RecCenterRat Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I have no problem with the Irish hosting this game. They have a higher RPI than SLU .. Couldn't they have found a better venue in Chicago .. I know they have a huge fan base in Chicago .. which is only about 90 miles away .. which is the same distance as Fort Wayne .. ND folk are saying that their university floated that idea (depaul's home venue, Allstate) .. and we rejected it .. is that possible? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBand Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I don't think RPI played any role in this decision. What I dont understand is that if SLU made assurances that the normal clock crew that SLU uses at every game at Kiel would be in house...why would the NIT sacrifice a Saturday night game? Had it been here it most likely would have been on national TV. Why have a a Monday night game that is not close to either school's home and not on TV? Weird. and Disappointing...because I was excited about the possibility of another "home" game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I fail to believe that we vetoed the idea of playing in Chicago at Allstate arena. Our team has experience in that building. Last time there we pulled off the huge comeback from 18 down in the 2nd half against a very good DePaul team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 It looks like ESPN2 has fixed time slots for NIT games so they do not conflict with the bigger tournament. As others have mentioned any Saturday NIT game in the central time zone would have to have been played at 10:00am. SO Villanova is hosting Virginia (an eastern time zone game). The game on Monday will be Michigan v. Oklahoma (8 central)which will sound good to football fans. This would have meant SLU made an offer to host it at 8:00pm but giving it to ND would have been more important. (I doubt they would have moved the game to 9:00pm in Fort Wayne). If SLU wins the rest of their games would likely be on ESPN2 the whole way (3 out of 4 quarters will be on). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bay Area Billiken Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 Did we get "domered," "NITpicked," or both? It would not be as disturbing had it not surfaced that the game was in St. Louis. Even a Notre Dame website reporter had the game in St. Louis. It appears that Savvis Center itself was available for a game early next week. A game there against Notre Dame might have drawn a huge crowd, a near sellout, as in 20,000 fans. It appears that Notre Dame wants no part of playing SLU in St. Louis. It also appears that the NIT wants Notre Dame playing in the semi-finals in New York. The way to handle this is for our Billikens to use this for motivation, play a great game, and beat Notre Dame in Ft. Wayne. GO BILLIKENS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesycow Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 the NIT just doesn't draw all that well, period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBand Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I see a hole in their schedule on saturday night. I wonder if our game would have fit in there... http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tvlisting...40320&network=2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 >the NIT just doesn't draw all that well, period. Go haunt some other board son. You're a troll. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bay Area Billiken Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 A poster on ND's board claims that SLU did not want to play in Chicago, believing that would be too pro-Notre Dame (as if Ft. Wayne will not be). Frankly, that makes no sense because Chicago would be much easier to access for Billiken fans than Ft. Wayne. Bus trips are reportedly already being planned from South Bend for that 92 mile trip. That poster said SLU wanted the game somewhere in Southern Illinois, which begs the question of where? That seems a bit hard to believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesycow Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 Mizzou made the NIT too. Would I really have room to stand on for criticizing the Billikens for making the 2nd round when the Tigers lost their 1st round? Care to explain why it WOULD sell out? Notre Dame isn't exactly the same presence in St. Louis that it is in Chicago and northern Illinois. Notre Dame basketball doesn't really have the mystique that would draw the "casual" fan of college basketball. The NCAA tournament is gonna be in St. Louis shortly, so a lot of fans would be turned off from attending an NIT game at savvis just because they've already spent money on NCAA Basketball for March. If you disagree, explain why, don't just call the person you disagree with a troll. That smacks of the 4th grade playground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 Comment based upon your body of work son. A punk troll is my conclusion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesycow Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 No really, it's classy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 Yeah, but they would not put up a game against CBS/Big Dance. It would be bad business. ESPN2 will put up figure skating or poker or bridge or quilt making or some other fine sport with low production costs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billiken Law Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 >No really, it's classy. Unless I'm in your will, don't call me son (to Adolph Rupp). The idea that SLU would sell out any game at this