Set to be in Dallas for a while....

I saw a couple of reports today that look like FCD is poised to buy Juan's contract from his original club. Not much of a surprise based on the way he played this year.

Check out 3rddegree for some additional comments and news posts.

Hopefully Juan 2.0 will be every bit as entertaining as 1.0 - do we really have any reason to doubt it?

Toja Wig Night - I actually lobby someone with a vote

What a strange scene. 5,000 Juan Toja's at Pizza Hut Park. I even got my picture with Juan at the VZ club after the match - what a good guy, and a great sport.

So to make the night of 5k Juan's even more bizarre, I actually got some face time with Allan Hopkins, of ESPN. My buddies and I chatted him up for about 15 minutes (good guy as well - although they definitely don't go light on the makeup for the onscreen talent).

Allan had Toja pegged as MVP for the first half of the season - but it sounds like he may have changed his mind for the second half of the season. That stupid high ankle sprain!!!!

I still say that Toja should get the nod as the league MVP. His form is a direct reflection of the FC Dallas record. One player that can completely change the dynamic and flow of a team, defines the MOST VALUABLE PLAYER award, IMO. He doesn't have to score the most goals or get the most press time (although both help).

I'll still be pulling for Juan - and will chat up the next t.v. crew I recognize in the VZ Club (on nights when my wife lets me stay out past my bed time!)

Hittin' up the media!!

Over the last couple of weeks I've made a few posts on BigSoccer, emailed a couple of the writers on a few of the national websites (Foxsports, ESPN) - and have made zero progress. Yea me!

I did manage to make the first post on a recent MLS article by Jamie Trecker on Foxsports.com (and now I can't find the article - lovely).

I'll try to make a few more attempts at spreading the word over the next few days.

Pictures!!!!

Well the site has a new look finally. Thanks to my friend Seth for sharing some of the photos he's taken from a few recent games.

Sorry for not posting anything lately - been kinda busy. Did I lose all 8 viewers in the mean time?

Tshirts and bad graphics

So I have a couple of ideas for t-shirts that we can print up and sell (by the way - thanks for suggesting that cafepress.com site - that place is pretty cool).

One small problem - copyright laws. Turns out you can't use someone's name on printed material (shirts) without their consent...... So maybe printing "Juan" is generic enough to skirt the copyright laws, but I really don't feel like getting any sort of reprimands from the league and/or their attorneys - I'm asking for permission. If I don't get the approval to use his name we'll just have to get creative :)

Yes - I realize that the graphics on the blog are rather sorry... same problem as above. The only pictures I have of Toja are from the MLS website or 3rddegree, all copyrighted (copywritten?).... I've emailed a couple of the guys at 3rddegree to see if i can borrow some of their photos, but haven't had any response yet. I'll see if I can get a few pictures of him at the next game (I forgot my camera for the game tonight against the Rabids (that's not a typo)).

The quest continues - more letters written

On the advice from one of the posters I sent an email to T-Lo at the Star-Telegram to see if he has a list of the media that vote for the MVP. We'll see where that goes.

The thought here is obviously to get the list and then begin to spread the word.

My next letter went to Michael Hitchcock - the FCD general manager. The letter itself wasn't that entertaining so I won't post it here but I basically thanked him and the guys for the season to this point, told him about our collective love for JT and the crusade. I also asked him if he had an idea about any media list.

Still haven't heard from Cuban - wonder what's up with that. We're practically BFF, I mean I went to a Mavs game this year.

My open letter to Mark Cuban

So I figured if anyone in this city had any ideas on how to convince folks to vote for his favorite player, it would be Mark Cuban. I posted the following comment on his website, www.blogmaverick.com. Hopefully he's got some good advice. Or will at least advertise my blog! (by the way - check out his site. He's got quite a wide range of discussion topics posted, ranging from cell phone problems (funny), NBA officiating (no way!) and hedge fund investments)

Hi Mark! Hope all is well.
Hey - I was wondering if you might be able to help me out with a small project.
I am looking for a little friendly advice on getting voters to select your guy as a league MVP. You did quite a bit for Dirk this season to help get him the national recognition that he deserved. I'm hoping to take on the same type of project, but on a smaller scale (I can't afford to buy 5,000 shirts that say "Toja for MVP" and hand them out to people).
Here's the scoop: I'm a fan of the FC Dallas soccer team. They're up in Frisco - great team, good guys, nice stadium - you should check them out some night. I'm in section 104, row 11 - stop by and I'll buy you a beer.
Anyway, I digress.
They have this player, Juan Toja, who is awesome. He's in his first season here and he's made a huge impression on the fans by giving 100% night in and night out. Check out http://www.3rddegree.net/2007/06/who-is-juan-toja/ for a rundown and a good photo of the guy. Want a brief highlight reel? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aMVuL8epFc.
I want Juan to get the recognition he deserves - and the votes for the MVP award. You were pretty succesful in helping to get Dirk recognized as a legitimate MVP candidate. Got any ideas that I can use?
I'll take any advice you can give me. Feel free to email me or post a comment on the blog: http://toja-for-mvp.blogspot.com.
Thanks for your time! Go Mavs!
p.s. I may ask you for some ideas on how to address league officiating issues. If you've read any of the recent recaps for the FC Dallas games you may have seen one or two make mention of bad officiating. You've got some experience in that arena too, yes?

Found out who votes - My target audience!

First detail complete. I now know who votes for the MLS League MVP.

Yes, Homer, the internet "thing" is still around. And you can find all kinds of information there...

Each of the following three groups have an equal say in the voting:
Players
Media
Coaches/General Managers

Well, at least I've figured out who my target audience is. Kind of. Who, exactly, qualifies as "media"? Hmmmmm - it's a start.

Campaign officially underway....

Well, this should be interesting. I'm not even sure I know how to blog. Wait, I'm doing that now. Okay, so this isn't so hard.

What's the blog for? To raise awareness for the greatness that is Juan Carlos Toja!!! Hmm - quite an undertaking. I'm not even sure who votes for the MVP. I'll figure that out later - details, details...

Much in the same way that Mark Cuban succesfully lobbied for his favorite German, I intend to campaign for the Colombian maestro we FC Dallas fans have come to love - Juan Toja. Or as I heard him called at the park tonight, Juan Bon Jovi. I don't have Cuban's cash, however, so I'll be taking more of a grass roots approach.

Got any "I remember when Toja ______ (fill in the blank with something pretty amazing - shouldn't be hard)" moments? Send them to me. We'll use this as evidence to the league, or these mystery voters that I must track down, to convince them that Toja is clearly the league choice for MVP.

Oh - and if anyone knows who votes for the MVP, I'll take that info too :)

Here we go!