Pat gets a pass

[1830sherman]

With pretty much zero coverage of NU athletics in Chicago media, other than the Daily, I guess, Fitz does not have to undergo the scrutiny a lot of other coaches face day in and out.

Case in point: Frost at UNL. He stares at the cameras on Media Day instead of making an opening remark, then takes questions. Omaha columnist does a whole column on What This Means. I don't care for the image the Frost has projected, but this seems kinda overboard.

Meantime, Fitz makes a joke about the fact that he gets hardly any questions. The Trib had nobody there--ran a generic wire story about expansion. (I would say the Trib is a shadow of its former self, but that would be an insult to a shadow.) I had the sense that Greenstein had a good relationship with Fitz, but at least he wasn't afraid to ask the tough questions.

The Daily, to its credit, apparently had a body there.

 

[JournCat]

Not only did they run out of questions for Fitz, most of the questions were about other teams or guys who don’t play here anymore (Joseph). Extremely unsatisfying.

 

[NUCat320]

With pretty much zero coverage of NU athletics in Chicago media, other than the Daily, I guess, Fitz does not have to undergo the scrutiny a lot of other coaches face day in and out.

Case in point: Frost at UNL. He stares at the cameras on Media Day instead of making an opening remark, then takes questions. Omaha columnist does a whole column on What This Means. I don't care for the image the Frost has projected, but this seems kinda overboard.

Meantime, Fitz makes a joke about the fact that he gets hardly any questions. The Trib had nobody there--ran a generic wire story about expansion. (I would say the Trib is a shadow of its former self, but that would be an insult to a shadow.) I had the sense that Greenstein had a good relationship with Fitz, but at least he wasn't afraid to ask the tough questions.

The Daily, to its credit, apparently had a body there.

Teddy G jumped out of a dying media and into an exploding one (PLEASE, MORE POINT SPREADS AND PROP BETS!). Good for him, bad for our hopes of full-time coverage.

Also, thanks for sharing that Frost story. It’s pure gold.


Four years ago, before his first NU season, Frost commanded the Big Ten Room with a presence and a cocksure swagger that let the other coaches know Nebraska was coming.
Four losing seasons has a way of muffling swagger. But the reviews of Frost on Tuesday were of a coach who is indifferent to the moment, and already succumbing to the pressure.

 

[CatFanEd]

Teddy G jumped out of a dying media and into an exploding one (PLEASE, MORE POINT SPREADS AND PROP BETS!). Good for him, bad for our hopes of full-time coverage.

Also, thanks for sharing that Frost story. It’s pure gold.


Four years ago, before his first NU season, Frost commanded the Big Ten Room with a presence and a cocksure swagger that let the other coaches know Nebraska was coming.
Four losing seasons has a way of muffling swagger. But the reviews of Frost on Tuesday were of a coach who is indifferent to the moment, and already succumbing to the pressure.

If we handle them in the Dublin game, I don't think Frost makes it through the season, especially after what happened last year.

 

[Hungry Jack]

I would fathom that Frosty feels that whatever he says will be thrown back at him. He has so little to hang his hat on. If he says "our goal is to win west, win the conference and compete for a championship," reporters will 1) laugh 2) point out that he has not come close. If he says "we are all working hard, and getting close to a big season" reporters will ask why. It all seems a bit of a farce at this point.

 

[Catreporter]

I had a Nebraska friend of mine call Frost's performance lifeless and thought Fitz was very animated and entertaining, so there's that....There is rarely any news that comes out of these so-called news conferences, no matter the questions.

 

[wicker]

Fitz is a class act.
Calmly faces phlegmatic
Media queries

 

[zeek55]

With pretty much zero coverage of NU athletics in Chicago media, other than the Daily, I guess, Fitz does not have to undergo the scrutiny a lot of other coaches face day in and out.

