cgeldmacher

Here is how that happens: 1. Get some, obviously not all, of our current guys to stick around another year. Of course I'm talking about the ones that can. (Will clearly lose something here, but I'm just saying lessen the blow) 2. Get a quality big in the portal. Also, one of Momo or the two freshman step up to have a good season (Could be an improvement over this season and will open up a lot of other things) 3. Parker's game progresses and he gives us more than the combination of him and Perkins gave us over the entirety of this season (Could be an improvement) 4. Have one guy of Hughes, Kramer, Medley, or a transfer step up to be a serious outside, three point threat (Could be an improvement over last year if Jimerson is one of the guys you keep) The above scenario, I think, could produce a team that has better success next season than this season.

See, we're proving that our thinking is not that far off. Let me say that this year's team still has a chance at winning a regular season conference championship. Doing so would not be a bad year. I agree that next season is a crucial one for Ford. I disagree that next year's team has to immediately be better than this year's team. If we have a core of young guys who make us think that we could have a very good run for a few years, even if they don't make the tournament next season, we have to keep Ford on to attempt to make that run. If next year's team doesn't give us that vibe, then I agree, Ford will have had too many chances and it will be time to move on.

I guess we should hold on the Pitbull until its official, but it's sounding good.

DLarry, I agree with you most of the time and disagree with you rarely. So, I picked your post to respond to this. I understand why fans are upset about this season, but don't think we should fire Ford. I say this, because I think he can get us to a higher place, even though I totally agree that he hasn't done so yet at SLU. Saying I want to keep him is not saying that I am okay with mediocrity or that I am blind to Ford's faults. What it is saying is that I think that we have a better chance at getting the program where we want it to be with Ford staying on as coach than with whomever we could get to come in as a new coach next season. What happened this season? We thought we were getting Perkins from 2 years ago, and he has been nothing close to that. We all over valued Okoro, didn't realize how much we'd miss Linssen, and had too much faith in Forrester. Our bigs have been, in general, a downfall. The team just didn't gel, and we lost of few crucial games due to unfortunate lapses like suddenly forgetting how to make a free throw. That being said, I can see next year's team, even with graduation and defections, being better than the team this season. Sometimes, different combinations of guys just gel together better. Ask Calipari how that works? If he's honest, he'll say he has no clue why one group of his blue chip recruits win a championship and another sucks. It just happens. I agree that Ford has not provided us with evidence that he can win at the level we want, at least not yet. I just like how he can recruit and how he promotes the team. For those reasons, I think he can. The folks that want him gone also don't have any evidence of what a new coach will do. So, for me, I just want to stay to course for now and see what happens. If we really fall off next year and are not showing any signs that we could be heading towards our ultimate goals, then I may be right there with you after next season.

Let's cue up the Pitbull. Jordan getting the contract will be the best Billiken news so far this year.

You keep changing what you said to try to fit your bad argument. You originally said that it "(s)eems a bit ironic that for years a large portion of the fan base seemed to have the thought that SLU was too good for the MVC." Nobody has said SLU it too good for the MVC. What people have said, and this is an absolute truth, is that it would not make sense for SLU to switch from the MVC to the Valley. Doing so is step backwards. When a team gets a chance to get out of the Valley, they take it. That includes times where teams have left the Valley to join SLU in the A-10. There is no irony here.

No. Everyone who can gets out of the Missouri Valley. Back when those discussions were happening, those teams were in the Valley and SLU was not. If SLU had left its present situation to go to the Valley, it would have been remembered, historically, as a step backwards. I don't think anyone is or was saying that SLU is too good for the Valley. The idea is that no one leaves a conference like the A-10 to go to the Valley. In fact, its just the opposite. Teams leave the Valley for the A-10 hoping that it creates a better situation for them.

Not sure your point. Creighton, WSU, Loyola all opted to leave the valley for greener pastures. If Bradley leaves for the A-10, it would be because they think it is a better conference. So, the actions, or potential actions, of these programs confirms the idea that SLU is too good for the MVC.

That says the team didn't know. That doesn't mean the coaches. Try again.

This post contains probably the first bits of positive comments you've made in your 120 or so posts. That's the issue. You are going to rub folks the wrong way if you come onto this board as a new poster and do nothing but blast the team, the coaches, and the players for 100+ posts.

Doing really well as the coach of a mid major and then getting a big pay day to coach a Power 5 school in Oklahoma only to struggle at the Oklahoma Power 5 school due to the step up in competition sounds vaguely familiar.

He's currently top 10 in assist to turnover ratio. Simply classic.

Wasn't it BANGheGotit or some other poster who followed up a valid criticism about not having any true evidence of a crazy claim being made by citing a vague quote and not being able to remember who the heck it was that he was allegedly quoting? If that is true , then it shows the disconnect between some posters and basic logic.

It reopened. I have already been there before a game earlier in the season. As far as closing again, I haven't heard that. Hope it's not true, because I plan on going there tonight before the game.

Right now, the Billikens have five conference games left. Two are against teams with a better record in conference. Three are against teams with a worse record in conference. One is against a team with about the same record which is 5-4 LaSalle. If they win the games against the teams with worse records, lose to the teams with better records, and pull out a win against LaSalle, they will finish 9-7 in Atlantic 10 play. Here is what I find interesting. If that happens, Tillet's record in her first season would be equal to or better than seven of Stone's ten seasons at SLU. Here are Stone's conference records in her ten seasons: 21-22 (5-9); 20-21 (9-3); 19-20 (9-7); 18-19 (9-7); 17-18 (9-7); 16-17 (12-4); 15-16 (13-3); 14-15 (7-9); 13-14 (7-9); 12-13 (5-9)

Do you think they will be better than the Melvin Turnage Band that used to play there back in the 90s?

When I was at the Davidson game, I noticed that their band was 100% student run. Only students in the band and it was also run by students, no alumni or paid director to be found.

It would be hard to say that winning a conference regular season championship is a bad season.

Fordham is a good team that we are playing on the road in conference. This is supposed to be a tough, close game. Why is everyone surprised?

He’s been sitting for a while because he hit his 3rd foul.

Laziness by Forrester. Momo needs to be the #2 big for a while.

I wish. We did VCU a few years back. Very nice arena. I get the impression that it would have gotten interesting with their fans had we not been down so bad most of the game.

Man I miss the "Bad Post" and "Troll" designations.

Back in town after a great weekend in Charlotte. Fantastic game. Got to see the breaking of the Belk Curse in person with 18 of my great college friends. The refs were terrible early on. You might have heard me yelling "7 to 1!!! 7-1!!!" at the refs in the first half on the broadcast when the fouls were 7 on us and 1 on Davidson. This brought out some chirping from the Wildcat fans, but that only made the experience more fun. If you ever want to do a road game, Davidson is a great option. Charlotte is a cool town with a Austin or Nashville kind of vibe. The streets are packed each night with people out on the town. Tons of restaurants and bars.

That was one nice visitor locker room they had there. Were the brooms and mops stored in there too?