Replacing a Legend and Recovering | Page 8 | The Boneyard

Replacing a Legend and Recovering

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For the men's basketball program yes. Everywhere else in the world gets to have nice things, the one nice thing we had got taken away from us. Now we get the AAC, arenas where the bathrooms don't work, Kevin Ollie and we have to listen to the delusions of women's basketball fans who have somehow conflated UConn women's basketball with other sports and don't see to get that it ain't quite like that in the real world.

Why does everyone else in the world get to keep competing but UConn has actual fans saying - well that was a good run, take up numismatics or become an arctophile.

I'm going to Clemson at NC State next Thursday - always a jarring experience to visit the outside world. It's like living in woods in that M. Night Shamalan movie.

I presume you are an alum of some kind. How awesome is the NC ST. fan experience going?

The kick to the balls we have endured is like nothing I can imagine a similar fan base encountering. I would also argue we have the 2 most satisfying championship runs over the past 25 years. And 2 more ships to add to it.
 

8893

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it's mind-boggling. so many people are ok with everything just dying off.
Not remotely ok with it.

Realizing that I can’t control it and that I am pretty damned lucky to have experienced what I have experienced, especially given where we were with Perno when I first became a fan? Yeah I’ll agree to that.
 

UConnNick

from Vince Lombardi's home town
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Eat that statement whaler. the last 30 years happened. and it was good.

I'm continually reminded that a segment of our fanbase is spoiled rotten to the core, which logically results in a lot of whiny, crybaby tantrums when we experience some adversity. Other than a small handful of blue blood schools, every other school in NCAA D-I, about 345 of them or so, would kill to have our basketball resume.
 
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Tim Pikiell has accomplished little coaching. Steve Pikiell is the coach at Rutgers. I'm sure a big UConn fan like you knew that though.
Well actually I’ve watched probably every game since 1985, which is why I know Tim Pikiell exists. But thanks for correcting me - you must be good at using Google.
 

whaler11

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I presume you are an alum of some kind. How awesome is the NC ST. fan experience going?

The kick to the balls we have endured is like nothing I can imagine a similar fan base encountering. I would also argue we have the 2 most satisfying championship runs over the past 25 years. And 2 more ships to add to it.

I lived in Raleigh near the campus for a few years and had football and basketball tickets. I have to go to Raleigh for work for a couple of days so I just timed it with a home game.

We have great memories - but memories just aren't so valuable to me when there isn't any hope of creating new ones. It comes off as sad.

I'm watching the Bonnies in Dayton right now and Dayton's atmosphere is so much better than UConn or that funeral tonight in Tulsa that I am almost willing to entertain dropping the football program just to potentially save something.
 

Huskyforlife

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I'm continually reminded that a segment of our fanbase is spoiled rotten to the core, which logically results in a lot of whiny, crybaby tantrums when we experience some adversity. Other than a small handful of blue blood schools, every other school in NCAA D-I, about 345 of them or so, would kill to have our basketball resume.
Please, we just lost to Tulsa in double OT. We had our first losing season in forever last year. We're 7-7 this year. Is it too much for us to ask for competency?
 

FfldCntyFan

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I have zero doubt that Geno can teach fundamentals, offensive sets, defense, etc. better than all but perhaps a handful of people who ever taught the game.

I have zero doubt that Geno can handle the X's & O's, game plan and breakdown opponents' strengths and weaknesses better than all but perhaps a handful of people who ever coached the game.

The concerns are that I don't know if his personality would work with the egos that the better players in the men's game have, especially as most will be long gone from college basketball before he had close to the time teaching them as each would require. He isn't used to one and done players, they are very likely to require star treatment that neither he nor his system would allow.

There also would be a potential issue of many recruits viewing him as a girl's coach and being unwilling to give him a fair chance during recruitment.
 

whaler11

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Well actually I’ve watched probably every game since 1985, which is why I know Tim Pikiell exists. But thanks for correcting me - you must be good at using Google.

