I record college and pro football games. I then go back and re-watch them and post notes for some sites I run/write for.

From 1995-2010 I did this using VHS tapes. Last year I went and bought 3 DVD recorders and did that. Worked okay.

This year I finally got HD service through DirecTV. My understanding is that I can't record HD signals onto standard DVDs through standard DVD recorders.

I've heard about buying an external hard drive for my PC and then transferring the games over. Has anyone done this? How well does it work?

Any other suggestions/tips?

Thanks in advance. Trying to adjust to new technology can be tough for a die-hard VCR guy.