LIVE Hall of Fame Game Q&A

tony reali = sportswriter? who knew?

Who knew that Tony Reali, the man once voted most likely to portray me in a movie about my life, was also an above average sportswriter? Apart from his more visible duties for ESPN on Around the Horn and PTI, he also runs the @AroundTheHorn twitter feed, which is well worth the follow if you are so inclined. In addition, he writes a weekly fantasy football column for the Philadelphia Inquirer and his latest edition is quite impressive.

Once great is not good enough

The best thing about being a Fake General Manager - other than the chicks - is doing what the real ones won't. Example:

TRADE APPROVED: Tomlinson, LaDainian (Breaston Plants) for Bell, Mike (Orton Lets Out a Phew).

Oofa. That didn't take long. This decade's greatest fantasy player for a spot starter who torched the Lions. It happened in a friend's league two days ago and it's vintage Week 1 overreaction. It's also the right play.

Fact: Tomlinson is the best fantasy player of all time. Fact: He's won you multiple leagues. Possible fact: Shrines have been built around his aura. Would-be-cool-if-it's-fact-but-

I'm-not-sure-it-is: He tames tigers.

But I wouldn't start him over Fred Jackson this week. (Not that I have Fred Jackson. Nope, I took Reggie Bush instead. Yeah, I stink.)

It's fantasy law. Keep your friends close and your 30-year-old RBs closer. Sure they have history, but history can only get you in trouble. You fall for a guy when he's young, he wins you a league, you ride him until the last stop, and that last stop is a street called Last Place. One minute, Shaun Alexander or Marshall Faulk is winning the MVP. A minute later, the only thing their legs can do is kick you in the groin.

What do you do? Stick with him because he got you here? Or dump him for the newer model?

It's not easy being a fake GM, but occasionally you'll have to make the tough call. And it will hurt. But those equatorially hot chicks make up for it. ...

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why is ashton kutcher trying to be me?

But not as good.

I'll keep monitoring his progress. If he's lucky he might get an invite on the podcast later in the season.

fights between @RealSkipBayless and @OGOchoCinco reason enough to be on twitter

Just watching the Twitter battles between Skip Bayless and Chad Ochocinco is worth the price of admission. Their weekly dust-ups are hilarious. You be the judge of who gets the better of the latest exchange.

@RealSkipBayless: I cannot stand self-promoters who get attention for everything but what supposed to do, catch passes. Ocho Kicko not even best rec. on team.

@RealSkipBayless: Man, Ocho can tweet. He can even kick! But he slid like a scared little kicker after catching post rt. Should be fined for that.

@RealSkipBayless: The Bengal receiver to watch this yr. is Chris Henry. Carson Palmer already compared him w/ RMoss. Not that far off.

@RealSkipBayless: Every NFL has 2 or 3 tryout kickers in camp, except the cheap Bengals. Do they really want Ocho Kicko trying crucial FG? Please, child.

@OGOchoCinco: @RealSkipBayless How the fu#% did you even get a job, whoever hired you gets a short bus child pleeze without the helmet!!! Paid 2 be dumb!

@RealSkipBayless: I don't "hate." I just tell the truth. And all you gullible Ocho lovers know it, deep down. Is this circus or NFL?

@RealSkipBayless: Again: Chad Whateverhisnameis has open invitation to debate me on 1st and 10. But apparently, he is even more afraid of me than of safeties.

making fun of vz on twitter

espn becomes worldwide leader in twitter censorship

ESPN has adopted new rules for tweeters and pretty much banned their on-air personalities and employees from using the social media tool for anything not ESPN-approved. ESPN is worried that people will follow the tweets of ESPN personalities instead of viewing web content at ESPN.com. That will cost them page views and ultimately online ad revenue.

If anything, newfound interest in Twitter is likely only to drive up interest in ESPN commentators and their opinions. This can only result in more traffic to ESPN's website and a firmer grip on dominance as the "worldwide leader in sports."

This is a case of a large company not wanting to be caught by surprise. ESPN will adapt to a new social media world or one of their competitors will and then they will really see chunks of their revenue disappearing.