Case in point: Frost at UNL. He stares at the cameras on Media Day instead of making an opening remark, then takes questions. Omaha columnist does a whole column on What This Means. I don't care for the image the Frost has projected, but this seems kinda overboard.

Meantime, Fitz makes a joke about the fact that he gets hardly any questions. The Trib had nobody there--ran a generic wire story about expansion. (I would say the Trib is a shadow of its former self, but that would be an insult to a shadow.) I had the sense that Greenstein had a good relationship with Fitz, but at least he wasn't afraid to ask the tough questions.

The Daily, to its credit, apparently had a body there.

Pretty much why Northwestern has to be decent or good.

Nobody cares about a 3 win Northwestern. We got picked last in the division. It's not interesting. We have to be brutally honest about that.

You have to win and be in the competitive mix; only way to be considered interesting to the media when you're the smaller private school in the conference.

Obviously doesn't help that Chicago media has completely checked out.

 

[boonman1]

If we handle them in the Dublin game, I don't think Frost makes it through the season, especially after what happened last year.

Agree !

 

[Eurocat]

Case in point: Frost at UNL. He stares at the cameras on Media Day instead of making an opening remark, then takes questions. Omaha columnist does a whole column on What This Means. I don't care for the image the Frost has projected, but this seems kinda overboard.

Yeah that article about football was pretty seriously over the top.

But if taking football a little bit too seriously is a crime, I plead guilty too.

GO CATS!

 

[mountaindrew]

Fitz is a class act.
Calmly faces phlegmatic
Media queries

Well played, Sir. 2022's first Haiku of the season.

 

[NU Houston]

With pretty much zero coverage of NU athletics in Chicago media, other than the Daily, I guess, Fitz does not have to undergo the scrutiny a lot of other coaches face day in and out.

Case in point: Frost at UNL. He stares at the cameras on Media Day instead of making an opening remark, then takes questions. Omaha columnist does a whole column on What This Means. I don't care for the image the Frost has projected, but this seems kinda overboard.

Meantime, Fitz makes a joke about the fact that he gets hardly any questions. The Trib had nobody there--ran a generic wire story about expansion. (I would say the Trib is a shadow of its former self, but that would be an insult to a shadow.) I had the sense that Greenstein had a good relationship with Fitz, but at least he wasn't afraid to ask the tough questions.

The Daily, to its credit, apparently had a body there.

This discussion about Frost and Nebraska football reminds me of the latest episode of Better Call Saul. Saul (Jimmy) is in Omaha, managing a Cinnabon in a mall, and in order to assist in the heist of merchandise from another store in the mall, he distracts the security guard by having long conversations about Nebraska football. Yes, it's a fictional show, but the writing is excellent and hits the nail on the head about the saturation of Husker football in that state. Northwestern obviously has nothing remotely equivalent in terms of relevance in its market.

 

[WestCoastWildcat]

This discussion about Frost and Nebraska football reminds me of the latest episode of Better Call Saul. Saul (Jimmy) is in Omaha, managing a Cinnabon in a mall, and in order to assist in the heist of merchandise from another store in the mall, he distracts the security guard by having long conversations about Nebraska football. Yes, it's a fictional show, but the writing is excellent and hits the nail on the head about the saturation of Husker football in that state. Northwestern obviously has nothing remotely equivalent in terms of relevance in its market.

When watching that episode I thought the same thing about the chat about Nebraska football. Better Call Saul has been a classic series and for me has eclipsed Breaking Bad. Now we need a series about Gus, or Mike.

 

[mountaindrew]

When watching that episode I thought the same thing about the chat about Nebraska football. Better Call Saul has been a classic series and for me has eclipsed Breaking Bad. Now we need a series about Gus, or Mike.

It took me until the second season of Breaking Bad to get attached to it, but eventually, like just about everybody here in Albuquerque, I couldn't get enough of it. Not there yet with Better Call Saul. Maybe I gotta try a few more episodes. And yes to another series about either Gus or Mike. I work with a guy here in town who is almost a dead ringer for Gus. Luckily, he ain't like Gus.

