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Let's rank the best sports blogs in Houston
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When it comes to sports commentary, Houston is loaded. We have four sports talk stations, a full-time Houston sports TV channel, and great fan sites for almost every team.
We've also got a lot of great blogs.
But which ones are the best?
We put together a panel of local sports fans and media personalities to put together the list of the 10 best sports blogs in Houston. We got a good mix of ages and interests. Hopefully it provides a good cross section of sports fans in Houston and what they want. The criteria used:
- Insight
- Humor
- Frequency of posts
- Originality
- News value
Disclaimer 1: In the interest of fairness, Examiner pages, including this one, were not eligible.
Alan Burge and David Hartnett would be very high on the list, but the point here wasn't to be self-serving. To that end, my blog Freddy's World was also ineligible (Although it is not a true sports blog).
Also, we would be remiss to mention the late Thomas Eric Hilton, who did a great job.
Disclaimer 2: Interestingly, the Rockets blogs did not do as well, but the panel said they got most of their fan information from ClutchFans, which is a message board that is updated like a blog. So it got tons of votes, but doesn't really fit the definition of a blog. Stay tuned, though -- the fan sites will be rated next.
Disclaimer 3: I know almost all of the people involved and consider many of them friends. I also helped launch many of these blogs in my old life at Chron.com. So while this is my article, the final rankings were compiled by the panel. I agree with most of the order, but not all of it. (No, this is not the Joe Torre defense).
We listed all of the blogs that got votes, and there was a tie for 10th. The panel involved 10 people and votes were compiled in a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 order.
Then we sent it to the BCS for clarification.
With all that in mind, here we go:
1) SportsJustice. Richard Justice isn't just a columnist; he is a multimedia personality. His blog isn't just one of the best in the city, it's one of the best in the country. He updates it constantly, gets insider news no one else can get, tries to keep it entertaining. More than anyone in the city, he evokes a response. The blog is informative, clever and sarcastic. He is the authority on baseball in the city, and one of the best baseball writers in the country. He links to interesting and relevant commentary and provides a unique perspective.
We listed all of the blogs that got votes, and there was a tie for 10th. The panel involved 10 people and votes were compiled in a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 order.
Then we sent it to the BCS for clarification.
With all that in mind, here we go:
1) SportsJustice. Richard Justice isn't just a columnist; he is a multimedia personality. His blog isn't just one of the best in the city, it's one of the best in the country. He updates it constantly, gets insider news no one else can get, tries to keep it entertaining. More than anyone in the city, he evokes a response. The blog is informative, clever and sarcastic. He is the authority on baseball in the city, and one of the best baseball writers in the country. He links to interesting and relevant commentary and provides a unique perspective.
The panel says: You either love him or hate him, which is exactly what a great blog is supposed to be. Even if you hate him, you always get great information. The response to comments is worth the price of admission, too. There are better football and basketball blogs, but nothing comes close on the Astros and baseball and overall knowledge.
2) The Z Report. Lance Zierlein's blog is entertaining, informative and does a great job of using off the wall videos and props. His sports knowledge is terrific, especially on football -- and his takes on non-sports topics are hilarious.
2) The Z Report. Lance Zierlein's blog is entertaining, informative and does a great job of using off the wall videos and props. His sports knowledge is terrific, especially on football -- and his takes on non-sports topics are hilarious.
The panel says: Would take over the No. 1 spot if he would update it more. Unlike Justice, Zierlein isn't polarizing; it's hard not to like him. Has an everyman spin that plays well in Houston along with great sports knowledge.
3) TexansChick. Stephanie Stradley's blog is called a "Fan blog," but it has evolved well beyond that. Stradley hits on hot topics, gives great insight and detail, and has evolved the blog into a an exellent source of team news.
3) TexansChick. Stephanie Stradley's blog is called a "Fan blog," but it has evolved well beyond that. Stradley hits on hot topics, gives great insight and detail, and has evolved the blog into a an exellent source of team news.
The panel says: Great sense of humor; there is funny stuff here even during the off-season. Stradley is clearly very intelligent and it shows.
