Overtime Media

HomeField Beta Launch: Awesome progress!

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:10:00 +0000

By Reece

It's been two weeks since we announced HomeField's Public Beta Launch and we just wanted to share how well the launch has been and how excited we are about it. We're proud of HomeField and we are psyched to see it growing!

With HomeField now being tested by coaches at schools including Princeton, Duke, Georgetown, Syracuse, UNC, Army, Navy, Middlebury and more, we are confident that HomeField will deliver for you and your team, too!

We've already had a bunch of sign-ups from college, high school and club coaches who realize the advantage their players will have come game time, whether it's in football, basketball, hockey, soccer, lacrosse, volleyball... If you want to prepare your team for every competition as best you can, you want to use HomeField.

If you'd like to get on board, simply send us an email and we'll get you started.

Thanks!

Overtime Media Inc. Announces Public Beta Launch for HomeField!

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 20:53:00 +0000

By Reece

We at Overtime Media Inc. have been working hard on HomeField and now it's time for you to give it a test drive!

With the fall season approaching, this is the perfect time to get started using HomeField, so you'll be ready to post a scouting report for that all-important Game 1!

With HomeField you will:
Know your opponent - Prepare your team with scouting reports before every game.
Learn from your mistakes - Upload your games so your team can review every play.
Trade film - No more mailing DVD's. Securely exchange your game film over the web, instantly!

If you'd like to get on board, simply send us an email with your name and school/team and we'll get you started.

Thanks and good luck this fall season!
Reece, Dan & Joe

P.S. - Pass it on! If you know fellow coaches at your school or in your league who are perfect candidates to use HomeField, use this link to forward this message to up to three people.

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:59:00 +0000

By Reece

I'm not a huge Olmpics fan... I mean, I like chanting "U-S-A!" as much as the next red-blooded American, but I've got issues with an organization that includes Table Tennis and Trampoline as "sports," but not lacrosse? Allegedly, there aren't enough countries who compete, but hey - even Slovenia has a team. I guess they're afraid the U.S. will dominate too much. So much for competitive Olympic spirit...

Regardless, the last two nights I caught a few hours of the Games and I just want to share a few things...

Shout outs to Brown Bears Anna Willard '06 (Steeplechase) and Alicia Sacramone '10 (Gymnastics). Studs.

Also, let's give a shout out to the Home Depot for employing all these jocks. Who knew?

Has that underwater dolphin-kick always been a swimming standard after a flip-turn? Dan and I can't remember seeing that as kids.

Ok... I know it's obvious, but seriously... Michael Phelps is absolutely ridiculous. Freak of nature. I hope he keeps crushing all his competition.

I guess I'm not a typical Yankee, in that I don't detest the French just for existing, but it was awesome to see the U.S. men's freestyle relay come from behind to beat the Frogs after their sh*t-talking.

Generally the commercials are pretty lame, but this Nike commercial makes me want to sprint up mountains, hurdle rivers and tackle gazelles...

What about you?

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

We're Competitive (more competitive than you)

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:48:00 +0000

By Reece

This past weekend Dan, Joe and I, headed North to my hometown for the annual Cape Cod Lacrosse Tournament. The tourney is run by Greg Clemens, arguably one of the greatest influences in my lacrosse career, as he has long been the primary promoter of lacrosse on Cape Cod. From the Cape Cod Lacrosse School - which I attended as a youth, and later coached - to the Cape Cod Summer Lacrosse League, originally just for men, but now with leagues for youths and women, to his general enthusiasm for the game, "Clemmy" has always brought in great players and coaches to facilitate the growth of the sport.

Until this year, I've spent every summer on Cape Cod and of course, played in the summer league. At the ripe old age of 25, I'm a veteran (not the eldest, but a veteran nonetheless). This year, I'm in NYC and I'm stuck playing in the Gotham League. It's generally good lacrosse, and I play with a good group of guys, but it'll never compare to the rivalries held on the Cape. Maybe it's because I don't work in finance, or just because I don't know the other players nearly as well as my friends (and rivals) on Cape Cod, or maybe it's just the hour-long subway ride on the A to get there, but I just don't get the same sense of competition as usual.

Actually, let me clarify that... I don't get the same sense of competition out of the other players. I often feel like I'm the only one who takes it seriously. I know. I know... "It's summer league/it's just for fun/it's not serious." Sorry... that never sat right with me. If I'm going to pay to play and travel an hour to get to the field, be certain I'm there to win. The best example I can give, was last week's game - the first round of the playoffs - when our opponents forfeited for lack of players (six showed up).

