I wasn't there, but I think "down and out" would be more accurate than "dead." Just goes to show, "fans" want a winner--not a historical winner, not a possible future winner, a right here and now winner.
This is important to remember, because right now we are banking all our hopes on what look like bright soon-to-be-realized futures in football and MBB. But we diehards can't expect casual fans to get as excited about what might yet be. Casual fans want winning, plain and simple.
The flip side, too, is that the "fanbase" the WBB program enjoyed when they were winning consistently gave us a taste of what we might expect if football or MBB win consistently for a while. But we have to remember, it will only last as long as the winning does.
On a more controversial note, this also supports my theory that the WBB program's success in getting the admins' attention was based on the force of personality from Hogg and Barmore. Now the forceful personality is in the Fieldhouse, and that is where the admins are putting their attention.
Good Post.
As far as the WBB success giving us a taste of what we might expectin FB or MBB I would say I agee but it is a very small taste. If we experienced the same success in MBB that the Techsters did in WBB we would set the entire college sports world upside down. Same with FB.
I am not sure in the next 10-15 years we could experience that kind of success in FB. I do think we could experience Boise, Fresno, TCU, S. Miss success. Then we would need to hope for a shakeup in the BCS to get further.
MBB is where it is at though. I don't feel like we are limited to the extent that the best we could hope for is Gonzaga-like success. (Although that kind of success wouldnt be a bad thing) I think because of the fact that one player can make so much more of an impact in BB coupled with the fact that there is no BCS monopoly in MBB holding us back means that the sky really is the limit in hoops. We just need to have the best facilities wwe can buy and good solid coaching and recruiting and wwe could be up there with the big boys. It's not like we can afford to build an 80K seat football stadium but you can make the TAC one of the best arenas, power conference or not, in the South. Karl already gave us a nice start. Get some suites and a video board and you are halfway there.
I would say they have dropped down to the point where for the most part they now have about the same relevance as WBB programs do at most schools.
I think we all want them to do well. I also think the days of calling them our "signature or flagship program" have passed though.
Um, have you checked which conferences place the most teams in the tourney year in and year out? While it may not be down on paper like the BCS is, the monopoly is still there hence the term "mid-major". But I do agree, that being a top "mid-major" will get us to the tourney and bring in more revenue than being a top non-BCS football power.
Um once you get in the dance your chances are as good as anyones. You don't even get a sniff at it in FB. We CAN get into the tourney almost every year if we run our program the right way. I agree the money from being in the BCS filters into MBB giving the power conferences an advantage BUT it's not automatically holding you back before the season even starts like in FB. For instance right now Kent State knows if it went undefeated in football this year they will not win a national championship. If it's MBB team does the same thing they will be crowned national champions and no monopoly or conference commisioner or BCS committee member can stop them. The champion being crowned on the field/court makes all the difference in the world. All we need is a chance. Most years Gonzaga has as good a chance as 90% of all the schools from the power conferences. We can be as good if not better thaan them.
In the "good ole days" you could purchases half-pints of ET (Early Times) in the old stadium we IE Phillips school is.
The only part that I really was disagreeing with you on was the fact that the BCS doesn't affect our chances in MBB. It does, and I'm not talking about money. I'm talking about perception. That was my point about the BCS conferences putting more teams in the tourney. The deck is still stacked against us due to the fact that there is a misperception of ability just because a school isn't from one of the "major" conferences. I think there are more "midmajor" schools that are worthy of getting bids to the tourney than many of the "major" conferences, but they don't, and the ones that do generally end up with poor seeding.
D-I think you're being a lowlife. Picking on the Lady Techsters!
I mean, Champ110 has given notice he was going to take a break from the board and you're taken advantage of this.. . . and everyone else is piling on.
At least let him get back to the board so he can issue a patented 110% reply.:icon_wink:
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