 

[WestCoastWildcat]

It took me until the second season of Breaking Bad to get attached to it, but eventually, like just about everybody here in Albuquerque, I couldn't get enough of it. Not there yet with Better Call Saul. Maybe I gotta try a few more episodes. And yes to another series about either Gus or Mike. I work with a guy here in town who is almost a dead ringer for Gus. Luckily, he ain't like Gus.

Gus is a great character. His struggles with the cartel in both BB and BCS and with the Salamanca’s was classic though I had trouble buying into the shot in the dark ending with Lalo. It would be fun to know more about Mike’s origin as a Philly cop and how he ended up out west. Carol Burnette surprised in her recent role. I had to look up and verify she was in the episode. Sure hope Kim Wexler is back in remaining episodes. A little bit of a mystery where Kim is with Saul churning out Cinnabons.

 

[NU Houston]

Gus is a great character. His struggles with the cartel in both BB and BCS and with the Salamanca’s was classic though I had trouble buying into the shot in the dark ending with Lalo. It would be fun to know more about Mike’s origin as a Philly cop and how he ended up out west. Carol Burnette surprised in her recent role. I had to look up and verify she was in the episode. Sure hope Kim Wexler is back in remaining episodes. A little bit of a mystery where Kim is with Saul churning out Cinnabons.

Not sure there's enough story to fill a spinoff series about Gus or Mike. They both die in Breaking Bad. Mike's story prior to Better Call Saul was already told in a flashback episode. His son was a Philly cop who was killed. Mike followed his widowed daughter-in-law and granddaughter to Albuquerque. He was working as a parking lot attendant when he entered the world of Jimmy and Gus. That's about it.

Anyway, Jimmy's now in Omaha and will likely run into trouble in the next couple of episodes. Kim may be gone for good, or perhaps we see her again sometime in the remaining three episodes. And Walt and Jesse are supposed to have their cameos in tomorrow's episode.

None of this is relevant to NU football, of course, though there is a passing reference to UN-L.

 

[NUCat320]

Relevant (though not to NU football).

I’d appreciate an in-person review, @mountaindrew.

'Breaking Bad' statues shine light on actors, Albuquerque

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Bronze statues of mythical methamphetamine cookers Walter White and Jesse Pinkman were installed at a convention center in Albuquerque on Friday to celebrate the “Breaking Bad” TV series and its entertainment legacy, winning applause in a city that played its own gritty...

apnews.com

 

[CatChatAR]

If we handle them in the Dublin game, I don't think Frost makes it through the season, especially after what happened last year.

Not sure he is welcome on the plane home.

 

[mountaindrew]

Relevant (though not to NU football).

I’d appreciate an in-person review, @mountaindrew.

'Breaking Bad' statues shine light on actors, Albuquerque

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Bronze statues of mythical methamphetamine cookers Walter White and Jesse Pinkman were installed at a convention center in Albuquerque on Friday to celebrate the “Breaking Bad” TV series and its entertainment legacy, winning applause in a city that played its own gritty...

apnews.com

I'll try to get downtown this week and take a couple pix.

 

[Sheffielder]

I can live with us losing a hard fought game in Ireland. Opening game of the season is always a tricky one. In my head I'd like to think we have smarter, more well-disciplined players which gives us the edge when it's even on "who wants it more?"

But if we get back-to-back spankings from Nebraska, when Fitz has been sitting atop his NU thrown for 15+ years, with HIS players and HIS staff, after a "rebuilding year," I might implode.

I also love Better Call Saul.

 

[StreamCat]

Fitz has been sitting atop his NU thrown for 15+ years,

There’s a joke in here somewhere but for the life of me, I can’t come up with it. I’m thrown.

 

[Sheffielder]

There’s a joke in here somewhere but for the life of me, I can’t come up with it. I’m thrown.

doh.

