Title Town?

I've avoided commenting on this farse all summer long. But the winner has been announced (or leaked depending on your point of view) and its time to chime in. Before we get to the 'winner' (as voted on by the fans of course), let me begin by saying that this is one of the lamer, insignifigant marketing gimmics ESPN has run in a long long time.

Story Here

"Titletown" is Green Bay. Always has been. But ESPN had the brilliant idea of showcasing a bunch of cities and towns nationwide on SportsCenter and making a case for each so the fans can vote on the winner. ESPN apparently isn't above a popularity contest if it means new, and judging by the winner, younger viewers. The High School dominated areas showed that they were really grasping at straws. I've been opposed to giving a city/town/middlesex/whatever a nickname that's already got a home from the get-go. But I figured New York (Yankees, Rangers & Giants have all hoisted their respective trophy in the past 15 years), Boston (Pats and Sox have been on top recently), maybe LA or Chicago would be the front runners. OK maaaaaaaaaaaybe a college town. But that's where the line should have been drawn. So the winner (skip the drum roll) is....

Valdosta, Ga? Give me a friggin break. Sorry Green Bay, but you've been stripped of your nickname and the people have spoken. Your nicknme will be handed to a city that doesn't host an NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB or a D-1A program of any kind. Now I understand that the high school and D-II teams are top tier in that area, and they've got the hardware to prove it. But seriously. The typical American sports fan doesn't watch them religiously. Apye735 says:

To the people saying "high school sports don't matter" ... where do you think the athletes that the big cites pay to win titles come from? I would think that most professional athletes played high school sports.

No one's downplaying the importance of high school sports, but if your case is to be made then lets pencil in Mouth Of Wilson, Va in the top 5 shall we? Any hoops fan knows that Oak Hill not only sports the top talent every year, but also knows the players who've come out of that program.

If you want to read more comments on various blogs or message boards, simply google "Valdosta WTF" and you're sure to have an hours worth of reading ahead of you.

joker0348: We even had Ms. Valdosta be named Ms. Georgia.

Damn that must have been the clincher. I'll bet she be made it far in the Miss America pageant too.

Other than showcasing nationwide sports accomplishments, this was a complete waste of time. Maybe next summer they can vote on who should be "MJ" - Michael Jordan, Michael Jackson, or ... oh what the hell Montel Jordan. And why not toss in Mike Jones while we're at it. Who????

Mike Jones!