Murphy Fair's 2007 Football Preview

[neyland]

My bad on the amazon comment coachT. I appreciate all you have done and continue to do for high school sports and I'm sure Murphy is too. Thanks for letting this thread continue.

[Big Country]

QUOTE(Solomon @ Jun 12 2007 - 08:50 PM) 826474399[/snapback]But, I do have problems when people drop plus memberships then use the forum to promote other profit-driven ventures.

 

 

What business is it of yours anyway??? Are you CoachT???? Are you in any way, shape, or form making a profit off of my having a plus membership or not???? By stating this alone it is you who are promoting for people to have plus memberships. I do not wish to have a plus membership because I wouldn't know what to do if I have people who can't seem to mind their own business PM'ing me all of the time.

 

I don't want a plus membership. What I do want is a Murphy Fair 2007 Football Preview Magazine with as many team previews as possible in it. I would like to read as much on as many teams as I possibly can. This helps folks like myself to become better educated throughout the season as far as it relates to teams outside of my area. 70 TEAMS is a very large number. I hope that this thread has helped Murphy Fair out as far as it relates to getting some helpful info on some of these teams.

 

If you have a problem with it then just don't buy the magazine. Crying and Complaining over something as small as this sure does show your true maturity.

[2priceless]

Good grief.....this thread has gotten out of hand.

 

There is nothing wrong with supporting the CoachT site by purchasing a PLUS membership. It is about the same cost for a yr as the price of Murphy's magazine. Both are essential for football fans everywhere. I encourage everyone to support BOTH.

 

 

BTW.....you have the option to block any member you don't wish to communicate with by PM on the PLUS. I have made invaluable connections and friends through the PM feature on this site. Don't knock it til you try it.

[Footballen]

montgomery co. and region 6 4-AAAA and 6 5-AAAAA are 100%. Lets get the other teams off the list as a community. Just make it your responsibility to contact your local coaches. Thank you.

[Big Country]

QUOTE(2priceless @ Jun 13 2007 - 06:42 PM) 826474741[/snapback]Good grief.....this thread has gotten out of hand.

 

There is nothing wrong with supporting the CoachT site by purchasing a PLUS membership. It is about the same cost for a yr as the price of Murphy's magazine. Both are essential for football fans everywhere. I encourage everyone to support BOTH.

BTW.....you have the option to block any member you don't wish to communicate with by PM on the PLUS. I have made invaluable connections and friends through the PM feature on this site. Don't knock it til you try it.

 

 

Anyone who would complain at a thread that is only intended to help some coaches out and people across the state out is a RETARD plain and simple!!!

 

Unless it is CoachT himself who is doing the complaining then I don't see what business it is of others out there. For some on this website I just want to say GET A FREAKIN CLUE!!!!

 

Argument Closed /wink.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=";)" border="0" alt="wink.gif" />

[Solomon]

QUOTE(Big Country @ Jun 13 2007 - 05:29 PM) 826474736[/snapback]What business is it of yours anyway??? Are you CoachT???? Are you in any way, shape, or form making a profit off of my having a plus membership or not???? By stating this alone it is you who are promoting for people to have plus memberships. I do not wish to have a plus membership because I wouldn't know what to do if I have people who can't seem to mind their own business PM'ing me all of the time.

 

I don't want a plus membership. What I do want is a Murphy Fair 2007 Football Preview Magazine with as many team previews as possible in it. I would like to read as much on as many teams as I possibly can. This helps folks like myself to become better educated throughout the season as far as it relates to teams outside of my area. 70 TEAMS is a very large number. I hope that this thread has helped Murphy Fair out as far as it relates to getting some helpful info on some of these teams.

 

If you have a problem with it then just don't buy the magazine. Crying and Complaining over something as small as this sure does show your true maturity.

 

 

No, but I am someone who ardently supports the site and don't like it when people such as yourself bait people into trouble then get made when they come to bite then cry foul much like you are now.

 

You are right, I won't buy the magazine. I don't think it's worth the money. I learn 1000 times more on here than I do from it.

 

And you call people a retard.............and then question others maturity?

[Big Country]

QUOTE(Solomon @ Jun 13 2007 - 08:29 PM) 826474781[/snapback]No, but I am someone who ardently supports the site and don't like it when people such as yourself bait people into trouble then get made when they come to bite then cry foul much like you are now.

 

You are right, I won't buy the magazine. I don't think it's worth the money. I learn 1000 times more on here than I do from it.

 

And you call people a retard.............and then question others maturity?

 

 

How is starting a thread promoting a magazine "baiting people into trouble"????? That's RETARDED!!!! Oh wait I forgot who I was replying to /rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":rolleyes:" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" />

[ruse?]

Soloman & Big Country.

 

I usually enjoy reading both of what you guys post becasue of what you write, and how it is written, so............FWIW;

 

This whole debate is driven by macro economics and various pieces of a natural market/segment business evolution. Here is some history to think about that may be helpful in putting both the "present & future" of Tennessee high school coverage in context.

