national champs baby
With This Army We Push Into Crimea
Filed under:
Hi. MGoBlog was a one man show, and then a guy I didn't know emailed me a bunch of stuff about how he was pretty sure Bryce McNeal was going to decommit given his Facebook status updates and wall posts. As per standard policy, I noted the information and didn't say anything about it since the tipster in question hadn't proven his mettle. Bryce McNeal proceeded to decommit, and Tom VanHaaren proposed he function as an MGoBlog recruiting correspondent using the magic of the internets (and, soon after, his phone).
I'd been thinking that social media was an untapped source of information and agreed, and soon started posting things like Anthony Fera chillin' with JoePa based on Tom's sleuthin' and talkin'. Tom set to providing a ton of valuable content and being the main force behind much of the news this site has managed to break in the last seven or eight months. It's surpassed all my expectations, and just goes to show that if you find someone with the right skill set and put them in the right spot, Good Things result.
So.
MGoBlog is absorbing Varsity Blue, and intends to deploy Tim Sullivan as an internet-aware beat writer this fall. We've talked with the athletic department—which has been shockingly open and helpful with all this—and Tim is good to go. Paul will also join up in a capacity we'll work out as we go along—he's got a "job" that requires him to "go to work". Formerly Anonymous' outstanding baseball content will be imported 99% untouched. Important: I will not be writing any less.
This represents quite a reversal from MGoBlog's previous position on being a primary source and requires some explanation. So:
I don't plan on being the guy. One: I'm bad at it. Two: I'm good at other stuff. I've spent four years developing an expertise that has nothing to do with the tasks commonly associated with sports journalism. That expertise has propelled this blog to a living and represents a nigh-insurmountable hurdle for any other organization to clear. Spending my time doing something other than that's pretty dumb. So I won't.
I'd like to remain insulated from the corrupting influences of access*, and this arrangement will allow me to do that, mostly. The threat of losing access for your content is unavoidable once you start to benefit from it, but this site has already positioned itself as a site that's usually in Michigan's corner. I know they monitor this site and others, closely. They have not mentioned any issues.
The Varsity Blue guys all bring valuable expertise to the table. Paul and Tim were longtime WOLV stalwarts and have a four-plus-years head start on me in the stuff I'm bad at. As you might imagine, they also can do stuff with video that is extremely helpful on the web. And FA has encyclopedic knowledge of Michigan baseball, again something I lack. They all can use bigger platforms, and by joining up they can use some of the institutional cred I've accumulated over the past four years.
I think it can work. I'm not sure if twentysomething beatwriter with an internet orientation who might ask questions like "what's the deal with that formation where Greg Mathews is covered up in the slot?" will bring a ton of value to the table but it's at least worth an experiment. I'm going into this with the expectation it will be a two-year trial on both the part of the AD and MGoBlog, one that might not work. But think it will be valuable.
Offloading a portion of the daily burden should allow me to focus on some other stuff. Mostly this refers to recruiting, which VB already covers with aplomb. I plan on handing off a significant chunk of it to them, which will give me some extra time to work on research-heavy posts and more columns and whatnot.
-----
This will also necessitate some changes as far as the presentation of information goes. Right now there's just a front page that gets updated 1-4 times daily and then the diaries and message board. More stuff will be hitting the front page now and we'll have to work to make that make sense for readers. I've always tried to avoid bombarding readers with way too much stuff to grok; that's going to be tougher now.
As always, try to bear with us—and it's now an actual us!—as we feel our way through this… undiscovered country. Spock.
Tim's first foray here is a trip to the Big Ten Media Days, where he will hopefully end up less pwned than I did.
*(I don't want to write something critical in UFR and have to worry about whether the player in question will give me the evil eye. And I don't want to get all friendly with another guy and pull my punches. Sportswriter bravado about facing down the subjects of your pieces is just testosterone.)
July 24th, 2009 at 2:10 PM | 
Good news. Am excited about
Good news. Am excited about
July 24th, 2009 at 2:18 PM |
Recruiting board?
Recruiting board?
