Drop football

[Robertelamin]

We're not in this conference because of basketball or football. We're in this conference because of the fan base. That's the number one reason. Most of the basketball fans couldn't care less about any of the other programs, a significant chunk of the football base doesn't like basketball, and the women's base is their own bread entirely. Sure every school has their own dynamics as far as which sports are popular, but UConn feels unique because of the northeast sports landscape. This isn't Wisconsin where everybody who is an alum of the school or grew up in the state goes to football, basketball, and hockey games without asking questions. It's a saturated market and by extension you have to build a base purely on entertainment/winning rather than culture, tradition, etc. That leads to an environment where you're picking up smatterings of people for a particular sport depending on which ones are good at the time. Nobody would care about women's basketball if they weren't the greatest program ever. I think that's obvious.

Now, do I think the basketball program would benefit from joining the Big East in the short term? Yes. There is an unavoidable conflict of interest that is likely going to end with somebody being unhappy. You can grill Ollie all you want for his coaching, and it has been bad, but there are a lot of guys who are less than perfect as coaches who win games because they get great players. New England is a rich recruiting market and I cannot imagine playing in the AAC helps us. Does that mean we should drop football? Obviously not. Conference is a factor but only a single factor and it's certainly not worth ditching a titanic investment to help win a recruit every couple years. If Ollie was falling just short against the blue bloods I could see the OP's argument, since he's not it is obvious that he's been the primary limiting factor.

The fan base? Nah. The fact is we got into big boy football about 50 years too late.

 

[huskysupporter]

Football has 0 national championships and the attendance is steadily dropping. Uconn is known as a basketball school, but with all that we shouldn’t drop football.

I’m in agreement. Just a response to a ridiculous original post.

Although I like football 10000 times more than basketball I root for all UCONN teams to do well. And I am guessing the majority of fans who like basketball feel the same. It’s just a couple posters that spew the dismantle football program.

 

[huskyrob1]

I just can't stand the people who blame the current miserable state of the basketball program on football and that is really what this is about otherwise you would have posted this in the football forum.

#get a clue and get a new basketball coach.

Take a poll....drop football or drop Ollie

 

[ivrytontusker]

I think this would be silly at best, even if you somehow think this would make the basketball program better. I hate to break it to you, but football, which is not going anywhere, has nothing to do with why the basketball program has crumbled. Unless you think "football" is wearing a suit and sitting on the bench during games tbat is.

A large part of the basketball program's problems now -and those problems coming in the future- have to do with the conference situation. The conference situation is harming the men's program and will harm the women's program once Geno retires. And the conference situation has everything to do with football.

 

[huskysupporter]

A large part of the basketball program's problems now -and those problems coming in the future- have to do with the conference situation. The conference situation is harming the men's program and will harm the women's program once Geno retires. And the conference situation has everything to do with football.

Everything, huh. Thank goodness Rutgers was such a power in football, they secured that Big Ten Invite. And that Syracuse football team was really lighting it up before they got an invite to the ACC. Yep, football has everything to do with conference situation. Zero other factors. Got it.

 

[jdb50]

Motrin, the fact we can't win a basketball game at SMU, Houston and Tulsa has nothing to do with football and everything to do with our overpaid coach. If we need to save money cut men's sports to FB, BB. soccer, hockey and baseball and make the corresponding cuts to women's programs to keep us in title 9 compliance.

 

[NutmegDog]

Good God, this twit with his 7th post wants UCONN to aspire to be Vermont.

Believe me, there are some (many?) in Burlington who are laughing at UConn and patting themselves on the back that they are not pouring millions into a program that "packs" 9,000 or so hearty souls into the high-priced Rent six times a year.

 

[junglehusky]

No.

 

[superjohn]

Real class man. Take a jab at someone because of their age. What is super johns team?

I have a team?

 

[whaler11]

I have a team?

Garlic John's Restaurant - About Us

 

[Jax Husky]

Maybe Vermont was a bad example. How about Wichita twit? They used to play major league football. How are they doing in BB, twit? This was meant for metsfan2323. Don't know why his post did not show up above my reply.

When the heck did Wichita St play "major league" football????

 

[ivrytontusker]

Everything, huh. Thank goodness Rutgers was such a power in football, they secured that Big Ten Invite. And that Syracuse football team was really lighting it up before they got an invite to the ACC. Yep, football has everything to do with conference situation. Zero other factors. Got it.

Well, we'd won a basketball title two years earlier when the realignment was going on. I think the ACC knew how good our basketball program was. And they weren't comparing us with Rutgers or Syracuse (although both have consistently higher FB attendance going back to the Big East days) but with Louisville.

