MaxPreps.com: Another possible revenue stream squandered by newspapers?

[daemon]

Don't know how many of you are familiar with the web site MaxPreps.com, but it looks like it is quickly becoming the go-to site for high school results and statistics.

Coaches report each game result through max preps, which uses its computer software to compile statistics. The general public can view a high school team's entire stats, results, roster, etc. It is easy to navigate, and extremely helpful for keeping tabs on high school players.

For years I've been saying newspapers should be using their web sites for stuff like this, not just regurgitaiton (sp?) of the printed product. Problem is, it would have required actually investing money into the proper places, which we're not so good at.

If newspapers had a MaxPreps.com type set up for statistics and results, the paper's web site would be the go-to place for such information. Plus, reporters could worry about reporting and not chasing down statistics from coaches. Now, MaxPreps.com is the go-to site.

Why can't newspapers get on top of such things??

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

Neither my current state nor the one I moved here from are well-represented, and I live in a state undergoing a lot of population growth. Not very go-to for such things, from what I can see.

 

[shotglass]

Problem No. 2: It is the slowest Web site to load I have ever encountered.

Problem No. 3: maxpreps.com is depending on the same people who we spend hours bitching about ... high school coaches. There are quite a few of them who could care less whether they get their rosters up on the site once, let alone updating their stats after every game.

Believe me ... I wish them the best of luck. I think it would be fantastic to have a national database where you could go for out-of-your-area rosters, stats, standings, etc. But they have a long, long way to go.

Once they get closer to full cooperation, like this Web site for a single district in Pennsylvania, then you have something.

 

[Breakyoself]

yup..not nearly represented to the level of what it might claim. i think we have two schools in the area that are on it.

 

[writing irish]

I wish MaxPreps were better, but I gave up on using it after I found that a few incorrect scores had been posted for a team that I was covering. Don't think it was sabotage, either...pretty sure it was the ftard coach who gave me incorrect information on a regular basis.

 

[daemon]

Point is, these things take time. Last year, MaxPreps was a joke. I was a MaxPreps hater too. But all of a sudden the majority of schools in my paper's coverage area are on it. A lot of times, when our writers ask coaches for statistics, they tell them: go to MaxPreps and get them.

Is it perfect? No.

But I fail to understand why any newspaper with a grasp on how it needs to deliver information in these current times wouldn't be pouring energy and resources into developing an easy-to-use, easy-to-navigate interface for statistics and schedules and rosters, and why newspapers across the country wouldn't be attempting to synchronize their efforts in the hopes of developing the revenue stream that MaxPreps.com is starting to develop.

Write it off all you want, but MaxPreps.com is a sleeping giant.

 

[shotglass]

I've got a problem, too, with the idea of computer software compiling statistics. A computer is only as intuitive as the person inputting the stats.

Here's an example. In our high school basketball boxes, we don't list non-scorers. So, if software is to compile season stats off a boxscore template, how is it supposed to determine if a non-scorer played or didn't? As a result, you can't be sure about the number of games played.

 

[Bob Loblaw Law Blog]

I've tried to use MaxPreps before and have the same complaints as everyone else. It is a long way from getting 100% percent compliance, and in my area it's about 50% for rosters and much less for stats. Hardly the go-to source for high school football. Also, it is INCREDIBLY, RIDICULOUSLY SLOW. I take bathroom and lunch breaks while I wait for its pages to load.

 

[daemon]

Shot - you know as well as anyone else that high school statistics, by nature, are inaccurate. Doesn't matter how they are compiled. My point is, people want to go to a web site where they can see numbers. As of yet, there is no such site for high school statistics. MaxPreps.com is trying to become it. I think, on a local level, every newspaper that covers prep sports would drive an incredible amount of traffic -- and not just traffic, but highly targeted traffic that could sell ads -- to its site by having a comprehensive stats database.

 

[shotglass]

It would be a draw, daemon. No doubt about it. I think it would be great.

But the sticking point remains -- the coaches. The same ones you have to chase down now to give you a boxscore in 3 minutes over the phone? Now, you're going to have to chase them down to input stats into a database. The slackers' impact on this will be multiplied.

 

[Bob Loblaw Law Blog]

daemon, are you the founder/creator of MaxPreps.com? If so, I suggest you move to a better server.

 

[shotglass]

Bob, he's right. If it can ever be done right, it's going to be fantastic. I wish it had started 20 years ago so these kinks were worked out by now.

 

[Bob Loblaw Law Blog]

I don't disagree with you. I think it's an awesome idea if anyone can get it to work. But we're talking about getting timely, accurate updates from coaches who call me and say, "I think Johnny Tailback had about 90 yards. No, he had 100. Yeah, I think it was about 100."

 

[shotglass]

As far as the site speed goes -- heh-heh, DyePack would LOVE hearing me say this -- they try to do too much with their pages. There's too much going on -- too many photos, Java items, menus, etc. -- to load. They have to work out a balance between presentation and getting it loaded in a timely manner.

 

[spnited]

There's another service that calls itself "Schedule Star" on highschoolsports.net that we've been trying to get to work for us ..so far, waaaaaay too many problems.

 

[Mystery_Meat]

Doesn't the Rocky Mountain News have a prep stats website the envy of the known geek world? That's what I remember from a few years ago, but I haven't been there since the Columbine shootings when I decided to see whether they had any good teams or not (they had a nationally-ranked girls soccer team at the time).

 

[Trey Beamon]

I'm lucky (and probably outing myself)...

In my coverage area in PA, there's a district website -- a volunteer-run website at that -- with schedules, stat leaders, rosters, etc.

www.d9sports.com

It's well-organized, easy to navigate and load (Hi MaxPreps!), but would be worthless if coaches and volunteers didn't provide information.

 

[shotglass]

I'm lucky (and probably outing myself)...

In my coverage area in PA, there's a district website -- a volunteer-run website at that -- with schedules, stat leaders, rosters, etc.

www.d9sports.com

It's well-organized, easy to navigate and load (Hi MaxPreps!), but would be worthless if coaches and volunteers didn't provide information.

That's the exact site I linked to up above, Trey. ;)

re the Rocky Mountain News: I looked at what they're doing. The idea's certainly there. But look at it closer. It has exactly the problems you would expect. Their basketball leaderboard has scoring leaders with 1 or 2 games reported. The information beyond the bells and whistles is very, very sketchy.

 

[Jeff Gluck]

I had never heard of MaxPreps before moving to Southern California about 16 months ago...

But let me assure you, it is HUGE here. I'd say about 80 percent of our high school football teams have their full rosters and season stats posted and updated on that site each week.

As far as basketball, about 70 percent of teams have their complete season results and rosters there, but less than 50 percent frequently update their stats.

It's also very helpful for baseball and softball, and they added soccer this year.

The LA Times actually links from their web site to MaxPreps...our paper was told we weren't allowed to do that (by management, not MaxPreps), but we still rely on the site for stats anyway because the coaches just post them there instead of sending them in.

 

[daemon]

Jeff -- That's my point exactly. Our writers spend a ton of time on MaxPreps. The L.A. Times links to it. The shame of it is, with a little forward thinking and a small investment, newspapers could easily keep all that traffic in house. Plus, we are better equipped to track down the stragglers and make sure the stats are as accurate and updated as possible.

But it would take three things that aren't typical of newspapers:

1) Forward thinking
2) A willingness to spend money to make money
3) Co-opperation amongst themselves