PennAthletics, FANSonly unveil new-look sports website

Penn Athletics officially unveiled its newly-renovated web site last week after a change in service providers.

The restructuring of the web site, which included a basic redesign and new categorization of the former site's content, was a collaborative effort by Penn Athletics and its new provider, the FANSonly Network.

The effort to redesign began last April after Penn's former service provider, Total Sports, closed its doors, leaving the department "really in a pitch," according to Penn Athletics spokeswoman Carla Shultzberg.

FANSonly offered to host the Athletics site for a 60-day trial period, after which the University could choose to stick with the company or look elsewhere.

"We looked at a couple other options, and it was the best decision we could have made," Shultzberg said of Penn's decision to stay with FANSonly.

Penn men's soccer coach Rudy Fuller called the site "one of the most important things the athletic department puts out," adding that it "just makes a great first impression."

Six months and a new design later, Shultzberg and the department could not be more pleased with the results.

As Brad Hattendorf, managing editor of FANSonly and overseer of the Penn renovation, put it, "We wanted to add our own look to each property... [to be] different from what Total had done."

"It was time to revamp," Shultzberg said. "I liked the old site, but it was more simple -- I wanted to be a little more splashy."

Among the changes to the site are three new, more prominent front page features -- an events calendar, a standings table for most Ivy League sports and an "Athletes of the Week" section.

Mike Greenspun, a 1983 College graduate who said he checks the site everyday during basketball season, welcomed the changes. An avid fan and supporter of Penn men's basketball, softball and women's volleyball, Greenspun said he finds the site "clearer and more concise" with the "information right there, right in front of you."

Within the athletic department itself, many coaches and administrators are finding new and different uses for the site.

Penn women's crew Coach Barbara Kirch recommends the site to all prospective recruits and uses it "as a way of communicating... race results and upcoming events."

Fuller noticed that the site "seems faster," which, according to Hattendorf, was the goal.

The "load time is one of the quicker load times because not a lot of heavy images [are] on the front page," Hattendorf said.

But despite the changes, there are still improvements to be made.

Greenspun suggested that the site be formatted for hand-held computing devices "to go for the next generation of things."

Hattendorf is interested in the idea of wire-less formatting as well, saying that the step is "definitely something that we are aware of that we're trying to mold our site into."

Hattendorf said the high tech improvements should take place at least within the next five years.

The athletic department has yet to hear any complaints about the site's new image, and Shultzberg is quick to credit the company, saying, "FANSonly did a great job."

The revamped version of the site can be found at www.pennathletics.com.

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