Or I grew up in the next town and am the pretty much the same age as them. Either that or Google.
 

Huskyforlife

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I don't think anyone really wants Pikiell anyway. He got a nice win at Rutgers, not much else.
People would be extremely disappointed with a Pikell hire at this point. We jumped the gun on his ability after that Seton Hall win.
 
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Not remotely ok with it.

Realizing that I can’t control it and that I am pretty damned lucky to have experienced what I have experienced, especially given where we were with Perno when I first became a fan? Yeah I’ll agree to that.

I will say the defeatist, reflective attitude shown by the 2 of us, who I consider rational and decent fans is pretty sad considering we won a championship in 2014. The reflecting on the good old days when we won a ship just 4 years ago is kinda sad. Thanks KO and UCONN admin.
 

UConnNick

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I don’t think most people would say there’s no indication he could coach men and it’s a different sport. There are much more rational and nuanced arguments against it.

Some of you may not know it, but Geno coached his son Michael's AAU team for at least one summer and perhaps more. Try coaching a bunch of 15-17 year old male players, all of whom are being told by their entourage that they're destined for NBA stardom. I wonder how much of that nonsense Geno put up with on the court? I'll bet it lasted all of two minutes into their very first practice, and then it was all over with for the rest of their season.
 

FfldCntyFan

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Some of you may not know it, but Geno coached his son Michael's AAU team for at least one summer and perhaps more. Try coaching a bunch of 15-17 year old male players, all of whom are being told by their entourage that they're destined for NBA stardom. I wonder how much of that nonsense Geno put up with on the court? I'll bet it lasted all of two minutes into their very first practice, and then it was all over with for the rest of their season.
Who was on that AAU team that thought he was NBA bound?
 
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Because it's just that stupid of an idea. I would hope no one would think Geno isn't capable. It's more Geno would never want to.

There are apparently plenty of people on this board who think he isn’t capable. Seems like a moot point though - I had always heard he wouldn’t be interested but didn’t know if it was pure speculation or not.
 

whaler11

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Sorry I hit a nerve sport. I haven’t watched every game since 85, but most. Forgot about Steve’s brother, but you, me and everyone else knows you screwed up and I made a joke about it, so how’s about you not take yourself or the game too seriously, k?

Nobody could watch every game since 85 unless they were with the program because slews of games back then weren't on TV.
 

whaler11

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Some of you may not know it, but Geno coached his son Michael's AAU team for at least one summer and perhaps more. Try coaching a bunch of 15-17 year old male players, all of whom are being told by their entourage that they're destined for NBA stardom. I wonder how much of that nonsense Geno put up with on the court? I'll bet it lasted all of two minutes into their very first practice, and then it was all over with for the rest of their season.

I actually saw some of their practices - our league used the court when they were done with it.

Rest easy there were no entourages nearby to ruin the instruction.
 

TRest

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I actually saw some of their practices - our league used the court when they were done with it.

Rest easy there were no entourages nearby to ruin the instruction.
Did they win a national championship.
 

whaler11

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Did they win a national championship.

I imagine they won every game by 50.

I think I've told this story before but if I didn't (and it will illustrate FCF's point):

Geno was hanging around after practice and our game had started. We were getting beat like 16-6 and one of our guys absolutely clobbered some guy going down the lane. Geno came over to our bench to let us know how bad we sucked (literally - 'you guys bleeping suck') - once he shared his opinion one of the guys on my team told him to "get the (banned word) out of here and go coach (banned word) girls.

We actually weren't that bad, our best players just had a habit of showing up late and high.

I've grown to like him over the years because he just says whatever the hell he wants and it's entertaining.
 
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I saw signs of life. Not from him, though.

Yup - I was proud of the kids tonight. A lot of good things or signs of life as you say. We kind of lost the old fashioned way. We tried hard and came up short. The kids did this on their own though. The coaches were still out of it, however.
 

8893

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Nobody could watch every game since 85 unless they were with the program because slews of games back then weren't on TV.
Are you saying he’s not with the program?
 

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