This is one of the big things I was wondering with the huge ramp up in write ups and original source content. Congratulations on all of the hard work. You definitely earned it.
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I know this was coming after Mark's great work in Greensboro! Congratulations guys! Who's going to be the man on the ground? And I plan on renewing my gold star before the season starts so y'all can continue to do bad ass shit!
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I know a few admins from another long standing VT site that aren't going to be happy to hear this. They waited something like 20 years to get their credentials and just got it last year and you get yours in your what, 4th year? They were banking on that being their competitive advantage over TKP.
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Probably true, but let's hope that VT football is high-quality enough to 'grow the pie' in years ahead, rather than be a zero-sum game among competing outlets.
Mmm, pie.
Seriously, everyone involved at both sites seems like a quality individual and died-in-the-wool Hokie.
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I'm not really sure we are competing outlets. At least my business model isn't to one-up TSL. I'm not a TSL subscriber, but my guess is the people who subscribe there still read what we post here, and vica versa, because they are unique takes. It's more complementary in nature.
I don't think anyone can replicate what French and Mason produce as far as film reviews, and Alex and Mark have been delivering recruiting updates normally reserved for subscriptions websites. My goals have been to expand our coverage, grow an intelligent community, and enhance technology.
As far as the credentials go, they are nothing to bank a business on. Bitter, Giannotto, Barber, etc... all provide similar content for free. I don't think it will be until 2015 until we can exploit our credentials and innovate.
That was all meta as heck.
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I've been a TSL subscriber for years and will be renewing my subscription again this year as well. Personally, I love the stuff they put out, especially the bigger-picture content (they had a really good musings on the program article today and recently wrapped up a nice bit on the career and post-football life of Kevin Jones). I'm not a huge fan of how their message boards are set up, and I definitely love the community aspect of TKP, but as far as content, professionalism and personality, the TSL guys are top-notch.
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nice to hear this sentiment; I have been an active subscriber for years, and think they get picked on a bit. I used to check about a dozen sites daily, and now my 2 go-to places are TSL and TKP. I love Bitter but even then I usually check him via TKP links.
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What annoys me the most about TSL is that you have to pay to get anything of quality. I understand they are a business, but it just kind of rubs me the wrong way to have to pay a decent chunk of change per year to get their analysis, most of which, lets be honest, you were able to get anyway if you just hang out on message boards. I was a subscriber there from 2012-2013, and, while the articles were nice, I never thought they really contributed anything I didn't already know or understand, or at the very least couldn't get somewhere else for free. I thought the subscription was great for their Pay Boards, where there was much more level-headed discussion (their free-side is a cesspool of negativity) as well as their insider info for Recruiting... Or at least I thought it was insider info until I realized that much of what was being submitted by their insiders over there on their pay-to-see boards was routinely beaten to the punch over here for free.
And then they changed up their message board formatting in a not-so-subtle cash grab for page clicks, all while repeating they were going back to their arcane straight out of the 90's format where you have to click each comment to see what was said, for the sole purpose of trying to bring back posters who had left. Mind you, this was barely a year since they begged users to adapt to a dramatic overhaul of the process, so the essential message was "our older users, who have left us are more important to the community than the ones who stayed loyal through the switch". That did it for me, I left and never looked back, and couldn't be happier.
And this isn't even mentioning the fact that they've essentially allowed the mobs to run the site. If your opinion doesn't mesh with the accepted TSL mindset on the forums, they can and will ban you from the site. (This is why I'm so critical right now of casual downlegging, because I'm adamantly opposed to being shamed for sharing an opinion, which is something overwhelmingly prevalent over there). That being said, Will & Chris are good guys, and I wish them all the best in the future.
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Appreciate the thoughts and the intention behind them - I've been on TSL for over a decade but just discovered TKP a year or so ago and I think you guys are indeed very complementary.
I like giving TSL a subscription every year to fund the operation. What is the best way to help fund yours?
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I gotta believe that the seal TSL broke with the VT athletic department helped out all the "non-traditional" media outlets. Not to say that Whit would have opened it up anyway, but TSL definitely worked hard to get the previous administration's view turned around to the benefit of everyone.
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They did work their tails off to get the media credential, and I give them a ton of credit for it. But, and Will & Chris have stated this publicly numerous times, this was a product of Jim Weaver simply not getting the value of independent VT outlets to the brand of Virginia Tech as a whole, so he kept them from getting a media pass because he didn't consider them media. (basically, he thought, 'if you have a message forum/board, you don't deserve a media pass) We went so far as to issue a Cease and Desist order to Will Stewart when he was operating TSL as HokieCentral back in 2000 or so because of the word 'Hokie' in the name, forcing the change to TSL. We wouldn't even let admins and reporters from other independent websites get passes as well, which enraged websites of visiting programs to Lane Stadium. For a while, we were the only school in the ACC with a policy like this, and it wasn't sitting well with others. I 100% believe that if Whit had been AD during that time period, you would have seen independent sites get media credentials a very long time ago.
