Matthew Stafford At The Olympics? Sort Of
(97.1 The Ticket) - Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is enjoying his offseason with a trip to the Winter Olympics in South Korea.
Well, sort of.
Jack Doles, sports anchor at WOOD TV in Grand Rapids, is in Pyeongchang for the games and brought a friend with him -- a Stafford bobblehead. Doles has been stopping Olympic athletes and taking pictures of them with the bobblehead.
The bobblehead has gotten pictures with the likes of Redmond Gerard, the first American Gold Medalist of 2018; former Michigan State hockey player Jim Slater; and Pita Taufatofua, the shirtless flag bearer from Tonga.
Doles said he was trying to come up with a fun social media idea for his trip to Pyeongchang when the idea hit him one day at the office.
"As I was racking my brain trying to come up with an idea, I looked at a shelf of bobblehead dolls we have in the Sports office," Doles said via email. "Matt Stafford caught my eye, and I thought, 'that's it.' Bobblehead Matt Stafford is coming to PyeongChang with me."
Doles has been covering the Olympics for WOOD TV since 1988 in Calgary and this is the 10th games he has covered. He likened the bobblehead idea to "Where's Waldo."
"Social media is becoming such a big part of what we do, that I needed to try something that people would hopefully enjoy," Doles said. "So far the response has been positive. And the athletes I've asked to hold him have been great. Although I do feel a little funny asking an Olympian if he will pose with my doll. I'm not going to lie, that's awkward."
Follow Doles on Twitter and Facebook for more pictures of the Stafford bobblehead throughout the Winter Olympics.
