Technology -- You've Got To Keep Up!

Seph Hatley is an Assistant Coach for the Butler women's basketball program, and a women's basketball correspondent for the HLN Blog.

As I sit here to write this blog entry, one question keeps coming up: how did it come to me writing a blog? Not that I don't think it is has been very interesting to read others insight into their worlds when it comes to sport, but more along the lines of how technology has changed the sporting world.

I know I commented on one of my earlier entries about travel and how that has changed, but when I started you would have been hard-pressed to find a school with a website! To get stats on an upcoming opponent you had to call and ask their SID to fax you a copy of the overall stats. Now you can check their website or their conference website, or even track the stats as they play on Gametracker! Technology has totally changed the way we look at and interact with sports.

From a coaching standpoint we must keep up with technology. Recruiting has been one of the biggest areas affected during this information boom. The NCAA has been put into a scramble mode to try and keep up. How much easier was it to monitor when all a coach had access to was writing letters and making a phone call on a land line?! Now there are many ways to connect with potential recruits like: a blog (go figure), email, Twitter, Facebook, letters, faxes, phone calls (land lines, cell phones – business and personal), and don't forget all the elaborate school websites. There was even texting and instant messaging before the NCAA stepped in and adjusted the rules.

Even current devices have become more advanced. Now with your cell phone you can have internet access, email, make calls, take pictures, make videos and send text messages. At one time there were no worries about people making calls while driving because the phone was to big to hold with one hand and drive! It has been essential as coaches to stay well-versed in the changes and the different ways to communicate to recruits. If we stand still, we fall behind because the technology is changing daily!

Well those are just some of my general observations, but now I need to go and update our Butler Women's Basketball Facebook page! See you in cyberspace.