CHANDLER (AZ) -- Not sure about the rest of you, but I am not a big follower of bulletin boards. Certainly I have been a contributor here for a number of years, but there really aren’t a whole lot out there that get my juices flowing. Yet, it never ceases to amaze me at just how smart most of us think we are.
The power of the internet has made many of us flat out brilliant. We are so convinced that what we know and profess should be the universal standard. We talk through our fingers with a level of superiority that is rarely seen in normal face to face conversations. It has created an invisibility that allows us to say things we would never say to another person if he were standing in front of us. It has allowed us to reverse the advancement of mankind. It is starting to move us back to being cavemen.
For whatever reason, the sniping and harping on the message board has gotten to a new level. It also seems to be coming from board newbes. We see people added to list every year and many of those just add themselves to the mix to stir the pot, but there really seems to be an epidemic this season. Please don’t take that comment as an attack on anyone that doesn’t have 200 posts, because that is not the case. We have many new contributors that join us and improve the conversation around worthwhile topics.
It seems that success has created a new group that can only find wrong in even positive outcomes. Certainly that is all that some want to find, but I find it strange that in a season that more games have been won than ever before, we can find such behavior.
I have followed this program for over 40 years and certainly have seen the ups and downs. There were a number of years that I did not follow the team because it was just too difficult because of distance and lack of information. Yet, 20+ years ago I was re-energized to the point that I would drive 200 miles roundtrip to see virtually every game. So please don’t talk to me about only being a casual fan. I am just about as big of a fan as you will see.
I am smart enough, however, to know that we are not aligned with the big boys of college basketball. I understand that UD cannot do the things that the Big 6 schools can do. The financial and real world constraints for a school in Dayton’s shoes are just too great. Even
Xavier, Gonzaga and Memphis who are the non Big 6 standouts do not enjoy the special privileges that are literally handed to the Big 6.
Like it or not, UD has to live in the world they reside in and we, the fan, need to understand that. The constant comments about weak schedule or being afraid to schedule the big boys just don’t hold water if you understand the economics of college sports. North Carolina will not come here even if we give them a 5 for 1. The good big schools are not stupid, they know they will likely lose if they come to Dayton. We are not Big 6. How often do top 10 teams schedule a game in Spokane, Cincinnati or Memphis? Yes, it may happen, but not very often and we are talking about the elite on the “Mid Majors.”
The schedule that UD played this year is a schedule that they have to play under the circumstances. They need 18 home games. You don’t get that with 2 for 1’s. You also don’t get that by playing a schedule like
Temple plays. Playing anyone anywhere cannot be done by a school that truly needs the money to keep the athletic program alive.
There also seems to be a belief that
Brian Gregory is not very good at what he does. If he isn’t, there are a lot of guys making a lot more money that don’t know anything either. Getting top players to come to Dayton is not easy. As much as I love the city, what in the world would ever make you want to go there for four years of your life when you are 18? The man has been able to upgrade the program to the point where top 100 kids talk to us now. Oliver Purnell could not do that. Jim O’Brien could not do that.
Don Donoher could not do that.
If all it took to hitting free throws at the end of a game was to line guys up, study their motion and let them fire away, then everybody would hit 80% of their free throws. Guess what? No team does that, ever. There is no doubt that Gregory spends a significant amount of time working on free throws, however it is up to the player in a real game situation to make the instruction work. It doesn’t always happen. How do you explain some of our guys dropping 15% from last year to this? It doesn’t make sense.
One last note to all of the Captain Obvious’ out there. Kurt Huelsman is not an All-American. You don’t have to be John Wooden to question his abilities on the court. As a typical Flyer fan, I too, yell at the TV every time he misses a lay-up or gets the ball stripped. However, blaming Kurt for 26 wins just doesn’t make a great deal of sense. Think about it. After every win, there is a thread that deals solely with Kurt. I’m just putting one and one together, he must be the reason they continue to win. I have no other explanation as to why somebody has to take that initiative every game.
I am not stating a belief that opinions other than mine are rubbish. On the contrary, I enjoy a good discussion that brings out fact, especially facts I haven’t heard 500 times. Feel free to give your opinion, but don’t waste all of our time with statements made to enflame. That is not what this board is about. We are fans of the program. I know not all of you reading this are. Just to let you know, we have not all drank the Kool-aid. We know there are faults, but at the same time there will be 300+ teams that will not win the national championship this year and we are smart enough to understand the UD may, and I repeat may, be one of them and it is not the fault of the players, coaches or program. It is the real world, not X-Box 360 where you always win.
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