As one of the writers of such information, I had a choice to make: Do I accede to the coach’s wishes, or do I exercise my freedom to pursue and publish more information? My goal for this column has always been to increase support for the BYU football program. With this in mind, I feel I have no choice but to honor the coach’s wishes and refrain from sharing information that may either be privileged or confidential. In other words, the inside stuff is gonna stop.
I may continue writing here if there is an interest in what I have to say, or I may just fade into the internet ether. Either way, it’s been a fun and exciting several weeks. The football program is in good hands, and the future is bright. (Personally, I think Bronco is creating a dynasty that will last for decades.)
All things must pass, said George, but let’s hope Bronco Mendenhall and the success of BYU football stick around for a good long time.
5 comments:
What kind of info was Bronco referring to?
I didn't see why you have to decide that he was talking about you. You should decide, is what I'm writing about going to hurt the program? If it is, then don't write it.
More likely, Bronco just wants control of his program and all the information on the internet makes it difficult to control certain things, like is John Doe going to walkon or not.
Frankly, the beauty of the internet is the transparency of many things. In regards to recruiting, it has made the process much better for the recruitee than the recruiter.
A great story on this came from Michigan, where a DB coach had called a few recruits one evening and tried to sell them all on Michigan. The Rivals reporter called all the recruits over the next few days, and each player gave a story that said, "Yeah, the coach says that if I come to Michigan, he thinks I'll be the next Charles Woodson." The DB coach called the writer and got mad at him. The coach said that the reporter, a big Michigan fan, was hurting the Michigan football program. The reporter said, don't promise 3 different kids that they'll be the next Charles Woodson.
For what it's worth. I think your blog is serving a good purpose. And it is NOT hurting the program. It hurts the program's control of information. The two are different things.
Stopping your blog is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of. If the information is confidential, don't share it. Everything else should be written about. I live in New York City and it is very hard to get good info about the team. Things like your blog help me feel connected and "fully invested" in the team. Don't stop. Keep writing! Go Cougs!!
Note: Cruiser and I are not the same person. Cruiser is just a columnist if you will, a weekly writer.
The blog will continue on exactly as it has, only with a little less "deep" insider information.
Also, the recruiting information is completely separate from the insider information. Most insiders know less about the recruits than fans do.
Thanks for all your support!
I would guess that the inside information he is referring to includes things that normally only the team and coaches would know. For example, something that happens at a closed practice, or something from a meeting.
Let's say my roommate were on the team. He would share things with me that normally only team members would know. That's fine and normal. But when those conversations then are posted on the internet, it kind of cheapens the experience of being on the inside of a program. I don't think it translates into losses, or that it hurts the team in any concrete way. But I do think it opens the team up more to the public, cheapening some of their experiences. I imagine being a member of Bronco's team is filled with special experiences. Some of those should just stay within the team.
I haven't noticed anything you've posted that I would consider crossing this line. I don't see his comments as being directed at you. But that's just my guess.
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