Thoughts

[bulldogfan1]

Good
1) Rutgers were simply better. More athletic, Faster, and Bigger.
2) Rutgers very well may beat A&M
3) Gary Blair, I had the chance to visit with Gary Blair a minute (he was working the crowd like he was coming back to Tech!) and he was a class act! Very nice! Really pulling for Tech.
4) Century Tel Center was a great venue! We should be playing two games a year there!

The Bad
3) Officiating was bad, but didnt make the difference in the game.
4) I refuse to turn this into another band thread, and with respect to the students of the band of pride (its not their fault), The Band of Pride was not good tonight. The cheering was OK and the antics were somewhat "entertaining", but their is zero leadership. We were outclassed in every way. Every team had "matching" uniforms (even mcneese). We had blue jeans of different variaties and faded red polo shirts. Rutgers band was in place 10-15 minutes before we were and when we did arrive, we looked very sloppy and unorganized. The songs played were all overplayed, we will rock you, hey, neck, and ESPN theme. It also appeared that as the Rutgers band was playing, our BOP was mocking them, by acting like they were playing- I thought that was very classless and then to make matters worse- Robken was egging them on! That was Rutgers turn to play and Robken wanted to still the show. You just dont do that! There is no more Pride left in The Band of Pride. Robken has to go.


The Ugly
The Techsters performance. I thougth we were just simply outmanned and while the perfomance was ugly, I am very proud of how we didnt give up. The furture is VERY bright for Lady Techster Basketball!

[longdawgview]

Good
1) Rutgers were simply better. More athletic, Faster, and Bigger.
2) Rutgers very well may beat A&M
3) Gary Blair, I had the chance to visit with Gary Blair a minute (he was working the crowd like he was coming back to Tech!) and he was a class act! Very nice! Really pulling for Tech.
4) Century Tel Center was a great venue! We should be playing two games a year there!

The Bad
3) Officiating was bad, but didnt make the difference in the game.
4) I refuse to turn this into another band thread, and with respect to the students of the band of pride (its not their fault), The Band of Pride was not good tonight. The cheering was OK and the antics were somewhat "entertaining", but their is zero leadership. We were outclassed in every way. Every team had "matching" uniforms (even mcneese). We had blue jeans of different variaties and faded red polo shirts. Rutgers band was in place 10-15 minutes before we were and when we did arrive, we looked very sloppy and unorganized. The songs played were all overplayed, we will rock you, hey, neck, and ESPN theme. It also appeared that as the Rutgers band was playing, our BOP was mocking them, by acting like they were playing- I thought that was very classless and then to make matters worse- Robken was egging them on! That was Rutgers turn to play and Robken wanted to still the show. You just dont do that! There is no more Pride left in The Band of Pride. Robken has to go.


The Ugly
The Techsters performance. I thougth we were just simply outmanned and while the perfomance was ugly, I am very proud of how we didnt give up. The furture is VERY bright for Lady Techster Basketball!

I don't know about that one A&M already beat Rutgers by 29 in NYC. A&M is really solid

[Allgood]

Good
1) Rutgers were simply better. More athletic, Faster, and Bigger.
2) Rutgers very well may beat A&M
3) Gary Blair, I had the chance to visit with Gary Blair a minute (he was working the crowd like he was coming back to Tech!) and he was a class act! Very nice! Really pulling for Tech.
4) Century Tel Center was a great venue! We should be playing two games a year there!

The Bad
3) Officiating was bad, but didnt make the difference in the game.
4) I refuse to turn this into another band thread, and with respect to the students of the band of pride (its not their fault), The Band of Pride was not good tonight. The cheering was OK and the antics were somewhat "entertaining", but their is zero leadership. We were outclassed in every way. Every team had "matching" uniforms (even mcneese). We had blue jeans of different variaties and faded red polo shirts. Rutgers band was in place 10-15 minutes before we were and when we did arrive, we looked very sloppy and unorganized. The songs played were all overplayed, we will rock you, hey, neck, and ESPN theme. It also appeared that as the Rutgers band was playing, our BOP was mocking them, by acting like they were playing- I thought that was very classless and then to make matters worse- Robken was egging them on! That was Rutgers turn to play and Robken wanted to still the show. You just dont do that! There is no more Pride left in The Band of Pride. Robken has to go.


