The article below, published on December 14, 1973, won Rick the prestigious William Randolph Hearst Award for student journalism.
The Penn State Daily Collegian
This link will take you to The Penn State Daily Collegian archives that include all of Rick’s work until he graduated in 1975.
Press Box Chili
Rick self-published a book, “Press Box Chili,” that included his favorite columns from his early sports writing career through 1983. Download it here.
Our Favorites
Here are some of our favorite columns from Rick’s days at The Valley News Dispatch:
- A 2005 article about the return of NBA Hall of Famer Jerry West to the West Virginia University arena where he starred in college. https://archive.triblive.com/news/west-honored-during-wvus-loss-to-lsu/
- A 2006 feature article on Pittsburgh Steelers President Dan Rooney. https://archive.triblive.com/news/profile-of-the-rooneys/
- A 2006 profile of three college football coaches: Joe Paterno of Penn State, Rich Rodriguez of WVU and Dave Wannstedt of the University of Pittsburgh. https://archive.triblive.com/news/chasing-the-prize/
- A 2007 story and Q&A with Pittsburgh sports radio legend Myron Cope. https://archive.triblive.com/news/even-retirement-cant-keep-myron-cope-down/
- A 2005 article on Myron Cope and his speech that bombed at an NFL Hall of Fame awards dinner. https://archive.triblive.com/news/cope-apologetic-after-rambling-hall-speech/
- A 2008 article on serious injuries in girls’ softball. https://archive.triblive.com/news/softball-safety-becomes-hot-topic/
The Rick Starr Award 