USA TODAY Sports Media Group Re-launches and Re-brands highschoolsports.net as USA TODAY High School Sports

MCLEAN, Va., July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The USA TODAY Sports Media Group today announced the re-launch and re-branding of its high school sports website, highschoolsports.net, as USA TODAY High School Sports (www.usatodayhss.com), which will anchor the group's comprehensive national coverage of all boys and girls high school sports throughout the country, as well as for the more than 100 local media properties within the Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

As part of the re-launch of the site, Ben Sylvan has been named executive producer in charge of all content creation, as well as curation within Gannett's more than 100 local media sites. In addition, David Weiss has been named the property's vice president of Sales, leading the nationwide Sales efforts for USA TODAY High School Sports.

Both Sylvan and Weiss are veterans of the high school sports space. Sylvan spent more than seven years with ESPN's multi-media teen sports property RISE, where he served in various roles including digital editor-in-chief, managing editor and senior writer. He also covered sports for Associated Press, Sports Illustrated and a variety of other media companies. Together, Sylvan and Weiss helped build RISE, which was purchased by ESPN. Weiss was a founder at RISE, previously serving as publisher. Most recently, he led the Sales and Marketing efforts at ESPN High School.  

Dick's Sporting Goods, Gatorade and Under Armour are re-launch partners for the new USA TODAY High School Sports website.

"High school sports are an inherently local experience, and with Gannett's long-standing presence in more than 100 communities across the country, no media company is better positioned to serve high school sports fans than we are. Gannett's local-to-national advantage, along with our relationships with nearly 7,000 athletic directors across the country who subscribe to our ScheduleStar software, enable us to provide the in-depth, real-time news and information that matters most to high school athletes and fans, along with our Super 25 and All-USA Team rankings which have become the industry standard," said Tom Beusse, president of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group.

Digital agencies The Wonderfactory and PERFECT SENSE Digital led the re-design of the improved website, which now offers new features, including more user-generated videos and photos, as well as trend analysis, comparison tools and training tips for athletes.

Between the proprietary ScheduleStar athletic management system and Gannett's local media properties, USA TODAY High School Sports has relationships with more than 11,000 high schools across the country. Visitors to usatodayhss.com can receive news stories, athletic and fitness training, videos, photographs, scores, driving directions and more for their favorite teams locally, regionally and  nationwide. 

The USA TODAY Sports Media Group encompasses all sports initiatives across USA TODAY, as well as Gannett Co. Inc.'s 81 community newspaper properties and 23 broadcast television stations. It also includes the sports photography service U.S. Presswire, USA TODAY High School Sports and USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

SOURCE USA TODAY Sports Media Group