The Ugly
The Techsters performance. I thougth we were just simply outmanned and while the perfomance was ugly, I am very proud of how we didnt give up. The furture is VERY bright for Lady Techster Basketball!

You spent nearly a whole paragraph not turning this into a band thread.

We need more "bigs" out on the court. Malone, Bramble-Donaldson, and Anderson will be key next season.

[Dawgonit]

Since were not turning this into a band thread I'll offer my thoughts.

Overall I love the band and the atmosphere they create because its entertaining. They have a style where you're not supposed to take them seriously; They're out there just having fun and joking around. They make me chuckle when they mock other bands and come up with ridiculous chants. Isn't the basic point of a band to entertain the crowd? I say they do it well. They don't do a bland military out perform you musically style- they like to add humor, sarcasm, and dance moves into their routine and I like it. Take them out of basketball games, and the atmosphere goes far downhill. I will agree that I wish their clothing attire was a little better matched, but that doesn't bother me too much. I think we need to stop being so critical of the band's style and embrace them as a unique part of Tech traditions. No other school has a band like ours.

Also the other spirit groups were awesome, definitely were one of the very few bright spots of the game! we definitely outdid Rutgers in the spirit groups department. and yeah I know they didn't send full squads but our Regal Blues looked better than their dance team girls, our cheerleaders were better and as was our mascot. I just wish the Regal Blues were on the court instead far in the back.

And I'm leaning against playing in the Century Tel Center for regular season games. The crowd was big at the game, it definitely shows people want the Lady Techsters back to prominence and that they support them, but I think we need to rebuild crowds back in the TAC before trying to play over there. I can't see getting any bigger crowds over there for regular season games. The only reason this game was so well attended was because it was the NCAA tournament.

[Dawg06]

Since were not turning this into a band thread I'll offer my thoughts.

Overall I love the band and the atmosphere they create because its entertaining. They have a style where you're not supposed to take them seriously; They're out there just having fun and joking around. They make me chuckle when they mock other bands and come up with ridiculous chants. Isn't the basic point of a band to entertain the crowd? I say they do it well. They don't do a bland military out perform you musically style- they like to add humor, sarcasm, and dance moves into their routine and I like it. Take them out of basketball games, and the atmosphere goes far downhill. I will agree that I wish their clothing attire was a little better matched, but that doesn't bother me too much. I think we need to stop being so critical of the band's style and embrace them as a unique part of Tech traditions. No other school has a band like ours.

Also the other spirit groups were awesome, definitely were one of the very few bright spots of the game! we definitely outdid Rutgers in the spirit groups department. and yeah I know they didn't send full squads but our Regal Blues looked better than their dance team girls, our cheerleaders were better and as was our mascot. I just wish the Regal Blues were on the court instead far in the back.

And I'm leaning against playing in the Century Tel Center for regular season games. The crowd was big at the game, it definitely shows people want the Lady Techsters back to prominence and that they support them, but I think we need to rebuild crowds back in the TAC before trying to play over there. I can't see getting any bigger crowds over there for regular season games. The only reason this game was so well attended was because it was the NCAA tournament.

I agree everything you said except about the mascots.

We use a generic costume for Champ that's used by high schools all over the country. Rutgers and all other universities have customized mascot uniforms.

Can we get Champ an up-to-date uniform? Or at least shorts that match the jersey?

If it's not too much to ask, maybe a number of significance (1 for the alma mater, founded in '84, Spirit of '88, 12 for Bradshaw, 32 for Malone, 3 for 3 wbb national championships, or 11 for Spoon) instead of a random number for each sport?

