It is news to exactly none of you that college football season is ten days away, or that autumn is arriving not a moment too soon. A fellow denizen of Bulldog Nation with whom I go to church said that he awoke on Sunday morning, stepped outside into the early morning chill offering the first hint of fall, and felt the urge to go tackle someone. I think he speaks for all of us.
Among the salutary effects of the shift from offseason to football season is a boost in interest, and, hence, in traffic, which is why August will be the fourth straight month of growth in visits and page views here at Dawg Sports (albeit falling far short of 2008 levels; that’s what a No. 1 preseason ranking will do for you). Consequently, a few housekeeping matters require our attention, for the benefit of both first-time guests and longtime readers; viz.:
- If you are new to SB Nation, welcome! The interactive platform at the leading sports blogging network on the web is designed to be user-friendly, but, just in case you feel a bit overwhelmed, Corn Nation has put together a helpful guide to the features available here.
- Because SB Nation weblogs are centered around community---this is a dialogue, not a soliloquy---we concentrate on furthering the conversation. Several of our sister blogs in the network host community-wide events, and, while I tend to think major league baseball games are more conducive to this sort of thing than college football games, I thought the question was worth asking here. Would anyone be interested in some sort of informal Dawg Sports tailgate at one of the home games? (MaconDawg and I have nothing planned, and may be utterly incapable of pulling such a thing off; we’re just wondering whether the idea would generate any interest at all. Honestly, there’s a better chance of us crashing your tailgate than us hosting a tailgate, but, hey, at least it’s something.)
- Finally, because new users are signing on all the time and we want to welcome our incoming members as warmly as our returning visitors, here’s a question for all of you: "Who are you?" I have answered that question before, but it’s worth revisiting, so feel free to share in the comments below your tale of how you came to be a loyal citizen of Bulldog Nation, whether you are new to the fold or a longtime true believer.
I’ll be back tomorrow with a few predictions for the upcoming season.
Go ‘Dawgs!