Back to the Cape Tourney...
Day 1 - Team Beach House (our team, and defending champions) took care of business. We beat the Warpigs 14-2, Gilbane Insurance 7-4, and (mostly) Endicott College 8-6. We played awesome team defense and headed to the beach for a few well-earned Blue Yummies.

Day 2 - Playoff game against the Shockers (a team I've always had a certain distaste for - perhaps it's the name) and we blow a 5 goal lead, hit their goalie in the chest (several times), and play pass with the pipes all 4th quarter to lose 7-6. Bitterness ensues. Claims are made to "quit lacrosse forever... again" and a seriously dark cloud passed over our sunny Sunday on the Cape.

There were three redeeming qualities about the tourney...

Goals Against Average = 4.5 goals per game, one of the best defenses I've been a part of - particularly impressive in tournament play.
Free beers at Trader Ed's.
Lots of fun playing with Dan (again), with Joe (for the first time), and all of the Beach House Buzzards (a.k.a. Ninjas).
Bonus! Dedicating "Return of the Mack" to Joe during the game and watching him try extra hard to score during it.

*HomeField Plug!* - I wish I'd had a scouting report on the Shockers. Their attack really didn't look like much, but one guy was picking low corners with his eyes closed. In retrospect, we should've slid early and stayed on the double every touch he got. [Hindsight's 20/20 though... ask Dan].

Quote that makes me feel good: "I love how you even get fired up about losing a 'fun' tournament. It's one of your most endearing qualities." - Caitlin. Appreciated. I'd say that goes for Dan and Joe, too, and I think it goes beyond endearing. *Overtime Media Plug!* - We're competitive. And in the start-up/entrepreneur/sports industry, that's a good thing. A really good thing.

Champs, Choking, and How DVR has Changed My Life

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 13:57:00 +0000

By Reece

The Champs

Firstly, I must again publicly share my complete and utter joy with the Boston Celtics' 17th NBA Championship! I'm glad they lost Game 5, just so they could win... ahem... DOMINATE at home in the Garden. Usually, blowouts are no fun to watch (unless they're this guy), but I couldn't help losing my mind every time Ray Allen drained a 3, and Rajon Rondo stole the ball (a million times and counting), and James Posey played D well after the whistle, and Kevin Garnett came back to life and Eddie House came off the bench, and Paul Pierce took one of his stumbling drives saying "I'm going to crash into the photographers, but first let me make this lay-up using only my Jedi mind. Oh, and I'll take a foul call, too. Thanks."

Enough about the Celtics. They're great, and it was awesome to see three NBA All-Stars finally get a ring (and it was almost as satisfying to see a certain NBA player lose, especially with his daughters there to see it. I guess that's what happens when you use your kids as part of your PR campaign to prove your innocence).

The Choke Artists

Three out of four of the quarterfinal games in 2008 EUROCUP Soccer ended in defeat for the top seed. I guess soccer is like that though, when just a chance at a shot is considered good offense. It all started horribly for me - my beloved, and immensely talented Portugal losing to, ze Germans. Then Turkey blows everyone's mind, by tying Croatia in the final minute of the game, sending it to penalty kicks and winning. Croatia - the better team, particularly with Turkey lagging with suspensions and injuries - totally choked, missing, yes, MISSING two penalty kicks. (Props to the Turk keeper - their 35 year old BACK-UP keeper - Rustu, for playing out of his mind). And finally, the early favorites the Netherlands blew it against Russia to really screw up my brackets. Only Spain was able to defeat Italy to keep some semblance of balance in the rankings. Regardless, I went from 1st to 4th in my pool, and now I have no faith in my instincts for the semi-finals.

And How DVR has Changed My Life...

I didn't watch any of these games live. I know... who does that? But I didn't have a choice. My schedule just doesn't always permit me to see live sports on TV. In the past, and in general, it's no big deal - I'll read a game report, watch some highlights - but I couldn't live with myself as a Boston fan if I didn't watch every second of every Celtics Playoffs game (after all, they neeeeed me). I could probably live without watching entire soccer matches - but the drama is just too great, and really, a singular futbol goal is immensely more intense when you've been waiting 90 minutes.

