Out of Conference Scheduling

[bballholic]

_ Well that SEC title you cheer about, will only garner a 6 or 7 seed. POWERHOUSE!!! LSU basketball fresh off the weakest bball schedule in the NCAA, and major losses to better RPI conferences in Xavier and Utah, means this team is not worth the seed they get. Now for the baseball team, those guys have been on a tear since last year. They will continue unless it was all just a fluke. And your powerhouse, money in money out recruiting football team just finished a pitiful season coming off a faux title and have little to no chance of getting an SEC title anytime soon. So maybe not everything east is all rose colored, maybe just a bit brown if ya know what I mean. _

Wow, what a putrid attempt at trying to discredit one of the nation's top athletic programs. First of all, let's start off with your basketball comments. When the polls are released later today, LSU should crack the top 15 in both major polls. Not to mention their RPI is at #25 and rising. Those numbers alone would justify a 5-6 seed. LSU is blowing through the nation's sixth rated conference with a current mark of 13-1. I can only imagine how much you would be beating your chest if your Cajuns were currently 13-1 in the lowly Sun Belt which is currently the 17th rated conference in America accordint to Warren Nolan. Is LSU a great team? No, but there is no denying they are a good team that is dominating a major conference (regardless of how "down" the SEC is this year). When is the last time the Cajuns dominated their conference like this in basketball? The future of the program is very bright with Trent Johnson at the helm and a state of the art practice facility on the way. I won't even touch baseball, because you will find out soon enough that they are the real deal. You would obviously be excited if the Cajuns were returning 8 position starters from a team that made the CWS last year and were currently ranked #1 or #2 in every major poll.

Now, we'll tackle your football comments. Your comment about a pitiful season is actually a compiment if you consider LSU finished the year at 8-5 with a dominating performance over a top 15 team on national television. I'll be the first to admit it was certainly a disappointing season for the Tigers. However, what kind of feelings would you experience if your cajuns finished their season with an 8-5 record and a dominating bowl performance? You do realize that Saban once lost five games at LSU including a blowout loss in their bowl game? You do realize that Florida lost four games just two years ago including a bowl loss to a much maligned Michigan team? Who knows if LSU will win another SEC Championship in the near future, but it's ridiculous to say they have "no chance". They have certainly addressed their defensive coordinator concerns by bringing in an SEC veteran. Not to mention the quarterback position looks brighter than ever. It's sad that you obviously get some pleasure out of predicting a false bleak future for LSU athletics. However, I guess you might as well try to spread the misery you are currently experiencing at your own school.

[CajunZ1]

_However, I guess you might as well try to spread the misery you are currently experiencing at your own school. _

I think if we get a winning streak going in baseball, you might find us to be a bit cheerier.

As to your other comments, I believe LSU has at least another 5 years of athletic dominance before the unavoidable "cycle of excellence" comes to an end (see Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame etc).

[bballholic]

_ I think if we get a winning streak going in baseball, you might find us to be a bit cheerier.

As to your other comments, I believe LSU has at least another 5 years of athletic dominance before the unavoidable "cycle of excellence" comes to an end (see Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame etc). _

I'm all for your guys winning in baseball except for two games this season. I've already been to one Cajun game this year and I plan on making a mid-week game soon. At some point, LSU will obviously experience a decline, that is just the nature of the beast. However, I'm very confident that at least one of the major sports will be winning at any given point in time. On a side not, who do the Cajuns play next weekend in baseball? I'd love for them to string a few wins together before visiting the Box.

[CajunZ1]

I'm very confident that at least one of the major sports will be winning at any given point in time. _

No doubt.

It would be interesting to see if there was every a time in LSU's athletic history where none of the major sports teams were dominant (i.e top 35, making the postseason, etc).

I only ask because a few weeks ago Turbine mentioned an interestesting statistic that UL had a non-winning record in all sports after the softball team lost 2 to Ole Miss for the first time in "fill-in-the-blank" years.

[cajunhawk]

_ Wow, what a putrid attempt at trying to discredit one of the nation's top athletic programs. First of all, let's start off with your basketball comments. When the polls are released later today, LSU should crack the top 15 in both major polls. Not to mention their RPI is at #25 and rising. Those numbers alone would justify a 5-6 seed. LSU is blowing through the nation's sixth rated conference with a current mark of 13-1. I can only imagine how much you would be beating your chest if your Cajuns were currently 13-1 in the lowly Sun Belt which is currently the 17th rated conference in America accordint to Warren Nolan. Is LSU a great team? No, but there is no denying they are a good team that is dominating a major conference (regardless of how "down" the SEC is this year). When is the last time the Cajuns dominated their conference like this in basketball? The future of the program is very bright with Trent Johnson at the helm and a state of the art practice facility on the way. I won't even touch baseball, because you will find out soon enough that they are the real deal. You would obviously be excited if the Cajuns were returning 8 position starters from a team that made the CWS last year and were currently ranked #1 or #2 in every major poll.