 

Thirty years ago we had Athlon, Sporting News, and were just about to have USA Today (1980). They previewed college football annually, and nationally without regional or confrence specific covers, articles, etc. Very basic. The only high school coverage was a one page article/list @ the back of the magazine that listed the Top 100 recruits, and whom they had signed with. These were kids that had already graduated and were headed for their Freshman year. I looked @ an old one last night. Tom Lemming & Max Emfinger (thats important) did the lists seperately, and current ESPN "talking head" Shawn Salisbury was the #1 recruit, and had signed with So. Cal. Bill Fralic to Pitt, Hart Lee Dykes to OK State were others. 1981 was a good year.

 

Anyway, back then the focus was on college ball. The magazines, and folks like Scripps Publications who did the Parade All American, and Playboy fought for advertisers, and shelf space, distribution channels, and generally hammered each other about who had the best and broadest coverage and content. At about the same time Chris Berman was starting @ ESPN, and Al Gore was busy in Carthage, but had not quite yet invented the internet.

 

Fast forward twenty-five years and ESPN/ABC (Disney) pretty much owns college football with the exception of Notre Dame & NBC. Rivals and Scout still seem to be sorting out what they want to be when they grow up. With ESPN putting their toe in the water on high school player rankings, being partnered with USA Today, and recently announcing a high school all star game in partnership with Rivals in order to compete with Scout and the AA game; my bet is that ESPN/Disney will own Rivals sooner rather than later. Scout seems to have lost a lot of focus lately. tnprepsports, scout's TN site went static not long ago. IMO, they trail Rivals in most key measurements, and most importantly; subscriptions. IMO, they won't make it.

 

Now rivals has a link to studentsports as a "high school partner" which is essentially an effort to re-create the rivals model on a state by state basis. In Tennessee we have et preps. Nice features, data, and reasonably good coverage. I feel that they are making a sincere effort to move from east tennessee preps to tennesse @ large. Having said that, if and when a deal is done with Rivals/ESPN-Disney, I doubt very much that the "student sport/etprep" pieces will be a part of the deal. I doubt this because too much of the revenue that these sites generate would be projected not actual, and therefore the parties won't be able to agree on price. The model for the high school part is not yet mature, and hard to value.

 

So, if we look out over the next 12 to 24 months it is quite possible that coacht and murphyfair will be doing what they do along with unapproved website who will be doing what they do, but perhaps without the rivals umbrella. When I think about what has made rivals successful on the national stage, it is the message boards, both national and team. Same thing with coacht. Best boards going. People/consumers generally go/buy from where they feel like they are individuals and not a #. They go where they feel like they will be heard. IMO, these coacht boards do that better than any others in the state, and in a number of cases quite a few other states as well. Now, advertisers go where the people are. They don't particularly care if thats murphyfair, coacht, or bigsoloman.com. The point is that across this state, it appears to me that this site has the most viewers. These viewers are just that. Not readers, but viewers, and while it's nice to have your kid's name in a magazine; that magazine like many others will be obsolete in the not too distant future. Seems to me that if coacht and murphyfair can work together, like they occasionally have in the past, that would be the best case scenario for all concerned. Would it not be possible to partner so that niether coacht nor murphyfair don't wind up like Max or Tom. Essentially irrelevant. Lemming the ND lackey and pimping for Scout or unapproved website or whatever. Thats the market evolution. Sites like these will be the provider of highschool coverage. Video, audio, live feed, posting, editorials, player profile, coach's questionairs, advertisers, everything. Rivals won't do it anymore, big newspapers won't either because they too are still struggeling with their online content. I know one thing. At some point in time, there will be one site that will have most of that, and it will be the ESPN of high school coverage in TN, and perhaps beyond, because that is the evolution of business, and markets.

 

ruse?

[Big Country]

If you want your team to be included in this year's magazine you must have your survey submitted by no later than Sunday June 17th.

[BDURHAM]

Interesting analysis. There is another player in the market place, Varsity Sports.

They have combined a book on pro, college, and high school sports in Tennessee.

They have deep pockets.

 

I don't think Murphy's book will become obsolete. Less purchases maybe, but

don't see it becoming obsolete. It is easier to view the book in your hand than

going through it on a website.

 

Sports Illustrated has remained relevant for a long period of time. Newspapers

may be losing readers, but becoming obsolete?

 

People don't want to live on a computer for all their information. There

will always be a place for the written word and pictures.

 

 

QUOTE(ruse? @ Jun 14 2007 - 11:09 AM) 826474981[/snapback]Soloman & Big Country.

 

I usually enjoy reading both of what you guys post becasue of what you write, and how it is written, so............FWIW;

 

This whole debate is driven by macro economics and various pieces of a natural market/segment business evolution. Here is some history to think about that may be helpful in putting both the "present & future" of Tennessee high school coverage in context.

 

Thirty years ago we had Athlon, Sporting News, and were just about to have USA Today (1980). They previewed college football annually, and nationally without regional or confrence specific covers, articles, etc. Very basic. The only high school coverage was a one page article/list @ the back of the magazine that listed the Top 100 recruits, and whom they had signed with. These were kids that had already graduated and were headed for their Freshman year. I looked @ an old one last night. Tom Lemming & Max Emfinger (thats important) did the lists seperately, and current ESPN "talking head" Shawn Salisbury was the #1 recruit, and had signed with So. Cal. Bill Fralic to Pitt, Hart Lee Dykes to OK State were others. 1981 was a good year.