THE POINT

I now have the ability to watch sports at my convenience. I choose the time, but not the place... yet. Face it, sports highlights on my iPhone still aren't good enough - but what if I could set my TV to record the game at my house, and that syncs with my phone, so when I get off of work, I could go to my buddy's place and broadcast the game from my phone to his bigger, better, TV?

The bigger picture (not talking about the TV anymore) is that I will consume the media I choose, when I want to. Like I said, in the past I'd let a game go by once in a while, now I make sure I record every important match I can. If only there was a way to block spoiler phone calls from friends...

Head, Heart, Hustle!

noreply@blogger.com (Joe) — Tue, 27 May 2008 14:59:00 +0000

By Joe

I think everyone knows what I'm going to write about. I wouldn't be much of a fan/alumni if I didn't. I have to send a congratulations out to Coach John Desko and the Syracuse Orange. They are the 2008 NCAA Men's Lacrosse National Champions. They are back on top again!

Now, I know this might sound like a complete cliché, but this really couldn't have happened to a better group of kids, families, and coaches. Syracuse is seen by most lacrosse fans as almost the "Evil Empire" of lacrosse. I know I thought of them as that before I went there. Let me tell you, this couldn't be further from the truth. The lacrosse family up at Syracuse has fans that are loyal to the very end, families that would take any player, past or present, in as their own, and coaches that would do absolutely anything for their kids.

I know this first hand. The two years I spent up at Syracuse were two very tough years because of some unfortunate outside circumstances. If it wasn't for the Syracuse lacrosse family, I don't know if I would have made it through them.

I could write pages and pages of stories about the players on the team, the coaches, and the remarkable tradition up there. But for now I'll just say Congratulations fellas. You earned your spot back on top. 2008 National Champs!

Happy Mother's Day

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Sun, 11 May 2008 05:11:00 +0000

By Overtime Media Inc.

Yea, ok. We mostly use this space to talk about sports, and technology and other manly subjects, but we couldn't really let the day go by without a shout-out to all the moms in the world who dropped us off at practice, picked us up when we fell down and cheered for us no matter the score. We'd like to take the opportunity to say thanks to all of the moms who made playing team sports so much fun... Whether it was for the Falmouth Clippers, Tabor Seawolves, St. Anthony's Friars, the Bucknell Bison, the Syracuse Orangemen or the Brown Bears - there have been countless mothers along the way who have been there in the stands, supporting us win or lose... Happy Mother's Day.

And to the mothers of Overtime Media Inc. (us), thank you for your continued love and support.
Reece, Dan, Joe

On Preparation...

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 15:12:00 +0000

By Reece

"Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win."

- Bobby Knight [As crazy as he is, he knows a thing about winning].

Dan stumbled across this quote recently, and it's a great point. Wanting to win is nothing new or uncommon. Every competitive athlete wants to win... the difference in those who win and those who don't, is their preparation.

And if you don't agree with me, then hear it from a legend...

[Note: I got this video from Joe who was kind enough to send me an email full of Jordan YouTube videos as workout inspiration leading into our MLL Training Camps.]

Lax on TV and Why You Should Scout Your Opponents

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:49:00 +0000

By Reece

Wow... it's been way too long since I posted last. In my defense, there just hasn't been much time. And what have I been doing in my free time? You got it. Watching lacrosse on TV - regularly! ESPNU has been great this year, covering a few games each week. I usually don't get to see them in real-time, so I DVR all the games and block my ears when Joe starts talking about the scores. It worked until Saturday - when I learned that Army beat Navy for the first time in 13 years!

I've only seen the first quarter so far, but the Black Knights really came to play, getting up 3-0 on the Mids. What stuck out to me in this early stanza was Army's second goal. The Knights moved the ball around the outside of the offensive zone at a solid pace. No cutters, no motion, just working it around... for a while. I thought the refs may call them for stalling. The Navy defense held their ground, playing man-to-man, just following the ball. Slowly, the Black Knights started to move and a cutter came around the back of the crease, as the ball moved to the top right middie. He fed this cutter coming up from the crease, who quickly moved the ball to the top left middie cutting back door on his defender, who wasn't out of position... until it was too late. The streaking middie came down the wing uncontested and bounced it in for an easy goal.

The reason this stood out: the announcer, and former Army coach Jack Emmer, then said "Army has been running this play for years." I want to say I remember this play when we scouted them at Bucknell seven years ago, not certain though. Point is, this play was not new to Navy. They should have recognized it, particularly when Army spent so much time working it around - purposefully lulling the Navy defense into a stupor that cost them an early goal.

