Big 12 football: Predicting the final conference rankings

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.

Jason Kersey became The Oklahoman's OU football beat writer in May 2012 after a year covering high school sports and OSU recruiting. Before joining the newspaper in November 2006 as a part-time results clerk, he covered high school football for the Newcastle Pacer. During his time with The Oklahoman, he has also coordinated Thunder coverage, worked on the copy desk and covered several NFL games, including Super Bowl XLV. A Noble High School and OU graduate, he lives in Norman.

Gina Mizell joined The Oklahoman in August of 2011 as the Oklahoma State beat writer, where she covered the Cowboys' historic run to the Big 12 championship and Fiesta Bowl in her first season on the job.

Before arriving in Stillwater, Gina was the Padres' Associate Reporter for MLB.com and a sports reporter/columnist at the Beaumont (Texas) Enterprise. Her work has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists, the Best of the West journalism contest, the Arizona Newspapers Association and the Association for Women in Sports Media.

Gina is a Phoenix native and graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University in 2010.

Berry Tramel, a lifelong Oklahoman, sports fan and newspaper reader, joined The Oklahoman in 1991 and has served as beat writer, assistant sports editor, sports editor and columnist.

Tramel grew up reading four daily newspapers — The Oklahoman, the Oklahoma City Times, the Norman Transcript and the Oklahoma Journal — and entered the newspaper business at the age of 17, with the Transcript in 1978. His first game assignment was the Lexington-Elmore City high school football game, and he has enjoyed the journey ever since, from high school wrestling duals and regional track meets to Orange Bowls and the NBA playoffs.

Tramel was born and raised in Norman, Okla. He and his wife, Tricia, were married in 1980 and live in Norman near their daughter, son-in-law and three granddaughters.

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.