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Mark Heim | mheim@al.com
Detroit Free Press inter George Stoia had some fun with MAC players asking if they wanted Bama: "A lot of people thought it was hilarious to begin with. Then, it started to blow up a little bit."
It was really a product of thinking outside the box.
How do you produce interesting content from an event that isn't always interesting?
So, when the MAC Media Day took place Tuesday, the Detroit Free Press sent intern George Stoia to Ford Field with one very specific assignment.
"MAC Media Day is definitely not something everybody is dying to read about," Stoia said Wednesday morning when he joined me and Lee Shirvanian on "The Opening Kickoff" on WNSP-FM 105.5 in Mobile, Alabama. "We wanted to do something fun. We wrote a bunch of a different stories, but I just went around and asked every player if they wanted to play Alabama."
Stoia, a student who covers the Oklahoma Sooners for the OU Daily, pointed out his editor just wanted to do something different.
The result was a two-minute and 13-second video, which has been viewed more than 26,000 times. He asked one simple question: Do you want Bama?
Stoia said the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive.
"A lot of people thought it was hilarious to begin with," he explained. "Then, it started to blow up a little bit. I think it had 100 re-tweets this morning. Now, it's getting some Alabama fans in the mentions."
The normal reaction, at this point, has ensued. MAC fans welcome the challenge of Nick Saban's defending CFP national champs. Alabama fans, however, feel just as strongly that the Tide would dominate.
One fan pointed out to Stoia his video compilation isn't journalism.
"That's OK," he said. "They're just not having fun. It was something interesting at an event that isn't always interesting."
He added the video did give him a glimpse into MAC fandom.
"I didn't realize how many people enjoy the MAC," he said. "There are a lot of MAC homers."
And, by the head count in the video, all players said they did want Bama. However, Stoia said that's just what they said on video.
He said one of the Kent State players was a member of the roster in 2016 when Alabama defeated the Golden Flashes 48-0.
"He said it was horrible," Stoia said. "I was hoping he was going to say that on camera, but when I turned the camera on, he was like, 'sure, yeah, we'll play them."
The idea of wanting Bama isn't a new one.
And, AL.com even had a laugh about.
Check it out below.
Mark Heim | mheim@al.com
Here's story behind MAC Media Day's 'We want Bama' video from reporter himself
It was really a product of thinking outside the box.
How do you produce interesting content from an event that isn't always interesting?
So, when the MAC Media Day took place Tuesday, the Detroit Free Press sent intern George Stoia to Ford Field with one very specific assignment.
"MAC Media Day is definitely not something everybody is dying to read about," Stoia said Wednesday morning when he joined me and Lee Shirvanian on "The Opening Kickoff" on WNSP-FM 105.5 in Mobile, Alabama. "We wanted to do something fun. We wrote a bunch of a different stories, but I just went around and asked every player if they wanted to play Alabama."
Stoia, a student who covers the Oklahoma Sooners for the OU Daily, pointed out his editor just wanted to do something different.
The result was a two-minute and 13-second video, which has been viewed more than 26,000 times. He asked one simple question: Do you want Bama?
Stoia said the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive.
"A lot of people thought it was hilarious to begin with," he explained. "Then, it started to blow up a little bit. I think it had 100 re-tweets this morning. Now, it's getting some Alabama fans in the mentions."
The normal reaction, at this point, has ensued. MAC fans welcome the challenge of Nick Saban's defending CFP national champs. Alabama fans, however, feel just as strongly that the Tide would dominate.
One fan pointed out to Stoia his video compilation isn't journalism.
"That's OK," he said. "They're just not having fun. It was something interesting at an event that isn't always interesting."
He added the video did give him a glimpse into MAC fandom.
"I didn't realize how many people enjoy the MAC," he said. "There are a lot of MAC homers."
And, by the head count in the video, all players said they did want Bama. However, Stoia said that's just what they said on video.
He said one of the Kent State players was a member of the roster in 2016 when Alabama defeated the Golden Flashes 48-0.
"He said it was horrible," Stoia said. "I was hoping he was going to say that on camera, but when I turned the camera on, he was like, 'sure, yeah, we'll play them."
The idea of wanting Bama isn't a new one.
And, AL.com even had a laugh about.
Check it out below.
Mark Heim | mheim@al.com
Here's story behind MAC Media Day's 'We want Bama' video from reporter himself
