SBN for a variety of reasons: 1. Hyper-focused content. I find an encyclopedia of the best news and updates from beat reporters, local news, regional and national outlets as it pertains solely to my favorite team or school. Other outlets have tried to focus on "local" such as ESPN scooping up the terrific Patriots beat reporter, Mike Reiss, for their Boston launch. however, they come from a national perspective, and are restricted by a national approach to sports coverage. They are only defined by geographic boundaries, and lose the ability to define their borders by other arbitrary curricula that define fan hood. This is especially relevant since we are not bound by the geosphere in this medium, but the noosphere of collective thought. SBN, on the other hand, is only bound by fan loyalty itself. It's member blogs are founded and dictated by fans in the trenches, not distant suits worried about product alignment and deploying coverage from afar. In a way, SBN represents democracy whereas national-gone-local outlets represent centralized tyranny. 2. Community. It's no secret that the most precious resource to a marketer is a strong, active and loyal community. Every modern company, whether it focuses on selling consumer goods or B2B technology or whatever else, attempts to fortify it's fan base by being a trusted advisor and encouraging participation. Everyone had a mailing list or loyalty club to implement their push strategy, now they all do viral videos and SEO to enact a pull strategy. Innate to the SBN model is the community loyalty aspect. Sports are deeply personal and nostalgic in our culture, as they managed to transcend the cynicism of religion (a considerably mitigated differentiator at this point) and the banality of corporate life once it arose. For many of us, sports became the one pure embodiment of the gamut of the human condition: carnal instinct versus divinity, truth versus deception, heritage versus hope, fair play versus injustice. We can be as passive or as all-in as existence will allow. This community allows us all to be active participants and influencers in the experience surrounding the games themselves. It offers us comfort in the womb of a collective identity. It relieves us from the consequences of pursuing these instincts in the unforgiving arena of nature, freeing us to accept everything else in our lives.

 

3. The humor. It's light hearted and doesn't take itself too seriously. That's awesome.

Well, fellow Magicians, the time is nigh for another episode of the beloved GTKYFM.  "Why so tardy?" you may be asking. I'll tell you exactly why--I'm still barely recovering from a ridiculous trip to NYC followed up by my annual St. Patty's Day Parade blowout weekend in South Boston, which was capped off with a gut wrenching loss to Marquette in the 2nd 3rd Round of the NCAA tourney. I've literally been laying low since. By literally, I mean I have been curled up like a furry little fetus on the cold, soiled hardwood floor that is the middle of my living room.

But enough about me. I'm not the one you're here to hear about. In fact, the originally scheduled Featured Magician for March is being given some much needed breathing room after airing out some strong, but well supported, opinions that were panned and flamed by other commentators on this board. So, I've pulled together perhaps the best Auxillary Featured Magician we've ever seen...

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I've had the pleasure of the following exchange on Facebook with a friend who holds the same level of obsession with UConn as we do with 'Cuse.  I found it to be very typical of conversations between 'Cuse and UConn fans worldwide.

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Hi Guys and Gals!  Given the (very appropriate) abundance of conversation regarding officiating lately, I figured I'd launch of another FanPost to give us a place to vent and deliberate.

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Hey all!  As I've mentioned in some comments along the board, I feel that our basketball team's woes boils down to concentration issues as opposed to physical issues (except for maybe Fab Melo).  Whether it's Scoop not backpedaling on D or getting the ball stripped from his backside, K-Jo taking three Charging fouls, or RJ tightening up when double-teamed, many of our costly mistakes are small focus issues that cause hesitation thus failure.

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If you ask me how I feel about the past month on TNIAAM, I will probably slap you in the face before falling into cardiogenic shock.  After all, I am a huge proponent of the kinship and community Sean has let us build over the years.  More than ever, I've noticed a glut of lie-mongering, man-on-man destructive smack talk, and frustration which not-so-coincidentally came on the tail end of a four game losing streak.

 

If you ask Brian Roll exactly how he feels about Galileo Galilei, he will probably slap you in the face before falling into cardiogenic shock.  After all, he is a "huge history and science buff.  Specifically, European history and astronomy."

