JACKIE!!!

The overall winner of this season of Gillette Drafted 3 came out on top in nearly every challenge! At the end of the final, Jackie put together a great segment, and Ryan made an awesome video. All things considered, Jackie was the apparent winner, given her track record throughout the competition.

Jackie’s video was a slice of life about her interaction with local soccer hooligans in Chicago, and her efforts to get into the Man U/Chicago Fire exhibition game. She also inter-spliced her segment with interviews with Man U players and fans.

Ryan made titles and composed a song for his video, putting together a well-edited, hilarious piece about re-naming various menu items at the Cheers restaurant/bar for Red Sox players Youk, Ortiz and McDonald.

Lucky for the two finalists, their families were with them to enjoy their respective finishes. Jackie will win a year-long contract with theScore (beginning soon) and will also become a spokesperson for Gillette! Congratulations to both Ryan and Jackie!!! You both did AMAZING work!!!

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THIS…IS…IT! It’s the very last episode of Gillette Drafted 3! Tonight we find out who will win the job of a lifetime as on-air talent at theScore Television Network, as well as a spokesperson contract for Gillette! For sports addicts Ryan and Jackie, the stakes are sky-high… tonight’s episode marks the last chance contestants will have to impress the judges with their sportscasting abilities! It’s “do or die” time!

On last week’s episode, the contestants were struggling to make their stories come together, and find the perfect hook. In part one of the Drafted 3 finale, we saw each of the two contestants travel to two of America’s most passionate sports cities — Chicago and Boston. The two contestants are each in search of the perfect story — a story that the winner of Gillette Drafted will have edited, produced and filmed from start to finish. Remember, Ryan is in Boston covering the Red Sox, and Jackie is in Chicago reporting on Manchester United’s exhibition game against the Chicago Fire. Tonight we see what they’ve come up with!

The candidate with the most interesting segment will win the elusive grand prize! Who do you think will WIN!? Just a few more hours til we find out, so make sure you watch right after WWE RAW to find out if you’ll be seeing a lot more of your favourite contestant on theScore! Wanna congratulate or vent about the winner? Post about it on our Facebook page, or send us a tweet tagged with #GD3!

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Part one of the season finale of Gillette Drafted started off as a bit of a clunker for both contestants, as they battled it out in two of the most intense American sports cities.  The challenge this week is easier said than done — each contestant must shoot/edit/produce and host a long form story about…well…whatever they want.

Both Ryan and Jackie had some trouble assuming the role of sportscaster on location in Boston and Chicago, finding it difficult to break into a media scrum, or get the players’ attention.

Neither contestant started the competition with a clear idea of the shape their story would take. Ryan quickly decided that his long-form piece would be related to Bostonian food. Jackie’s angle didn’t take a clear shape right off the bat, but near the end of the episode, it looked as though her story would be about getting into the Chicago Fire/Manchester United game.

Ryan started his trip by filming b-roll footage of himself scarfing down American fast food around Yawkey Way. He then tried to interview some of the Red Sox players during their batting practice and later in the locker room. He didn’t have much luck, but eventually managed to get Youk and Ortiz on the record. Ryan’s schtick involves getting a few players to pick their favourite menu items from Cheers (yes, the Cheers), and then (hopefully) persuading the restaurant to rename those items after the players who chose them.

A bit of research paid off in a big way for Jackie who read that a couple of Manchester United players would be making a promotional appearance at a local pizza place to make traditional Chicago pies. Jackie was the first reporter on the scene, but quickly discovered that there was no opportunity to ask the players any direct questions. Scared she would lose her opportunity to talk to the famous footballers, Jackie chased Patrice Evra as he was leaving the restaurant and asked him a few awkward questions about pizza. Needless to say, the questions fell flat and spoke to her greenness as a sports reporter. She later attended a Man U practice, and took part in another media scrum where this time it was impossible to get a question across.

Near the end of the episode, it looked as though Ryan and Jackie were making a bit of headway — both contestants collected a little useable footage. The finale concludes next week when the winner of Gillette Drafted 3 will be announced! Whoever makes the best video will earn a job at theScore for a whole year, along with a sweet Gillette spokesperson contract. Next Monday, it all comes down, so DON’T MISS IT!

This week, in part one of our finale, the finalists will be sent to two American cities to scrum it out like real sports reporters, creating a three to five minute, reel-to-reel story (from start to finish) about an interesting issue they encounter while on location.

This is it, Drafted fans! The end of the road is here and the moment we’ve all been waiting for is upon us! Part one of theScore’s two-part Gillette Drafted 3 finale airs tonight! In case you missed the last episode (or any other episodes, for that matter), make sure you check out the “Video” section of this site and get up to speed before the winner is announced.

