ChrisColston.com

WANT TO COMPLETE YOUR HOKIE FOOTBALL ANNUAL COLLECTION?
Because of our first-year limited distribution avenues, many of you never had the opportunity to purchase the Hokie Football Annual 2010. Here's your chance to complete the collection. We have a limited number of 2010 Annuals available for back order at $5 each (plus shipping & handling). According to Brian Hoffman, sports editor of the Salem Times-Register, it's a "must-have" for all Hokie fans. Reader Brian Angell says, "It's all things Hokie!" According to GobblerCountry.com, "It exceeded my high expectations!"
More raves:
“Best Hokie magazine I’ve read in a long time,” says Lamar Sale, operating partner, Western
Restaurants. “I bought the perfect amount, too: Three. One for the car, one next to the bed and one downstairs for company.”
"The Annual had just the right mix of facts, anecdotes and humor." Laurie Buchwald

To order your collector's edition back issue, click on the "Buy Now" button to the right.
"I have not been able to put it down. Great job!" Nick Moore.
"Hart to put down. Great reading." Hokiepro on TSL

FROM BILL ROTH'S KROGER ROTH REPORT

Hokie Football Annual a must-have for Tech fans

If you’re a Hokie fan, you’ve got to get a copy of Chris Colston’s inaugural Hokie Football Annual. It’s available at the University Bookstore, Volume II Bookstore or on-line.

For Colston, the former editor of the Hokie Huddler, this was a labor of love.

“Every summer I looked forward to the preseason publications like Athlon and Lindy’s and Street & Smith’s,” Colston said. “I’d pay $8 for a couple of pages of Hokies coverage. But those magazines always left me wanting more. I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if there was a preseason annual devoted to nothing but the Hokies? Something with real insider information, lots of color pictures, and could be a keepsake that you could pull out as a handy reference guide?’ I have strong ties to the athletics department from my days as editor of the Hokie Huddler, so I decided to do it myself.”

Colston met with Tech officials and put the plan in motion this past spring.

“The Hokie Football Annual 2010 gave me the opportunity to do what every Tech fan wants to do: sit down with Coach Beamer and talk about the season, get a bunch of knowledgeable beat writers together and talk about Hokie football, learn about all the players and figure out where the strengths and weaknesses are,” Colston said. “You know, all the stuff Tech football fans are doing right now. And since most fans don’t have the access to do those kind of things, I’m the lucky guy who gets to do it for everybody else and share that information. Now, instead of sinking $8 for a few pages on Tech, Hokie fans can get 112 pages of 100 percent Hokie football (and no ads!) for $19.95. I think even a Georgia Tech graduate would have to agree that’s a much better deal.”

And the initial reaction has been very positive among Hokie fans.

“Those who’ve read it so far absolutely love it,” Colston said. “They’re blown away. You pick the thing up and it’s hefty. It’s built to last. And I believe it’s written in a voice they’ll enjoy. I mean, I’ve written four prior books on Virginia Tech football, and I worked as a national sportswriter for the last decade. I’d like to think my writing offers a certain level of quality and authority.

“I think if you have the Tech Media Guide, the preseason issue of Inside Hokie Sports and the Hokie Football Annual 2010, you’re going to have everything you need heading into the season. I think all three complement each other beautifully.

“The battle I face right now is getting the word out. I attended a recent Hokie Club Kickoff event and asked one gentleman, ‘Have you seen the premier Hokie Football Annual 2010?’ He looks at it and says, ‘Oh, I get that every year.’ I say, ‘No sir, this is brand new.’ He says, ‘Doesn’t the Hokie Club send that out?’ I had to explain that this was a new publication independent of the athletics department.”