My initial thought and only question (at the moment at least) is which recruiting board are you going to use? Are we going to go for the targeted board that Brian's been using (complete with the family of faces and their arch rival the Nefarious Eduardo) or for the shotgun board from Varsity Blue?
Each has their own advantages. I always thought that the VB board was a little too big and players tended to stay on there too long but that's obviously just my opinion. I do hope that we keep the "Needs", "Status", and "Projected Commits" from Brian's board as I found those informing and fun to read.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:28 PM |
I do love me some Nefarious
I do love me some Nefarious
I do love me some Nefarious Eduardo. He's begun to show up (in name, not image) on some of my grant status reports at work, prompting WTFs and LOLs, although in proper business-speak.
Brian: Do I owe you some kick-back on the usage? It does not seem to make government agencies any more or less likely to give me funding, so there is no plunder . . .
July 24th, 2009 at 2:19 PM |
And thus begins the Mgoblog empire
And thus begins the Mgoblog empire
Looking forward to the new content--and very excited of the prospect of Mgoblog having increased access to the program.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:23 PM |
Onward and upward
Onward and upward
Congratulations.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:34 PM |
well, good
well, good
Cook,
just make sure all this success doesn't get to your head. because then, it will suck.
yeah.
I'M THE MAN
July 24th, 2009 at 2:34 PM |
Nice!
Nice!
Congratulations, Brian, on getting yourself to the point whre you can make such decisions.
FWIW, venture capitalists refer to "a nigh-insurmountable hurdle for any other organization to clear" as a "barrier to entry". Its valuable; protect it, keep it growing. But wait, you're doing that.
Taking it one week at a time
July 24th, 2009 at 2:35 PM |
Banner
Banner
Can VB bring their banner with them? Every day, I hope that Brian has changed the Brandon Minor spec drawing one.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:48 PM |
I like this banner
I like this banner
It speaks to Brians background (and a lot of our backgrounds) in engineering, math and the sciences. Although a change might not be bad.
"A house divided against itself cannot stand"
July 24th, 2009 at 2:39 PM |
pussy
pussy
what kind of a pussy doesn't face the players? a pussy michigan blogger that's afraid of getting his vagina kicked in.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:42 PM |
I'm sorry...
I'm sorry...
...who are you?
July 24th, 2009 at 3:50 PM |
Someone after the award for
Someone after the award for
Someone after the award for Quickest Ban Ever?
July 24th, 2009 at 4:21 PM |
What does it even mean to
What does it even mean to
What does it even mean to have your vagina kicked in? That's like saying you're afraid of getting your scrotum wrinkled.
July 25th, 2009 at 3:29 AM |
http://tinyurl.com/mxplwy
http://tinyurl.com/mxplwy
July 25th, 2009 at 12:10 AM |
How can a vagina go in any
How can a vagina go in any
How can a vagina go in any more than it already does?
Word
July 24th, 2009 at 2:40 PM |
WAT
WAT
with this army, you should be able to knock over Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan as well. Get to it.
redefining epic fail, one comment at a time
July 24th, 2009 at 2:41 PM |
I've noticed as the site has
I've noticed as the site has
I've noticed as the site has grown that the forums are more lively and moving faster these days. Originally you said only 1 forum was fine and were right, but these days it might be nice with the influx of more posters (though most readers of Varsity Blue probably visited this site as well) to add a few different forums.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:43 PM |
Masel Tov
Masel Tov
This is like Internet one stop shopping for UM football news.
Proud member of the 6/30/2008 circle of trust.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:51 PM |
As far as the front page
As far as the front page
As far as the front page goes, I think it would be beneficial to have a tool at the top as a way to navigate to different parts of the site. For example, have a tab at the top designated for a recruiting page. And then another one for baseball, hockey, basketball, etc. Putting the forum and diaries on a separate page may also be something to consider. Jmo.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:48 PM |
Agreed, except for the
Agreed, except for the
Agreed, except for the forum/diaries page: I personally love that I can quickly scan the front page for new content (MGoBoard and diaries) without having to click on separate links. Considering how many topics and posts there are per day, and how often us fanatics check the site, separate pages for forums and diaries could subtly reduce the amount of content that is posted.