ESPN’S ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES FOR SOCIAL NETWORKING

ESPN regards social networks such as message boards, conversation pages and other forms of social networking such as FacebookFacebook and Twitter as important new forms of content. As such, we expect to hold all talent who participate in social networking to the same standards we hold for interaction with our audiences across TV, radio and our digital platforms. This applies to all ESPN Talent, anchors, play by play, hosts, analysts, commentators, reporters and writers who participate in any form of personal social networking that contain sports related content.

ESPN Digital Media is currently building and testing modules designed to publish Twitter and Facebook entries simultaneously on ESPN.com, SportsCenter.com, Page 2, ESPN Profile pages and other similar pages across our web site and mobile platforms. The plan is to fully deploy these modules this fall.

Specific Guidelines
* Personal websites and blogs that contain sports content are not permitted
* Prior to engaging in any form of social networking dealing with sports, you must receive permission from the supervisor as appointed by your department head
* ESPN.COM may choose to post sports related social media content
* If ESPN.com opts not to post sports related social media content created by ESPN talent, you are not permitted to report, speculate, discuss or give any opinions on sports related topics or personalities on your personal platforms
* The first and only priority is to serve ESPN sanctioned efforts, including sports news, information and content
* Assume at all times you are representing ESPN
* If you wouldn’t say it on the air or write it in your column, don’t tweet it
* Exercise discretion, thoughtfulness and respect for your colleagues, business associates and our fans
* Avoid discussing internal policies or detailing how a story or feature was reported, written, edited or produced and discussing stories or features in progress, those that haven’t been posted or produced, interviews you’ve conducted, or any future coverage plans.
* Steer clear of engaging in dialogue that defends your work against those who challenge it and do not engage in media criticism or disparage colleagues or competitors
* Be mindful that all posted content is subject to review in accordance with ESPN’s employee policies and editorial guidelines
* Confidential or proprietary company information or similar information of third parties who have shared such information with ESPN, should not be shared

Any violation of these guidelines could result in a range of consequences, including but not limited to suspension or dismissal.

@behindnumbers live tweeting #TheTOShow tonight!

random saturday thoughts

comic-con is this weekend. largest annual gathering of guys who will never see a woman naked.

Is there any difference between Darius Rucker's "Alright," Montgomery Gentry's "Lucky Man," and Lonestar's "From my Front Porch Looking in?" They are all songs about being happy to have a house and a family. Isn't this just like rappers talking about hoes and Rolls? They just appreciate different things.

At what point will email go extinct. Or when can I legitimately say I will no longer respond or communicate by email? Take, for example, watching movies at home. If you invite me over to watch a movie on a VCR, I can legitimately say that's ridiculous, get a DVD player. But if you have a DVD player, I can't really complain you don't have a Blu-Ray player. That would just be petty. Email is a DVD player but at some point we are going to get to the point in society where we demand Blu-Rays.

A.J. bought a bag to put his clothes in that will go in his bag that he takes to Europe. Yes, a bag for his bag. He spent money on that.

Hypothetical: A European gypsy throws her baby at you. Do you a) drop your bags to catch the baby knowing that as soon as you do the gypsy will scoop them up and run off with them or do you b) let the baby fall to the ground but keep your bags? (Billy has already weighed in with: "It ain't my baby.")

Twitter symbology

RT = ReTweet - a retweet is copying and posting another twitterer's tweet as your own. when you do this, you give them credit by inserting RT before their message to let people know the content is not your own. (Exa. @behindnumbers RT everything that Jim Rome says)

@ = the @ symbol goes before a person's twitter name. if you are replying to a message or want to direct your message to a specific person instead of just the general twitterverse, put @ before their name (Exa. @Krabbits your team sucks and your writing is inferior to mine)

# = this goes before a hashtag. a hashtag is a search term in twitter. in my messages, you will see a lot of #btn. this is because I want you to be able to find all of my posts tagged that way in a search. (Exa. @TheInstitute's jokes are #fail)

D = direct message. A direct message is a private message sent to only one person. No one else on Twitter will see it but the person you send it to. (Exa. D @LizNorris u want to come over again tonight?)

If you are new to Twitter, download http://www.tweetdeck.com. It will change your life and make your experience on the Twitter machine infinitely better.