 

[Ryanfield124]

Pretty much why Northwestern has to be decent or good.

Nobody cares about a 3 win Northwestern. We got picked last in the division. It's not interesting. We have to be brutally honest about that.

You have to win and be in the competitive mix; only way to be considered interesting to the media when you're the smaller private school in the conference.

Obviously doesn't help that Chicago media has completely checked out.

Checked out? Why cover NU with an apathetic or meager fan base when you can cover ND who gets national coverage and has a rabid fanbase? Why is it Chicago based media's job to gin up excitement for a team you can't even find apparel for 10 miles west of Evanston? Covering Wisconsin, Iowa, and even the Michigan's make way more sense than NU. Hell, even Northern IL or North Central college has more interest.

 

[Catreporter]

Hyperbole much? NU's Thursday open practice was covered by every TV station in town.

 

[willycat]

Checked out? Why cover NU with an apathetic or meager fan base when you can cover ND who gets national coverage and has a rabid fanbase? Why is it Chicago based media's job to gin up excitement for a team you can't even find apparel for 10 miles west of Evanston? Covering Wisconsin, Iowa, and even the Michigan's make way more sense than NU. Hell, even Northern IL or North Central college has more interest.

NIU and No. Central Coll.??????? You forgot Chicago State.

 

[Sec.112]

... Why is it Chicago based media's job to gin up excitement for a team you can't even find apparel for 10 miles west of Evanston? ...

But the Chicago media is also not covering Illinois football, Illinois basketball or Loyola basketball.

I understand there's a profit component to sports coverage. But there's also a journalism component that has become EXTREMELY lazy.

I don't buy for a second that (pick your media) can't afford one person who covers all major area schools and major sports as Shannon Ryan did. Both NU sports, both Illini sports, both ND sports as well as Loyola and DePaul. I especially don't buy it when you devote so many resources to a HORRIBLE Bears franchise. And that's not considering coverage of the Hawks or the Sky.

The Athletic especially disgusts me in this area. They have the money and the only time they've directed local resources to colleges recently is to slam NU in a horrible hack job of a commentary on the Polisky episode. They also barely covered Loyola.

There's often more stories about the Score in the Athletic. Like I say, lazy, back-slapping journalism.

You can't have a dedicated resource to NU. But that doesn't fully explain how local college coverage has disappeared completely.

OTOH, colleges need to understand their position a bit more and work with the media outlets. For a long time, Chicago Sky stories were sponsored in the Sun Times. There's still so much Sky coverage in the ST that I assume there's still some financial help. I can't imagine there's a heavy market for Sky content.

The Sky-ST relationship would be one of my first inquiries if I were Cragg. Use some of the ad budget.

 

[Ryanfield124]

But the Chicago media is also not covering Illinois football, Illinois basketball or Loyola basketball.

I understand there's a profit component to sports coverage. But there's also a journalism component that has become EXTREMELY lazy.

I don't buy for a second that (pick your media) can't afford one person who covers all major area schools and major sports as Shannon Ryan did. Both NU sports, both Illini sports, both ND sports as well as Loyola and DePaul. I especially don't buy it when you devote so many resources to a HORRIBLE Bears franchise. And that's not considering coverage of the Hawks or the Sky.

The Athletic especially disgusts me in this area. They have the money and the only time they've directed local resources to colleges recently is to slam NU in a horrible hack job of a commentary on the Polisky episode. They also barely covered Loyola.

There's often more stories about the Score in the Athletic. Like I say, lazy, back-slapping journalism.

You can't have a dedicated resource to NU. But that doesn't fully explain how local college coverage has disappeared completely.

OTOH, colleges need to understand their position a bit more and work with the media outlets. For a long time, Chicago Sky stories were sponsored in the Sun Times. There's still so much Sky coverage in the ST that I assume there's still some financial help. I can't imagine there's a heavy market for Sky content.

