#SocialStudies
February 1, 2012
Welcome, welcome, welcome. So glad you’ve stopped by our new Second Half Thursday feature -- #SocialStudies.
This weekly collection of video clips, tweets and posts should serve to get you up-to-speed on whatever has gone viral, victorious or just plain weird this week in high school sports and beyond.
As your tour guide, I’ll take the reins in providing commentary for what you see here – feel free to ignore what you don’t like and watch everything else on repeat. Additionally, if you’ve found something spectacular on the ‘interwebs’ that you think deserves a spot on #SocialStudes, submit it!
Now, let’s get on to the goodies, shall we?
1. Are you ready for this?
In order to get you amped for the first installment of #SocialStudies, I think it’s necessary to begin with what only a true high school sports fan can begin with: a "Jock Jams Remix." Enjoy. (Cue toe-tapping and an immediate nostalgia-induced adrenaline rush!)
2.!!!elbaveilebnU
File this next clip under the “We Enjoy People with Totally Bizarre Talents” category. When I first watched this clip, I was convinced that either (1.) everything was scripted or (2.) this girl is an alien robot.
Turns out, neither is true. Watch and try to keep up. Or better yet: try this with your teammates on your next long road trip to an away game. If you can rival Alyssa, it’s probably time to call Letterman.
3. Glove save
It’s official: Prince Fielder needs to DH. I think I’ve found a solution for the Tigers’ hot corner.
4. Launch the shot, off the defender, nothing but net.
Oh, and just in case you missed it earlier this month: Olivet handed defending Class C Boys Basketball champion Schoolcraft a heart-breaking loss on this bizarre buzzer-beater in double OT. We take you to the good stuff, starting at 2:20 into the clip with Olivet (white jerseys) leading 94-91.
5. Howell Highlander -- or High Flyer
Kudos to Brandon Nazione for this ridiculous dunk. Seems that Howell High School has their own Blake Griffin doppelganger! (Note: I don’t think it’s necessary to watch all 5 slow-mo versions of the dunk – but that’s just me.)
6. And in this corner ...
Lastly, we’d like to present Michigan State University Women’s Basketball Coach Suzy Merchant, who happens to be our keynote speaker at this weekends’ Women In Sports Leadership Conference. Who knew the reigning Big Ten Coach of The Year had such a sweet left jab?
On that note, we’ll knock out for the week. See something over the weekend that caught your eye? Snag a stupendous cheerleading squad on video at a pep assembly? Actually: snag ANYTHING at a pep assembly that we should see? Upload it to YouTube and send it on over.
You might just see it on Second Half’s #SocialStudies.
#SocialStudies v4.0
February 23, 2012
The best part about #SocialStudies, as I’m sure you’ve all realized by Week 4, is that the sum of its parts make entirely zero sense when combined into one.
There are no easy transitions from flying squirrel wrestling moves to some guy dancing down a professional sporting arena aisle while Bon Jovi blares in the background. Nevertheless – we love compiling the weird and wacky each week.
So, without further ado …
1. You won't see this in Battle Creek, but ...
Last summer, this Chicago-area high schooler stunned an arena with acrobatics not seen on a wrestling mat since… well, never. Yes, we are very aware that this type of "flying squirrel" move is illegal under high school rules – but that doesn’t make it any less cool to watch. Don’t worry: multiple angles shown.
2. Dance Machine, circa 1986
The lip-syncing is fairly horrific. The moves aren’t anything spectacular. And this video is more than three years old. And yet, once you start watching this weird dude at a Celtics game – you cannot stop. His stellar sassy-steppin’ solo starts around 10 seconds in. Ladies and gentlemen: I give you Mr. Jeremy Fry in HD.
3. He is the Hunter; Robichaud, the hunted.
Junior Vincent Hunter of Detroit Consortium knows how to dunk. Here’s a compilation of no less than four of them from their game last week against Dearborn Heights Robichaud. The Cougars won the game, 73-67 – pushing their latest winning streak to four straight.
4. Say it with us: Battle ... of ... the ... Fans!
And finally, it seems amiss to neglect the final day of fan polling for our Battle of The Fans contest. View all five finalist submissions here and click the image below to vote on Facebook for your favorite. Good luck to Frankenmuth, Grand Rapids Christian, Petoskey, Reese and Rockford!
It's MHSAA tournament time, which should reveal a bevy of video highlights and social media madness as we finish up February and fly full bore into March.
See something high school sports-related online that the rest of us must see? Capture some cool video yourself? Upload it to We're always looking for more to add to your weekly #SocialStudies.
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