A longtime San Francisco 49ers beat reporter has lost his Pro Football Hall of Fame vote as a result of organizational restructuring in the wake of Bill Belichick’s snub.
Paul Kuharsky – a fellow longtime NFL reporter but for the Tennessee Titans – reported Wednesday that NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco was among the media members who lost their place on the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. In total, 19 reporters have so far confirmed they’ve lost a seat at this table. Some, like Kuharsky, have made their status with the Hall public, but others have not. That includes Maiocco, who has covered the Niners for 32 seasons and has written several books about the team.
The Hall announced on Sept. 4 that it would reduce the size of its voting base from 50 to 28 members. This restructuring comes on the heels of a Hall of Fame class that conspicuously left out Bill Belichick, arguably the greatest NFL coach of the 21st century, in his first year of eligibility. The Hall of Fame’s announcement did not mention Belichick by name, but it did make the rare move of offering a public statement in the wake of the coach’s non-selection after significant public outcry.
“Each year, the Hall reviews the selection process and the composition of the 50-person Selection Committee,” the statement read. “If it is determined that any member(s) violated the selection process bylaws, they understand action will be taken. That could include the possibility that such selector(s) would not remain a member of the committee moving forward.
“The selection of a new class is the most important duty the Hall of Fame oversees each year, and the integrity of that process cannot be in question.”
Of course, just because this shake-up was likely kicked off by the Belichick snub does not mean that the voters who were removed had anything to do with that decision. When the controversy was at a fever pitch, Kansas City Chiefs reporter Vahe Gregorian published a column revealing he was among the selection committee members who didn’t vote for the coach. But according to Kuharsky, Gregorian has reportedly kept his role with the Hall. Meanwhile, Dolphins reporter Armando Salguero, who presented Belichick to the full committee during the last voting cycle, reportedly did not.
SFGATE reached out to Maiocco for comment but did not hear back before the time of publication. A graduate of Cal Poly Humboldt when it was called Humboldt State University, the veteran reporter has covered the 49ers since 1995, and he has been with NBC Sports Bay Area since 2010.
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This article originally published at Veteran 49ers reporter among those axed from Pro Football Hall of Fame selection committee.