CMC in Sports

We always talk in class about how CMC effects us in our everyday lives. Today I'm going to shake it up a little bit and show how CMC has changed the face of sports for the better...and the worse. I'm going to share the pro's and con's for each in my opinion. Let's get this party started:

First and foremost: Fantasy Sports

Fantasy sports came on the scene in the mid 1990's where people who were interested in statistics could combine players of all professional teams in one sport onto one team. So how did this little hobbie become a national obsession? Money...the almighty dollar has a tendency to make things a little more interesting, especially when it comes to males and sports. CMC may not change the athlete in this scenerio, but rather the faithful fan. I was at the Cleveland Browns/New York Jets game this year, where the game came down to the wire. The Browns ended up pulling it out, however, I heard some people earlier in the game cheering the Jets QB Chad Pennington after he threw 2 touchdown passes. Why?? They weren't Jets fans, so I wondered to myself, and eventually found out that Chad Pennington was on their "Fantasy Team" and they had successfully attained 15+ points for scoring on their favorite team. Loyalty goes right out the window when it comes to watching football anymore, as long as your "Fantasy Team succeeds."

Secondly...the use of the headset in football

This may not be the most obvious, but let's think about it...without the headsets implanted into the helmets of all NFL QB's, chances are the wide out would still be responsible for running in the plays. How does that change the sport? Imagine if you will a world where Terrell Owens brings in a play. For those of you who don't know T.O. he likes getting the ball, even when he's nowhere near open. I can almost foresee him calling his own number every time he receives a play (Or at least 81% of the time. ;-D ) The headset changed all that, the QB is now solely responsible for the receiving of the plays, and as technology continues to excel, I can expect text messages to the armband of the QB so there is no mistaking or muffled sound from the booth to the field.

Finally...computer illustration

From everything from instant replays, to fastball projectiles...computer illustration is officially everywhere in sports...Can you remember the days where the bright yellow line didn't mark the first down, you had to rely on the announcers and your very own eyes? What about that strike 3 call you saw on your favorite player that was completely out of the zone?? With computer illustration they can show you exactly where that ball is in a matter of seconds, with his hot and cold zone. This to me is probably the most useful out of the computer advancement in sports, mainly because it does nothing but help the audience. People go crazy with the telestrator (John Madden) but ultimately its a device that makes understanding the game, and the plays in sports much easier to comprehend.


Bottom line...CMC has changed the face of sports forever, and continues to do so. I've only named a few minute advances, there are thousands of them out there. So next time you're watching a game and instant replay comes on...see how many advances CMC has made for us...I bet you'll be surprised. Until next time...