Contrasting Michigan State vs North Carolina in Facebook

Friday was an incredible opening to College Basketball season that I hope becomes a tradition. Two amazing teams matched up in a location that is just plain incredible, in a way that calls attention to those people who live and are willing to die to protect us.

It's a moment that the players and coaches will remember forever, and it's exactly the kind of moment we seek to seize inside Social Media. So, today, I want to turn to Facebook and see how the coverage compared. I think you'll find this intriguing...

First, North Carolina Athletics (on Facebook, here). As you'll see below, North Carolina posted leading up to the game (a video tour of the Venue and a video from Coach Williams discussing the significance of the game)...

Then, after the game, Carolina put a powerful image of the game (incredible isn't it) along with a statement on their victory...

I was about to write a piece on UNC doing a great job... Until I saw Michigan State. So, I invite you to take a look at Michigan State Athletics (on Facebook, here)

They led up to the game by inviting fans to ask questions with Draymond Green (see below), a smart way of activating their fans ahead of the game.

Then I saw how they covered the game itself... Through not photos but photo albums! Check out these photo albums (please), here and here. (Don't you just dig how the albums look inside Facebook?)

When you visit an album, the mix and impact of images is just crazy.

I'll zoom into a couple that are worth seeing. The shoes (and that's just for one game!)

And the experience (look at that smile of joy/awe on Coach Izzo's face when he met the President!)

I dig those two pictures because at different ends of the spectrum they show you the experience you get as a Spartan. Ironically enough I'm this pumped and I didn't even see a MSU post of the final score.

And that sums up my thoughts on these posts. Through Facebook you as a school can share the experience of being a student athlete: the emotion, the gear, the people and places you encounter... It's not about the facts but rather the stories. And Michigan State did an incredible job this weekend.

Tune back in Wednesday for more best practices from College Hoops. Until then, follow me here, or on Facebook (here) or Twitter (I'm @andypawlowski)

Thanks for reading!

Andy