The Sky-ST relationship would be one of my first inquiries if I were Cragg. Use some of the ad budget.

Thats fair and I agree its lazy. But when has NU deserved the coverage and more so is Pat media-friendly? Its readership and clicks and its obvious if they don't cover the 'Cats; there is no backlash. And with what we have coming in '22 this would be a bad year to push focused coverage.

 

[Catreporter]

But when has NU deserved the coverage and more so is Pat media-friendly?

There was plenty of coverage when the Cats went to Indy in 2018, and Pat is well liked and respected in the media. All the Tv stations are usually at Ryan Field for postgame coverage. And do you realize the Bears allow NO MEDIA COVERAGE OF ACTUAL PRACTICE while the Cats just held an open one to all media? You are just grasping at straws to try and justify your ill-informed opinion.

 

[Ryanfield124]

There was plenty of coverage when the Cats went to Indy in 2018, and Pat is well liked and respected in the media. All the Tv stations are usually at Ryan Field for postgame coverage. And do you realize the Bears allow NO MEDIA COVERAGE OF ACTUAL PRACTICE while the Cats just held an open one to all media? You are just grasping at straws to try and justify your ill-informed opinion.

Yeah... 2018 was 4 years ago. You do realize that right? I live in Chicago and watch local TV plus I'm predisposed to watch Cats news. THERE IS NO COVERAGE. Sorry. Without sites like this and InsideNU there would be no coverage. I'm ill-informed? You're delusional.

In contrast, I can literally walk up to any of my neighbors and they will tell me the latest with the Bears. (for the record, you brought up the Bears not me.)

 

[Catreporter]

Comparing Cats to the Bears is like apples and oranges. This is a pro town and they get wall-to-wall coverage. The new coach said he was amazed at the saturation. That's why NU's media day was last Thursday when the Bears were off. Sorry you missed the coverage on 2,5,7,9 and 32. ABC7 had a nice feature on the Cats one arm walkon from Lemont last Sunday night. You must have missed that one too. BTN has pretty good day-to-day coverage of all BIG team's newsworthy doings.. Chicago Newspapers are so thin staffed they only cover the pro teams as a beat and some of those stories are now from AP. If this was Lincoln, Nebraska, it might be different, but saying the Chicago media doesn't care about NU football is indeed delusional.

 

[Sec.112]

CR, I respect your years of experience in the industry, but don't you think the lack of regular, daily college coverage has more to do than budget, headcount and clicks? Well, at least in everything except the Tribune. Those guys are running on fumes at this point.

There are conscious editorial decisions that go beyond market numbers and clicks. The Sun Times has almost daily stories on the Sky.

There is no local college coverage in the Athletic or the Score. Do you really believe the Score can't devote - let's say - two hours each week on a Friday night to college football and basketball, rather than years of repetitive, unsubstantiated hope for the progress of Trubisky and Fields. And I'm a believer that local editors do an awful job of letting the Score dictate their editorial direction. That's why we've fallen into this direction of lazy journalism.

Local writers from the Athletic have written more local stories on Score PRODUCERS in the last year than Illinois or NU football.

Also, the Blackhawks window has been shut down for a few years now. I'd love to see the click rates of the Sun Times beat writer.

It's pretty obvious the content choice is about more than clicks. I'd just love someone to demonstrate why minimal college coverage got pushed aside for the Sky, Hawks and repetitive football coverage of a lousy organization that has won three playoff games since 1995.

 

[NUCat320]

Also, the Blackhawks window has been shut down for a few years now. I'd love to see the click rates of the Sun Times beat writer.

It's pretty obvious the content choice is about more than clicks. I'd just love someone to demonstrate why minimal college coverage got pushed aside for the Sky, Hawks and repetitive football coverage of a lousy organization that has won three playoff games since 1995.

Woke media.

 

[Jaguar 88]

Pretty much why Northwestern has to be decent or good.

