STLRedbird

Someone purporting to be Bobby Hill's coach at Lincoln College posted this on the Redbird board. Thought it provided an interesting take on this, so I'm posting it here: Redbirdfan forum thread on Bobby Hill

>I think the MVC rumor didn't have much weight behind it. >Bernie is the only one to my knowledge that mentioned it. I hope you're right. SLU to the Valley = Conf Tourney in KC. The mileage benefit to having the tournament in STL is marginal. Add SLU to the mix and it tilts toward KC.

I'm not a troll. I like the Billikens and pay to go to their games. But I'm an Illinois St. alum and if SLU joins the Valley, the conference tournament will leave St. Louis. If Majerus thinks he's locked into a bid because he can force SLU into the Valley and win the auto-bid via home-court advantage, it won't last forever. SLU = A10. Please.

I see what you're saying, but I believe this is the first time SIU has put a buyout clause into a contract, period. It would seem that they could have made a very plausible argument to Lowery that $750K is a reasonable buyout. This kind of money from SIU is an extraordinary statement, as there's no way they'll ever buy out even a year of this contract if Lowery fails to perform. That sort of a statement deserves some reciprocation. So I guess you could say that I agree with most everything you said. BTW, sorry for the attempted thread hijacking...

> >People came here and said the MVC was no longer a mid-major >league. It wasn't even the best mid-major league this year. I spend a fair amount of time lurking here because I live in St. Louis and I like the Bills, but I CANNOT recall anyone making an outrageous claim like that. All I'm saying is that Altman leaving Creighton is BAD NEWS for all non-BCS schools. If you can't see that, there's no way I'll be able to convince you of it.

I wouldn't get too cocky courtside. Fact is there are no destination jobs in the A10 either. If you had any sense you would be angry the Valley got jobbed the way it did in the NCAA not gloating about it.

I quit holding my breath somewhere around #100.

Lorenzo Gordon has been a very, very pleasant surprise for the Redbirds. I don't know why the Billikens did not pursue him, but I imagine it was concern over his acedemics. I imagine that the Birds had some of the same concerns. He was recruited very late in the Spring in response to an ISU player transferring unexpectedly. Had that player not transferred well after the season ended last year, Lorenzo would not be a Redbird. Funny how things work out.

Posted by kwyjibo on Dec-20-04 at 09:20 AM: <> MVC composite home record: 37-4 (41 games) MVC composite neutral court: 6-1 (7 games) MVC composite road record: 12-13 (25 games) I would be surprised if there was a huge disparity between this mix of home and away games with say, the B10 or the B12. The reason for the Valleys RPI is that they have taken care of business at home and on the road. Typically - according to Pomroy - home teams win two thirds of the time. They've beaten the average by a wide margin at home, at neutral courts, and on the road. THATS why.

I just sent you an email with my contact info, but just for the record - I'm not one to welsh on this sort of thing. :-) I'm sure you're not either - I don't mean to imply that... But, enough valley talk. This is the Billiken board and I respect that.

Done. RPI it is. $100 says that the Missouri Valley will finish as the #8 or higher conference. I suggest Ken Pomroy's RPI as the official source. www.kenpom.com I'm not trying anything sneaky or underhanded here - I think he's just easiet free source of conference RPIs. In case of a dispute I'll accept the judgement of the moderator of this board - should he be interested in getting involved.

I hate to come on here and flame, but there is just sooooo much mis-information in kwyjibo's post. Where to begin. I'll start with the most glaring item - Quote from kwyjibo: <> What nonsense. Look two columns over and Sagarin has a rating he calls his Predictor. I'll let you guess as to its purpose. ELO CHESS is is backward-looking rating and his main rating is a mixture of the two - which pretty much debunks another statement - Quote from kwyjibo: <> Won't take my word for it? Here's a link to where Sagarin himself explains this stuff: http://espn.go.com/ncb/s/bracket/banter/030227.html

I'll take the bet. Particulars - Conference rank as determined by Sagarin (as quoted at the top of the tread). Date to resolve - you pick.

TheA_Bomb said: <<"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because hard men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."- George Orwell>> Grrrr. You do not understand irony do you? Orwell wrote about the thought police twisting words to serve a purpose. I defy you to find where Orwell wrote or said this. Prove me wrong.... Anyway, I agree. Time to leave it behind. My personal opinion is that SLU will regret it, but count a good measure of optimism into that thinking. Good luck, Billikens - and nice win tonight! BTW, this is from CNNSI, cut from a commentary on the prospects for the remaining unbeaten teams (note the best victory): << Oral Roberts (5-0) Best win so far: at Saint Louis Put up or shut up time: Dec. 20 vs. Georgetown (Rainbow Classic) Super sophs Caleb Green and Ken Tutt have Scott Sutton's Golden Eagles rolling. This dangerous mid-major is fast becoming what intracity rival Tulsa used to be. >>

This is pretty much what I expected the response to be - money, visibility. Hard to argue with the logic. You have to admit, the Valley's movin up the food chain, though. Anyway, believe me when I say I'm no troll. I like the Billikens - and wish em the best of luck. Hang in there with Soderberg...

I moved to St. Charles six years ago after graduating from Illinois St. and count myself among the ranks of Billiken fans. Was the A10 a wise move? The Valley is doing damm well lately.

With all due respect Billiken Rich, it sounds to me like SLU would be struggling to avoid the Friday play-in game in the Valley tournament. Soderbergs a quality guy and SLU's a quality program. Its still early and hope you guys turn it around.

forget uminn.

Sounds like Foster has narrowed his choices to OSU & ISU. Ohio State has offered Foster and it appears to be between us and them. He is visiting ISU this week. http://scout.theinsiders.com/a.z?s=75&p=8&...004&nid=1029477

Whew. I must be probing around at a raw nerve, or something. You guys have fun being the redheaded stepchild of the A10. And another thing, it'll be a piece of cake filling that new arena when Fordham comes calling. No problem getting the team pumped up for Duquesne. St. Bonaventure had a good run in the 60's - I'm sure your fans will remember.

And you guys have the nerve to go onto the Valley board and whine about the animosity toward you poor Billiken fans. All I suggested was that the BE entry into the Chicago market is having some negative consequences regarding talent GOING east - not coming west. Have a nice day.

Have you folks thought about this? I could care less about SLU's conference affiliation, except where it impacts my Redbirds. For your consideration: http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles/chicagobigeast.html The point of this article is that there is a new trend for Chicago players to commit to BE schools. It is reasonable to expect that this trend relates to the BE flirtation with CUSA schools in the midwest, is it not? Actually, it is pretty reasonable to put the whole footprint together and say that the BE is moving into the midwest (Louisville, Cincinnatti, DePaul, Marquette) and you now have a new BCS recruiting competitor. Is the A10 going to increase your chances of success, in this environment? I don't know, but if the chicagohoops article is any indication, the talent funnel sucks toward the east. If SLU is joining the A10 in order to get a recruiting footprint in the northeast, the early returns are not promising. Your desparation is giving eastern schools a recruiting entry into the St. Louis area, just like the BE is moving into Chicago. Doesn't SLU have enough trouble retaining local talent? Do what you think is in your best interests. I think it is safe to say that the majority of Valley fans do not want the SLU conference gadfly in the conference. Our commissioner appears to feel differently. Best of luck in your future endeavors. I don't know where you belong, but the A10 is a big mistake.

Suddenly, academic reputation is very important to SLU. I will leave it to my esteemed correspondent to survey the academic reputations of the schools to which it is now associated. :-) It's too late to go into it now, but I'll explain just what a pariah SLU is tomorrow morning...