Are You Scared?????

[MUMac]

The dreaded Zombocalypse!

Didn't Ziggy Marley write that?

[Henry Sugar]

Didn't Ziggy Marley write that?

It's on the same album as the Arthur theme song. 

Which also scares me

[brewcity77]

Football may be driving things, but we're certainly not alone. Georgetown doesn't have football. Villanova doesn't (yet) have football. St. John's, Providence, DePaul and Seton Hall don't have football. Notre Dame doesn't seem to want to align with others with football. Outside the Big East, Butler and Xavier don't have football. And there are other quality programs we can align with that don't have football.

As long as we stay tied to the teams we have been tied with for the past 6 years, we should be okay. This could be a hiccup, it could set us back a bit, but as I look out my patio door, I see the sky is still intact. I wouldn't bother panicking until there's actually something to panic about.

And even if the Big East dissolves this afternoon, Rutgers and UConn join the ACC, West Virginia joins the SEC, Notre Dame joins the Big Ten, and Louisville and Cincy join the Big 12, we still have a firm foundation of schools for a very good basketball only league. I have a feeling that Providence, St. John's, DePaul, and Georgetown want to stick with Marquette just as much as we want to stick with them.

[dwaderoy2004]

i don't think there is a ton to be scared of.  It's makes it tougher, that's for sure.  But success breeds success.  Just keep winning and we'll be ok.  Honestly, this is probably coming at a pretty good time for us.  We should be ranked most of the year (hopefully) so if it all goes to hell we are fresh in the mind of the country and recruits.  Imagine if we were Depaul and as bad as they have been and suddenly had to go to a basketball-only conference and try to build.  This is not an ideal situation, but we are still in a manageable position.


EDIT: I also want to point out how huge it was that we extended Buzz and included a HUGE buyout.  thanks cottingham...

[bilsu]

I know things are going to change.

I do not know that I would say I am scared, but this is what I worry about.

The number one thing is that the NCAA tournament in the future is ruined by this. That would be the absolute worse thing by far. I still want MU to be in it and to be able to root for the little guy. Change that and college basketball will be the same as college football to me, which is I rarely watch it and I generally do not care about it.

The second thing is that enough Big East football schools decide to leave resulting in the conference being disbanded, which means the Big East is done after this year. As it is now the league goes on for this season and two more seasons with Syracuse and Pitt and they have to pay the buyout. No buyout, if league is disbanded.

The third thing is that there is change in our current unsigned commitments do to this.

I know a lot of posters look down on Xavier, but if we end up in a similar conference, I would not mind having their success. Therefore, I am not really worried(sacred) about where we finally end up.

[Nukem2]

Change, yes..scared...NO.  Just a product of our times.  Guess the original poster here would rather live in a quieter, more collegial era...which was when...??  Change brings challenges and I believe MU is up to those challenges.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

How many perennial top 10 teams have there been over the last 15 years?

EDIT: Appearances in the AP top 10 since 2000:

Duke 90%
KU 66%
UNC 52%
UCONN & Pitt 42%
Florida 41%
MSU 40%
KY, TX & AZ 37%
nobody else cracks one-third.

I suppose it depends on how you define the term, but I see perhaps one "perennial top 10" team since 2000.

Yea, I have no idea how the original poster was qualifying "perennial top 10", but in my mind we have a long ways to go no matter how technical we get about the definition.

[NersEllenson]

Texas A&M's move to the SEC could be headed to court and Oklahoma's future/the Big 12's future is somewhat up in the air. I wouldn't necessarily define any of that as stable.

Sure...but both those schools are rock solid as far as being included in BCS/power conferences...and always will be due to having football.

[brewcity77]

Sure...but both those schools are rock solid as far as being included in BCS/power conferences...and always will be due to having football.

It's a lot more than football. A&M is one of the biggest universities in the country. Oklahoma is one of the most successful football programs of all time. They have been a part of the BCS as long as there's been a BCS. Both boast over 30,000 students and are massive public universities. Saying that it's due to having football is like saying Marquette would be in the same position had they not discontinued football, or that Houston is because they do have football. Football is just one piece of the puzzle to making a school as rock solid as A&M or OU are.

[Nukem2]

It's a lot more than football. A&M is one of the biggest universities in the country. Oklahoma is one of the most successful football programs of all time. They have been a part of the BCS as long as there's been a BCS. Both boast over 30,000 students and are massive public universities. Saying that it's due to having football is like saying Marquette would be in the same position had they not discontinued football, or that Houston is because they do have football. Football is just one piece of the puzzle to making a school as rock solid as A&M or OU are.

Also, if MU still had FB, it would most likely be mid-major at best and basketball would have taken a different direction over the decades...?

[brewcity77]

Also, if MU still had FB, it would most likely be mid-major at best and basketball would have taken a different direction over the decades...?

I have no idea. None of us do and none of us ever will because it's just conjecture. But lamenting it and acting as if we know that we'd be in some pie-in-the-sky situation just isn't worth it.

[StillAWarrior]

Personally - I don't have an issue with this thread, or the content of the original post.  The Big East implosion is NOT a good thing as everyone here can agree on.

