[NU Sports] Scout and da Coach....

[Roy Lamberton]

As you probably have noticed, while I'm still listed as the publisher, I'm
really not involved with Purple Reign any more.

This is because of more than a few things - one, as the Chairman of American
Legion Baseball in Delaware, the media director of the Senior Softball World
Series, and as a Head Coach during Football season, I just cannot get to
Evanston during the Fall or even for signing day lately.

Second, my music work has really forced me to re-evaluate my use of time during
the Winter [I have 2 new choral works debuting this Christmas]

Third, to NU, anything I do will always be considered "just a fan site." Too
bad, I'm one of the few guys writing about NU who have actually coached a team
and who have significant news awards, but fine, I'll take my writing talents to
other arenas not related to my alma mater.

Fourth, Scout changed their emphasis to recruiting after they were sold to Fox.
As an alum, I was barred from talking to prospects. Hard to work under those
conditions and I just decided to pull back.

When I jumped into running Purple Reign [with the original Rivals], I did it
because there just wasn't anything else in the commercial internet world for
Northwestern fans. [Yes there were a couple of very good "fan sites," but they
operated on the whim of their publishers and all but Larry's has gone away...].
I wanted to counter some of the anti-NU thought on the web, and did it for a
while.

When I left for Scout.com, it was to make the product stronger - little did I
know that folks I considered friends would immediately start a competing web
site, which hurt the new Purple Reign more than anyone else when it self
destructed. 

Its good to see Rivals still going strong, that they have guys on the ground in
Evanston is a plus - Purple Reign was always denied credentials, and kept out of
the formal meetings during the season, despite our reach. It was my long term
goal to employ several student reporters, but without credentials it couldn't
happen.

Anyway, I retain the name Purple Reign and the PurpleWildcats.com URL and may
decide to do something down the road, once my non-compete runs out. We'll see.

Meanwhile, its been fun guys - publishing an NU web site could be fun, and
profitable [with the money plowed back into the site] if I was a bit closer to
Chicago. Its very very hard 1,000 miles away in Delaware.

TTFN

rsl

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Roy S. Lamberton - Senior Associate
& sometime Unix Guru....
Computer Applications & Support Associates 
=======  Go Cats -  Beat 'em All  ==========
"You have a Republic Madam --
     If you can keep it" - Benjamin Franklin
============================================