STEVE WIEBERG ELECTED TO USBWA HALL OF FAME

March 31, 2008
USA TODAY'S WIEBERG ELECTED TO USBWA HALL OF FAME
ST. LOUIS (USBWA)
USA Today sportswriter Steve Wieberg has been elected to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Hall of Fame for 2008.

Wieberg becomes the 50th member of the USBWA Hall of Fame, first established in 1988 to honor members for their achievements in sports journalism and contributions to the USBWA.

Wieberg will be inducted April 4, at the annual USBWA awards breakfast held in conjunction with this year's NCAA Final Four in San Antonio. Wieberg has been at USA Today since being part of the original startup staff in 1982. His primary responsibilities include coverage of college sports, in particular football, basketball and the rules-making NCAA. He has covered 15 national championship football games, every NCAA men's Final Four since 1983 and six Summer and Winter Olympics.

He served as president of the USBWA in 1996-97 and has won seven writing contest awards from the USBWA, six from the Associated Press Sports Editors and three from the Football Writers Association. He was named by the Chronicle of Higher Education as one of the "10 Most Powerful People in College Sports" in October 2007 and selected by College Sports magazine as one of the "50 Most Influential People in College Sports" in 1995 and '96.

Before USA Today, Wieberg was a sports reporter and Sunday sports editor at the Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader from 1991-92 and previously worked five years at the Mexico (Mo.) Ledger.

A graduate of the University of Missouri, Steve and his wife Paula have three children: Michael, a senior at Truman State University; Eric, a senior at Kansas; and Katie, a sophomore at Missouri.

The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. Today, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball.

Family note:
Steve Wieberg is the eldest son of Marjorie and Carl W. Wieberg. His the great, great grandson of Margaret (Bost) and Jacob Fecht.