July 24th, 2009 at 4:21 PM |
+1
I'm sure that everyone at
+1
I'm sure that everyone at
+1
I'm sure that everyone at this site loves Michigan football. Others may like basketball too (like me) but would go out of their way to avoid baseball content (or vise versa).
July 24th, 2009 at 5:53 PM |
i think it might be cool to
i think it might be cool to
i think it might be cool to have like 4 or 5 tabs across the top (maybe parallel to 'beveled guilt') that were football, bball, hockey, other & recruiting but keep the forum in the same spot. or maybe be able to sort by author? i'm gonna miss VB
Rudy watches inspirational movies about Shawn Hunwick
July 25th, 2009 at 3:36 AM |
I'd propose all posts get
I'd propose all posts get
I'd propose all posts get posted on the front page, but having links in the menu to football, basketball, baseball, etc. posts. If posts are tagged correctly, it should be as easy as bookmarking mgoblog.com/basketball/ to get to the bball articles.
July 24th, 2009 at 2:52 PM |
I like this move a lot, and
I like this move a lot, and
I like this move a lot, and from what I've read so far, seems most of the readers should too. I especially look forward to the more-eventful Fall for them to handle the news more efficiently. (No more Thursday recruitin'?)
The worst guest-picker in the history of the Michigan Daily.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:01 PM |
I wish you luck
I wish you luck
and may your Crimean adventure turn out better than it did for Czar Nicholas I. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_I_of_Russia#Death
July 24th, 2009 at 11:04 PM |
Classic blunder
Classic blunder
Never get into a land war in Asia
We Have a Flag on the Moon
July 24th, 2009 at 3:21 PM |
*single tear*
(for the
*single tear*
(for the
*single tear*
(for the record, I didn't neg you)
wolverineliberationarmy.com/blog
July 24th, 2009 at 3:26 PM |
good for you
good for you
i made 5 new accounts to neg him
great and omniscient Grand Poobah of the WLA
August 1st, 2009 at 12:50 PM |
This had me laughing for 5
This had me laughing for 5
This had me laughing for 5 minutes. I'm not sure why.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:29 PM |
In theroy
In theroy
In theory, the WLA is already on the team. Sorry about your luck.
Help My Friend Allison Fight ALS
MSU/IU at the JCB
July 24th, 2009 at 3:59 PM |
Seconded.
Seconded.
Have you even seen what they post over there (assuming they even bother to post in the first place)? EarthwermKurt chats? Private Dick crime fiction? Barwis pr0n? WTF is that crap and what does it have to do with football?
And then there's thousands of comments for each post. Bullshit. Stat padding, for sure. And it's probably the same two or three guys just using different handles with converstations like:
Dex: I like zima
Chitown: I like zima, too.
Dex: Have you had zima with jolly ranchers?
Chitown: hee hee hee, did you see what that guy posted at MGoBlog?
ShockFX - unicorn prettie. me liek more then zimma.
mjv: Where am I?
cfaller: Let's go to Cedar Point.
Recent recipient of the First Annual Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence
July 24th, 2009 at 4:33 PM |
if you had written "no
if you had written "no
if you had written "no sugarcoat" I might not have negged you. no sugarcoat.
No question, Jim.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:08 PM |
i join in congratulating you
i join in congratulating you
i join in congratulating you and thanking you for making this an even better place to use to follow the world of michigan. this will obviously benefit anyone who follows michigan sports. uh, yeah, everyone here.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:13 PM |
Go Blue
Go Blue
Great work all. Maybe I will donate some more money now.
'Cause I Bleed Blue...
July 24th, 2009 at 3:21 PM |
Congrats!
Congrats!
Though the recruiting coverage of VB isn't as good as what you usually post, it'll be nice to know that you'll get to write even more meaty, high-quality stuff.
Deeply Researched Posts = Great, No-Sugarcoat Stuff
July 24th, 2009 at 3:25 PM |
Old news
Old news
I read about this HOURS ago on Varsity Blue! (Go PSU Pic of Artificial Insemination Marker! WOOT!)
