WHEELING òòò½ÊÓƵ” Bob Hertzel, a print journalist for more than five decades, has been selected the winner of the 2024 Morehouse Award by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.
The award is given for contributions to journalism and named for the late Marshall University sports information director and broadcaster Gene Morehouse, who was killed in the 1970 airplane crash that claimed the lives of 75 Marshall football players, coaches, staff and fans.
The award has been given since 1971, with the list of recipients on the website.
He will be honored at the 77th annual Victory Awards Dinner on May 5 at River City in Wheeling.
òòò½ÊÓƵœI didnòòò½ÊÓƵ™t get into this business for awards,òòò½ÊÓƵ Hertzel said, òòò½ÊÓƵœbut I appreciate it. Iòòò½ÊÓƵ™m sure there are others who are deserving of the honor.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Hertzel was born and raised in New York and graduated from the University of Missouri in 1964. Two years later, he started his professional sports writing career, which has taken him to major markets, and newspapers, in the country.
He has worked for the Cincinnati Enquirer and Pittsburgh Press and newspapers in New York, Cleveland, Baltimore, Atlanta, St. Louis, Dayton, Ohio and Wilmington, Delaware
He has been a baseball beat writer for the Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Yankees.
While working in Cincinnati in the mid-1970s, he authored two books on the Reds òòò½ÊÓƵ” òòò½ÊÓƵœThe Big Red Machineòòò½ÊÓƵ and òòò½ÊÓƵœCharlie Hustle,òòò½ÊÓƵ co-authored by Hertzel and the subject, Pete Rose.
In 1996, Hertzel started his current Mountain State journalistic career as sports editor of the Morgantown òòò½ÊÓƵ. Currently, the Morgantown resident is a syndicated columnist for WV News and , in which capacity his pieces on West Virginia University sports often appear in HD Media publications.
òòò½ÊÓƵœBob Hertzel may be the most widely read current newspaper sports writer in the state,òòò½ÊÓƵ West Virginia Sports Writers Association secretary-treasurer Doug Huff said. òòò½ÊÓƵœHeòòò½ÊÓƵ™s been a professional sports journalist all of his adult life and brings historical perspective with his writings.òòò½ÊÓƵ
Hertzel has been on the scene of many major sports events, including the World Series, Super Bowl, the Masters, U.S. Open, Wimbledon, Kentucky Derby and All-Star games.
He has been a member of several professional organizations, including the Baseball Writers Association of America and the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.