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If Whit's not the athletic director, I don't believe our request for press credentials would have been taken seriously. TSL advanced the idea that an independent, non-traditional, online entity could cover sports, but only as much as the next professionally run online website. I don't believe they knocked down the wall for us. I believe our professional coverage and audience size is what did the trick.
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I tried to check it out once, but the bastards wouldn't let me in.
Had a press pass and everything! I have no idea what went wrong.
I mean, sure, I admit: I don't have full lips or long dark hair, and I smelled strongly of bourbon.
And I might have called the man at the gate a sexist pig when he said "Sir, I don't care what your relationship is with Superman. Also - putting two cans of Fosters in a bra just isn't fooling anyone. You are not getting in here with those or that pass. Much less without pants."
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Not sure how they do it at Lane, but I've covered an Army-Navy Game before at the Link in Philly. Free philly cheese steaks and drinks (non-alcoholic) for everyone. Also supply each reporter with play-by-play analysis after every quarter and other quarter stats.
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Yep, Dave Smith (the SID) and team are awesome with handing out stats, play by play analysis, etc. They have 'em printed out and up to date like 5 seconds after a quarter ends.
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Great news, but not too surprising considering that TKP is being referenced by others in the press as though it was already credentialed. Well done, guys!!
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This is great news. This site has exceeded any expectations I had on keeping up with the program. Great forum, great news, great laughs. This will only benefit...everybody.
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I actually caught this movie late one night on some random cable channel (I think IFC). It is surprisingly entertaining if you do not mind subtitles. It starts out like your typical shaky-cam horror movie, but they bring in an actual camera-person halfway through and it is no longer shaky. The different types of trolls are pretty interesting and never look cheesy or like bad CGI.
The only reason I watched it in the first place is due to the one Metalocalypse episode where they accidentally summoned a troll with their music and had to play acoustic instruments to kill it.
Murderface: "What are those wooden things, chairs?" Skwisgaar: "I knows. Theys is grandpa guitars."
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Looks like she had a masectomy or the penguin was very hungry. I guess the other possibility is silicone enhancement and could only afford 1, not the entire pair.
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Hell yeah, congrats '13! I saw that on another thread a second ago and had to ask myself where that came from. First, this 'Joe Lanza' character shows up and now this.
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Comments
Dude, that is Awesome!!!!!
And Congrats. Time to ramp it up!
Way to go Joe. The site is moving on to bigger and better things
Well done, TKP staff. I'm looking forward to what the upcoming season brings.
This is one of the big things I was wondering with the huge ramp up in write ups and original source content. Congratulations on all of the hard work. You definitely earned it.
Every now and then when somebody wins, we all win.
As Dick Enberg would say - 'Oh my!' And, uhh... nice news about the press credentials, too.
We need Brent Musberger's analysis
Film breakdown. The guy with the scissors trimming Perry's shirt does a poor job of executing the important cut.
I think I oogled at this for like 15 minutes.
That little?
Too bad Newsome still isn't here, I would have liked to see that interview between him and French...lol
That wouldn't be so much an interview as it would be French standing there going...
I call this my "Mike Wallace"
:)
Whoa - terrific news! Congrats, guys!
I know this was coming after Mark's great work in Greensboro! Congratulations guys! Who's going to be the man on the ground? And I plan on renewing my gold star before the season starts so y'all can continue to do bad ass shit!
Congrats Joe and gang!
This is great news Joe. Hard work pays off, good for you. Who knows, you might be able to quit your Day job doing this one day. Go Hokies
Awesome news! Congrats, guys!
Congrats!
I know a few admins from another long standing VT site that aren't going to be happy to hear this. They waited something like 20 years to get their credentials and just got it last year and you get yours in your what, 4th year? They were banking on that being their competitive advantage over TKP.
Probably true, but let's hope that VT football is high-quality enough to 'grow the pie' in years ahead, rather than be a zero-sum game among competing outlets.
Mmm, pie.
Seriously, everyone involved at both sites seems like a quality individual and died-in-the-wool Hokie.
I'm not really sure we are competing outlets. At least my business model isn't to one-up TSL. I'm not a TSL subscriber, but my guess is the people who subscribe there still read what we post here, and vica versa, because they are unique takes. It's more complementary in nature.
