OT: Operation 351 begins its 6th season.

[Moose1979]

When you ARE ready to watch Houston Baptist v Incarnate Word, do it at Incarnate Word here in my new home, San Antonio. While here you can also catch a UTSA game ( UConn beat UTSA in the first round of its 1999 national title run)

 

[willie99]

Go Danny Go, I'm envious my friend

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Yale at the Payne Whitney gym used to be an old church in the early 1900's. You can still see the cathedral glass windows high above the court.

Gothic Revival architecture similar to more than a few churches, but Payne Whitney was never a church. It does have some attractive stain glass, but it was always a purpose-built athletic facility and was completed around the Great Depression era.

Along with many Yale buildings, Payne Whitney’s an interesting structure to visit. Similarly, Eero Saarinen’s Ingalls Rink “The Whale” is both interesting and a great arena to watch a hockey game.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

Similarly, Eero Saarinen’s Ingalls Rink “The Whale” is both interesting and a great arena to watch a hockey game.

Love Ingalls. Went there a bunch as a kid when my friends’ parents were Yale grads.

Went there for the first time as an adult on New Year’s Eve to watch UConn beat Yale and my wife and had a blast.

 

[WallStreetHusky]

I hate to be a literal buzz kill, but there are no more bar cars on Metro North. They even did away with the bar carts inside Grand Central. However they do have 2 liquor stores inside GCT. At least that's what I have been told!

 

[whaler11]

Mount St. Mary’s is a lovely little campus - my daughter has gone there for swim meets. And I second the recommendation about Beacon....my daughter’s swim team actually practices at Beacon High every night.

But that Mount St. Mary’s is DIII.

The DI version is down in Maryland.

Thank you - I didn’t want to explain it’s Maryland... if Maryland was in West Virginia.

 

[Greathusky]

I hate to be a literal buzz kill, but there are no more bar cars on Metro North. They even did away with the bar carts inside Grand Central. However they do have 2 liquor stores inside GCT. At least that's what I have been told!

They had bar cars the last time I saw UCONN in the Big East tournament.

Sad if true!

 

[District-Husky]

You should hit Duquesne on this trip too:

1. West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris – hoping for a trifecta in one visit

 

[whaler11]

You should hit Duquesne on this trip too:

1. West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris – hoping for a trifecta in one visit

And St Francis... And Youngstown State....

 

[District-Husky]

And St Francis... And Youngstown State....

Talk about a weekend of bad basketball.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

You should hit Duquesne on this trip too:

1. West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris – hoping for a trifecta in one visit

You could make real argument that Duquesne is the 2nd best team amongst that group of four.

 

[Greathusky]

You should hit Duquesne on this trip too:

1. West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris – hoping for a trifecta in one visit

Duquense is having their arena renovated this season. I will wait for the new arena to open.

 

[jleves]

For those who don't know me, Operation 351 is my personal journey to visit every D1 college basketball site to see a basketball game. My travels are documented on my blog at www.journeyto351.com. When I started 5 years ago, there were a total of 351 D1 schools. That number has changed over the years. With Savannah State dropping down to D2, the number for the 2019-20 season will be at 352 teams.

As has been a tradition for the past 5 years, I annually repost a Boneyard quote from Fishy that I rate as one of the funniest in Boneyard history as he commented on my mission:

“You have no chance of doing it. But beyond that, you don’t want to. At some point, you’ll find yourself at Houston Baptist watching them host Incarnate Word wondering just why you threw your life away. Then, you’ll make your way back to your $29 a night hotel room in Cow Dick, Texas, and drown yourself in the toilet.”

I am at now 81 games and going strong!

Here are my choices for the upcoming season dependent on weather, scheduling conflicts and life:

1. Syracuse and Colgate – hopefully in early November or March because of the weather
2. Canisius and Niagara – ditto
3. George Mason and Maryland Eastern Shore
4. Bucknell and Penn State
5. St. Francis PA and Mount St. Mary
6. West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris – hoping for a trifecta in one visit
7. South Florida – Against UConn representing my annual Operation 351 trip with my wife
8. Tulane and (LSU or New Orleans or Nicholls St.) - Tulane is playing UConn. A visit to the Big easy with good friends of ours.

Looking forward to an exciting season for the men and an eventual trip on the Metro North bar car for a trip to MSG!

Doing quick math, you hit about 16/year and presumably, you've probably hit more close ones than far ones, so that's going to take a toll. You have 17 more years at 16 or so per year. I can't imagine a 22 year campaign. I would have given up half way through the first year.

Kudos to your resolve to do this. I would suggest you do Hawaii before Cow Dick just in case.

 

[BLUEDOGHOUSE]

Colgate will be really good this year. Beating Syracuse a real possibility.

 

[Purple Stein]

Wow. You’re the man, @Greathusky!

 

[J187Money]

Have you made it to Houston Baptist? Or is that going to be your swan song?

I'm in San Antonio a lot - now I feel like I need to got a UIW game.

 

[Deepster]

What an odd quest.