We have a stronger men's BB program than Louisville. We have a stronger women's BB program than Louisville. We have a stronger academic profile and media market footprint than Louisville. What we don't have (and didn't have) is a stronger football program. If football had higher attendance, revenue, etc., then the ACC football schools (FSU, Clemson, Miami, VT) would not have joined with Syracuse and BC to stop our invite.

 

[microfich]

How about we just drop fans with idiot responses. Man this board would be a better place wouldn't it?

How about first dropping fans that insult other fans.

 

[intlzncster]

Believe me, there are some (many?) in Burlington who are laughing at UConn and patting themselves on the back that they are not pouring millions into a program that "packs" 9,000 or so hearty souls into the high-priced Rent six times a year.

Nah, they're laughing cause they are high .

 

[mauconnfan]

How about first dropping fans that insult other fans.

Good idea, but do me a favor first fichy, identify what a "fan" is because I rarely insult the real fans. Just the ones with the agenda for 1 1/2 years, well deserved. And if you don't like those replies I suggest you don't read them easy to hit the ignore button.

Have a good night!

 

[uconnbill]

I am going out on a limb with this, and just speculating. I will probably get called names by some of the arrogant posters, but I don't care. I am starting to think that dropping Football may not be a bad idea, and just be a basketball school. All those big east catholic schools played bigtime football when I was a kid in the '50's & '60's. They could not compete, could not afford it, and eventually dropped it. Big time FB is a closed club. Uconn will never get in. They will just flounder around on the periphery and loose tons of money. There are only so many quality players coming out of HS each year, and if they are 5 stars they are going to go to one of the long established programs, not Uconn. Furthermore, and here is were I could be dead wrong, but I see football possibly going the way of Roman Gladiator fights by the end of this century. We are all aware of all the talk about brain injuries in football, as well as other life long debilitating injuries. ( I tore my cartilidge in my knee playing HS FB, and still suffer from it. Just had another knee operation a few years ago, and I am almost 70). Football starts in high school. You need your parents permission to play as far as I know. You see where I am going with this? As more brain injury crap comes out, more parents say no, the player pool dwindles, and it is all down hill for the sport of football. Keep in mind I said by the end of the century, not over the next few years. Vermont dropped football, and while they are no BB powerhouse, they manage to put some pretty good teams on the court in BB for a small school from a tiny state. Would like to know what you all think about the future of football for Uconn and the sport in general. Maybe I am dead wrong, I am like I said just speculating.

Stupid post as if you haven't seen the college landscape where football rules. College basketball maketake another hit if they allow kids out of high school to go pro.

Grasshopper you have some learning how collegeg sports works. Plus you don't cut football.

 

[JSB60]

How about this? We drop basketball. It’s a bigger dumpster fire than the football team.

Football drives the ship. Not basketball. So get on board.

If football drives the ship, we're sunk. In the Big East, we could be like Villanova is now. Not right away, but eventually. We did it before.

 

[August_West]

Everything, huh. Thank goodness Rutgers was such a power in football, they secured that Big Ten Invite. And that Syracuse football team was really lighting it up before they got an invite to the ACC. Yep, football has everything to do with conference situation. Zero other factors. Got it.

What are the other factors?

 

[mauconnfan]

How about this? We drop basketball. It’s a bigger dumpster fire than the football team.

Football drives the ship. Not basketball. So get on board.

Not at UConn it doesn't you need to get off that soap box. Basketball is not a bigger dumpster fire than football and never will be. 1 1/2 years does not make it look like the football program has for more years than not. Minus a huge thumping by Oklahoma in a bowl game what have they done? So please don't throw basketball under the bus there would be football at Memorial Stadium (is that the name?) still if it weren't for basketball, women too.

 

[huskysupporter]

If football drives the ship, we're sunk. In the Big East, we could be like Villanova is now. Not right away, but eventually. We did it before.

That’s a good one.

 

[huskysupporter]

What are the other factors?

What do you think are the other factors?

 

[August_West]

What do you think are the other factors?

I didn't say there are other factors, you did.

Interested in hearing what they are.

 

[huskysupporter]

1. Media market

 

[August_West]

1. Media market

You mean CT in between NY and Boston with Hartford and New Haven as the 32nd Media market compared to Louisvilles 49?

 

[Kemba429]

Eh, its not really about winning it all or having 5 star recruits. I like having the football team, and ive enjoyed watching them even though they havent had a winning record in like 7 seasons or something. To me it just makes it even more hype when we do make it. Yeah theyll never win a natty but hey, maybe they can eventually do what UCF just did, or what Houston did a couple years ago (even though we ruined that!)