[Dawg06]

The Bad
I refuse to turn this into another band thread, and with respect to the students of the band of pride (its not their fault), The Band of Pride was not good tonight. The cheering was OK and the antics were somewhat "entertaining", but their is zero leadership. We were outclassed in every way. Every team had "matching" uniforms (even mcneese). We had blue jeans of different variaties and faded red polo shirts. Rutgers band was in place 10-15 minutes before we were and when we did arrive, we looked very sloppy and unorganized. The songs played were all overplayed, we will rock you, hey, neck, and ESPN theme. It also appeared that as the Rutgers band was playing, our BOP was mocking them, by acting like they were playing- I thought that was very classless and then to make matters worse- Robken was egging them on! That was Rutgers turn to play and Robken wanted to still the show. You just dont do that! There is no more Pride left in The Band of Pride. Robken has to go.

You spent nearly a whole paragraph not turning this into a band thread.

His longest point by far was complaining about the band, but he refuses to turn it into another band thread?

You couldn't be more wrong about the Hoop Troop. The Hoop Troop was great! They were one of the very few bright spots of the night. They destroyed Rutgers band. Not even close.

I am critical of how the BoP is run, but the Hoop Troop is NOT the Band of Pride. The BOP is our marching band that performs at football games. The Hoop Troop is our basketball pep band. Two different groups.

I have no problem with the blue jeans. They are much better than khakis or shorts. However, I don't care for the red polos. Tech fans are supposed to wear blue. We have one Red Out, and everyone forgets this. I wish the Hoop Troop will find a more unique uniform for basketball games that fits their personality, though. The Hoop Troop isn't a polo crew. I think something like replica basketball jerseys would be fun.

Their songs were overplayed? Neck is the fan favorite. No love for the band playing the "All I do is win - Hands up" song? No love for Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer?" There was another great song choice the HT played that I can't think of right now. Rutgers' band stole Gaga's "Pokerface," another Hoop Troop favorite.

No love for the HT's dancing to "Jump on it?" That along with the Regal Blues halftime show were the most entertaining moments of the night. I think our band is showing respect to the other school's band when they dance to their songs because it shows they are are enjoying their music.

Our band was classless? Rutgers' band was the one quietly chanting "It just doesn't matter!" after we scored towards the end of the game. They were quiet with it and several of their band members refrained from chanting because they knew it was wrong to chant that on our home court in front of our fans as we sub out our seniors for the very last time after they played their hearts out. I didn't hear the Hoop Troop direct a single chant taunting the other team.

Sports Illustrated named the Hoop Troop "the funniest band in all the land" as one of the 65 best things about the NCAA Tournament. No other pep band has garnered that recognition.

You gotta love it!

[dawg80]

We have one horrible and one mediocre basketball program....and the best pep band in the land! The Hoop Troop is the best....period. They make going to Tech basketball games fun, and sometimes, tolerable .

My favorite Troop moment came against Alcorn State in the opening round of the NCAAs. Alcorn fans were chanting to our Techsters "over rated." The Troop responded by chanting back at 'em "Never rated! Never rated!"

The Alcorn contingent went VERY silent. And then the Techsters ripped off 20 unanswered points and kept the Alcorn fans quiet the rest of the night.

[Choudawg86]

We have one horrible and one mediocre basketball program....and the best pep band in the land! The Hoop Troop is the best....period. They make going to Tech basketball games fun, and sometimes, tolerable .

My favorite Troop moment came against Alcorn State in the opening round of the NCAAs. Alcorn fans were chanting to our Techsters "over rated." The Troop responded by chanting back at 'em "Never rated! Never rated!"

The Alcorn contingent went VERY silent. And then the Techsters ripped off 20 unanswered points and kept the Alcorn fans quiet the rest of the night.

Hoop Troop was rock'n and entertaining. they were so much on their game, I kinda wish we could have suited some of them up and put them on the court!! They brought game, four of the 5 Techster starters, not so much.

[Tech77]

We have one horrible and one mediocre basketball program....and the best pep band in the land! The Hoop Troop is the best....period. They make going to Tech basketball games fun, and sometimes, tolerable .

My favorite Troop moment came against Alcorn State in the opening round of the NCAAs. Alcorn fans were chanting to our Techsters "over rated." The Troop responded by chanting back at 'em "Never rated! Never rated!"