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Although I hate to dignify unsubstantiated rumors with a response, it seems like every jokester in the world is signing up for SBN just to spread these point shaving rumors in advance of tonight's rivalry game versus UConn.  

What you'll see below is a forensic analysis of what those who understand "logic" refer to as a "closed loop feedback cycle."

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Like most of us, Adam Gerard really appreciates the finer things in life:  his dogs, having his girlfriend poke fun of him, Syracuse Athletics, and well-designed bathrooms.

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Update 1/5:  In a humiliating turn of events, VotePrime has vanished into the night, like the defensive presence of the Michigan Wolverines Football Club.  Our de facto winner is now...  ezcuse!

Dear ezcuse, please email me at therenegadepumpkin@gmail.com.

Thank you.

________________

 

Update 12/29:  Barring a miracle comeback, it looks like our Inaugural GTKYFM will feature VotePrime!  VP, you either have a very loyal following, or you've hacked the SBN polling system and voted for yourself.  Either way, democracy is democrazy!  Please email me at therenegadepumpkin@gmail.com to set up the next step in the process.

For all those lamenting at their lack of votes this time around or just missing the cut on their nominations, WORRY YOU NOT.  I'm keeping a catalogue of opt-ins and will be back around seeking the next submission in less than a month.  

 

Poll

Who should be the inaugural featured Magician?

47%

VotePrime

31 votes

9%

UpStait

6 votes

12%

BloodyYank44

8 votes

1%

nleary66

1 votes

29%

ezcuse

19 votes

65 votes | Poll has closed

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Adhering to the professional mantra, "KISS:  Keep it Simple, Stupid" I elected to run a very elementary statistical regression on the Sweet 16 match-ups based on offensive and defensive vectors of winning teams, factoring parity in as an assumption (presumably flawing the model), and failing to account for losing teams' vectors.  I wonder how well it lines up with the coming reality?

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Hey guys, figuring Friday night is two away, I thought I'd extend this invitation to all my friends on this board!  Here's my Facebook invitation after the jump.  Please msg. me directly if you're interested

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Hey all, given the stress I'm noticing around the boards lately regarding some losses Florida and Cal have taken, I decided to run through the performance of SU's 12 opponents so far.  It's unscientific, but I think there's a convincing case here that we should stop worrying and enjoy the upcoming Big East schedule, if you're into that sort of thing.  I personally am all about being a nervous beer-guzzling wreck, but we can save that for another post...

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New Update:  Marybeth at the SU Bookstore was quick to resolve the issue and very empathetic & friendly in the process.  All is right in the world again.  Thank you, Marybeth, I shall increase your store's Net Influencer score by +1.

 

UPDATE! UPDATE!

So my professionally crafted email to Manny's never received a response, which is not surprising given how much of an aborted fetus of a business they are.

I did, however, follow the recommendations of some TNIAAM readers and make my follow-up purchase through the Syracuse University Bookstore.  The online process was pretty easy and streamlined.  I even added a note that, "If standard shipping will not get me my item by 12/23, please contact me regarding other options."

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Hello All -

Here's some food for fodder... over the last couple months, I've found myself using Tremendous/Standpoint in a variety of conversations on the job. 

For some background, I'm a technology sales & marketing consultant, and sell programs to companies who need a little help.  By nature, winning contracts in my job depends on building rapport, trust, and excitement with my clients.  My services and programs are not a tangible product. The adjective/noun combination of tremendous/standpoint has worked its way into my daily lexicon, and I've seen a significant uptick in business closed. 

Sure, some say, "Hey, Pumpkin, the economy is on the rebound."  I submit, however, that this language allows a subtle adjustment in perception to trust the man, and by extension, the product.

What do you all think?  Have you used Tremendous/Standpoint to help you get ahead in the professional world?  What results are you seeing?  I'd love to write a case study on utilization of Tremendous/Standpoint.

 

Best,

The Renegade Pumpkin

There comes a time in every man's life where he has to confront the shortcomings of the institutions in which he entrusted his life... especially for men who choose rather obscure institutions.

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