4) UH Cougars with Michael Murphy. This one doesn't get the traffic of some of the other blogs, but it has become THE source for UH athletics. Murphy's interaction with the readers is terrific; he is caustic, intelligent and funny. He is also not afraid to take chances.
4) UH Cougars with Michael Murphy. This one doesn't get the traffic of some of the other blogs, but it has become THE source for UH athletics. Murphy's interaction with the readers is terrific; he is caustic, intelligent and funny. He is also not afraid to take chances.
The panel says: The responses to readers are terrific. He posts very frequently. He clearly knows a lot about basketball. Would love to see him expand beyond UH.
5) The King, Jerome Solomon. One of the funniest, most clever people in Houston. Has great insight and knowledge, and his takes are usually spot-on. Has a chance to be the biggest star in Houston at some point.
5) The King, Jerome Solomon. One of the funniest, most clever people in Houston. Has great insight and knowledge, and his takes are usually spot-on. Has a chance to be the biggest star in Houston at some point.
The panel says: Good stuff! Very creative, very funny. Stirs it up very nicely and not afraid to tackle hard topics. However, he needs to update it much more often to move up in the rankings. He could easily be in the top 2.
THE NEXT FIVE
6) Crawfish Boxes. Very good stuff on the Astros; several contributors keep this one updated, and they do a nice job of keeping it current. It's more straight news than entertainment, but it's very well done.
THE NEXT FIVE
6) Crawfish Boxes. Very good stuff on the Astros; several contributors keep this one updated, and they do a nice job of keeping it current. It's more straight news than entertainment, but it's very well done.
The panel says: A nice place for Astros news, and they often come up with ideas that make you think.
7) John McClain's NFL blog. The local legend is a pioneer in journalism. McClain was the first multimedia star in Houston and in many ways redefined how things are done in the city.
7) John McClain's NFL blog. The local legend is a pioneer in journalism. McClain was the first multimedia star in Houston and in many ways redefined how things are done in the city.
The panel says: Great information, very entertaining. Hard to sort through the long entries sometimes, but nobody knows more about the NFL.
8) Dgdb&d -- A Texans blog. This one is for the younger crowd, but it's very funny. (And they aren't big fans of Richard Justice). More of a traditional rant and rave fan blog.
8) Dgdb&d -- A Texans blog. This one is for the younger crowd, but it's very funny. (And they aren't big fans of Richard Justice). More of a traditional rant and rave fan blog.
The panel says: Funny stuff. Not as much insight as the other blogs, but so what? It's fun. Keep an eye on this one. Has great potential.
9) The Sports Kolache, Sean Pendergast. Sean is the funniest man in Houston and one of the most talented. His blog is clever, funny, and entertaining as hell. Would solidly be in the top five, but it hasn't been updated in forever.
9) The Sports Kolache, Sean Pendergast. Sean is the funniest man in Houston and one of the most talented. His blog is clever, funny, and entertaining as hell. Would solidly be in the top five, but it hasn't been updated in forever.
The panel says: A great read. Just going back and getting caught up was worth the effort!
10) Monsters of the Midday. A fun combination of sports, photos and hot women. What more could you want?
10) Monsters of the Midday. A fun combination of sports, photos and hot women. What more could you want?
The panel says: Nice short takes, updated daily, and the women are smoking hot.
10-tie) Pardon the Raheel Ramzanali. Raheel is one of the funniest dudes you will meet. His blog is heavy on videos from his radio career, but the writing is funny, too, when he does it.
10-tie) Pardon the Raheel Ramzanali. Raheel is one of the funniest dudes you will meet. His blog is heavy on videos from his radio career, but the writing is funny, too, when he does it.
The panel says: This guy is hilarious. Needs to update it more and want to see more of his musings.
HONORABLE MENTION (ALSO RECEIVED VOTES):
- NBA with Jonathan Feigen
- Battle Red blog
- Charlie Pallilo's Pallilog
- Tag's Plays with Brian McTaggart
- Ted DeLuca/KTRH
- Astros/MLB with Jesus Ortiz
- Anna-Megan's FanZone
- Courtside with Fran Blinebury
So there you have it. Who did we miss? Share your favorites.
The best fan sites are next. Chances are ClutchFans will make an appearance. (In the radio business, we call that a tease).
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