Final: Louisiana (83) at UALR (79)

[CajunEXPRESS]

Just like football it dies fast. Takes a long time to rebuild a fan base.

Plus to be clear 23+ wins a season is the regular season. No one is getting any credit for NAIA wins except the coaches W/L record. That doesn't xcite knowledgeable fans.

[BraveCajun]

I don't think anyone said that should be our goal and I'm sure no one feels as though it should be. My whole point was, given televisions entry (and I'm not talking about whether Grand Canyon is on television, but rather there are so many choices out there), the emphasis on football and many, many other factors that enter into this, to expect we're going to have teams like the days of Bo and Toney just aren't realistic. It's not an excuse. The playing field is so different now.

As I said many years ago, if the NCAA committee did business in the early 70's the way they do business now, you know how many at-large bids we would have had a chance to get? None.

Same is true of coach Paschal's team that got in as an independent (which is still one of the great accomplishments ever at this school.)

Several posts ago, I asked folks to name mid major schools that play FBS football that are having regular success in hoops. I'm still waiting for an answer. There are a few, but they are few and far between. UNLV used to be a top ten school in the late 80s and early 90s. Now, they still have some success, but they aren't a threat to come close to winning the national championship.

Kent State had a couple of very good teams a few years ago. But they haven't been able to sustain it (and, it should be noted, their football program, with exception of one good year a few years ago) is in the toilet.

The league we are in is the league we are in. Hopefully that will change. Our goal should be to challenge for a championship and win our share. I hope that takes place.

I agree we should do better against non-conference competition. I do NOT agree that would help us get an at large bid. Those days are gone. And, that's not all our fault.

San Diego state plays football has a good basketball program.

[duggie85]

Just like football it dies fast. Takes a long time to rebuild a fan base.

Plus to be clear 23+ wins a season is the regular season. No one is getting any credit for NAIA wins except the coaches W/L record. That doesn't xcite knowledgeable fans.

You mean bandwagon base?

[CajunEXPRESS]

No, I mean it takes time to build a solid base. Tickets have to become hard to get. None of that happens in three or four seasons. Football is still realing from decades of neglect.

Finally, there has to be bandwagon fans. Their money spends just as well as long time fans.

[Cajunsmike]

I don't agree with his restrictive requirements Mike.

The state of Louisiana can almost assure which paint you use on a project by restrictive requirements.

Do you truly believe that our basketball would not be a profit maker winning 23+ games season after season. Making it to NCAA 1st & 2nd rounds.

Just look at the lost revenue in that huge empty dome. Feed the friggin oxen. Instead we starved it.

Winning 23 games regularly along with NCAA tournament wins may be what is needed to get folks coming back. Noticed I said regularly. We will have to do it for a couple of years before it has impact. After all, we had eight consecutive seasons of non winning records against D1 competition before last season. Some of those people who stopped following the program during that time will never come back. Time to groom their replacements. Someone mentioned San Diego State as having good basketball along with mid major football. That is a good example. Western Kentucky is the other one I think of. La. Tech has had good teams frequently the last few years but they have not been to the tournament in over 20 years so the list is few. I agree we should join the rather exclusive club.

[Zeebart21]

To nameless who tagged my rep red with no name, you missed it. Read again. Imagine multiple years of what we experienced just this past year in baseball. Or being that good for years boggles your mind? Sorry you long for the smell of Marty's butt.

Only a person with NO character does that. If you're a bad sss, make yourself known.

Marty butt sniffers. LOL! He was a jewel

Z

[Zeebart21]

You know how we got the dome? Was suppose to be a flat roof structure where Bourgeois is. Didn't have support from state, but urban legend is a certain politician got the votes for the dome with one condition...precast concrete structure. Sure you can figure out the rest.

I agree with you @ Blackham to a degree. For old times sake I went sit in the student section earlier this season. Other than 1 guy, I'd might as well been sitting in church. Polite clapping was the norm. We all have more passion after eating too much Taco Bell.

When we moved to the dome, a concerted effort was made to clamp down on students riding visiting teams. The combination killed the generational student passion. Throw in all the other variables, we now are what we are. Irrelevant.

Bird, I'm the one that sent you the old articles from the Milwaukee Journal/Marquette. Went to the old Mecca years back along with other long trips. I'm not new to the party. So I hear ya, but it's not all television and football's fault. It's our own fault for letting it happen with weak hires at different levels and not responding in a timely manner when things started to slide. That falls directly on the then AD's, president's and board's collective feet. We may never be that great again, but being the shiniest turd in the toilet should not be our goal.

The fossilization of Cajun athletics....

[epiccajun]

I remember those return games, really exciting - Penny Hardaway with Memphis, and Michael Redd with Ohio State.

Wish had the ability to buy those types of games, maybe if the TV deal with Cox goes through and included some basketball?

[Boomer]

We made two trips to Marquette. I did TV on the second one, which was MUCH warmer. Temps were actually around +12 degrees.

Both of those games were televised. Pretty sure Tom Brown did the PBP on the other one. I've talked with the guys who had to set all that stuff up. There was a two minute frostbite warning that day. Wind chills topped out at -80 degrees.

Mais, 'dats cole yeah.

---Yes that is his name --I think we shared a room---too cold to think---I remember Brad Hamilton's brother being there and I was telling him how great Toney was and he said they also had a pretty good player!!!

[ZoomZoom]

The fossilization of Cajun athletics....

I understand the political position the fossil was in with the dome. HOWEVER, when we moved to the dome and the new section behind the visitor's bench now had uniformed campus cops in the area, looking back, just another nail in the coffin of traditions. I remember sitting down and seeing that occurring, knew we lost our home court advantage in the blink of an eye. The rep we had as a hard place to play was not just the building. Killing the student passion fell on the fossil and then AD (Stokley?).

[BirdofParadise]

Gonzaga, Dayton, Butler, Weber State,Witchata State, are are a few that come to mind. I don't buy into football sucking the life out of basketball. Fans have been smalle timed into apathy.

Just to be sure? You did say UAB athletics would suffer because they dropped football. Now you say basketball suffers because of football.

My challenge to you was to name schools that play FBS football that have had regular success in basketball. NONE of the schools you mention do so. You say I've given you something too restrictive. I'm saying compare apples to apples.

Wichita State is a school that dropped football and their basketball got better. But for the most part, schools that do so do not see a significant jump in their basketball program.

Someone mentioned San Diego State as one who plays FBS and has success in hoops.. That is a valid example. But there aren't many.

[Cajunsmike]

I remember those return games, really exciting - Penny Hardaway with Memphis, and Michael Redd with Ohio State.

Wish had the ability to buy those types of games, maybe if the TV deal with Cox goes through and included some basketball?

We will never be able to afford to "buy" home games against schools like Ohio State and Memphis. Home and home is what you hope for there. If our program's "brand" improves or gets back to where it once was, maybe that can happen. You buy games against schools in the SWAC, SLC, and MEAC. As it is now, we play those schools home and home. Still "buying" a few more of those would serve our team more than playing so many non D1 games. Problem is we don't have the funds to even buy games against such opponents. Paying basketball gaurentees these days costs you in excess of 50 grand. The TV deal with Cox is very important and will include basketball from what I understand. In fact, I think that sport will be a major component of the deal. I will warn you that will involve mostly home games. Still that may encourage more regional schools to agree to play us.