Who will replace Vic Ketchman?

Despite the name (khaki pants and press box hot dogs are two things former Jaguars.com senior editor Vic Ketchman repeatedly expressed his love for), this blog is actually supposed to follow the Jags. That said, since news is slow, a little speculation on who could possibly replace the curmudgeon who had come to fill Jaguars fans' hearts the last 15 years.

Here's what we know: Vic Ketchman said, I believe in one of his chats, that he recommended the person. He also said he thought Jaguars fans would be pleased. We also know that a primary reason for Vic's departure was money, so the replacement will probably not be too expensive.

The name that immediately jumps to most fan's mind is Ryan Robinson. I don't think this is a terrible guess but I'd also be surprised if that's who they went with. Working for him, he's written editorials in the past. He is already familiar with the organization, as well as the website and would probably have a good handle on Vic's relationship with fans. That said, currently Robinson, while in the Communications department, is less of a football guy and a more of a public relations, community service guy. Unfortunately for him, I think this works against him, at least in the short run. The PR guys tend to get overrun a little in the NFL. Players don't always afford community service requests a lot of respect and Robinson's association with PR could somewhat hamper the respect players have for him. Also, putting a PR guy into that role would instantly wipe out any credibility the team's website had developed. It would essentially be perceived as a PR machine. Robinson could certainly overcome this but I think it makes him a less than ideal candidate.
Ed Bouchette. He the Steelers beat writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. a kind of Vic 2.0. To be honest I don't really know a lot about him. I imagine he's too expensive but maybe he's looking to jump the sinking ship formerly known as newspapers. He's also a close friend of Vic Ketchman's.

Another interesting candidate, in my opinion, is Jim Wexell. He's a freelance reporter who covers mostly the Steelers. I don't know how much he's making but it seems possible the Jaguars could at least offer more stability than freelance work. Also, Vic Ketchman knows him as Wexell worked under him at the Irwin Standard Observer. Here's an interview he gave. He's also got a little bit a fiery side. Twice he's gotten into arguments with another member of the media, Mark Madden. The arguments were ten years apart. I won't speculate on those at all but this seems to sum them up nicely.

In all honesty, I have no idea who will replace Vic Ketchman. If I get any hot tips, I'll be sure to pass them along. Whoever it is, while they have big metaphorical shoes to fill (I bet Vic actually has smallish feet), I'm sure Jags fans will welcome them with open arms.

-Q