Sports Night Fans,
Greetings from Atlanta, GA and the Final Four where on Friday, we were broadcasting live from the Intercontinental Hotel in Buckhead. Hope you guys are enjoying the weather as it creeps into the fifties and I must say I would describe it as “balmy”. Anyway, this is mailbag time, which means less about me, and more about you. Let’s get to the questions:
Sometimes I feel like Sports Night is all over the place. It’s not like you have just sports, sometimes you have musicians or other celebrities on. You also talk about different sports. For example the other day you had Dick Umile on and then followed it up by talking about soccer. Can’t we stick with a basic format?
Bill- Litchfield, NH
Thanks for the question, Bill. Also, thanks for the comment. New Hampshire Sports Night is all over the place, because I am all over the place. I talk about what I’m thinking about. If that’s Andy Enfield’s wife, so be it. I don’t want to structure my show (besides the required four segments that time out to roughly 44 minuets an hour) to be a generic “let’s complain about the Red Sox” Boston-area spots show. Yes, we do a lot of complaining about a lot of things (especially the Red Sox), but isn’t more fun than just sitting in the studio complaining about how the Patriots and Wes Welker are never ever ever getting back together? Seriously, we’ve had the same discussions for three weeks about why a mediocre wide receiver wanted to stick it to the Pats…next.
You’ve been pretty adamant the last two days about Mike Rice and his firing saying that he shouldn’t have been given a second chance. I believe people in life deserve second chances but you just want to send Rice packing.
Paul- Bow, NH
It’s not that I don’t believe in second chances, I do. It’s that I don’t believe Rutgers could afford to keep Rice, who in all actuality, attacked college-aged children. Look, I’ve been involved in college athletics in my past life. The man I worked for in college, Jeff Walz (who by the way, is coaching in the women’s Final Four…again) is known for his passion and intensity. That being said, Walz knew better than to ever attack a player or use the six letter word that is far overused in mainstream arrogant Americans to question somebodies toughness. Rice is a walking lawsuit. When you’re in a position of power, you cant just warn someone who is literally abusing college kids. Rice will perhaps get a second chance by coaching somewhere else, but it won’t be J-Bone State University, that’s for sure.
What is the greatest marketing niche in America? You talked about how Planet Fitness has the perfect model. What are some others?
Daniel- Concord, NH
Yes, Planet Fitness has one of the greatest marketing ploys I have ever seen. If you didn’t hear the rant on NH Sports Night last week, I’ll explain again. Their “judgment free zone” and distain for the average gym goer is plastered all over NBC”s The Biggest Loser and “the planet” is profiting royally. Basically, the “judgment free zone” is inviting people who are self-conscious about their physical appearance to workout free of being mentally crucified by others. In all honesty, that’s one of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard. Not being allowed to judge at the gym is something the overly buff people who are probably already judging you at Planet Fitness obviously can’t control. If this were a game of Family Feud, “the gym” is probably the number one answer of places where people get judged (with church and the doctor’s office at second and third, respectively…watch out before the Johnson family can steal the points). Planet Fitness knows this, however, they created the illusion that they are the gym for fat people. No fat person wants to be fat. Planet Fitness provides them an opportunity to A) get in better shape and B) not feel bad for being obese and because of that, they have the perfect niche.
Other great American niches to me belong to the following. Wal Mart is first. Wal Mart has everything and is cheaper than all other competeors. Beat that? The only thing stopping Wal Mart, are the “Wal Mart Haters” who believe that it ruins America’s economic system. They’re right. If they can find me another place though that is significantly cheaper than all other competitors, has everything I could possibly want and doesn’t harm every form of local business, I’d shop there. They cant. Also, Subway has the perfect niche as the healthy fast food spot. The marketing team that decided to make Jared Fogel “the god of all weight loss fads” are truly geniuses. Subway, which promotes healthy options, is really the only choice for eating right at fast food convenience and prices. KFC tried it with their Kentucky Grilled Chicken campaign, as did Taco Bell with their “Fresco Menu”, but if anybody believes that Jared could lose all that weight eating at Taco Bell, then they probably are smart enough to understand this blog. Another thing to think about, if Subway and Jared had a contractual disagreement, would it be out of the realm of possibility for Jared to start pushing the Fresco Menu? If Wes Welker can switch teams and go to the Broncos, or Alan Jackson can tell us that he’s crazy about a Mercury, surely Jared can pitch another form of healthy fast food. That having been said, Jared is the perfect spokesperson for Subway and they own that niche.
You are always talking on air about people faking it ‘til they make it. I think that’s the dumbest thing you’ve said. Everyone should act like their hungry until they make it and faking it only proves that they don’t belong!
Al Manchester, NH
I don’t completely disagree. I think that faking it ‘til you make it refers to having acted as if you belong somewhere that they maybe you don’t. Does Dougie Hamilton belong in the NHL? Absolutely. But he’s 19 years old. You can’t tell me that a 19 year old in the NHL, doesn’t feel like a complete and utter rock star. People who have played their whole lives and finally get a crack in their mid to late twenties will resent that if Hamilton starts acting like he doesn’t belong. Do you think Milan Lucic would appreciate an attitude from Hamilton that someone who’s experienced like Nathan Horton could have? Also, could you imagine if a politician was unsure of himself or herself? By definition, athletes, politicians and other public figures (even talk show hosts) are the most sociologically insecure people on the planet. They doubt themselves all the time about everything they do. That being said, if I were running for office, at the free throw line or selling a record, would you believe in me if I didn’t believe in myself? I doubt it. You never hear commentators say “he looked so nervous on that putt” before sinking in a shot to win The Masters? Never.
That’s all for this week. Enjoy the show, tonight it’s back to lovely New England. We will be joined by Chris Brickley and Black Crowes drummer Steve Gorman. Later in the week Ben Watanabe joins to talk Celtics and much more.
‘Til then,
Jared