Now, we'll tackle your football comments. Your comment about a pitiful season is actually a compiment if you consider LSU finished the year at 8-5 with a dominating performance over a top 15 team on national television. I'll be the first to admit it was certainly a disappointing season for the Tigers. However, what kind of feelings would you experience if your cajuns finished their season with an 8-5 record and a dominating bowl performance? You do realize that Saban once lost five games at LSU including a blowout loss in their bowl game? You do realize that Florida lost four games just two years ago including a bowl loss to a much maligned Michigan team? Who knows if LSU will win another SEC Championship in the near future, but it's ridiculous to say they have "no chance". They have certainly addressed their defensive coordinator concerns by bringing in an SEC veteran. Not to mention the quarterback position looks brighter than ever. It's sad that you obviously get some pleasure out of predicting a false bleak future for LSU athletics. However, I guess you might as well try to spread the misery you are currently experiencing at your own school. _

Ok bud, quick name some key wins for the LSU basketball team..... Oh wait they have none! Washington state was thought to be an at large bid kinda team, but wrong. Tenessee, Kentucky and Florida will prolly get in just because they have to put SEC teams in their or face riots. And correct me if im wrong but isnt the SEC 9th in RPI behind the A-10 and Mountain west? They are getting hype because SEC talk sells and they are all there is to talk about. Im not saying they arent good. They are. Beating UL at home by 2, though shows how not great they are. They deserve what they get which is their autobid for blowing through the wasteland that is SEC basketball. But they are not a team that will be playing into week 2 in the tourney.

Football, two word Jarret Lee. Five more words, interception returned for a TD. Three more words, Lost to Arkansas. Four more words, Got lucky against Troy. You see without LSU's always aggravating rabbits foot helping em out, and their easy as pie nonconference scheduling, they would have prolly not even made a bowl game. Thats something to be proud of by one of the "athletic powerhouses." Your recruiting class is damn good by all standards, but we all know classes mean almost nothing when your stars in the class end up at Jackson State. So im not trying to bring you down, or make you insanely mad, but please dude temper your enthusiasm. Beat your chest all you want, there are programs that went 3-9 the past two year that had bigger attendance and more hype than your "powerhouse." Can you guess who they were?


Quick edit: SEC is 6th RPI wise, was lower last time I check. Dunno why though, everyone but LSU is losing doesnt make conference any stronger.

[LsuULfan]

_ Beating UL at home by 2, though shows how not great they are.

Not sure that proves anything.

It was before LSU really got on a roll.
It was before the Cajuns went in the dumpster (they played more up to the their talent level, IMO).
It took late unbelievable 3 point shooting exhibition from Daigle to get it there.

Even down, the SEC is a tough conference-especially on the road. Latest coaches poll has Tigers @ 11. Still play Vandy at home (not an easy win-a lot of talent but young) and Auburn on the road (no cakewalk).

[cajunhawk]

_ Not sure that proves anything.

It was before LSU really got on a roll.
It was before the Cajuns went in the dumpster (they played more up to the their talent level, IMO).
It took late unbelievable 3 point shooting exhibition from Daigle to get it there.

Even down, the SEC is a tough conference-especially on the road. Latest coaches poll has Tigers @ 11. Still play Vandy at home (not an easy win-a lot of talent but young) and Auburn on the road (no cakewalk). _

So getting blasted by Utah and losing to Xavier at home makes this team great. They have gone on a tear only in SEC play, which is nothing short of a barber cutting hair these days. SEC is not a tough conference this year.

[bballholic]

_ Ok bud, quick name some key wins for the LSU basketball team..... Oh wait they have none! Washington state was thought to be an at large bid kinda team, but wrong. Tenessee, Kentucky and Florida will prolly get in just because they have to put SEC teams in their or face riots. And correct me if im wrong but isnt the SEC 9th in RPI behind the A-10 and Mountain west? They are getting hype because SEC talk sells and they are all there is to talk about. Im not saying they arent good. They are. Beating UL at home by 2, though shows how not great they are. They deserve what they get which is their autobid for blowing through the wasteland that is SEC basketball. But they are not a team that will be playing into week 2 in the tourney.