I don't think anyone can replicate what French and Mason produce as far as film reviews, and Alex and Mark have been delivering recruiting updates normally reserved for subscriptions websites. My goals have been to expand our coverage, grow an intelligent community, and enhance technology.
As far as the credentials go, they are nothing to bank a business on. Bitter, Giannotto, Barber, etc... all provide similar content for free. I don't think it will be until 2015 until we can exploit our credentials and innovate.
That was all meta as heck.
I've been a TSL subscriber for years and will be renewing my subscription again this year as well. Personally, I love the stuff they put out, especially the bigger-picture content (they had a really good musings on the program article today and recently wrapped up a nice bit on the career and post-football life of Kevin Jones). I'm not a huge fan of how their message boards are set up, and I definitely love the community aspect of TKP, but as far as content, professionalism and personality, the TSL guys are top-notch.
nice to hear this sentiment; I have been an active subscriber for years, and think they get picked on a bit. I used to check about a dozen sites daily, and now my 2 go-to places are TSL and TKP. I love Bitter but even then I usually check him via TKP links.
What annoys me the most about TSL is that you have to pay to get anything of quality. I understand they are a business, but it just kind of rubs me the wrong way to have to pay a decent chunk of change per year to get their analysis, most of which, lets be honest, you were able to get anyway if you just hang out on message boards. I was a subscriber there from 2012-2013, and, while the articles were nice, I never thought they really contributed anything I didn't already know or understand, or at the very least couldn't get somewhere else for free. I thought the subscription was great for their Pay Boards, where there was much more level-headed discussion (their free-side is a cesspool of negativity) as well as their insider info for Recruiting... Or at least I thought it was insider info until I realized that much of what was being submitted by their insiders over there on their pay-to-see boards was routinely beaten to the punch over here for free.
And then they changed up their message board formatting in a not-so-subtle cash grab for page clicks, all while repeating they were going back to their arcane straight out of the 90's format where you have to click each comment to see what was said, for the sole purpose of trying to bring back posters who had left. Mind you, this was barely a year since they begged users to adapt to a dramatic overhaul of the process, so the essential message was "our older users, who have left us are more important to the community than the ones who stayed loyal through the switch". That did it for me, I left and never looked back, and couldn't be happier.
And this isn't even mentioning the fact that they've essentially allowed the mobs to run the site. If your opinion doesn't mesh with the accepted TSL mindset on the forums, they can and will ban you from the site. (This is why I'm so critical right now of casual downlegging, because I'm adamantly opposed to being shamed for sharing an opinion, which is something overwhelmingly prevalent over there). That being said, Will & Chris are good guys, and I wish them all the best in the future.
Appreciate the thoughts and the intention behind them - I've been on TSL for over a decade but just discovered TKP a year or so ago and I think you guys are indeed very complementary.
I like giving TSL a subscription every year to fund the operation. What is the best way to help fund yours?
A donation will definitely help: http://www.thekeyplay.com/support.
I'm not on the staff, but the answer is:
1) Page view ad revenue
2) T-shirt sales
3) Direct donations
I gotta believe that the seal TSL broke with the VT athletic department helped out all the "non-traditional" media outlets. Not to say that Whit would have opened it up anyway, but TSL definitely worked hard to get the previous administration's view turned around to the benefit of everyone.
They did work their tails off to get the media credential, and I give them a ton of credit for it. But, and Will & Chris have stated this publicly numerous times, this was a product of Jim Weaver simply not getting the value of independent VT outlets to the brand of Virginia Tech as a whole, so he kept them from getting a media pass because he didn't consider them media. (basically, he thought, 'if you have a message forum/board, you don't deserve a media pass) We went so far as to issue a Cease and Desist order to Will Stewart when he was operating TSL as HokieCentral back in 2000 or so because of the word 'Hokie' in the name, forcing the change to TSL. We wouldn't even let admins and reporters from other independent websites get passes as well, which enraged websites of visiting programs to Lane Stadium. For a while, we were the only school in the ACC with a policy like this, and it wasn't sitting well with others. I 100% believe that if Whit had been AD during that time period, you would have seen independent sites get media credentials a very long time ago.
If Whit's not the athletic director, I don't believe our request for press credentials would have been taken seriously. TSL advanced the idea that an independent, non-traditional, online entity could cover sports, but only as much as the next professionally run online website. I don't believe they knocked down the wall for us. I believe our professional coverage and audience size is what did the trick.
also our expert use of gifs.