The Alcorn contingent went VERY silent. And then the Techsters ripped off 20 unanswered points and kept the Alcorn fans quiet the rest of the night.

That's classic!

[TechAlum05]

We have one horrible and one mediocre basketball program....and the best pep band in the land! The Hoop Troop is the best....period. They make going to Tech basketball games fun, and sometimes, tolerable .

+1

[ITdrummer]

The Hoop Troop was awesome last night. Period.

[Dawgpix]

Okay I'll chime in.

aTm shows up with two yell leaders and 8 dance line along with a pep band (sans boots!) and did quite admirably (not as admirably as our Regal Blues half-time performance:icon_wink:.)

The yell leaders hand signal the next cheer, gets it started and the crowd takes over . . . what an easy gig.

Some points about the spirit groups discussion:
NCAA tournament sites are HEAVILY CONTROLLED by game management when each band is allowed to play, how many personnel can be in the cheerleader/dance line/mascot box (12), how many band members are allowed, when one band plays the other is silent (but allowed to continue antics). Us Tech fans worry about lots of things at our sport events . . . . like we need to recruit TALLER, ATHLETIC WOMEN!

DP out.

[Willie]

The Hoop Troop never quit supporting/performing - they reacted to the R's band playing & entered in - never being disrespecful. They were "on" all every minute. I do wish they had some nice blue shirts.

[KDawg33]

Good
1) Rutgers were simply better. More athletic, Faster, and Bigger.
2) Rutgers very well may beat A&M
3) Gary Blair, I had the chance to visit with Gary Blair a minute (he was working the crowd like he was coming back to Tech!) and he was a class act! Very nice! Really pulling for Tech.
4) Century Tel Center was a great venue! We should be playing two games a year there!

The Bad
3) Officiating was bad, but didnt make the difference in the game.
4) I refuse to turn this into another band thread, and with respect to the students of the band of pride (its not their fault), The Band of Pride was not good tonight. The cheering was OK and the antics were somewhat "entertaining", but their is zero leadership. We were outclassed in every way. Every team had "matching" uniforms (even mcneese). We had blue jeans of different variaties and faded red polo shirts. Rutgers band was in place 10-15 minutes before we were and when we did arrive, we looked very sloppy and unorganized. The songs played were all overplayed, we will rock you, hey, neck, and ESPN theme. It also appeared that as the Rutgers band was playing, our BOP was mocking them, by acting like they were playing- I thought that was very classless and then to make matters worse- Robken was egging them on! That was Rutgers turn to play and Robken wanted to still the show. You just dont do that! There is no more Pride left in The Band of Pride. Robken has to go.


The Ugly
The Techsters performance. I thougth we were just simply outmanned and while the perfomance was ugly, I am very proud of how we didnt give up. The furture is VERY bright for Lady Techster Basketball!

Agreed on the no leadership part. But the hoop troop has dressed that way all year. The reason why the red shirts were diffreent colors becuase they are cheap shirts that fade. Now on the music I thought it was dumb playing "all I do is win" when we were losing by 20 something. And the hoop troop wasn't trying to make everyone think they weree playing, they were just dancing and doing whatever so that the eyes would be on them. That's what they have always been known for acting goofy and everyone watching them. I was a lil dissapointed with the hoop troop, but with ncaa rules like not standing or doing little bit of playing during the game changes their usual actions.

[Dawg06]

Agreed on the no leadership part. But the hoop troop has dressed that way all year. The reason why the red shirts were diffreent colors becuase they are cheap shirts that fade. Now on the music I thought it was dumb playing "all I do is win" when we were losing by 20 something. And the hoop troop wasn't trying to make everyone think they weree playing, they were just dancing and doing whatever so that the eyes would be on them. That's what they have always been known for acting goofy and everyone watching them. I was a lil dissapointed with the hoop troop, but with ncaa rules like not standing or doing little bit of playing during the game changes their usual actions.

Come on man. The Hoop Troop was trying to get the crowd and team fired up by playing "All I Do Is Win" because our team definitely wasn't giving the crowd anything to cheer about.