Western Oregon Journal

Issue date: 2/18/09 Section: News

After many years of seeing rival schools bolster their image, Western's athletics Web site, www.wouwolves.com, has a new look and feel.
The new site was unveiled a few weeks ago, inspired by former Sports Information Director (SID) Russ Blunck and current SID Danny Barnts. The new site is more viewer-friendly and features up-to-the-minute statistics and video.
"My goal is to deliver to fans, coaches, and athletes a site that is simple yet visually appealing to everyone," said Barnts.
The new look displays the Wolves' "glaring eyes" logo on many of the icons, and is most noticeable in high definition at the top of the page.
Beyond the cosmetic appeal of the site, it is now more current and in line with the sites of other collegiate athletics programs. Instead of simple press releases, the current events also feature photos and links for box scores, results and statistics.
"We made sure to keep exploring other Web sites [for ideas]," said Barnts of the process, which began last summer.
The team, which included designer Shane Van Matre, also noticed things it didn't like. "Some of the other [collegiate athletic Web sites] complicate things too much."
The site is more interactive than in the past. Fans can now have score updates sent to their mobile phones via text and can vote in user-polls that were not on the previous site. In addition, the site now names Wolves Athletes of the Week and displays them on the front page.
"I feel that it's important for fans to be able to put a face with the story," said Barnts.
Many of the old features, such as rosters, coach bios and results, are still present, but are much easier to access for users. The new program is also easier for Barnts.
"This is my third Web editing program, and this one is by far the best," he said.
Barnts thinks the site will play an important role in recruiting both athletes and other students to Western. "It's important to display Western Oregon University," he said.
There are still a few kinks, however, and most are due to the transition process. For example, some of the old athlete bios are no longer available, and many of the archived press releases have not been re-posted.
"I definitely want to keep improving," said Barnts. "It's something [we] can keep continually working on."

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