 

Anyway, back then the focus was on college ball. The magazines, and folks like Scripps Publications who did the Parade All American, and Playboy fought for advertisers, and shelf space, distribution channels, and generally hammered each other about who had the best and broadest coverage and content. At about the same time Chris Berman was starting @ ESPN, and Al Gore was busy in Carthage, but had not quite yet invented the internet.

 

Fast forward twenty-five years and ESPN/ABC (Disney) pretty much owns college football with the exception of Notre Dame & NBC. Rivals and Scout still seem to be sorting out what they want to be when they grow up. With ESPN putting their toe in the water on high school player rankings, being partnered with USA Today, and recently announcing a high school all star game in partnership with Rivals in order to compete with Scout and the AA game; my bet is that ESPN/Disney will own Rivals sooner rather than later. Scout seems to have lost a lot of focus lately. tnprepsports, scout's TN site went static not long ago. IMO, they trail Rivals in most key measurements, and most importantly; subscriptions. IMO, they won't make it.

 

Now rivals has a link to studentsports as a "high school partner" which is essentially an effort to re-create the rivals model on a state by state basis. In Tennessee we have et preps. Nice features, data, and reasonably good coverage. I feel that they are making a sincere effort to move from east tennessee preps to tennesse @ large. Having said that, if and when a deal is done with Rivals/ESPN-Disney, I doubt very much that the "student sport/etprep" pieces will be a part of the deal. I doubt this because too much of the revenue that these sites generate would be projected not actual, and therefore the parties won't be able to agree on price. The model for the high school part is not yet mature, and hard to value.

 

So, if we look out over the next 12 to 24 months it is quite possible that coacht and murphyfair will be doing what they do along with unapproved website who will be doing what they do, but perhaps without the rivals umbrella. When I think about what has made rivals successful on the national stage, it is the message boards, both national and team. Same thing with coacht. Best boards going. People/consumers generally go/buy from where they feel like they are individuals and not a #. They go where they feel like they will be heard. IMO, these coacht boards do that better than any others in the state, and in a number of cases quite a few other states as well. Now, advertisers go where the people are. They don't particularly care if thats murphyfair, coacht, or bigsoloman.com. The point is that across this state, it appears to me that this site has the most viewers. These viewers are just that. Not readers, but viewers, and while it's nice to have your kid's name in a magazine; that magazine like many others will be obsolete in the not too distant future. Seems to me that if coacht and murphyfair can work together, like they occasionally have in the past, that would be the best case scenario for all concerned. Would it not be possible to partner so that niether coacht nor murphyfair don't wind up like Max or Tom. Essentially irrelevant. Lemming the ND lackey and pimping for Scout or unapproved website or whatever. Thats the market evolution. Sites like these will be the provider of highschool coverage. Video, audio, live feed, posting, editorials, player profile, coach's questionairs, advertisers, everything. Rivals won't do it anymore, big newspapers won't either because they too are still struggeling with their online content. I know one thing. At some point in time, there will be one site that will have most of that, and it will be the ESPN of high school coverage in TN, and perhaps beyond, because that is the evolution of business, and markets.

 

ruse?

[riverdaleman]

does coachT and Murphy fair not get a long? are they rivals? is there beef between them? i find it hard to beleive that their would be friction between these guys as i dont really see them as competition maybe i am wrong but coachT is a message board of all sports whereas murhpy Fair is more football i would think that they would work together as people can come here and talk about all sports including football and at the same time talk about football with murphy (i do not visit his web stie i didnt reall find it user freindly but that is just me the computer illiteriate LOL) although i havent bought murphys book in a year or so i enjoy listneing to him on the radio and talking to him in person and EVERYONE KNOWS I LOVE COACH T LOL

[firstandgoal]

QUOTE(StanTrott @ Jun 14 2007 - 08:27 PM) 826475263[/snapback]Interesting analysis. There is another player in the market place, Varsity Sports.

They have combined a book on pro, college, and high school sports in Tennessee.

They have deep pockets.

 

I don't think Murphy's book will become obsolete. Less purchases maybe, but

don't see it becoming obsolete. It is easier to view the book in your hand than

going through it on a website.

 

Sports Illustrated has remained relevant for a long period of time. Newspapers

may be losing readers, but becoming obsolete?

 

People don't want to live on a computer for all their information. There

will always be a place for the written word and pictures.

 

I am interested to see what Varsity Sports' book is like. I have gotten Murphy Fair's book every year 1993-2006. However this year I am thinking about just getting On the ball's middle Tennessee preview. I don't ever really use the east/west info in Murphy's book and on the ball's analysis of each middle tn team is just as thorough as Murphy's. Plus it looks more like the college books (Athlon, Sporting News). On the Ball is also free. Varsity Sports is going to be $8.95 I think and cover all TN high schools. Murphy may have to think about lowering his price if he wants to stay competitive.