The Big Ten College Basketball Digital Recap

We've made it through the Big Ten. Thanks for sticking with me!

Here's a quick summary of the conference -- what you need to remember, what you need to watch. First, the final rankings:

1. Penn State - Amazing branding and crisp, powerful video content!
   
2. Illinois - Coach Weber's site has great original video content. Great Twitter and Facebook integration.
   
3. Michigan State - Definite feel for what Coach Izzo stands for: tradition, academics, success
   
4. Minnesota - Coach Smith revitalized more than just the basketball program
   
5. Iowa - Amazing summer tour player blogs... will it continue in season?
   
6. Purdue - Infused interactivity and life into a traditional media guide
   
7. Indiana - Why not put up a whole recruiting guide online... but as a 200 page pdf?
   
8. Wisconsin - Their NCAA trip in pictures is powerful. Imagine if it was video!
   
9. Ohio State - Only program in Big Ten with every coach up on Twitter
   
10. Michigan - A nice Twitter site, but not much else.
    
11. Northwestern - An opportunity to be different here, just not a focus yet.
    

Now, here's 6 Things I loved in the Big Ten Conference.

6. Purdue's interactive media guide. This is pretty killer. Take a media guide you've already made for boosters, recruiting, and media. Then put it online. But before you do so, infuse video content from the facilities and coaches. Great concept, I can't wait to see where they evolve this to over time.



5. Penn State's definition of team. The entire PSU site is full of clean defined messages, but it is the combination of visuals, words, and video around team that is the most empowering.



4. Northwestern's Facebook and Twitter feed. Just because the site isn't ranked high doesn't mean we can't find inspiration and I loved their integration here. Not only can you quickly see the latest posts or activity in each site, but without leaving the Northwestern Athletics site you can easily join either group. Nice.




3. Iowa's Summer Tour Blogs. This is a super cool idea. When the Hawkeyes were on the road for the summer, in Greece, they had every one of the players keep a journal... each of which was posted on their site. I love this personal touch and hope it is a recurring feature in the season.


2. Illini Basketball on Twitter and Facebook. Illinois is the only program I've seen that pumps Basketball specific content out to both Facebook and Twitter. I love this, as it makes sense and allows fans to bring the program with them to their world. I mean, you may not go to FightingIllini.com every day... but that doesn't mean you won't get the latest from the program! Oh and, of course, you can see the updates live in the Basketball site.



1. Michigan State's Player Breakdowns and Microsites. I just love this. See the example below for star guard Kalin Lucas, but they extend "The Word" to all of their players. It's a scouting report on each player, playing to what makes them special. There's power in telling about things in the language of the sport. And in celebrating what makes your team great. Oh and adding a special site for your stars, with crisp branding, is smart and makes me wonder why we don't see more of it!





That's it for now. Come back tomorrow when we unveil the Big Ten Conference's All-Twitter team!

Andy