rhagolf
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Posts posted by rhagolf
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Anything that reduces the travel expenses that result from back-and-forth trips to the East Coast is OK by me.
Then, that budget can be reallocated to recruiting. That is, if the coach is up to the challenge.
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To insinuate that I have an agenda is just plain wrong. Yes, there have been worse times, but do we have to use Ron Ekker as a benchmark? Spoonball was great, until Charlie got tired of recruiting. Romar tried to get players, with Dollar's help, but at least the games were interesting.
"Disregard" me as you see fit, Father Biondi, but I have a point to make - just don't dismiss it, out of hand!
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I HAVE GIVEN UP! And, for my long association with SLU basketball, this says a lot. With no recruiting and poor bench coaching, what is the upside? Follow that up with lousy opponents in an East Coast conference, and there's really no reason to renew my season tickets next year - it's a waste of money.
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I will admit that for a long time I wanted SLU in the Valley. After watching this travesty of a season unfold, the administration of SLU needs to decide - ONCE AND FOR ALL - what it wants from intercollegiate athletics. Is it just to put programs on the floor or on the field, or is it to compete? Right now, Coach Soderberg is emblematic of "Let's just field a team, OK?"
If SLU were in the Valley, they would be a PERMANENT member of the Arch Madness play-in round, along with Drake and Evansville.
The administration was quite satisfied with an 11,000 seat arena, or maybe because the big donors knew that this was the level of commitment that was being given to intercollegiate athletics.
This program is sick, and needs to decide what it wants to be when it grows up. Otherwise, they will be able to fit their future fans in "the historic Baumann-Eberhart Arena, on the campus of St. Louis University."
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The thing that was the most infuriating about Packer and Nance was that no mid-major deserved to be in the tournament, so long as EVERY major school received an invitation. Made my heart glow to see Billy's Wake Forest get pummeled in the NIT.
Using their elitist logic, Baylor and Mizzou should have been the play-in game. Wouldn't that have been special!
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Went to the MVC Tournament yesterday afternoon, and saw the Braves take apart Creighton in the second half. SLU wouldn't have an answer for both Summerville and O'Bryant - hope that Bradley makes the NCAA's, so I don't have to see a whitewash of SLU.
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Can we look at this from another perspective?
Since we're now in a conference where every road trip (save Xavier and Dayton) involves a major expense in travel and lodging, the athletic department realizes that it's short of money.
Rather than apply for membership in the MVC, to keep down those expenses, we're now flying a lot of athletes to New York, Philly, Pittsburgh, Providence, etc.
Tell me that isn't a factor in dropping the sports; it's right up there with Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.
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Mr. Slaten rags on every college basketball coach who didn't recruit his son. And, I really don't see Troy being the savior of Rivermen basketball!
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As someone who is acquainted with Mr. Yackey, beware is a good word to consider. He is a former owner of the Lt. Robert E. Lee, which was moved from the riverfront to Imperial, without the approval of the Corps of Engineers or the City of St. Louis. The City was involved, because they had an urban development grant, when the boat was located on the river. The leased restaurant went belly-up, so the partnership headed for the hills, when they found a buyer.
Hopefully, His Honor the Mayor will remember this transaction!
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I have another take on the slow arena progress, which relates to the cancelled NHL season. Bill Laurie has been quoted as saying that, unless there is a salary cap, the Blues are for sale. Since he also owns Savvis, that makes it a real white elephant, at least for now. Maybe, the Bills can negotiate a real sweetheart deal on rent for the near future, knowing that they get poor dates and game times, anyway. It might be cheaper for SLU in the short run to use this to their advantage.
Any opinions to this idea?
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Chalk this one up to BAD COACHING! Having Mr. Turnover, Anthony Drejaj, on the floor, rather than Danny Brown. This is the first year of Brad's complete recruting class - so far, there's not much you can hang your hat on, for the future.
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Any word on fundraising and beginning construction for the new arena? With no NHL hockey to compete with, this would have been a great year to have a good Billiken team, to jumpstart the program - oh, well!
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Jill has an overriding problem with who she is. She patterns herself after Pat Summitt at Tennessee, especially down to the practice program that she operates. Basic difference - she doesn't have the UT players on the floor, like those of Summitt. The result is that many of her players develop knee and ankle injuries in preseason workouts, and her players are running at less than 100% capacity.
My information comes from a former Lady Billiken student trainer, so this is just not idle ranting.
Jill needs to scale back her program, to fit the abilities and capacity of her team.
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Roy -
I suppose my definition of "athletic" is a 4 or 5 who can go inside and bang with the likes of the Cincinnati's and Louisville's. The locally-produced and recruited talent plays 1, 2, or 3.
If you get killed on the boards, it makes for a long 40 minutes.
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Just a question, which might be like the chicken and the egg. Can SLU recruit real athletic players from high school or JUCO, knowing that Brad's style is defensive, slow it down? Or, because we don't recruit these kind of players, we must play this type of game. And, if that is the case, are we just in a never-ending spiral?
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This season is a bust with the upperclassmen playing without any focus. Time to give the freshmen playing time, hoping that by adding Liddell and Lisch next year, we won't be the walkover team in the Atlantic 10 for too many seasons.
New conference
in Billikens.com Main Board
Posted
Dear Courtside:
Your meager attempt at humor really makes my response pointless, but here goes:
1. The A-10 is, and always will be, an Eastern Seaboard conference, excluding Xavier and Dayton. First, not only are they plane trips, but many involve overnight stays in hotels. And, we're not just talking about men's basketball, here. How about women's basketball and volleyball, men's and women's soccer, field hockey, etc. Geography is against you.
2. While some natives of NY, NJ, and PA might really get into seeing the Bonnies, the Dukes, the Owls, etc., what is the likelihood that the casual SLU fan will ever really care to go to the new arena for these opponents? Probably, the same interest that Savannah State brings to the table. Most of them couldn't tell you where Olean, NY really is.
3. At least with regional opponents, the players may have played in AAU or high school ball against each other. Maybe, just maybe, a little player-rivalry might help? Just a thought.
Make any sense? Or, have I just exceeded your willingness to consider alternatives?