Blogging Courtside

I don't have to, but I've been more or less "volun-told" to start blogging from my courtside seat on press row at college basketball games I cover.

I'm considering doing it, even though, as I said, it's not mandatory.

My questions are these:
1) Is it worth it? 1a) Do readers care?
2) What kind of stuff do you post, if you do this?
3) Can you suggest anyone who does it well? (so I can kind of check out what might be needed)

 

1.) If it will set your paper apart from others in the area, yes
1a.) If they care enough about the team, they will check it out
2.) Include anything that can't go in a gamer, your thoughts from the half or what changes you think should be made during the game.
3.) Can't help there.

 

I like the way Mike Waters at The Post-Standard in Syracuse does it. Here's a link to the week's blogs, just scroll down to the stuff about the West Virginia game.

http://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/index.ssf/2008/01/13-week/

 

Thanks for checking in, Mike Waters.

 

You can do it now, but if your team makes the NCAA Tournament your fans will be left wanting. Or you will be wanting your credential back.

 

Yes, I saw that.

 

The trick is that if you do it, you have to add insights or opinions that the readers can't get on the web, radio or TV.

That's tricky, especially if you are more concerned with your game story.

 

that's not entirely true. you can still blog, you just have to choose your posts per half wisely.

from the NCAA: Five times per half and once at half-time for NCAA basketball games. Two live posts are allowed per overtime period for basketball.

 

I've been doing in-game blogging for most games this season and it's been well received and consistently one of the most viewed pages of the day.

Though, I think that has a lot to do with the Big Ten Network not being on basic cable over here and the fans left to surf the Web for instant updates.

 

Us too, mdpoppy. We do it here for U. of Podunk games, and it is really well-received.

rb

 

that rosecrans guy from the now-defunct Cincy Post was a great blogger from Reds games. he incorporated everything from stuff going on in the game to music to a bunch of other non-baseball stuff. He got a lot of responses, too. he does have questionable musical tastes, however. He once borrowed the complete Robert Johnson recordings from someone I knew.
I don't know where his blog archive would be, though. And baseball is quite a bit different from basketball in its pacing.

 

Rosecrans' Reds blog is the standard bearer on this issue. No doubt about that.

I'm alternately amused and disheartened that the old URL for his blog is now the same one used by the Enqy writer's Reds blog. Looks like somebody is trying to piggy-back some Web traffic and sucker a few extra hits from readers who already have that link bookmarked. :