In the last episode, Ryan was chosen to visit Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox and Jackie was told she would be visiting Chicago, to cover Manchester United soccer. In general, sports reporters have to be able to wear a lot of career hats. The best sports reporters can take a story from inception to completion.The contestants were given the following guidelines: go to the city, uncover a story, and shoot, edit and produce it! The last Drafted challenge is the absolute test of a great sports reporter.

The person with the most interesting, creative and best-produced segment will win the final challenge and the right to call themselves Canada’s Next Sportscaster! Watch tonight after WWE RAW to find out how the first part of the story chase will go down. After that, hop on Facebook or Twitter (tag your post with #GD3) and let us know who you think the winner will be!

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The race to become Canada’s next sportscaster has reached its end, and next week the two finalists will duke it out in the ultimate pro sports challenge.

The contestants were put through a gauntlet of challenges last night that put their improvisational skills to the test. The three challenges were reading a highlight package for Copa America, preparing a segment called Gillette Young Guns with Brent Furtney and passing a job interview with theScore judges, Sid Seixeiro and Chris Lamb, a representative of P&G/Gillette.

Rohan was eliminated early in the competition, during the interview part of the show. His mind was elsewhere during the highlight shoot, and he was at times quiet, losing his place and appearing generally rattled by the competition. He also failed to produce any chemistry-laden dialogue with Brent Furtney, and had a few line-flub problems. He didn’t seem surprised when the judges told him that he wouldn’t be drafted. Mike delivered a relatable performance with Brent Furtney in the Young Guns segment and did well at his interview with the judges and the Gillette representative, explaining what, exactly he thought he could bring to the table. After his performance, however, the judges wondered if Mike wasn’t just a very talented actor who was playing the part of a wannabe sportscaster for the purposes of TV, and he was eliminated.

Jackie, on the other hand, aced her interview with the judges. She also revealed that she applied for internship positions with theScore at least three times in the past. She delivered a great highlight read of the Copa game, minus some pronunciation difficulties with of one of the player’s names. She also created a great rapport with Brent during the Gillette Young Guns segment taping. She was chosen as a finalist without hesitation from the judges, who unanimously agreed that she had earned her spot based on the current, and past performances.

Ryan was the last performer to head into the lion’s den. He had a great highlight commentary read, but acted fidgety, made very little eye-contact and relied heavily on his notes throughout the challenge. He produced a great (albeit slightly Pauly Shore-ish) Young Guns segment with Brent Furtney and gave all the answers the judges were looking for during the interview portion of the show.

The judges eventually decided that the top two should be Jackie (because she performed the most naturally and relatably during the gauntlet challenge, and Ryan, because the judges said they wanted to see what he would come up with during the final two challenge abroad.

Next week the finalists take the plunge performing as real sportscasters in Boston and Chicago. Whoever creates the best reel-to-reel piece will be crowned the winner of Gillette Drafted 3. Tune in Monday to watch the first part of the finale!

Only four contestants are left in the race to become Canada’s Next Sportscaster on Gillette Drafted 3!

Only Rohan, Ryan, Jackie and Mike remain in the race, and this week’s challenge will incorporate three very different tests in a gauntlet that will have the contestants jumping through all the judges’ hoops, with very little time for preparation. The draftees will each have to read a highlight reel, host a mock segment and pass an interview with a Gillette representative, Chris Lamb. From this point on, the judges will be looking for the person who can rock every single challenge — and they’ll also be looking for a co-worker who’s a perfect fit at theScore.

Will it be Rohan, the confident hipster who walks to the beat of his own drum? Or will it be Ryan, the band frontman who’s a sucker for extreme sports? Will it be Jackie, the radio vet who knows everything there is to know about the Leafs? Or will it be Mike, the “clubhouse lawyer” who can own it in front of the camera in any situation? The gauntlet challenge will help the judges decide who deserves to win that elusive contract with theScore and become a spokesperson for P&G/Gillette. Make sure you watch tonight right after RAW! as the race gets one step closer to singling out a winner. Who do you think will be in the final two? Let us know on Facebook, or by tagging your tweets with #GD3.

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Last night’s episode of Gillette Drafted saw the contestants attempt to prove themselves in a setting very typical of theScore—the dreaded 5 p.m. news meeting. Remember, in this episode the contestants were asked to pitch a short segment or show to theScore’s editorial department.

Each contestant fell victim to fumbles and stumbles this week; the greatest obstacle in this challenge was that many of the contestants didn’t fully understand how theScore produces or chooses its content or how the network brands itself.

That said, each of the five contestants came up with excellent ideas.

Mike suggested a heritage/fan appreciation show, about sports and other Canadiana.  His idea really fit within confines of theScore’s talent and budgetary constraints. The staff’s only concern was that the audience might not want to listen to a fan talk about the day the Blue Jays won the World Series, for example — they’d want to hear a story like that from one of the actual players.

Jackie was the second contestant to present. She offered up a show idea she called Outsmarted, with herself as the host. She suggested a mini-competition between herself and a pro athlete where the two would compete in a non-sports specific challenge for a prize. The newsroom guys let Jackie know just how hard it is to get athletes to agree to such an on-air challenge.