Nobody cares about a 3 win Northwestern. We got picked last in the division. It's not interesting. We have to be brutally honest about that.

You have to win and be in the competitive mix; only way to be considered interesting to the media when you're the smaller private school in the conference.

Obviously doesn't help that Chicago media has completely checked out.

That fact alone should raise some red flags in terms of the long term viability of the program. Fitz and the assistant coaches already have a tough job in trying to get back in the hunt this season, now the local media has turned it's back on the program even only two seasons from a divsional title and a bowl win. Fitz an co will take care of their end, but with $$$$$ overriding everything else in CFB, no media attention isn't going to help the prestige of the program in the expanded BIG.

 

[Catreporter]

now the local media has turned it's back on the program

No they havent

 

[Medill '03]

No they havent

The Chicago Bears are the second most popular NFL team with 8.5 million fans. (By comparison, the most popular college football team—by far—is Ohio State, with less than 6.3 million fans. Alabama is #2 with 4.1 million fans.)

Among college football fans, Northwestern ranks #55 with a little more than 400,000. Of course, those fans aren't concentrated around Chicago.

It would be easier for The Athletic to cover Northwestern if both football and basketball demanded attention. Alas, that's almost never been the case for the hardcourt 'Cats. And no other sport moves the needle with subscribers.

Sources:

Die-Hard or Fair-Weather Fans? Ranking All 32 NFL Fan Bases

The National Football League and its fans have experienced a lot in the past five years. Fan bases have grown and shrunk, but the intensity of these groups is what is really worth monitoring. Of the 32 NFL teams, which teams truly have the best fans?

www.samford.edu

https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Kka1B/1/

There’s 1 college football team more popular than the Crimson Tide. Here’s who it is

The University of Alabama's football team, which has been dominant over the last decade-plus, is the second most popular team in the nation, and the single most popular among Gen Z fans, according to data from the Center for Sports Analytics at Samford University.

www.al.com

 

[Catreporter]

Chicago is a pro town first (like New York and Boston) and pro football rules, so the Bears dominate local coverage, but the Cats will get their share IF THEY WIN. Nobody covered Loyola basketball in town for years until they went to the final four, and even now, do you see any beat coverage now of them in Chicago media? It's a crowded market place, newspapers have shrunk their staffs, local TV stations have even cutback their sports reporting. That's why most schools have sports websites with video reporting on them. Heck, even all the pro teams do the same. It's a Brave New Media World out there!

 

[CatManTrue]

Among college football fans, Northwestern ranks #55 with a little more than 400,000. Of course, those fans aren't concentrated around Chicago.

 

[Catreporter]

Here's the state of Tribune "coverage" of college sports. They ran a big AP story on the back page of their sports today about how expansion might affect future college football schedules for the nonpower5 schools saying that "it might force the SEC and Big Ten to go 9 conference games" Uh, earth to Chi Trib, the Big Ten has been playing nine conference games for almost a decade now.

 

[Ryanfield124]

Here's the state of Tribune "coverage" of college sports. They ran a big AP story on the back page of their sports today about how expansion might affect future college football schedules for the nonpower5 schools saying that "it might force the SEC and Big Ten to go 9 conference games" Uh, earth to Chi Trib, the Big Ten has been playing nine conference games for almost a decade now.

Uh yeah. Calling people delusional or ill-informed doesn't manifest your widespread NU coverage fantasy into reality. Maybe you're too close to the trees but what I and others have stated is fact. NU is invisible in this market. That's why we had to find sites like this.

I'm not making the news, just reporting it. It IS a pro market but I don't think anybody wastes time on a program known more for losing than winning (despite recent times) but 2 shitty seasons in doesn't help.

 

[Catreporter]

I never said widespread coverage. Don't put words in my mouth. I said if they win, they'll get plenty of coverage. That's the state of play for any college in this pro town. You are like a dog with a bone.