Forgive me for diverging for a second into a story that began with a vague, simple goal and has led to what we hope is a fundamental change in the way you’ll read about Northwestern sports.
When I became sports editor, I set out to improve The Daily’s sports desk’s web presence. I wasn’t entirely sure how that would play out, just that it would be better than what we were currently doing.
Then my deputy editor, Kevin Trahan, suggested a bold idea: We launch our own sports website.
My initial reaction was one of hesitance. The idea seemed very appealing but possibly beyond our capacities. Over the past two months, Kevin, the executive board of The Daily and I have proven my early reactions wrong, and I’m proud to announce that we will launch WildcatExtra.com, a new sports site for The Daily, to coincide with the men’s basketball Big Ten Tournament.
At The Daily, we have the most comprehensive coverage of NU sports, with previews of every game of all 19 varsity teams plus coverage of every one of those games in addition to features, profiles and columns. Wildcat Extra brings all that work together in the most accessible way for you and will allow us to expand our coverage even further. Essentially, Wildcat Extra will have everything you’ll need to know about NU sports.
In addition to all the usual coverage you’ve come to expect from the sports desk at The Daily, Wildcat Extra will feature more multimedia work, including videos, podcasts and liveblogs.
We’ll kick off this new era in NU sports coverage on Thursday with in-depth coverage from Indianapolis as the Wildcats compete in the Big Ten Tournament. Our writers will be blogging throughout all the action at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and providing video recaps at the end of each day of competition.
Our Big Ten Tournament coverage is just the first example of in-depth event coverage we hope to bring to you. With the women’s lacrosse NCAA Tournament and football Big Ten Media Days, our coverage of NU sports will expand to unparalled levels.
As we move into Spring Quarter, we’ll take full advantage of Wildcat Extra’s multimedia capabilities across the spring sports as well as up-to-the minute coverage of the football team’s spring practices and the lacrosse team’s quest for a seventh national championship in eight years.
Wildcat Extra will allow for more online-only content, expanding our range of coverage. That will include year-round football and men’s basketball coverage, including updates on recruiting.
We hope WildcatExtra.com will become your No. 1 online source for NU athletics news as we continue to bring you the latest in both print and online forms.
Sports editor Colin Becht is a Medill junior. He can be reached at [email protected]
All opinions expressed in this column are solely the opinions of the columnist and do not reflect the views of The Daily Northwestern. If you would like to respond to the column, you may comment below, email the columnist or submit a 300-word letter to the editor to [email protected].
