vinnielopes - Off the Block

January 27, 2011August 13, 2014

My men’s volleyball media poll ballot

Well it took a bunch of hours going over box scores, game articles and videos, but I finally have my first ballot of the year for the ASICS/Volleyball Magazine Men’s Division I-II Media Poll.

The first few weeks are always a little bit difficult to rank because you are still balancing preseason expectations with how the team is actually playing and who it has beat. Some teams like USC and Stanford have lived up to the preseason hype setting themselves above everyone else. While other teams like UC Irvine and Hawai’i are beginning to play well after horrific starts.

Check out this week’s top 10 men’s volleyball media poll and my ballot with explanations on why ranked each team where I did.
Continue reading “My men’s volleyball media poll ballot”

January 22, 2011August 13, 2014

My media poll voting philosophy

I received an e-mail earlier this week inviting me to vote this season’s ASICS/VBM Men’s Division I-II Media Poll.

The weekly poll is comprised of 11 voters, and this is my third season to get the opportunity to vote in this national poll. The men’s volleyball media poll is also a little more exclusive than other polls because it’s only a top 10. In comparison, the American Volleyball Coaches Association coaches poll is a top 15.

The top 10 media poll is released every Tuesday evening during the regular season. Once the media poll is made public, I plan every week to release how I voted on this blog.

As I am currently going over stat sheets and match results to create my first media poll ballot of the year, I thought I would explain my voting philosophy.

Continue reading “My media poll voting philosophy”

January 21, 2011

And we’re back and better than ever

And it looks like I couldn’t stay far away that long from the men’s volleyball scene after leaving The Ball State Daily News.

After four years of covering the sport, I developed an interest in the little know sport that has coupled with my passion for telling a story. I’m currently working an industry that doesn’t have a connection to volleyball so this blog is my outlet to keep involved in the sport — and to relieve my Twitter followers from the constant volleyball tweets.

The blog will primarily consist of my thoughts on the season about all teams, not just Ball State. In addition, I’ll post updates on my thesis/book that I am finishing up about the 1960-64 Ball State men’s volleyball teams.

There is no set schedule on when or how often I will update this blog. However, anytime I post an update I’ll make sure to tweet it on my Twitter account, @vinnielopes.