North Carolina State University Athletics
Welcome To The New GoPack.com
8/9/2001 12:00:00 AM | Pack Athletics
Aug. 9, 2001
For those of us who grew up in the pre-cable TV, pre-Internet age, it's amazing to see just how quickly the world continues to change. Not very long ago, we relied on one 6:30 newscast every night to provide us with the important news of the day. Now, thanks to channels like CNN and MSNBC, we get non-stop coverage of world events.
ESPN continues to take coverage of sports to another level as well. It is no longer necessary to wait on SportsCenter for all the highlights, we now have ESPN News to give us mini-SportsCenters every 30 minutes.
Although still relatively new, the Internet is also constantly getting better and more informative. With that in mind, we bring you the new and improved GOPACK.com.
Let's begin with the new design. What you see across the top of your screen are now the standard designs of not only the athletic department, but the entire university as well. The lettering design of the "NC State University" you see at the top of GOPACK.com matches the design that is now seen throughout the campus. And of course, the block 'S' logo has also become standard in recent years.
More than anything else, we think our upgrades will be easier to use. The pull-down sports menu will allow you to quickly access the pages of your favorite sports teams while at the same time taking up less space on the front page. This change will provide more room for other valuable functions on the main page. For instance, we've added the "broadcast booth," which will make it easy to access real audio broadcasts of Wolfpack sports.
Coming soon, the site will feature a sports ticker that will be constantly updated to include scores, schedules and other pertinent information.
We also hope that we have made it easier to order tickets and merchandise online.
Each team page will include more information than ever before. Along with the game stories and statistics you've become accustomed to seeing in the past, much more emphasis has been placed on celebrating the traditions and history of each sport.
I could fill up an awful lot of space explaining many of the changes we've made on the official website of NC State athletics, but perhaps it would be more fun for you to surf around and go on your own personal treasure hunt.
As for my old Haynes' World columns, they'll continue to be a part of the site, only with a different name. "Behind the scenes with Tony Haynes" doesn't sound as creative as Haynes' World, but there comes a time in everyone's life when it becomes necessary to make a change. It's kind of like that old oil-eating Vega I outgrew following my first year of college. The new name basically explains the column's overall purpose: to take the access I've been given and use it to take our dedicated fans behind the scenes of NC State and ACC athletics.
Much of the content you'll see on the site will be provided by NC State's hard-working media relations department, headed up by director Annabelle Vaughan. Annabelle, Athletics Director Lee Fowler, Associate AD For External Relations Charlie Cobb and Director of Marketing Ann-Marie Sales were all major contributors to the site you see now.
We also tip our cap to editor Jim Stone, Shana Foley and everyone else at the Fansonly Network who worked so tirelessly to make this day possible. We would also like to thank the folks at Visionfactory, who came up with the new design. On our team at Wolfpack Sports Marketing, General Manager Jerry Reckerd and Sales Manager Brian Asbill have been the driving forces behind the new look.
I don't know that there could be a more perfect time to launch the new GOPACK.com. Within just a few weeks, the fall sports season will begin and as a result, the entire campus will be filled with energy and excitement.
And if that's not enough to get you pumped up, just check out the football kick off clock in the top right-hand corner.
It won't be long now.
Note: While the site has undergone a dramatic change in its redesign, many more changes are to come as we prepare for the fall sports season. Please bear with us as we get the bugs out.
