Summer2015
27
Joe and Jon Crispin, who played basketball
for Penn State, are from South Jersey.
Joe went on to play professionally with
the Phoenix Suns. He is now the Assistant
Basketball Coach at Rowan University, which
is not far from Total Turf, where he operates
Crispin Basketball. The brothers have a
column on the site called "The Last Word"
in which they discuss recent events in the
sports world. The column is interesting
because, for as much as they have in common,
the brothers rarely agree. In some ways,
the column functions as an infomercial for
the basketball program. It entertains,
provides valuable information, and markets
the facility.
In this age of selfies, self-promotion is key.
High school students have created videos
for SJSportsDigest.com. They promote their
teams and provide content for the magazine.
"Everybody who walks through the door
gets their five minutes of fame," says Jerry.
"The students not only promote Total Turf
and SJSportsDigest.com, but themselves."
Currently, the magazine is testing a feature
for college coaches to recruit local high school
players through the site. "We think that we're
making a dent in the sports community," says
Jerry.
There have been times when Jerry has heard
someone say, "You stole my idea," and he'll
think, "Which one was that?" A sports facility
cannot be born from a build-it-and-they-will-
come mentality. "It has to be more calculated
than that, and it can't just be a sports facility,
because everybody's doing that now. You
have to ask how you're going to differentiate
yourself."