Peter suggested a road trip show highlighting the various stories that arise from traveling while on away games. The production team let him know that not only did his pitch idea seem costly and difficult to execute, but there’s an unwritten rule that whatever happens on the road should stay on the road.

Rohan missed the mark a little with his pitch, suggesting a combination talent profiling and commentary show at theScore because “theScore doesn’t usually deal with a lot of opinion.” He suggested a show that would profile on-air talent and deal with strong (yet unpopular) sports opinion. His idea was somewhat…unpopular.

Ryan was the last presenter, giving another great performance that focused on—you guessed it—extreme sports. He suggested a short interview type show for the extreme sports layman, where he (Ryan) would interview an athlete about his chosen sport and then attempt the same extreme sport at the end of the segment. The editorial team liked his approach, saying they could picture him hosting such a show, but questioned its relevance and budgetary constraints.

In the end, Peter Brown was sent home this week, following a performance that the judges said was too shaky and lacked confidence. Peter was devastated, as the judges told him that he hadn’t managed to “be real” enough during the run of the show.

Up next week, the ridiculously hard “gauntlet challenge”. The judges will have each remaining contestant participate in a series of three tasks. Don’t miss it, because this challenge will be the most difficult yet!

The remaining Gillette Drafted contestants will need a thick skin and the gift of gab to get through tonight’s elimination challenge — if they’re not careful, the production employees will eat them alive. theScore’s editorial team doesn’t exactly beat around the bush.

This week the final five contestants — Jackie, Peter, Mike, Rohan and Ryan — will have to show theScore writers exactly where their interests lie and how deep their knowledge runs by pitching a TV show idea at the 5pm news meeting. The contestant with the best pitch will win the challenge (although the win won’t necessarily guarantee the contestant will be safe from elimination).

The atmosphere of a 5pm news meeting is a “free dialogue” format. The daily news meeting is the place where news and potential news stories are diffused. It’s also the place where new ideas are pitched and new content is shaped. The daily news meeting will be a regular part of the Drafted winner’s career, so passing this challenge is an vital step on the contestants’ career path.

Find out who the final four will be tonight, as the draftee with the weakest pitch leaves the show’s competition for good. Tell us who you think should be ejected from the race by tagging your tweet with #GD3 and visiting our Facebook page.

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Last night’s episode ventured more into reality TV land than Drafted has gone in the past, as Rohan and Peter tried to throw Jackie off her game — and it worked (to a degree).

The round-table challenge was a test of the Draftees’ debating skills — contestants were supposed to learn about a specific subject chosen at random and present their opinions on said topic to the rest of the group. Contestants were then told to interject and add their own opinions to the discussion — in no discernable organized format. The lack of opportunity for structured discussion left some of the quieter contestants in the dust. Elli, who failed to find points of interjection, remained largely silent throughout the challenge. Jackie also found it hard to break into the discussion, and so did Peter; both felt that Mike dominated the talking points and basically,  well….didn’t shut up.

In the end, even Elli was unable to suggest a contestant who’d fared worse than herself during the debates, and like Alex, she too was eliminated right off the bat at the start of the elimination panel that once again, did not acknowledge a “bottom three”.

Ryan and Rohan delivered more or less a middling performance during the debates, but Rohan’s integrity was thrown in question when the viewers were allowed to see a self-taped interview that Rohan and Peter made, where Rohan (jokingly) called Jackie “fake” and Jackie didn’t see the situation so jokingly. The awkward situation reflected in both Jackie and Peter’s performances during the challenge, and the judges interpreted the behaviour as condescending and aloof. Only five key players are left on the show, and it’s still anyone’s game. Let us know who you think the frontrunner is on Facebook, or tweet us with the #GD3 tag.

Will this week’s “hot button” topic challenge have Drafted judge Cam Stewart seeing red?

This week, Gillette Drafted 3 contestants will participate in a round-table debating challenge where each must study and become well-versed in a “hot button” sports topic, present their issue to the group (at the round table) and debate with the other contestants for a set length of time. This week the judges are looking for strong opinions and well-researched commentary. This challenge is designed to show which contestants are in the know, and which are in over their heads. The judges will be looking to award “challenge winner” status to the person who shows the most (unique) sports knowledge, both while it’s their turn to lead the discussion, and when others are presenting their topics.

Jackie was the winner last week and will have immunity going into the debating challenge this week, so she won’t be going home regardless of her performance tonight. Things are kicking into high gear on Drafted, as no more immunity prizes will be given out — contestants who stay in the competition after tonight’s elimination will have to make sure they deliver a stellar performance every single week from now on. With just six contestants remaining, can you spot the winner of tonight’s challenge? Let us know on Twitter by using the #GD3 tag, and don’t forget to check us out on Facebook!