Nolan Berry

[IndyDawg]

St Louis was not among the group he considered (Butler, Missouri, Boston College and Santa Clara)

[ACE]

Getting Berry to play for SLU should have been a slam dunk. Grawer would have gotten him, Spoon would have, Romar would have, Brad would still be contemplating the offer but this is a huge failure by Majerus.

Butler still plays in the HORIZON. SLU thought that league was too crappy for us 20 years ago when Marquette, Xavier and Dayton were in it. This is the one situation where the conference we play in wasn't a hindrance.

No excuses for this.

Really? I must have missed that long list of great local talent that Spoon and Romar brought in.

[For-DaLove]

St Louis was not among the group he considered (Butler, Missouri, Boston College and Santa Clara)

We established that

[MB73]

It never ends, same topic, different kid.

We NEVER get a 4*-5* local player, NEVER (Hughes stayed for personal reasons).

Would any of YOU tell your son to play for SLU when they can play for a good BCS team, or in this case an exciting robust team with an established basketball tradition that went to NCAA Championship Game 2 yrs in a row?

Who would? Your son... tell me.

[Billiken Rich]

Maybe we'll finally get Butler on the schedule......

[HusakAttack]

It never ends, same topic, different kid.

We NEVER get a 4*-5* local player, NEVER (Hughes stayed for personal reasons).

Would any of YOU tell your son to play for SLU when they can play for a good BCS team, or in this case an exciting robust team with an established basketball tradition that went to NCAA Championship Game 2 yrs in a row?

Who would? Your son... tell me.

Nope.

[butlerway]

I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative posts about Butler. Butler fans have come to expect this type of attitude from the fans of good BCS schools, but I don't expect to read it when visiting another mid major board. Usually mid major fans are able to look at Butler based on their accomplishments the past 5-10 years and not simply see them as a reflection of the rest of their conference. Is it really that much of a shock that someone would chose the Bulldogs over the Billikens? I know his grandpa went there, but that was a long, long time ago. It certainly is a factor, but I think everyone weighted that way too heavily.

[kshoe]

St Louis was not among the group he considered (Butler, Missouri, Boston College and Santa Clara)

You are right on the edge of being labeled a troll in my book. Last couple weeks you've been on here talking about how Butler is going to the Big East and rarely mentioning SLU as a candidate. You've been more than happy to point out our failures when it comes to Berry and made the comment about Darius Austin.

All of this may be true in some fashion but it comes across as cheapshots to me.

I have the utmost respect for Butler and what they've been able to do and badly want SLU to have some of the same success. It would be a shame if my feeling become tainted towards them because of one a-hole on a message board.

[Box and Won]

I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative posts about Butler. Butler fans have come to expect this type of attitude from the fans of good BCS schools, but I don't expect to read it when visiting another mid major board. Usually mid major fans are able to look at Butler based on their accomplishments the past 5-10 years and not simply see them as a reflection of the rest of their conference. Is it really that much of a shock that someone would chose the Bulldogs over the Billikens? I know his grandpa went there, but that was a long, long time ago. It certainly is a factor, but I think everyone weighted that way too heavily.

We're just ticked off/jealous and need someone to take it out on.

[Quality Is Job 1]

I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative posts about Butler. Butler fans have come to expect this type of attitude from the fans of good BCS schools, but I don't expect to read it when visiting another mid major board. Usually mid major fans are able to look at Butler based on their accomplishments the past 5-10 years and not simply see them as a reflection of the rest of their conference. Is it really that much of a shock that someone would chose the Bulldogs over the Billikens? I know his grandpa went there, but that was a long, long time ago. It certainly is a factor, but I think everyone weighted that way too heavily.

Really? Oh, cry me a river!

Butler has experienced quite a boon; I wouldn't think its fans would require validation from fans of other mid-major programs — or even BCS programs.

But it's still FACT that Butler plays in the horizon, which SLU left 20 years ago (at the risk of sounding like thetorch) aspiring to bigger things and still seems to be held back by a number of factors, including its conference affiliation.

Butler caught lightning in a bottle, but they're not likely to be like Duke, because the Horizon simply isn't the ACC. Even Gonzaga has come back to the pack a little bit in the WCC.

On paper SLU should be a more attractive landing point than Butler — at least for St. Louis-area talent!

[jbizzle09]

We're just ticked off/jealous and need someone to take it out on.

Really, it is as simple as that.

[MusicCityBilliken]

I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative posts about Butler. Butler fans have come to expect this type of attitude from the fans of good BCS schools, but I don't expect to read it when visiting another mid major board. Usually mid major fans are able to look at Butler based on their accomplishments the past 5-10 years and not simply see them as a reflection of the rest of their conference. Is it really that much of a shock that someone would chose the Bulldogs over the Billikens? I know his grandpa went there, but that was a long, long time ago. It certainly is a factor, but I think everyone weighted that way too heavily.

Agree with Box. sour grapes, don't take it personal. What Butler has done these last 2 years is what all mid-majors can only dream of. Good luck this season and how about putting us as a home & home game.

[billiken_roy]

It never ends, same topic, different kid.

We NEVER get a 4*-5* local player, NEVER (Hughes stayed for personal reasons).

Would any of YOU tell your son to play for SLU when they can play for a good BCS team, or in this case an exciting robust team with an established basketball tradition that went to NCAA Championship Game 2 yrs in a row?

Who would? Your son... tell me.

i wouldnt as long as rickma is our coach.

[jbizzle09]

i wouldnt as long as rickma is our coach.

You just can't help yourself, can you?

[slufan13]

Maybe I'm the minority, but I would choose to play at Butler over SLU any day. Conference doesn't matter at all to me. I'd rather play for a team that consistently makes the tournament and competes.

