate independently; this was developed working for my family's log home business for 15 years. It afforded me the prospect to freelance and work as a sideline reporter, sports editor and sports talk show host on TV and radio. This motivated me to become the first (to my knowledge) female sports broadcaster to participate in a professional football training camp. My "In the Zone" co-host, Mike Vee, suggested the idea to me, and I immediately thought it would be an awesome opportunity. The purpose would be for me to gain a perspective that only football players have.

Mike then blindsided Columbus Lions head coach Jason Gibson with the idea during our sports talk show on 1580 AM. Coach Gibson was surprised, to say the least, and said he would need time to think it over.

He called back a few days later and said I had to be cleared by the American Indoor Football Association and pass a physical. He also explained his mandate for what became one of the defining opportunities of my lifetime. He said I would be a wide receiver and would have to wear full gear and go full out. In other words, if I wanted to be a part of this team, I would be expected to dress like it, behave like it and participate like it. Although I was scared, I accepted the challenge.

I received my equipment the day before camp started. Lions star wide receiver Silas Daniels picked up his equipment at the same time. He holds the Auburn record for longest touchdown reception in school history (87 yards).

Silas later told me, "I thought you were there to help out the team." Then he saw me get my helmet and wondered, "Is she really fixing to practice with us for real?"

He really wanted to see how I was going to take the practices. He took the time to help me that day and all the days that followed. He was my first buddy on the team - and little did I know then that I would have 30 or so by the time camp was over. I was eager but still nervous when Coach Gibson allowed me to address the skill players in a meeting the day before camp started. The skill players report to camp before the big boys. Coach Gibson said it's similar to building a puzzle: You start with the edges and fill in from there.

Coach introduced me but left the bulk of my assignment for me to explain. I told the players, "Look, this is not a media gimmick or stunt. I truly want to learn the game of football from your perspective. Like you want to be the best at football, I want to be the best at what I do, which is broadcasting." I also told them this was their time and place to giggle, because, when we got on that field, I wanted to be treated like their equal.

Miraculously, the laughter subsided, and I think everyone sensed that we were about to get down to business.

Speedy wide receiver Tirone Morris from Florida A&M University later said he thought I'd never make it through two-a-days.

I attended church that night. To say that I prayed for myself and my well-being longer than usual would be an understatement. The first day of training camp was cold and rainy - perfect weather for my debut nonetheless. It was an omen for the challenges I would face in my rather short football career. As I put on my uniform that morning - in a separate locker room, of course! - my heart felt like it was beating out of my chest. I was so nervous, not knowing what to expect.

I looked like somebody's kid brother, not a cute football chick. I had pads seemingly everywhere: on my hips, covering my rear, across my chest, back and shoulders. The helmet felt like it weighed a ton.

I trotted onto the field as assistant coach Norbert Sullivan told me, "Get in line, No. 5." I had no clue what the protocol was for practice, so I was a half step behind on everything.

After stretches, I took my place with my fellow wide receivers and tried to catch the ball - and I mean tried. That ball was a slippery thing. It went everywhere except in my hands. It bounced off my helmet, hit me in the facemask and ricocheted off my jersey. And then I had my first collision with the ground. I dove to catch the ball and skidded across the wet grass.

I was scared of how bad it would hurt to hit the ground. After years of watching football, I had seen countless collisions, and that added to my nervousness going into camp. But a funny thing happened after my first collision: It didn't hurt as bad as I imagined, so my jitters disappeared. I got up and felt, for the first time, I actually could do this. I still hadn't caught the ball, but I felt the competitive juices flow.

Then and there on that muddy ground, I picked myself up and promised myself I was going to catch a pass. It helped mightily that my teammates were my biggest fans. They wanted me to catch the ball as much as I did. Drop after drop, they kept encouraging me. They slapped me on my helmet (not my rear!) and gave me high fives.

In my career, I have talked about team chemistry a million times over, but this was the first time I felt part of that camaraderie. It was glorious. I finally understood what makes these guys want to go to battle for each other and together. Tirone, my fellow wide receiver who had thought I wouldn't make it through two-a-days, later said he was inspired by my effort.

When the morning practice ended, I still hadn't caught a ball, but Coach Gibson encouraged me to keep my head up. He said I was going to catch a ball.

After eating with my teammates, I went home, collapsed on the couch and slept for four hours. When I got up, I felt muscles I didn't think I had scream in agony. I limped for the next two weeks. I consider myself to be a pretty fit gal. I work out and take a variety of classes, including Turbo Kick and Body Pump. But nothing could have prepared me for the punishment my body would take the next five days.

