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...we've gone from 3 time National Champion to mid-major. Or at least our conference has transformed into such.
Sorry for the following rant. I've been in class the past 3 days and am fried, but had to chime in.
I hope I'm wrong, but until we land in one of the existing major conferences, I think our program will revert back to what it was in the early to mid 90s, which isn't all that bad. The coaching staff is going to have to cast a wide net and battle hard for highly rated recruits. Probably won't win may of those battles, but might win enough of the regional ones (NE & NYC) to field a top 25 team. They'll need to get the Chris Smith's and Scott Burrell's, some International recruits who will still believe UConn is special, and maybe come out on top for a Rip or Donyell. KO, or whoever is the HC the next few years, will have to get the most out of some under-the-radar, late-bloomers (Emeka, Boone & Hilton types).
Now this might not sound all that different than the last dozen years, except the NC teams had a couple Burger AAs and a solid cast of supporting players. None of us thought for even a second that Kemba (NYC recruit) would lead the 2011 team to NC #3. Granted, he and Oriakhi were Burger AAs, though Alex never played like one. Lamb turned out to be a big time sleeper and compliment to Kemba, and Kemba himself turned out to be much better than anyone expected.
Instead of experiencing a huge recruiting bump coming off the 2011 NC, especially considering all the elite talent coming out of NE, we're now battling just to stay relevant.
I hope I'm wrong, but the loss of JC, the string of negative press (Miles & APR) and the downward spiral of the BE is probably going to take at least a moderate bite out of our talent level. I think once the program gains some Head Coaching stability, which I hope will be KO, I can see the team being built with hard working, moderately ranked and high ceiling recruits that can develop into a solid top 15 to 25 type team. If they're lucky and land some regional, national and/or international talent that turns out to be better than advertized, maybe we'll be in for a big surprise.
It s*cks not having the likes of SU, Pitt, UL and WVU on our schedule, though it was hit or miss how often we'd play these teams due to the unbalanced schedule. I guess you could add ND which has been better lately. As for RU, don't let the door hit you on your sorry ass on the way out. Of course there is a huge hit the conference is experiencing FB wise...no auto-BCS bid. Plus add the big time concerns about the conference TV Contract negotiations, the likely decrease in exposure and the millions of dollars that are being pushed off the table with each hit the conference has had to absorb.
I just feel like we're becoming Gonzaga East. Of course we're better than that. The BE at least has some programs that often make the NCAA Tourney such as GU, Nova, Marq, and Cinci, but losing SU, Pitt, WVU, ND and UL, all top 3rd BE hoops programs within such a short period of time, is beyond belief.
I'm far from stepping out on the ledge. I am shocked at how quickly things have gone south for UConn. I'm very disappointed. Can you imagine how bad it would be for us (fans and those associated with the program) if Kemba and the 2011 team hadn't had that magical NC run. When you look closely at it, it sure seems like a blip within a downward spiral that began with Nate Miles, that had a bunch of bad recruiting decisions, too many transfers that resulted in a huge APR hit, and JC's failing health and eventual retirement, that cost us gravely, tarnished our brand that put us in this situation.
The silver lining in all this is I've often feared that the program was about to spiral out of control and like a Phoenix it kept on rising from the ashes. 2011 is a perfect example. I just think we're going to go through a tough stretch, but will eventually find a home in one of the major conferences and end up okay. We have too good of an institution and athletic program to not find a good home eventually.
Sorry for the following rant. I've been in class the past 3 days and am fried, but had to chime in.
I hope I'm wrong, but until we land in one of the existing major conferences, I think our program will revert back to what it was in the early to mid 90s, which isn't all that bad. The coaching staff is going to have to cast a wide net and battle hard for highly rated recruits. Probably won't win may of those battles, but might win enough of the regional ones (NE & NYC) to field a top 25 team. They'll need to get the Chris Smith's and Scott Burrell's, some International recruits who will still believe UConn is special, and maybe come out on top for a Rip or Donyell. KO, or whoever is the HC the next few years, will have to get the most out of some under-the-radar, late-bloomers (Emeka, Boone & Hilton types).
Now this might not sound all that different than the last dozen years, except the NC teams had a couple Burger AAs and a solid cast of supporting players. None of us thought for even a second that Kemba (NYC recruit) would lead the 2011 team to NC #3. Granted, he and Oriakhi were Burger AAs, though Alex never played like one. Lamb turned out to be a big time sleeper and compliment to Kemba, and Kemba himself turned out to be much better than anyone expected.
Instead of experiencing a huge recruiting bump coming off the 2011 NC, especially considering all the elite talent coming out of NE, we're now battling just to stay relevant.
I hope I'm wrong, but the loss of JC, the string of negative press (Miles & APR) and the downward spiral of the BE is probably going to take at least a moderate bite out of our talent level. I think once the program gains some Head Coaching stability, which I hope will be KO, I can see the team being built with hard working, moderately ranked and high ceiling recruits that can develop into a solid top 15 to 25 type team. If they're lucky and land some regional, national and/or international talent that turns out to be better than advertized, maybe we'll be in for a big surprise.
It s*cks not having the likes of SU, Pitt, UL and WVU on our schedule, though it was hit or miss how often we'd play these teams due to the unbalanced schedule. I guess you could add ND which has been better lately. As for RU, don't let the door hit you on your sorry ass on the way out. Of course there is a huge hit the conference is experiencing FB wise...no auto-BCS bid. Plus add the big time concerns about the conference TV Contract negotiations, the likely decrease in exposure and the millions of dollars that are being pushed off the table with each hit the conference has had to absorb.
I just feel like we're becoming Gonzaga East. Of course we're better than that. The BE at least has some programs that often make the NCAA Tourney such as GU, Nova, Marq, and Cinci, but losing SU, Pitt, WVU, ND and UL, all top 3rd BE hoops programs within such a short period of time, is beyond belief.
I'm far from stepping out on the ledge. I am shocked at how quickly things have gone south for UConn. I'm very disappointed. Can you imagine how bad it would be for us (fans and those associated with the program) if Kemba and the 2011 team hadn't had that magical NC run. When you look closely at it, it sure seems like a blip within a downward spiral that began with Nate Miles, that had a bunch of bad recruiting decisions, too many transfers that resulted in a huge APR hit, and JC's failing health and eventual retirement, that cost us gravely, tarnished our brand that put us in this situation.
The silver lining in all this is I've often feared that the program was about to spiral out of control and like a Phoenix it kept on rising from the ashes. 2011 is a perfect example. I just think we're going to go through a tough stretch, but will eventually find a home in one of the major conferences and end up okay. We have too good of an institution and athletic program to not find a good home eventually.
Gonzaga is a rather unique school and basketball program. No need to hate on the Zags bro.