The fact of the matter is, of the 351 spots, I have to imagine 20-30% being interesting or “special” and the rest are half empty arenas with meaningless games that simply “check the box”. And those games are usually spent with Greathusky telling anyone who’ll listen to him about this weird journey.

 

[Purple Stein]

^^All of that sounds awesome to me.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

this effort now becomes my top definition for the word ''awesomesauce." in june, I went to a met game where a family asked me to take a pic of them with the Citifield sign above them. they explained that they're from Kansas, and are visiting every mlb ballpark this summer. people like you are inspirational. can do! happy trails.

 

[Greathusky]

What an odd quest.

The fact of the matter is, of the 351 spots, I have to imagine 20-30% being interesting or “special” and the rest are half empty arenas with meaningless games that simply “check the box”. And those games are usually spent with Greathusky telling anyone who’ll listen to him about this weird journey.

I typically head out to the city a few hours before the game to take in any cool tourist spots and search out the local watering hole where the team's fans hang out. In the city of Allegany where the St. Bonaventure lives, I hung out at Burton's for admittedly a great burger and brews to talk with the fans about the Bonnies, college basketball, why the Bills suck and life in general. It is a town that one would drive through without seeing anything special but it was a well spent 2 hours. I have duplicated this effort many times throughout the past 5 years.

This my chance to see America void of the Disneyword pollyana view. I have been to cities whose mansions make you feel poor to the blighted neighborhoods surrounding Coppin State and Fordham. I have talked with folks who political views are so the opposite of mine but I attempted listened with a non judgmental ear and try to understand their point of view. I eagerly wait for each game on this quest as an opportunity to see more of this great country.

So to say that this mission is a visit to "half empty arenas with meaningless games" misses the point of this quest by a country mile.

Happy July 4th to my fellow Boneyarders!

 

[HooperScooper]

What an odd quest.

The fact of the matter is, of the 351 spots, I have to imagine 20-30% being interesting or “special” and the rest are half empty arenas with meaningless games that simply “check the box”. And those games are usually spent with Greathusky telling anyone who’ll listen to him about this weird journey.

It's a goal and something that he enjoys. Why on the guy's adventure? He's not hurting anyone.

 

[Deepster]

It's a goal and something that he enjoys. Why on the guy's adventure? He's not hurting anyone.

I guess it’s because I travel a lot. And most of it is not glamorous. Take Evansville. Home of the Purple Aces. I’ve been there twice for work in the last 18 months. The airport has 6 gates and the last time I was there, I was 1 of 4 people in the entire building. There are no cool bars in the center of town and it looks like a ghost town. I look at this quest and when the cool Payne Whitney gyms with Pepe’s Pizza get checked off, a huge chunk of the 351 are Evansvilles.

Don’t get me wrong. Going to the all time greats would be great....but that’s not the conquest here at all.

 

[UofCT]

I typically head out to the city a few hours before the game to take in any cool tourist spots and search out the local watering hole where the team's fans hang out. In the city of Allegany where the St. Bonaventure lives, I hung out at Burton's for admittedly a great burger and brews to talk with the fans about the Bonnies, college basketball, why the Bills suck and life in general. It is a town that one would drive through without seeing anything special but it was a well spent 2 hours. I have duplicated this effort many times throughout the past 5 years.

This my chance to see America void of the Disneyword pollyana view. I have been to cities whose mansions make you feel poor to the blighted neighborhoods surrounding Coppin State and Fordham. I have talked with folks who political views are so the opposite of mine but I attempted listened with a non judgmental ear and try to understand their point of view. I eagerly wait for each game on this quest as an opportunity to see more of this great country.

So to say that this mission is a visit to "half empty arenas with meaningless games" misses the point of this quest by a country mile.

Happy July 4th to my fellow Boneyarders!

Are you telling this story anywhere else? I feel like Rothstein or the One Shinning Moment podcasts would be lucky to get you on their show.

 

[joober jones]

I couldn't take a George Mason home game. You're a bigger man than I.

 

[Greathusky]

I guess it’s because I travel a lot. And most of it is not glamorous. Take Evansville. Home of the Purple Aces. I’ve been there twice for work in the last 18 months. The airport has 6 gates and the last time I was there, I was 1 of 4 people in the entire building. There are no cool bars in the center of town and it looks like a ghost town. I look at this quest and when the cool Payne Whitney gyms with Pepe’s Pizza get checked off, a huge chunk of the 351 are Evansvilles.

Don’t get me wrong. Going to the all time greats would be great....but that’s not the conquest here at all.

I do get what you are saying.

Because I do a little research before visiting, I have an idea about the area and where to go and what to do. If there are no good bars and nothing to do in the area, I may go for a hike in the park or drive a little to an adjoining town to see stuff. Places like Itta Bena, MS (Mississippi Valley State), Vestal, NY (Binghamton) and Jersey City, NJ (St. Peters) come to mind. I have found that places like these are far and few between. For the most part, I always find something to do wherever I go.

Wherever that is no matter how big or small the arena is, I still get a rush when I walk in for the first time and hear the pep band playing and sneakers squeaking on the court.