I don't believe the administration at MU has *MUCH* to do with any of the success the MU basketball program has had the last 15 years.  It has to do with big time donors like Dick Strong, getting Tom Crean here for 9 years, who got D-Wade, which got us a Final Four, (and the Al McGuire center funded by donors/alums - and not administration) which made entry into the Big East an option.  Even though in the Big East, Crean still felt leaving MU for Indiana was a better option.

Fast forward now - we have a GREAT young coach/recruiter - who we know many schools covet, who just turned down a lot of options to return closer to his native home, and coach at a school that has a major football program (stability).  Big East has been a huge selling point to recruits - now that it is unraveling - that changes the complexion/intensifies the recruiting challenges MU already faces.

MU will only be as good in hoops as is the quality of its coach.  It has nothing to do with administration's commitment to the program, etc.  Why did the program begin to fall after KO left and Deane took over?  Cause Deane couldn't recruit at a high level.  Crean comes in, and recruits well, and program rises again.  Buzz carries that same torch forward, and we are in good hands.  But now we potentially are losing a big selling point on the recruiting trail.

Yes, I am a little scared - mostly about if Buzz decides the material change in the landscape at Marquette - changes his mind to remain at MU.  At that point...look out...and I hope to GOD it doesn't happen.

I suppose we'll agree to disagree on the importance of the administration's commitment to the basketball program.  I certainly agree that it's essential to have a good coach -- and I think that we've got one -- but we need an administration that is committed to keep a quality program.  They stepped up to the plate and offered Buzz an initial contract that arguably was more than he was worth at the time because they saw something in him (and it appears they were right).  They've doubled down on his contract since then.  You can credit donors and alumni for building the Al, but it never happens without the support of the the administration.  In my opinion, you severely underestimate the importance of having an administration that is committed to having an elite basketball program.

[Litehouse]

Also, if MU still had FB, it would most likely be mid-major at best and basketball would have taken a different direction over the decades...?

This is a good point I hadn't thought about before.  If we had football all along, there's a good chance we'd be in the MAC or MVC for all sports right now.

[NersEllenson]

I suppose we'll agree to disagree on the importance of the administration's commitment to the basketball program.  I certainly agree that it's essential to have a good coach -- and I think that we've got one -- but we need an administration that is committed to keep a quality program.  They stepped up to the plate and offered Buzz an initial contract that arguably was more than he was worth at the time because they saw something in him (and it appears they were right).  They've doubled down on his contract since then.  You can credit donors and alumni for building the Al, but it never happens without the support of the the administration.  In my opinion, you severely underestimate the importance of having an administration that is committed to having an elite basketball program.

You certainly could be right.  I've never been privy to any of the administration's meetings with regard to program funding/commitment/etc.  I probably do underestimate Fr. Wild's impact, etc.  However, in this day and age, if it is not ABUNDANTLY clear to an administrator at a university that Athletics plays a HUGE part in "brand/university recognition,' that administrator would have to be an idiot.  Having strong basketball/football teams is the Number 1 way to get exposure for your university - and if the teams suck - well, they never get any mention in the press.

MU's applications for admissions SOARED after the Final Four appearance, and the same has held true for Butler, and other schools after their strong tournament runs. 

Guess I just feel that the administration at MU would have to be a HUGE group of idiots to NOT invest heavily in what has easily been MU's largest claim to fame (at least on a national level) - Men's Basketball.

[jaybilaswho?]

12. Broken condoms.

[Marqevans]

Agree with Ners, the loss of some of our "verbal commitments" is a real possibility if the Big East loses it's attraction as the best conference for basketball.

[Ari Gold]

12A 1B 1C. Broken condoms.

Fixed

[StillAWarrior]

However, in this day and age, if it is not ABUNDANTLY clear to an administrator at a university that Athletics plays a HUGE part in "brand/university recognition,' that administrator would have to be an idiot...

Guess I just feel that the administration at MU would have to be a HUGE group of idiots to NOT invest heavily in what has easily been MU's largest claim to fame (at least on a national level) - Men's Basketball.

The thing is, I think there a lot of idiots in administration. Never forget, someone thought it was a good idea to hire Bob Dukiet (to put things into coaching terms, as you rightly do).

[ZiggysFryBoy]

3.  4never's windowless van.

7.  Carrie Underwood
8.  Trevor Mbakwe.

[Dr. Blackheart]

9.  Short suit coat sleeves

[macman320]

so the question comes down to...do recruits pick us for the big east or for buzz? I think buzz, and we are okay. The big east helps, but our guys have a personal relationship with buzz. We keep him, we are okay. I just worry for the fans that want him gone.

[Litehouse]

9.  Short suit coat sleeves

10. And extra, extra, extra long ties.

[Dr. Blackheart]

11.  Brazilian eyebrows

[4everwarriors]

Looks s hit-faced, with a bad haircut (per usual).

[RubyWiscy]

MU will only be as good in hoops as is the quality of its coach.  It has nothing to do with administration's commitment to the program, etc.

Um, didn't the administration fire Deane and hire Crean?  And hire Buzz and then everyone said it was nuts? Revisionist historians.  Gotta love 'em.