Bedlam notebook: Cowboys gunned down from the arc

John Helsley grew up in Del City, reading all the newspapers and sports magazines he could get his hands on. And Saturday afternoons, when the Major League Game of the Week was on, he'd keep a scorecard for the game. So the sports appeal was was deep-rooted at an early age.

Mrs. Jackson, an English/Journalism teacher at Del City High, plucked him for the school paper, The Eagle Beacon, and John was hooked. While he detoured through a brief accounting career, John returned to college (Central Oklahoma) for a second degree and a second career that has seen him cover everything from the preps to the pros at The Oklahoman.

John lives in Edmond with his wife Roberta and two daughters, Sarah and Jillian, who are keeping the family tradition of cheering for the baseball team with the birds on the bat.

Stephanie Kuzydym learned at a young age that life is a game of inches. That's just one reason why she loves football. Kuzydym joined The Oklahoman in July 2012 as a Sooners beat writer.

Before arriving in Norman, Kuzydym was an intern for the sports departments at USA TODAY, the Orlando Sentinel and South Bend (Ind.) Tribune. She was also sports editor of her college paper, the Indiana Daily Student.

Kuzydym is from small town Indiana. She graduated from the IU School of Journalism at Indiana University in May 2012.