Grumble, Grumble, Grumble

[Triangle andToo]

Play this player with that player - play that player with this player, it ain't going too make any difference people. We can all hope that Coach Dinosaur plays younger and quicker developing players, but it ain't going too happen. The Jurassic age will continue.

Fact - Coach Dinosaur was fired buy UW. Although UW was also trying too lure a bigger name coach , they were tired of the plodding defensive style. They realized a change was neccesary. Coach Ryan's team is averaging 70 pts per game and has that monsterous home winning streak. The arena is packed night after night.

Fact - When Coach Dinosaur was hired over Coach Brian Gregory, it was supposedly a great steal with a pipeline for those great Wisconsin and upper midwest recruits - well where are they? As it has turned out, Coach Dinosaur evidently had no pipeline of recruits too anywhere. All of those great recruiting ties have evidently disappeared, POOF! Phone calls too Europe, Chippy JC, a K-St knucklehead reject and a 7-Foot super project (This guy is no where near Chris H's ability)

Fact - Was it a total surprise too Coach Dinosaur that Josh and Chris were graduating and there was going too be a need for on court leadership in 2004-05. Evidently he didn't. He did nothing too groom a leader on this team. Leadership is passed down from the top - delegation. It is quite evident that 3 starting players. IO, RB and AD have absolutely NO leadership qualities and Coach Soderberg did nothing too groom these players for an obvious void. 3 returning players with gobs of playing time under their belt , it is a total mystery

Fact - The Dayton Flyers lost their 3 top scorers from last year and have 8 freshman and only 1 senior on their roster but managed too kick our ass at our Saviss. (and will be on their way too another NCAA bid) Why ?- Coach Gregory, who should have been coaching our Billikens, but evidently a very ill-informed AD, a restaurant owner and the players knew what their doing in recommending Coach Dinosaur - NOT!

Fact - Attendance at our Billiken games is just embarrassing for a lone Division 1 basketball team in such a large metropolitan area. Is there any wonder about lack of funds being donated for the new Vapor Arena.

Fact - Triangle is hearing more and more comments before the game, during halftime and after the games from longtime Billiken season ticket holders about not just the losing game itself but the comments Coach Dinosaur is making too the press in post game interviews and too the press in general. Words such as "Dumbfounded" - "Unbelieveable" - "Searching" - "At A Loss" - "I'm Searching for the best way" - "I don't know if their better shots, but we have to try something" - This is his 3rd year of coaching at SLU. If any of us were in our 3rd year of our jobs (hiring all of our subordinates) and we were advertising these comments about our managing accomplishments, we would be fired. No doubt.

Fact - Coach Dinosaur just has too give these players more playing time - at least 30 minutes. He has too find some kind of leadership for next year. Polk, Brown, are essential - Meyer and KnuckleHead Johnson(?) are a possibility for much more playing time.

Dispute these facts - Is the future in Coach Dinosaur?

A Happy Safe and Prosperous New Years Too All Great Fellow Billiken Fans,

so it goes.

[OldGeyser]

The truth can be painful. I am a longtime ticket holder dating back to the Polk era; and I am fed up with the Uncle Brad routine. He should admit that he has made mistakes that will be corrected. I would give him one more year to improve the product -- or its adios amigo.

[Sheltiedave]

Triangle knows more than anyone on anything - just ask the Trilateral Commission.

Old Geyser, if you read the papers and observe all that has happened, you must have seen Brad's comments in there somewhere about mistakes. I looked at this year's team and saw a two to three game IMPROVEMENT over last year, as did most everyone else. We could not predict Reggie's ankle injury, or Tom's ability to collect concussions and the flu in-season to this extent.

Brad correctly assessed that he did not have a full stable of horses to run with Dwayne this year, so he predicated his motion offense on ball control rather than pentration, which was a reasonable gambit given last year's stats and this year's roster. The ball control motion is based on having shooters, the penetration is based on having offensive rebounders.

Unfortunately, SLU has neither now. Switching motion offense sets and putting the gameball entirely in Polk's hands at this point is desperation at best, and negates the senior leadership we need for the entire season.

Brad has done a superior job with two teams that were not NIT teams, by coaching the bejeebies out of mature squads. He is now coaching a young team on the fall. Three years, two postseasons. That grades out in my book at an "A" for a new coach.

As far as recruiting, Brad had one year for recruiting his player, and he got him in Dwayne Polk. He almost scored on Kalen Grimes. His first class was an emergency situation, and it shows the gaps this year. Last year was his first year on the ground recruiting, and he was running up against programs that had been calling the recruits for three or four years. Next year sees two more glue players entering the program in Tommie and Kevin. If we get two glue players a year, develop a starter every two years, and hit a home run every four years, then no one will be sharpening knives on a whetstone.

[aj_arete]

You have got to be kidding me. Now Brad did a nice job his first two years, but THEY ONLY MADE THE NIT!! That might rate as a B, but we sure have set the bar low here.

[Sheltiedave]

AJ, keep in mind the first year had a team the homer announcer thought to be the worst team in the last fifteen years. Brad was on the list of the hot five younger coaches for SI and ESPN. Two postseasons in a row out the gate when I expected none proved to me he can coach.

Starting Dwayne's junior year, when Kevin and Tommie are sophs, I expect us to be hitting the Big Dance three times every four years, and the down year being an NIT year.

There are other metrics outside the basketball season that Brad needs to reach, and he has nailed all of them - the reason he was rewarded with a five year contract and a good bump in pay. We are horrendously down this year in the win/loss column, but we have our heads up, running a clean program, and as fans we can see promising recruits coming in.

I could point to Iowa to illustrate how senior development and a key injury returnee change a season(tho they are way overrated right now,) or cite Mizzou on how not to seek recruits, but most people either have a perspective on their situations now, or never will. Brad has been a burning success wherever he has coached, and Saint Louis will be no different.

[lefty]

If SLU was fourth choice, it was an extremely distant fourth. Kansas was his #1 with Illinois next while Self was there and then Missouri by default. He gave SLU little or no attention.