This blog has generally been alot of fun to write. I don't have a ton to offer right now, but I am really excited for football season to start.

While it has been tons of fun to write for, I've never really considered it important. I've never been under the impression that my words carry any weight. I can't imagine Coach Johnson or his staff come on here looking for approval. I'd laugh if other coaches came here looking for a hot tip or insider information.

Then again, I realize we have an audience, so I know the opinions expressed here don't just simmer in their own self-righteousness, anger, disappointment, or whatever is being addressed by the post. Does anyone think I am affecting anything whenever I post? I used to think "no way," but lately, it seems like there is a serious case building for the importance of blogs and the online community in general that in the very least requires a minute of reflection.

Winfield showed me this link a few days ago, and it got me thinking about where the online community stands in terms of impact on the programs they are associated with. BigBlueShoe from Stampede Blue obviously just owned this Bob Kravitz guy, but upon further reading, BBS also makes another point - blogging is indeed journalism. Did he intend to make that point? I don't know. However, I think he drives home the point that even people who may write under names like "Orson Swindle" are in fact very, very serious journalists.

Yes, I just grouped ourselves in with the funniest and one of the most popular sports bloggers around. You don't like it? Feel free to comment.

Yes, Bob Kravitz may not like blogging. If bob Kravitz's grandad was a journalist, he probably hated Rolling Stone Magazine as well. Why? Because the magazine is known for publishing subjective accounts of stories written by writers who get caught up in them.

Yes, I just grouped ourselves in with one of the most respected publications of the last century. Comments, use them.

Sure, your average blogger is a whiskey bourbon (excuse me) swilling miscreant deviant who spends too much time watching sports. However, Furrer4Heisman and Hunter S. Thompson both will tell you that being under the influence does not preclude good reporting.

I'm not going to pretend like this is serious business. The journalism we do here (and strangely, even though it is technically journalism I still don't like calling it that) is mediocre at best and in the grand scheme of written information is only slightly more valuable than the drivel that most message boards produce. My God, are just like the AJC.

Yes, I just grouped ourselves in with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Even I might have to post a comment in outrage about that.

The bottom line: this really is journalism. It is a valid form of self expression and communication that delivers not only outside information but also a motivation for caring to its readers. Sunday Morning Quarterback was (and still is as Dr. Saturday for Yahoo! Sports) the standard of sports blogging for the blogger nation. However, his move to Yahoo is not what legitimized his journalism. The fact that Matt Hinton is one of the most outstanding sports journalists around did that.

Blogging, reporting, writing, whatever you want to call it - journalism exists in many forms, and has always had dubious validity. Writing under a name such as "BigBlueShoe" or "Winfield Featherston," however, doesn't decide that.