THIS IS WHY YOU SCOUT. Army vs. Navy! League play! Ranked opponents! Arguably each team's biggest regular season game of the year! Games like this are too important. You've got to know your opponent. I don't want to sound like I'm criticizing Navy too harshly. Obviously, Coach Meade is one of the best in the game - the Navy program is outstanding. What I am saying, is if those Navy players had a better opportunity to study their opponents, they may have iced that play long before it even started - stopping Army from getting on a roll so early on in the contest.

Why We're Still in Private Beta

noreply@blogger.com (reece) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 15:58:00 +0000

By Reece

I'm glad we haven't made any promises on release dates and launches and whatnot. The few we have, we've met (cut it close, but we did it). It's just the nature of application development to take longer than expected. The problem is the 'expectations.' The point of Beta testing is the 'unexpected.'

As we developed HomeField, we thought through a specific process for our users, based on our time as players, and research we did with coaches. We tried to build the system so that the work-flow of HomeField fell right in line with any coach who used it. So we handed it over to Brown Lacrosse and within thirty minutes we discovered a nasty glitch and an opportunity for a great new feature - not what we expected.

Sure, our proud delivery sort of failed, but it was actually a huge success. We had the bug fixed by the end of the day, and future users (you) will never have to worry about it again. We then took the time to weigh the options of adding a new feature, designed and developed it and now players and coaches can print text-only versions of their scouting reports to paper or pdf.

There were actually a few ideas born out of our testing period so far, and we appreciate them all, but we ultimately chose to implement our printing functionality because it is a major step in the process of scouting another team. In our playing days, we always received a paper scouting report. In the spirit of being green, however, some teams have left this behind and leave printing up to the individual players. So, we felt it was necessary to accommodate those players and we think all users will benefit from this added feature.

Thank you to everyone who has shared ideas with us! We'll keep picking the ones that make the most sense and continue building HomeField into the best resource for you and your team.

Overtime Media In The News: The Boston Cannons

noreply@blogger.com (Overtime Media) — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:00:00 +0000

By Dan

Reece was probably hoping we didn't catch this Q & A that the Boston Cannons posted recently, but we did, and we're sharing it with everyone we can...

If you did not play professional lacrosse, what would you be doing?

Writing and directing short films. Taking surf and snowboard trips around the world. Ballin' in general.

I wonder what he would be doing if he wasn't also founding a startup company...

Enjoy.

Development Status: Pre-season

noreply@blogger.com (Overtime Media) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 15:00:00 +0000

By Reece

In lacrosse, it's way too cold. For football, it's way too hot. Some players are in shape, sharp and ready to go, others are still nursing injuries and egos from last season. Either way, pre-season is a tough stretch of the year when you fight adverse conditions, do double sessions and generally put yourself to the test in anticipation of that first, epic battle... Game 1.

While we still have the Major League Lacrosse season to look forward to in April, our pre-season focus currently involves more mouse-clicks than wind-sprints. Officially, we're in the midst of our internal testing phase, but we hope to have our private beta going soon after with great D-I programs - Brown, Princeton, Maryland, Dartmouth and Bucknell.

Dan, our Chief Technical Officer, is pumping out line after line of code (I'm pretty sure he spent Valentine's Day with his computers. I spent mine watching game film.) and everyday we get closer and closer to launch (Game 1!), so the excitement is tangible here in NYC.

We've gotten a few emails asking how to get started, and "why can't I use HomeField right now?" so, I'd like to apologize for any confusion on our status and trust me when I say, you will know when HomeField is ready for you.

For now, shine those whistles and get those vocal chords ready to motivate, the spring season has begun!

The Bears In The Bronx

noreply@blogger.com (Overtime Media) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:00:00 +0000

By Reece

What a beautiful day in the Bronx this past Saturday, watching the Brown Bears play the Jaspers of Manhattan in some D-I pre-season action. Dan and I hopped on the 1 train and took it all the way to 242nd St. - I didn't even know the numbers went that high - the last stop. Manhattan College has a nice field out there underneath the elevated trains, and there was a good crowd in attendance for a scrimmage.

The Bears jumped out to an early lead and for the most part seemed to control the game. Brown's Thomas Muldoon always impresses me, and I dig Jack Walsh as a player, a scrappy hustler who makes things happen.