Way to go guys. It was only a matter of time before the University itself realized there is no better place on the interwebs to get your VT fix
Awesome news! Congrats y'all! Can't wait to see what new coverage and analysis that comes!
congrats! couldn't happen to a better group. just wondering, does this mean you can watch any game from the press box, VT or otherwise?
Congratulations!
Turkey Legs all round!
ETA, but these are especially for TKP staff:
You had me at bacon.
Congrats! Very well deserved.
I don't know where you found this video, but I demand to know!
It took me 4 tries to give you a leg for this. That yells you all you need to know about my current beer consumption.
Edit
Tells...fuck you autocorrect
The struggle is real
That snake juice. It'll get after ya!
Congrats! Time to celebrate
Outstanding!
You will have to let us know how the press box is at the football games!
I tried to check it out once, but the bastards wouldn't let me in.
Had a press pass and everything! I have no idea what went wrong.
I mean, sure, I admit: I don't have full lips or long dark hair, and I smelled strongly of bourbon.
And I might have called the man at the gate a sexist pig when he said "Sir, I don't care what your relationship is with Superman. Also - putting two cans of Fosters in a bra just isn't fooling anyone. You are not getting in here with those or that pass. Much less without pants."
I used to intern there during my freshman year. There's lots of free food and drink, and a nice view. But no cheering, so I stopped working there.
Not sure how they do it at Lane, but I've covered an Army-Navy Game before at the Link in Philly. Free philly cheese steaks and drinks (non-alcoholic) for everyone. Also supply each reporter with play-by-play analysis after every quarter and other quarter stats.
Yep, Dave Smith (the SID) and team are awesome with handing out stats, play by play analysis, etc. They have 'em printed out and up to date like 5 seconds after a quarter ends.
Always wondered how that worked.
Hooray!!
Does this mean you get to dial in to the weekly ACC teleconference? Can we make #NOPANTSTELECONFERENCE a thing? How about #SHUTYOURGIRAFFEFACE?
Great news, but not too surprising considering that TKP is being referenced by others in the press as though it was already credentialed. Well done, guys!!
This is great news. This site has exceeded any expectations I had on keeping up with the program. Great forum, great news, great laughs. This will only benefit...everybody.
I'm super excited for TKP and staff! This is huge! However, I think we should all be ready to become
Not to say that we have had a problem in the past with that.
I actually caught this movie late one night on some random cable channel (I think IFC). It is surprisingly entertaining if you do not mind subtitles. It starts out like your typical shaky-cam horror movie, but they bring in an actual camera-person halfway through and it is no longer shaky. The different types of trolls are pretty interesting and never look cheesy or like bad CGI.
The only reason I watched it in the first place is due to the one Metalocalypse episode where they accidentally summoned a troll with their music and had to play acoustic instruments to kill it.
Murderface: "What are those wooden things, chairs?"
Skwisgaar: "I knows. Theys is grandpa guitars."
Rock On!
Damn I can't wait until BvS:DoJ comes out. I feel like the main reason I'm going to see it is because of Wonder Woman.
I cannot imagine why.
I mean, more Xena, Warrior Princess than Red White & Blue, but...
Yeah...huh. Sorry. Say that again...what...
Nicely done, joe. Congrats on all TKP's success!
This is how I see Joe (or French or whoever else will represent TKP) walking into the press box for the first time
Question #1: #TeamCookies, #TeamCake, or #TeamPie?
Question #2: "Coach Beamer, is their anyone that can deny this team's pussy touchdowns?"
0 Fks were given that night! .. oh and Congrats!!! Lets start Jumping..
That's what's up! Congrats guys!!
Hahaha there's a penguin.
Looks like she had a masectomy or the penguin was very hungry. I guess the other possibility is silicone enhancement and could only afford 1, not the entire pair.
Couldn't really find a good place to put this, but Joe made a slight tweak today that really made my day:
To Joe, the rest of the staff, and the entire TKP community, you guys are awesome. Thanks for the opportunity.
thats a great skit
Hell yeah, congrats '13! I saw that on another thread a second ago and had to ask myself where that came from. First, this 'Joe Lanza' character shows up and now this.
So now TKP can hire Andy Bitter instead of letting him work for the Roanoke Times?
Alex Koma is at today's press conference and is tweeting some of the post-practice soundbites. You can follow him at twitter.com/alexkomavt
followed...
Woohoo! Congrats!
If you need a Staff Photographer...(I'm trying not to beg here) give me a call. What the hell, Please, oh Please, pick me, Please...
I vote people who purchased shirts before this season (cough me) get some use of the field pass I'm assuming comes with. Congrats!
So how do you decide which posts to add your "contact the editor…" info to?
Everything that shows up on the homepage.
Thanks, was finally starting to piece it together.