Before I knew it, we were at it again - and I still wasn't catching passes. I hear there was a comical piece about me that ran on WRBL. Apparently, it showed me, over and over again, missing the stinking ball, which is what I called it by then. This also was the practice where I took my first real hit. We practiced indoors because of the bad weather. I don't think the defensive back meant to hit me as hard as he did, but I flew and skidded across the gym floor. Everybody went, "Ohhh!," and waited for me to get up.

And get up I did. I trotted back to my teammates, who gave me the usual helmet slaps and high fives for a valiant effort. I don't think I would have made it through the first practice, much less the seventh, if it weren't for my teammates. I thank them for it. I forever will be grateful.

The next day, I was running late for practice because I was waiting to get my multiple injuries wrapped. This became a sort of ritual. I would get to practice at least 30 minutes early to get wrapped to avoid being late. But I would let my teammates go before me, because I didn't want them to be late. If anyone was going to get a frown or cross word from one of the coaches, I wanted it to be me. So when I ran to get in line for drills, I didn't have time to put on my sporty gloves. But a crazy thing happened without those gloves: I started to catch the ball!

My teammates erupted after I caught my first one. I was so proud. Suddenly, I walked a little taller and had pep in my step. I moved to defensive back to get the most out of my experience and see the game from a different angle. Linebacker Derek Sistrunk nicknamed me Spray Paint because I wore the wrong color jersey to play defense.

Along with head coach Jason Gibson, I appreciate the tutelage I received from Lions assistant coaches Norbert Sullivan, Mark Rozycki, Fred Williams and David Daniels. I have witnessed practices at different levels during my broadcasting career, and it's hard for me to recall a better group of coaches or a group that works better together.

It would have been easy for them to dismiss me as the "girl" on the team. I wouldn't have blamed them if they had passed my questions over in favor of tutoring a player that had a legitimate shot of making the team. But they treated me like a player. Time after time, they put in the extra effort to make sure I learned the techniques, such as diamond hands, catching the ball like an egg and - the simplest, it would seem! - keep your eyes open.

There are many ways to motivate people: constructive criticism, berating or persuading them to challenge themselves. Coach Gibson ended every practice by asking, "Are we better today than we were yesterday?"

The first time I heard coach Gibson say that, I thought, "Wow. How can I be a better football player but, more importantly, how can I be a better human being?" That motivation will help the Lions become champions this year.

This coach practices what he preaches. He holds himself to the same standards he sets for his players. After one practice, he admitted that we had regressed and he blamed himself. He promised to come back better and, in turn, we would be better. This humility makes people want to associate with this organization and this coach. It is the same quality that motivates grown men to go to battle week in and week out, putting their bodies through pain, all for the love of the game, this coach and the opportunity that exists beyond the AIFA.

Before I knew it, three days of two-a-day practices had passed, and I was looking forward to my first day off. I had been wrapped at least six times for two pulled hip flexors and one strained quad muscle. I must have taken at least 10 Epsom salt baths, and I think I made it fashionable to wear ice packs on your nether regions. All kidding aside, though, I was proud of my injuries. They were proof that I could indeed achieve something that, to my knowledge, no other woman has done. At what would be my last practice, I stretched and did drills until my injuries forced me to the sideline. I slung off my helmet. I was frustrated. I hurt. I wanted with all my heart to participate, but my body didn't cooperate.

The pain overwhelmed me. Hot tears stung my face. The magnitude of emotions I quietly built up the past couple of days hit me like a locomotive. I realized all at once I was changed. I proved to myself I could do anything I set my mind to.

Wow! I wept on the bench. I felt such a connection with my team. I would miss them. They gave of themselves and their valuable time. They challenged me. They accepted a bantam-weight female sports reporter as one of their own. Lions star wide receiver Silas Daniels later told me, "I thought it was a good experience for all of us, because people don't know what athletes really go through."

I was given the opportunity to address the team before we prayed that night. I told them, "God gives you certain gifts, and what you make of those gifts is your gift to him." I told them I expect to see them at the next level. Whether it's football, fatherhood or simply faith, they will go far in their lives. This team is a team of character, starting at the top with the local ownership and emanating through the front office and the coaches, right down to the players. I encourage you to support this great organization.

I thank my family, friends and my co-host, Mike Vee, who cheered for me. Without them, and God, I never would have been in position to take this journey. I am forever grateful.

"But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint."
- Isaiah 40:31

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