USA Today Examines Twitter's Growth In Recruiting, Sponsorship

Miles, Other College Coaches See Twitter As An Important Recruiting Tool

LSU football coach Les Miles this fall will post Twitter updates "before games, at halftime and after games" via a staff assistant, a move he said is "absolutely ... for recruiting purposes," according to a sports-section cover story by Kelly Whiteside of USA TODAY, which offers an in-depth look at Twitter's role in sports. Miles: "It allows us to communicate, to those people that subscribe, blasts of information. ... It's also an opportunity for those prospects that subscribe to communicate to us." NCAA coaches are "tweeting to keep up with their rivals," as Univ. of Kentucky men's basketball coach John Calipari and Indiana Univ. men's basketball coach Tom Crean are "engaged in a Twitter war," competing against each other "for the most followers." Univ. of Southern Mississippi football coach Larry Fedora is the "rare head coach who updates his site himself," and athletic departments also are "creating accounts to provide the latest news." Whiteside notes the NCAA "considers Twitter updates to be similar to a blog and not a direct form of communication with a recruit." NCAA Managing Dir of PR & Media Relations Bob Williams said in an e-mail, "As long as the coaches are not using Twitter to contact individual prospective student-athletes and are abiding by other recruiting rules, there is not an issue with them using Twitter." Still, schools are "concerned about their fans committing recruiting violations." The Univ. of Oklahoma "created a page on its website -- and a link on its Twitter page -- reminding boosters not to contact prospects" (USA TODAY, 4/29).

O'Neal Used Twitter To Announce New Endorsement Deal With Enlyten

SPONSOR INTEGRATION: USA TODAY's Michael McCarthy notes Suns C Shaquille O'Neal "recently used Twitter to announce his new endorsement deal" with Enlyten, which is "thought to be the first time an athletic endorser used Twitter, not traditional media, to reveal a deal." Sports Media Challenge President Kathleen Hessert, O'Neal's media consultant, said that others now are "trying to figure out how to use the service to tout their sponsors." Hessert "expects some endorsers to charge sponsors for Twitter plugs and for Twitter mentions to become a standard part of contracts." But Hessert predicted that some athletes will "turn off fans by clumsily shilling products." Hessert: "We're going to see some horrible examples of sponsors getting involved with athletes and celebrities on Twitter. It's simply the way of the world" (USA TODAY, 4/29). L.A.-based Fanscape CEO Larry Weintraub "expects NASCAR stars eventually will learn its benefits as many sponsors (Ford, UPS and M&Ms have NASCAR-themed Twitter accounts) already have." Weintraub: "It's the most direct form of advertising ever, and think of how sponsor-driven NASCAR is. For Kyle Busch to win and thank M&Ms on Twitter, that's really helpful" (USA TODAY, 4/29).

TALENT TWEETS: USA TODAY's Michael Hiestand noted NFL Network host Rich Eisen Saturday during the net's coverage of the NFL Draft "started on-site twittering," and CBS College Sports Network this weekend "will have announcers Twitter for the first time." TNT NBA analyst Kenny Smith "not only Twitters but also announced on-air last week that he'll dispense prizes via tweets -- the first being a free week at his North Carolina basketball camp." But TNT NBA analyst Charles Barkley on-air said that Twitter is "limited to a 'bunch of losers' who can become your virtual stalkers." Hiestand writes networks "might not want the distraction" of their talent using Twitter, as ESPN Senior Coordinating Producer Jay Rothman during the net's Draft coverage Saturday "banned tweets from anybody on-air" (USA TODAY, 4/29).