Aug. 3, 2006
TO: Fans, Friends, and Supporters of Georgia Tech Athletics
FROM: Dan Radakovich, Georgia Tech Director of Athletics
Even though the season opener is still a month away, I hope you are getting as excited about football season as I am! Preseason practice begins today, and I am looking forward to seeing our team as they prepare for Notre Dame. Season tickets were mailed a few days ago, so look for yours in the mail if they haven’t already arrived. In the next few weeks we will be adding a Fan Guide to the ramblinwreck.com website that will contain information on parking, traffic flow, pregame activities and other items that should be helpful in making your Georgia Tech game day experience the best that it can be.
ANNUAL REPORT
As we look forward to the coming year, please take a moment to view our 2005-2006 Annual Report, which is now on-line. I mentioned in a previous Good Word that we have elected to produce this piece electronically, and we welcome your feedback.
RADIO COVERAGE
Several fans have submitted questions and comments about our radio coverage.
I have learned very quickly that the radio market in Atlanta is as complex as any in the country. There are too few licensed stations, especially with powerful signals, to service the area. We are fortunate to have 790 the Zone as our flagship. I understand the format for 790 and appreciate the market they reach, because in large measure, it is our market as well. 790 the Zone does far more good for Georgia Tech than harm. However, we all understand their nighttime limitations, which are mandated by FCC laws. ISP, our multimedia rightsholder, has attempted, on numerous occasions, to find an additional station with more signal strength. To date, there have been no takers, even with a substantial financial guarantee to the station. We will continue to work very hard with ISP to solve this issue, but I will be honest and tell you that in the short run we are at the status quo.
I do want to remind you of a couple of options for listening to the games on the radio. Please be aware that night games in football and basketball are simulcast on our campus radio station, WREK 91.1, which is a very powerful FM station that should reach all over Metro Atlanta. President Clough and others on campus have been helpful in making this happen, and we appreciate their cooperation. This is an actual simulcast of the Georgia Tech broadcast with Wes Durham, and it has vastly improved our nighttime coverage. Another option is satellite radio. For those of you with XM-Radio, all ACC football and basketball games are available on XM Channels 191-193. However, the current agreement calls for the home team broadcast, so you won’t hear Wes for road games.
PERSONAL WEBSITES
A topic that is very much in the news today is the role of personal websites, such as Myspace.com, in recruiting. We recently had a question about Georgia Tech’s position on fans posting messages on a recruit’s personal page. Here is the answer from our compliance office that I would like to share with everyone:
All NCAA Division I institutions are governed by legislation that restricts the level of interaction that fans (also referred to as representatives of Georgia Tech’s athletics interests) may have with prospective student-athletes. Per NCAA legislation, fans are not permitted to initiate communication with recruits. This includes telephonic communication as well as written correspondence. Therefore, Georgia Tech’s stance on posting messages on a recruit’s Myspace.com page is the same as that of the NCAA, in that we strongly advise all fans to refrain from doing such. Georgia Tech and its many supporters should make a conservative effort to preserve the eligibility of not only our recruits, but our student-athletes as well. Should you have any questions about activities that could possibly jeopardize the eligibility of a prospective or current student-athlete, please feel free to contact Georgia Tech’s Compliance Office at (404) 894-8792.
RAMBLINWRECK.COM WEBSITE
To Steve: In answer to your question about the Georgia Tech athletics website, www.ramblinwreck.com was completely redesigned less than a year ago. Many of the items that you mentioned, such as desktop wallpaper, are available. Please let us know if you have questions about how to find things on the site or comments about features that we might add. I encourage you to take advantage of the video highlights that we include in our weekly electronic newsletter, “The Sting.” Within The Sting, you can also sign up for a direct-to-desktop notification that alerts you, with a few bars of “The Rambling Wreck,” when a new release is available on ramblinwreck.com.
Again, thank you for your positive response to “The Good Word.” We welcome your feedback at goodword@athletics.gatech.edu While I cannot guarantee a personal response to every email that we receive, please know that they will all be read, so I do encourage your continued participation in this process. Some of your questions could become topics for future issues of The Good Word.
I also encourage you to share this letter with any Tech fan who may not have access to the Internet. Our goal is to inform and engage as many Yellow Jacket supporters as we possibly can.
I want to personally thank you for your continued support of Georgia Tech Athletics as we move forward with our vision for excellence.
Go Jackets!