point in time, let alone an NIT game on a Monday or Tuesday night against ND is laughable. We couldn't get more than 10,000 for Arizona and the largest crowd of the season was less than 11,000. Where are the additional 9,000 fans going to come from? Notre Dame basketball isn't ND football - many don't even realize ND has a hoops team. Plus, for once Cheesy is right, causal hoops fans are going to be more focused on the NCAA's soon coming to town than they will be an NIT game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mobile-iken Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 I don't think anyone said we could sell out Savvis...Wasn't the Family Arena the one mentioned? I don't find that laughable at all. Notre Dame fans are everywhere and they are VERY passionate. I realize we aren't talking football but basketball is pretty popular in Indiana. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesycow Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billiken Law Posted March 18, 2004 Share Posted March 18, 2004 Family Arena yes, but the quote was: "A game there against Notre Dame might have drawn a huge crowd, a near sellout, as in 20,000 fans." - Bay Area Billiken ND fans are not nearly as passionate about hoops as they are about football. I was in Indy last year for the ND/Illinois NCAA 2nd round game and there were many more Illinois, Mizzou and Marquette fans than ND fans. Still, if the game were on a weekend I think SLU could have drawn 12,000+ with some ND fans coming in, but they aren't going to make the trip on a Monday or Tuesday night. Now, if it had been SLU/Mizzou THEN a sellout is possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBand Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Law, BayArea may have been factoring in the possibility of a saturday night game against ND at the Family Arena when he said it would draw well. A Saturday game was the initial thought process that the SLU folks seemed to have about the situation. I agree with you...monday and tuesday night is not a great date for a game, but that saturday game possibility had my mouth watering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Now you are letting your anti-ND bias get in the way of your judgement. I am a Notre Shame Hater too but I think that they would have drawn a large crowd and agree with the near sell out comment even of Savvis. You may have noticed we draw an around of 9,000 fans per game in Savvis and that included some dogs. It is reasonable that the Post Season and ND factors would have sold more tickets. Plus alot of basketball fans in town around they area possibly buyging walk up tix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bay Area Billiken Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 The emphasis on a near sellout is missing the point. That game could have been at Savvis and drawn a big crowd, bigger than Ft. Wayne (or Joyce ACC at ND) even hold. We will never know because we never got the chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Band Guy Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 Would it have even been possible for Savvis to turn around from hosting the wrestling tournament, host an NIT game, and make news ice for the Blues? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bay Area Billiken Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 This is all moot now, or "water over the dam," but the Savvis Center Calendar of Events indicates that Savvis has NCAA wrestling through Saturday, 3/20, a concert on Sunday evening, 3/21, and a Blues' game on Thursday, 3/25. Thus, it appears that Savvis would have been available for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week. My main point is that it appears that ND did not want to play SLU in St. Louis and/or the NIT wants ND to make New York. It is disappointing because for a time it appeared that the Irish would be playing SLU in St. Louis for the first time since the early 1970's, as I recall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cujaysfan Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 i think the point being missed here is that the NIT is about money... the iowa game had pretty mediocre attendance (about 5600) - while ND had just under 10000 - why would the NIT not give the advantage to ND who showed they would support the game and thus more cash for the NIT. If the Iowa game had been a sellout - then i would think the bills got jobbed here - but that doesn't seem to be the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bay Area Billiken Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 cujaysfan, I am not disputing your point. But somehow the word leaked that this game was being played in St. Louis. Then something happened after Notre Dame beat Purdue last night. Frankly, I fully expected that SLU would be playing at ND from the beginning. But then we learned that the Joyce ACC was unavailable, and that the game was supposedly in St. Louis. As a double SLU degreed alumnus (1982 and 1985), who still remembers the last 2 Billiken games at Notre Dame, I was hoping we would finally get the Irish in St. Louis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cujaysfan Posted March 19, 2004 Share Posted March 19, 2004 i hear you bay - who wouldn't want a shot at the irish on their home floor... if chicago was truly an option - which i believe it was - i think it was foolish for SLU to turn it down...at least there could've been a contingent of some bills fans there versus next to none for ft wayne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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