Life Story: I've lived in Tennessee all my life, from Chattanooga to Memphis. I have an IQ of 130 which only like 2.2% of the world's population has, but I also have ADD so I think it balances out. I have a fairly big family of six - my mom, dad, and three sisters. Yup, three sisters, so I'm stuck swimming in the estrogen ocean, so a predominantly male oriented site has been awesome for the past...damn, has it really been four and a half years? I've been a Titans fan since they've moved to Tennessee, but wasn't really into football like I am now until about '05-'06. Perhaps the most unique thing about me is that I'm a cancer survivor, and have been in remission for about 9 years now. I was huge into playing sports before I was diagnosed, but since then, I haven't been able to play due to the extent I've had my leg worked on (it was a bone tumor in the left tibia), so writing talking about it has really become something I love. I'm hoping to one day become a writer and maybe even own my own site, so I'm going to college to earn a degree in Journalism. Living at home while I go to college, but I'm looking to break free from the nest here fairly soon when I transfer to a university.
How you found the site: Researching the 2006 NFL Draft when the Titans were likely going to be picking a QB, which made it a much more important pick and was something I wanted to look into harder. I've researched the NFL Draft before, even visiting this site I believe, but it was more of a casual thing. For the eventual VY pick, I registered on the forums, and I have been here ever since - eventually being passed the Titans Team Leader torch and being able to lead the best group of Titans fans on the net! Not to mention the community as a whole is one of the most knowledgeable around the net. You have fans from every team, so there's a checks and balance system to maintain objectivity (which is something about team only sites that I hate), and also fans of collegiate football. To know your stuff on a NFL Draft website, you have to know your stuff on the collegiate side and professional side, so it's awesome being able to come to one place where you can talk extensively about both sides. A new poster will absolutely double his knowledge of football after posting actively and engaging the community on this forum for 6 months.
What got me hooked on the NFL Draft: Actually, Madden. I would play the Franchise mode and use the Titans and go through the actual games and stuff, but then I'd get to the Offseason mode with Free Agency and the NFL Draft, which for whatever reason I enjoyed A LOT. It got to the point where I played the game not to control the Titans, but to control the Titans's Offseason. I'd simulate most of the season just so I could get to the next Offseason. Drafting players, bringing it/re-signing veterans, and basically forming my own roster was sooo much fun. So I think it was natural for me to take to SWDC because it was a site based upon the NFL Offseason.
Words of advice to new members: My advice, first and foremost, is to try not to be the "smartest guy in the room." Doing that will eventually backfire when it inevitably comes when a poster who is more knowledgeable than you are comes and makes you backup your words, so carry yourself like you know that you could be wrong. Too many new posters will come in a make this mistake, and those guys get sniffed out quick by the tenured members who from that point on take the poster's input with a grain of salt and ignore him for the most part. Still, I urge you to have an opinion, make posts, and involve yourself in debates. You'll learn much more that way, and as long as you're respectful to other posters and aren't stubborn, you'll be taken seriously and respected back. Not to mention, if you do know your stuff and you're a nice guy, it has the reverse effect of the "smartest guy in the room" poster. I think going about that in the way that I did helped me make friends and gave me a huge head start on establishing myself as a poster, which in turn helped me to get promoted to TL status after only being a forum member for less than two years. So in essence, "Walk softly but carry a big stick," and you'll be better off!