SluSignGuy Posted January 21, 2006 Share Posted January 21, 2006 This article seems a little applicable to Billikens.com's current Zeitgeist. KU's Self: Internet is a curse to college sports By Doug Tucker Associated Press 01/20/2006 LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Bill Self is clear about his feelings about the Internet. "I think the Internet stinks," said the coach of the troubled Kansas Jayhawks. "One thing I think has hurt college athletics more than anything is the technology age." The Internet makes it easier for people to inflict anonymous pain on players and coaches, especially young men such as Christian Moody, who probably feels as bad as anyone over two missed free throws at the end of regulation against Missouri on Monday night. IPB Image? It was the second loss to an archrival in two days for the Jayhawks, who let a second-half lead slip away at home on Saturday and lost to Kansas State for the first time in 31 games. Then on Monday night came the overtime loss to Missouri, which erased a big deficit in the final 1:50 of regulation. Moody missed two free throws with :04 seconds left. If he had made just one, the Jayhawks would have won. But he clanged them both, and now some Internet chat rooms and message boards seem to buzz with a general, and personal, disdain for Moody and his coaches and teammates. "What happens on the Internet is some (players) are sensitive and some guys aren't," Self said Thursday. "Some guys look at that stuff; some guys don't. The guys that don't usually perform better." Self learned at his previous coaching stop at Illinois not to log on to message boards. He counsels his players to do the same. "I wouldn't be able to tell you how to get on it now," he said. "I used to look at the message boards all the time, but I realized that wasn't the best thing I could do for self-confidence." Moody, meanwhile, seems to be shouldering his load as well as could be expected. Moody tries to shy away from the message boards just as his coach advises. "I try to stay away from that stuff, but I've got some friends that read them and tell me about it," he said. "It's kind of fun to talk about and I just use it as motivation. Everyone can have their opinion." And thanks to the new technologies Self so detests in such situations, Moody has been able to receive encouragement from former Kansas players across the country. "I got text messages from Mike (Lee), Aaron (Miles), Keith (Langford) and Wayne (Simien), and Nick (Collison) called me last night," Moody said. "They are really great guys, and just looking out for their team. A lot of fans have said a lot of stuff, too, but it's all been encouraging, and they are just ready for Saturday," when Kansas plays host to Nebraska. Self said he has talked with Moody several times since the game at Missouri and is confident his spirit will not be savaged. "I know it hurts. It crushed him," Self said. "But if the kid isn't tough, how can a walk-on kid from Asheville, N.C., come in here, get an education and start for Kansas?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonwich Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 I daresay neither Self nor Moody would have wandered into a bar near the Kansas campus right after they got back from Columbia. By the same token, I bet a few Mizzou players decided to take a peek at TigerTalk after the OT win. Self needs to learn about Self-filtering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 You can't stop it and it isn't going away so you have to deal with it. You could try to work them by slipping peices of info their way or you can try to ignore them. If people thought we were bad after the loss to UR I bet it doesn't compare to KU losing to KSU and SPUMAC in the same week. If not for the message board all I would have to update me on SLU is boxscores, TV twice a year, and the ticker. I like the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billikan Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 You completely missed the point of Self's comments. You say "I like the info" and that is precisely why I started coming to the board--to get information and hear what is happening on the team. However, this board and I must assume others have become the haven of a cadre of people that want to insult players and coaches, complain about everything and anything and intentionally damage the program and/ or the coach. People who know nothing about coaching a basketball team comment that a thrid grade girls coach is beter than Brad. They distort what has happened on the floor and rip the fans. It is absolutely ridiculous. What Self is saying is that these people who post have no idea about the impact of the insulting and negative comments on the team. I truly believe that today there are many posters who are intentionally posting negative things about our team, our coach and our program because they have allegience to another school or they just hope to hurt us. Others have personal agendas and they hope they can hurt people by posting on an internet chat board. But as I see it the new ethic is that anyone has the right to say anything they want and insult anybody and hurt anybody and that's ok because it is their "right". If our true cans as posters continue to go deeper into this cesspool then the board will become the best thing for our competitive schools and it will hurt the program badly. As the Self article said--"The Internet makes it easier for people to inflict anonymous pain on players and coaches" That could be extended to the program as a whole. Players and coaches are human beings, they have mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, uncles and aunts and families. I cannot believe that any responsible poster on this board would not be outraged by many of the comments if they were a member of the family of the coach or the players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtside Posted January 22, 2006 Share Posted January 22, 2006 I can assure despite the recent negativity...this board is extremely tame and rational compared to most. Intelligent debate and discussion with regards to the program is always welcome. Admittedly some bad eggs. I do think if done in the right manner, there is nothing worng with holding a higher standard for the program. It has to start somewhere. As someone who would like to see the SLU basketball program elevated to much higher heights at more consistent levels, ...you gotta start somewhere. Outside of this message board, where else is there any buzz of concern either way if SLU improves the basketball program or not? I think it is realistic to have a long term goal of building a top 25 level program. Maybe not every year, but in the mix most years. I think it is very doable, challeneging, but doable. The more people who care if that happens, the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonwich Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 The Internet is no different than sports-talk radio, which has been around a bit longer. No one forces coaches or players (or anyone else) to read message boards. Nor are they forced to listen to call-in shows after the game, some of which are just as vicious (or over-the-top praising) as message boards. And, as we've seen on this board, there's lots of good information mixed in with the ranting and raving. We're here. We jeer. (And cheer.) Get used to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtside Posted January 23, 2006 Share Posted January 23, 2006 Self's remarks are really nothing earth shattering...just typical of a coach whose team is struggling under high expectations. Be it radio, tv, print, now internet....lashing out when the pressure gets a little much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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