[gmoser1210]

I'm kind of shocked to read so many negative posts about Butler. Butler fans have come to expect this type of attitude from the fans of good BCS schools, but I don't expect to read it when visiting another mid major board. Usually mid major fans are able to look at Butler based on their accomplishments the past 5-10 years and not simply see them as a reflection of the rest of their conference. Is it really that much of a shock that someone would chose the Bulldogs over the Billikens? I know his grandpa went there, but that was a long, long time ago. It certainly is a factor, but I think everyone weighted that way too heavily.

I think some people think that SLU is on a higher level than Butler because of its membership in the A10 or because of lasting impressions from when SLU was a member of the old MCC with Butler up until 1991. The A10 is absolutely a better conference than the Horizon, but A10 membership does not necessarily mean that SLU's program is better than Butler's or any other mid-major. SLU absolutely used to be better than Butler, such as when SLU made it to back-to-back NIT championship games in '89 and '90, but that was 20 years ago. Conference affiliation is a factor but not the whole equation.

Honestly, looking at the A10 and the Horizon last year, Butler/Xavier was a competitive game, just as I expect it to be this year. I think Temple/Cleveland State, Richmond/Milwaukee, and Duquesne/Valparaiso would have been pretty good games too. Wright State and Detroit probably wouldn't have been very competitive with George Washington and Rhode Island, but you never know. The reason the A10 is better than the Horizon is because the Horizon's #6-10 are typically not as good as the A10's #6-10. However, that's the benefit of having a 14-member conference and looking from the top down. If you look from the bottom up, the Horizon's bottom three or four were probably just as good as the A10's bottom three or four.

[Pistol]

I don't understand the surprise. One team has played in the last two national championships. Are people surprised Berry chose that school over one that has not been to the tournament since he was, what, 6 years old?

There might be mild surprise in the fact he chose Butler this early, before allowing even bigger programs to get involved.

Plus, the decision wasn't really Butler-over-SLU, but Butler over a group of Mizzou, BC, and Santa Clara. He had offers from five others, and SLU was in that group, along with Purdue, Missouri State, Davidson, and Loyola-Chicago. So it's hard to say where SLU stood overall, but it didn't exactly come in second to Butler. Way worse than second.

Also, I wouldn't tell my son to go to SLU. I would let him go wherever he wants. Then again, I'm nice. And I don't have a son.

[billiken_roy]

You just can't help yourself, can you?

he asked

[jbizzle09]

he asked

Fair enough.

[bonwich]

This discussion reminds me of the stuff we heard (and which amazed us) when we came here in the mid-60s. Everyone kept talking about the Macauley team, which even at that point was almost 20 years in the past.

So what has the kid seen as he's grown up as the grandson of a legend? Final Four appearances? Elite Eight? Nope. A smattering of early exit appearances in the tournament and an overall-quite-dull basketball program for the entire time he's been alive.

I'm also shocked at the down-the-nose attitude toward Butler. They played for the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. They made the FINAL FOUR, TWICE. The attitude on this board toward Butler is probably worse than the attitude most Mizzou fans show toward even the concept of playing SLU.

This kid's choice should be no surprise, nor is it in any way an "embarrassment." We just ain't there yet, and even if we do manage to go a few deep in the tournament this year, we're going to have to string a few years together before the bulk of the basketball world begins to take us seriously.

[For-DaLove]

I'm not sure what's more shocking, the fact that some people still thought we had a chance or that Butler fans are invading our board.

Great post, Bonwich.

[kshoe]

This discussion reminds me of the stuff we heard (and which amazed us) when we came here in the mid-60s. Everyone kept talking about the Macauley team, which even at that point was almost 20 years in the past.

So what has the kid seen as he's grown up as the grandson of a legend? Final Four appearances? Elite Eight? Nope. A smattering of early exit appearances in the tournament and an overall-quite-dull basketball program for the entire time he's been alive.

I'm also shocked at the down-the-nose attitude toward Butler. They played for the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. They made the FINAL FOUR, TWICE. The attitude on this board toward Butler is probably worse than the attitude most Mizzou fans show toward even the concept of playing SLU.

This kid's choice should be no surprise, nor is it in any way an "embarrassment." We just ain't there yet, and even if we do manage to go a few deep in the tournament this year, we're going to have to string a few years together before the bulk of the basketball world begins to take us seriously.

Well said.

Butler is where we want to be and maybe in a few years we can go into somebody else's backyard and irrespective of what conference we are in steal that player because all that kid knows is that "you go to SLU if you want to win."

[gmoser1210]

This kid's choice should be no surprise, nor is it in any way an "embarrassment." We just ain't there yet, and even if we do manage to go a few deep in the tournament this year, we're going to have to string a few years together before the bulk of the basketball world begins to take us seriously.

Exactly. Butler is a legitimate program, not just a flash of lightning. They've been to the NIT or NCAA tournament 13 times in the past 15 years. They've been to the NCAA tournament 10 times in the past 15 years, including the last five successive seasons. They've been to four sweet sixteens and two national championship games. Butler has built a program that has shown that it has staying power - it hasn't just been 2010 and 2011.

[gmoser1210]

I'm not sure what's more shocking, the fact that some people still thought we had a chance or that Butler fans are invading our board.

Great post, Bonwich.

I'm a Butler fan but I'm also a SLU law student (and Billikens fan) who's been reading this board for a while. I just never had the desire to participate before today.

[For-DaLove]

I'm a Butler fan but I'm also a SLU law student (and Billikens fan) who's been reading this board for a while. I just never had the desire to participate before today.

Sorry, that wasnt aimed at you. You've made fair points without crying for respect.