The CoachT Doctrine

[Alabama]

I wanted to lay out a general idea of how this site works and what we're looking for, so everyone is on the same page.

 

1.) This site can not exist without the input of the fans. Please feel free to start topics here on the message board, interject your thoughts into existing topics and don't be afraid to express your opinion.

 

2.) We have a fan poll located at Fan Poll. We encourage all our users to vote each week in each classification or the classifications you feel more comfortable with. The poll generally runs from Sunday to Thursday. We also have an "official" poll that uses a weighted system taking into account fan votes, staff votes and members of some coaching staffs that we are lucky enough to have as users. This is the poll you see released on the front page each Wednesday.

 

3.) We have a pick 'em game each week here: The Big Ones. Each week there is a set of 25 games to pick. You can pick however many you want, but remember the game doesn't go on percentages (unless there is a point tie), it relies on overall wins. 1 Win = 1 Point. I am not sure the end stakes as of yet, last year CoachT.Com gave away four tickets to the Super 6 to the winner. This is a small gift, but a nice one. And the more participation we have on the site, the more opportunity we may have for a bigger prize.

 

4.) Links. We have attempted to gather as many links as possible relevant to what we're doing here. We have a lot of links to newspapers within the state, as well as a lot of high school sites and some specific team pages. This has been a long process and we are nowhere near done (especially with the schools). Feel free to email me Email if you see any that are dead, wrong or any that need to be added.

 

5.) We use the prospect database to input players that have a legitimate shot to play ball at the next level. This includes male or female in any sport in any collegiate division(DI, NAIA, etc). We get a lot of this information from newspapers, but we do rely heavily on fan input. So if you know of someone with legit college chances, input them into the database, or send me the information (in aforementioned email address), and I will add them. To coincide with the prospect database, we have the signees section. Here we will post when students sign to play at the next level and who they are with. Again, this relies heavily on your input.

 

6.) Each High School in the state should have it's own page (unless we missed something). Within that page you can find out a lot of things; schedules, rosters, links, the address of the school and even a map courtesy of Mapquest. Keep in mind though, these things also require fan input. We input as much as we can, but sometimes there is no other way to rosters and schedules without the input of fans who are in the know.

 

7.) You can access team schedules here: Schedules. On a given team's schedule, beside each game, you will see a small "G". This will take you directly to the game page for that specific game. On that page you will find links to upload pictures, and video.

 

Also the Game Page allows you to add items such as any radio station or television outlet that may be streaming a game online. We will use the Gadsden City/Fort Payne game as an example. As you can see there is a link at the top to add photos and to the right of that you see the area for adding audio and video. You will also see the area for online coverage. This is where you add the aforementioned radio/television broadcasts streaming online. You can also make your prediction for the game on this page by clicking above the pie chart. Keep in mind, only those games designated as one of the "Big Ones" will count toward your point total in the Big Ones Contest.

 

Also you will notice the game blog section. In the game blog section you can write any details about the game. You can write a pregame blog, a post game blog or use it post stats from a given game. Game Blog Entries will show up on the Gameday Page. This will appear every Friday on the main page but can be accessed at other times by following the link. As you can see, this page has a lot of information including upcoming broadcasts and game blogs.

 

8.) At the top of the aforementioned Gameday Page, please make note of the phone number: 1-800-318-1852 . Please call in your scores at the end of the game you are attending or any you may know. This is free for you to use and helps us a ton with obtaining quick, accurate scores from around the state. Also you can always enter scores in the scoreboard area as well.

 

9.) We will release a predictions thread, during football season, every week on Thursday. This is simply for fun, so if I don't pick your school of choice, please do not be offended. The purpose is to have fun and get conversation going.

 

10.) We are blessed to have Brandon Byars on board to provide us with a weekly blog that will be featured on Fridays. Please take the time to read it. Brandon has great insight into numerous programs in the state and into high school athletics in general. Feel free to leave him a comment or two (preferrably of praise) on the boards.

 

11.) Also remember we post articles from all over the state, everyday. We are blessed in Alabama to have a lot of good sportswriters who actually care about high school athletics. If you have a chance, please take the time to read some of the articles we link to, and show your support for the effort these guys (and gals) put in.

 

12.) If you like what we are doing here and what we want to do, please invite friends and spread the word. The more people we get on the site, the better. The more we spread the word, the more people will call in with scores. Again that number for the scoreboard hotline is 1-800-318-1852. Please store this number into your cellphone database or blackbook or wherever you may keep numbers of importance.

 

I may come across more at a later date, so keep an eye on this page as it may be amended often. In the meantime, feel free to email me about any corrections, suggestions or complaints about the site.

 

-Alabama