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I'm willing to give Markowski a pass. I've heard rumors that he's been sick this summer. How sick--I don't know. But, if it's serious, it could explain a lot. I noticed in the News previews that Beth Markowski shared the byline with Tom on most of the previews. I don't know if Beth is his wife or daughter, but obviously she helped out with the compilation of data. The previews were no more than the number of returning starters and the top player as reported by coaches in the survey. The usual Markowski analysis was missing. I hope he is ok and back to work for the season.

As for McCabe, I believe he takes an extended summer vacation. He was missing in action in the paper and on line for most of the summer. Perry Farrell did a good job in McCabe's absence. The Freep preview was as weak as the News. Both did coaches' surveys, but the results were different. McCabe likes to be controversial and look smart, thus the DeWitt ranking. I think he blew that one. I know how much work is involved with researching teams over the summer. I used to look forward to the newspaper previews to supplement the work I did. Let's face it, the writers have access to the coaches and it's their job, so they should spend some time at it. This year, I think my previews were more comprehensive than the News and Freep, although I only did three leagues. Had I known the Detroit papers would drop the ball, I would have done more.

It's bad enough that you have to go online to get in-depth coverage of high school sports. The print editions have become a joke. I hope that we get print coverage of games on Saturday and Sunday rather than have to go on-line.

BTW, keep up the good work Oakland Press. You've become the standard for coverage in the Detroit area. Even the Birmingham-Bloomfield Eagle, a free pennysaver, did a better job than the News and Freep.