Actually, this is an interesting evolution of this corner of the internets and football blogging. Will this be the General Motors of Michigan Football blogs, eliminating other blogs by absorption? Or will it become something else? Will Brian become corporate? (Brian Cook LLC perhaps? In other diaries/comments, he's been referred to as "a brand.") Will he become a "suit" and make Paul, Mike and FA adhere to some obtuse "Code of Conduct?"
Remember, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
(We need a pic of Brian in full "Wall Street" sneer and Brooks Brothers 3 piece suit. Don't know how the beard and pony tail will work with that, though.)
Best wishes on the expansion, and the increased content. Can't wait! HAIL!
Larry
I'm not a doctor, but I play one on TV
July 24th, 2009 at 4:48 PM |
(No subject)
(No subject)
all the dude wanted was his rug back...
July 24th, 2009 at 7:13 PM |
+++++
+++++
+
...the Canadians make up for it with their emotion and classic ice-dancing skill.
July 24th, 2009 at 11:55 PM |
Hilarious. Well done.
Hilarious. Well done.
Hilarious. Well done.
July 25th, 2009 at 11:34 AM |
I like it a lot. Well played.
I like it a lot. Well played.
I like it a lot. Well played.
July 26th, 2009 at 1:57 PM |
I think you're going to need a new handle
I think you're going to need a new handle
And regarding your "sig," seems your slice of the internet just got gobbled up.
July 26th, 2009 at 2:14 PM |
He's still "from"
He's still "from"
He's still "from" VarsityBlue. If it had been "of" VarsityBlue it would be incorrect. Paul just has that power of premonition to know that he'd be moving here one day.
July 26th, 2009 at 2:30 PM |
Excellent!
Excellent!
I stand corrected.
+1
And, on a similar note, I once told a fellow UM student that I was from New Jersey. And he said, nodding, that that was a good place to be from.
July 27th, 2009 at 3:07 AM |
Was he stoned at the time?
Was he stoned at the time?
Was he stoned at the time? Was it me?
When your team is winning, be ready to be tough, because winning can make you soft. On the other hand, when your team is losing, stick by them. Keep believing. -- Bo Schembechler
July 28th, 2009 at 6:35 PM |
Key words and past-tense: "to
Key words and past-tense: "to
Key words (past-tense): "to be from", as in not being there anymore, I think.
not just "douchey" MGoBlog user, but now TRUSTED MGoBlog user
July 28th, 2009 at 7:35 PM |
Thank you for 'splainin.
Thank you for 'splainin.
I took "from" to mean "away from" like, its always good to be from Gary, Ind.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:29 PM |
I, for one, welcome our new
I, for one, welcome our new
I, for one, welcome our new blog overlords.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:34 PM |
I'm extremely happy with
I'm extremely happy with
I'm extremely happy with this, as long as Unverified Voracity comes as often as usual. I'm also looking forward to more prose-heavy posts with intricate titles.
Hail.
July 24th, 2009 at 3:35 PM |
As a lifelong Michigan fan...
As a lifelong Michigan fan...
I have spent years in sports forums, especially since moving out of state. I just can't hang at the bar with my buddies and other fans and talk Michigan football. This website has been the best find for me since leaving the state in 2000. It has only been a few months and I would say that the chat forum is my go to sports update center.
Thanks for all of your hard work guys...and for perhaps laying down your own specific desires to meet the needs of the fans. I'm forever grateful.
As a sidenote, I hope that you make a lot of money from ads and sponsors, etc...
Go Blue
July 24th, 2009 at 3:44 PM |
tl;dr
tl;dr
but it sounds like a good idea.
Go Brian!
Time wounds all heels. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwGXMryTbwE
Good news. Am excited about reading more research based content. Recruiting: will be good to feel 1/2 as creepy about checking on the status of 17 year olds. Now I will only be going to one website to follow their moves. Also, cool to hear that this site, and other well run michigan blogs, have earned a level of respect with the athletic department.