Manhattan kept right in it though, and put a few goals in on Bruno. One way they didn't score, however, was on their man-up. Brown had plenty of penalties - questionable calls, but who cares? It's a time to practice man-down anyway. Or was it?

Starting sometime in the second or third quarter, the Jaspers ran a stall offense on man-up, literally standing still with the ball in their stick behind the net. Not - a - single - pass. At first, believing it to be a trick play that lulls the opponent to sleep before a quick cut from up top, the Bears stayed on their toes in their box-and-one. D-middie Mike Cummins' head swiveled around looking for the sneak attack, but alas, there was none.

Brown fans were baffled and unamused, especially when it continued to happen on every Brown penalty for the rest of the five quarter game! "You're wasting my time!" and "Let the kids play!" were heard from the Bears faithful. Understandably so. In pre-season, where the coaches ultimately have control over the match (five quarters for example), it is a time for the players to get up to game speed. Stalling on man-up, for whatever reason, is a waste of your opponent's time. The Bears came down from Providence to get better on Saturday, but their man-down might as well have practiced at home. Eventually, they decided to press out and try to take the ball away.

Had the Jaspers simply not put in a man-up play yet? Was it because Inside Lacrosse ranked the Brown man-down unit third in a pre-season poll? Did Manhattan have a secret weapon that they didn't want to be seen on film yet? The sidelines were lost until we found the answer after the game. Apparently, the Jaspers had not run their earlier man-up plays as practiced, and the Manhattan coaching staff decided to teach them a little lesson as to who's calling the shots. 'Run our plays, or don't run at all.' I don't know what their incentive (READ: punishment) was to keep the players from even passing the ball, but the Jaspers responded and the Bears once again garnered a great man-down percentage.

While I would've been aggravated as an opposing player (admittedly, I was aggravated as a fan), there's something to be learned from Manhattan's coaching decision. Sometimes, a coach has to make decisions that not everyone agrees with, regardless of the consequences, but in the end proving a point. Now the Jaspers are forced to work their man-up even harder in practice and hope to be ready for the season. Maybe it's just the kind of motivation that will work. We'll see.

Hofstra Lacrosse Coaches Clinic

noreply@blogger.com (Overtime Media) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 18:00:00 +0000

By Reece

Spent the morning on Long Island at the Hofstra Lacrosse Coaches Clinic, courtesy of Coach Seth Tierney. He had a huge turnout for his clinic for youth and high school coaches and we took a few minutes to promote HOMEFIELD and talk with the coaches in attendance. Great responses from the coaches of the traditional hot-bed for the game of lacrosse. We can't wait to start letting in users from the LI high school area. It's such a solid area for high school sports, and we know HOMEFIELD can make an impact for a lot of programs there.

A side note on Hofstra... what a facility! Coach Tierney gave us a quick tour and it was well worth it. I never saw the offices before, but they've really made some nice upgrades - including a stadium-seating classroom dedicated to game film! Watch out for Hofstra this year; they will be a well-prepared team (though I'll still be rooting against them on March 1. Go Brown Bears!).

Thanks to Coach Tierney, his staff and team for having us, and thanks to all the coaches for their interest in HOMEFIELD.

US Lacrosse Coaches Convention

noreply@blogger.com (Overtime Media) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 18:00:00 +0000

By Joe

So we went down to the US Lacrosse Coaches Convention this past weekend. Left New York City late in the afternoon and got down to Philadelphia just in time to get caught outside in the rain, but the rest of the weekend was a huge success. This was our second convention (last December's IMLCA convention was the first) and we are extremely excited with the great strides we have made so far. We're thrilled with the positive feedback we have received from college and high school coaches alike. We feel, there is a serious need for a web service such as HOMEFIELD and it is even more apparent after talking with everyone in Philly.

While our purpose in Philly was to promote HOMEFIELD, it was great seeing all the people we know at companies like Brine, Warrior, Scorpion Lacrosse, Maverik, Inside Lacrosse, Cascade, Adidas and Atlantic Sportswear, as well as meeting new people from all over the country - Utah, Michigan, Atlanta - and the world - Ireland, Germany, Japan! It's exciting to see such growth in the game.

Though lacrosse was the focus, we also made contact with some coaches who are involved with two or three sports expressing major interest in HOMEFIELD for sports such as football, soccer and even wrestling. Remember, we created HOMEFIELD to work with any sport. So help spread the word to any coach who might be interested in our service.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by the Overtime Media booth. We'll be in touch.