Football, two word Jarret Lee. Five more words, interception returned for a TD. Three more words, Lost to Arkansas. Four more words, Got lucky against Troy. You see without LSU's always aggravating rabbits foot helping em out, and their easy as pie nonconference scheduling, they would have prolly not even made a bowl game. Thats something to be proud of by one of the "athletic powerhouses." Your recruiting class is damn good by all standards, but we all know classes mean almost nothing when your stars in the class end up at Jackson State. So im not trying to bring you down, or make you insanely mad, but please dude temper your enthusiasm. Beat your chest all you want, there are programs that went 3-9 the past two year that had bigger attendance and more hype than your "powerhouse." Can you guess who they were?


Quick edit: SEC is 6th RPI wise, was lower last time I check. Dunno why though, everyone but LSU is losing doesnt make conference any stronger. _

Correct, the SEC is currently 6th in the RPI rankings. In the latest major polls, LSU is ranked #11 in the Coaches and #12 in the AP poll. Now, I'm sure they don't know as much as you do about college hoops, but they are certainly impressed with LSU's ability to roll through the SEC. Who was claiming that LSU has a "great" team? I said they have a damn good team and I don't see how you can say otherwise. Who knows what they will do in the tournament but they could certainly win a game or two depending on the draw.

That's great, what does Jarrett Lee and Troy have to do with next season? LSU had two big question marks last season that led to their downfall. They have addressed both the quarterback and defensive issues. The scheduling is definitely taking a step in the right direction with Pac 10 and Big East opponents in the very near future. LSU certainly isn't the only powerhouse that schedules this way. Look no further than UT's 2009 non-conf schedule that boasts ULM, Wyoming, Utep, and Central Florida. When it's all said and done, LSU's schedule usually finishes up in the top 30 or higher. When you stockpile as much talent as LSU does, it's obvious that some guys are going to be forced to transfer. That's a pretty weak arguement citing one guy that went to Jackson State. How many other profile recruits went on to stardom at LSU? As far as attendance is concerned, LSU is constantly in the top 10 for football, and at the top in baseball. Basketball is starting to come around but the fans still want to see a consistent product which was never the case under Brady.

[LsuULfan]

_ So getting blasted by Utah and losing to Xavier at home makes this team great. They have gone on a tear only in SEC play, which is nothing short of a barber cutting hair these days. SEC is not a tough conference this year. _

They are playing at a much higher level now-especially compared to when we played Utah and to a lesser extent when they played Xavier. The SEC is down-but it is still no cakewalk and it isn't easy to go on the road and beat Tennessee, Miss State and Kentucky.

In any event, we will see how we finish, what seed we get and how we do. But regardless, its been a fun team to watch.

[bballholic]

_ They are playing at a much higher level now-especially compared to when we played Utah and to a lesser extent when they played Xavier. The SEC is down-but it is still no cakewalk and it isn't easy to go on the road and beat Tennessee, Miss State and Kentucky.

In any event, we will see how we finish, what seed we get and how we do. But regardless, its been a fun team to watch. _

People also tend to ignore the fact that it obviously took this team a while to gel. Trent Johnson had never coached these players before, and two guys were forced to switch positions. Although TJ's defensive philosophy isn't that much different from Brady's, his offensive sets are definitely different. I follow LSU basketball very closely, and I wasn't surprised at all to see LSU struggle a little bit early on. Tasmin really improved throughout the season as he became healthier and the team improved right along with him.

[LsuULfan]

_ People also tend to ignore the fact that it obviously took this team a while to gel. Trent Johnson had never coached these players before, and two guys were forced to switch positions. Although TJ's defensive philosophy isn't that much different from Brady's, his offensive sets are definitely different. I follow LSU basketball very closely, and I wasn't surprised at all to see LSU struggle a little bit early on. Tasmin really improved throughout the season as he became healthier and the team improved right along with him. _

In addition to Tasmin-Most of the players individually improved under Trent-Marcus Thorton, Garret Temple, Chris Johnson, Terry Martin, Bo Spencer, Quinton Thorton and Farrar.

Question will be whether Trent can recruit. Next year will probably be a down year compared to this one with the loss of seniors.

[bballholic]

_ Beating UL at home by 2, though shows how not great they are.
_

Honestly, this doesn't tell you a damn thing. Isn't Troy currently in contention for the SBC title? I do remember sitting in the PMAC and watching LSU blow them away by 40 or so points. You do realize that the SEC bottomfeeder known as Arkansas defeated both OU and UT out of conference. Does this mean that OU isn't a great team? Also, the same Cajun team that lost by 2 in Baton Rouge got annihilated in Knoxville. I'm sure you are aware that LSU defeated UT in Knoxville and they also defeated Arkansas in Bud Walton (something neither UT or OU could do). Different teams peak at various times and one game doesn't tell you anything in college basketball or baseball. Now, college football is obviously a little different.