Tracy Wolfson on star-studded East Regional, sideline reporters having a moment, and Bill Raftery’s fabled nightcaps

This interview originally appeared in the Friday edition of  The A Block, Awful Announcing’s daily newsletter with the latest sports media news, commentary, and analysis. Sign up here and be the first to know everything you need to know about the sports media world.

Ahead of tonight’s loaded East Regional featuring Duke, St. John’s, Michigan State, and UConn, Awful Announcing caught up with CBS Sports’ lead sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson about how the network plans to cover the star-studded affair, how she’ll approach in-game interviews with the legendary coaches involved, if sideline reporters are having a moment, and whether her partner Bill Raftery has really “slowed down” on his fabled nightcaps.

The following interview has been lightly edited for clarity.

Awful Announcing: This region is chock-full of heavy hitters. Do you recall ever seeing another regional this loaded with blue bloods?

Tracy Wolfson: I really don’t. And sometimes we do get chalk in these regionals and we wind up at those. But honestly when you look even just beyond the names and you see the coaches that are associated with these teams, that’s when it really stands out. It’s not just one through four, it’s the fact that you have Tom Izzo, Rick Pitino, Jon Scheyer, and Dan Hurley. And you put those names all in one bracket, it does make you feel like a Final Four.

AA: How will CBS balance telling the rich histories of these programs and coaches while also highlighting this year’s teams?

TW: What I think Mark Grant, our director, and Ken Mack, our producer do such a good job at, and certainly everyone else on our crew that get the film and the features ready, is to try and document all of it, but also balance the fact that these are different teams than we’re used to.

But then there’s history. The Laettner shot is certainly going to come up if there’s the opportunity down the stretch of that game that, you know, Rick Pitino’s facing Duke. I think there’s a time and place for it. I think establishing the region as a whole and the history of these coaches and these teams is important. Then you’re going to get into the game, and you’re going to focus on the game. You’re going to focus on the players that are playing now and continue to tell their stories, because that’s really important.

Certainly you have Ian [Eagle], you have Grant [Hill] who played on that team, you have Raf who has seen it all, and then myself adding the stories in. I’m certain it’s going to be weaved throughout but not take away from these teams that are playing right now.

AA: The NCAA Tournament offers the rare opportunity to interview coaches during the game. What’s your approach for getting something out of those interviews?

TW: It definitely depends on the coach that you’re interviewing, and it depends on the situation. If they are talking to an official, you might respond to their emotions at the time of that interview. If you can see something that you can utilize in those interviews, it might garner something more. If it’s a back-and-forth game, sometimes it’s tough to come up with a question because it’s just a back-and-forth really good game, right? And there’s nothing specific to ask that early, especially at an under-12 timeout in the first half.

So you tend to try and leave it a little open-ended and allow them to talk. Don’t kind of veer them in a direction that won’t allow for that. Certainly if a player is not performing as well as they’d expect early on, or if another player is, you may touch on that. It really goes game-to-game.

Hubert Davis is the perfect example. He’s a guy, he cut me off in the middle of my interview because he’s a fiery guy. I’ve had those interviews with him before where he’s like, “It’s live action, Tracy!”

Tom Izzo’s going to give you great stuff. Dan Hurley is going to give you great stuff. Jon Scheyer’s just always going to be professional, he’s going to give you a good interview. And obviously Rick Pitino’s been there forever, and you have to word things the right way to make sure he can give you a right answer. I think the more you know about these coaches, the better it is. And we’ve got four coaches that are really good and understand the situation when coming to those interviews.

But they are challenging. I mean, sometimes it’s just a great game and you don’t have something specific to ask, and the best thing to ask at that moment is, “What are you about to tell your team in the huddle?” Let’s just get something. You just want to get something that the viewers find interesting.

AA: There have been so many great sideline reporter moments in this tournament so far. What is it about March Madness that makes it so conducive to these memorable interactions?

TW: I think the emotions of the players and coaches in these moments, because there’s so much at stake, because it’s a one-and-done format, because so much is on the line, you’ve dreamed of getting to this moment, there’s just a lot more emotions. And I think they come out in those moments. And like I said, if you ask the question and just let them talk, you’re bound to be in those positions.

You know, Lauren Shehadi’s interview with Kevin Willard was just about points in the paint! And he gives you a great response, you know what I mean? You really don’t know, and you can’t force it either. That’s the thing, you can’t force those moments. Those moments are natural.

What Jared Greenberg was able to do regarding the mid-majors with that interview, that came from a genuine moment of High Point pulling off that upset and their coach standing up for the mid-majors. Those are the moments you’re going to get in March, and I think we’re fortunate to be in those positions and help bring that out.

These halftime interviews, I did the interview with (Duke forward) Maliq Brown, who talked about thinking it was going to be a cakewalk during the game when they were tight with Siena. He was really trying to repeat what coach Scheyer was saying in the locker room and it got out of context. But it got a lot of run because those are just those moments, right? He’s put in a position that he’s not used to being put in, where players have to speak.

So I think it’s just the emotions and what’s at stake. I think if you just give them that platform, you’re going to get some gold. And I think that’s the best thing about having sideline reporters there, is to just bring that out. Those postgame interviews, I’m loving the towels on top of the towels on top of our heads. I mean, it doesn’t even matter what they’re saying, the visual aspect of it is fabulous. And it only represents March.

AA: You’re now in Year 3 with Ian Eagle on the lead team. Has your approach changed at all with Ian at the helm?

TW: My approach has not changed at all. Ian and I work very well together. He really enjoys bringing in a reporter and understanding what my role might be in terms of, “Hey, I’d like to do this report. This is a story I’m looking at,” and he finds a way to get me there. Or, it’s coming up, he’ll communicate with Ken, our producers, and say, “Hey, let’s bring Tracy in here. Or let’s do this now, because Tracy has this report.”

There’s just a really good relationship between the four of us. It’s a four-man team. It’s not the three of them and then I chime in. What I also love is when they all react off of the interviews. I think that’s really important, that kind of brings it all together.

Ian, as we know, is the consummate professional. He really is. He brings a lot of levity and maybe some current jokes that we can all laugh about. Me and him are the social media guys. And actually Grant’s pretty good at it too. But we follow stuff, we know the trends. Ian’s using all these terms that the youths are using right now when it comes to announcing. It’s fun, we have a really great time together. He’s been a really close friend of mine for a long time, and I always wanted to have the opportunity to work with him and feel very lucky that we do.

AA: Bill Raftery came on the Awful Announcing Podcast this week and said he’s slowed down on his world-renowned nightcaps recently. Is this something you can confirm?

TW: Unfortunately, I can. But, I will tell you it’s really hard the first two weeks (of the tournament). None of us are out for nightcaps. We did sit in the room til about 2:30 in the morning after our final games last week. Afterwards we go back to a room and we have some drinks and food, and he was there til 2:30. He was probably one of the last ones to leave. Actually, Grant made the joke that he left after Raf, and that was a really big deal.

So I guess I can confirm it, right? When was the last time Grant left after Raf!

I think it is just really hard this time of year. I think the Final Four gets to be a little bit, as much as there’s a lot going on you’ve got a lot of extra days there, so maybe we’ll see the old Raf there.

I don’t know how he does it. I am 30 years his younger and I cannot even, I can’t do it! We all look at each other and we’re like, “How is he still going?” We’ll get the check and he’ll order another bottle of wine at the end!

It’s also when you have the coaches around that he’s close with. Sometimes he winds up out with them, especially in the Final Four when a lot of them aren’t coaching and they’re around, and there’s a huge dinner sometimes with (Jay) Bilas and Raf and a bunch of old coaches, and so he tends to have the … extra nightcap, let’s put it that way.