2025–26 Spider men's basketball schedule

I have a real problem with the scheduling for two reasons:

1. Ill start with the lesser of the two issues, IMO.

The schedule itself is embarrassing, as others have already mentioned. The only possible excuse for it .... would be that ALL programs at our level are incapable of currently scheduling any other way. And we all know that's completely untrue.

2. The major problem with the schedule is...

How can you have a completely (and I mean COMPLETELY) different approach on the men's and women's side to this issue? There has to be an institutional/departmental ideology that dictates how your athletic programs and coaches within those programs approach this.... because there has to be a generally correct answer re: what the best approach is to this. Either our women's program is doing it wrong currently or our men's program is doing it wrong currently. We all know which one of those two is the case, but then you've lost all institutional/departmental control over your men's basketball program, and I find that completely unnaceptable. It's also a complete embarrassment that you're basically getting shown up by your women's program at this point. Let's throw in MLAX just to prove the point and someone please tell me which one of these things is not like the other. It's sad to have so much pride at this point in the overall approach of our women's basketball and MLAX programs and have to be sitting in here in total disbelief related to the total contrast of the way our most tenured, well paid/funded, flagship coach/program is doing things. If the men's basketball program with a coach who's been here for 20+ years isnt' the one setting the example and leading the way for everyone else.... what the hell are we doing?
 
It’s pretty simple…if we think our teams are good (women’s hoops, men’s lax), we schedule tough. If we think our teams aren’t good (or might not be), we schedule easy.

I do think men’s hoops scheduling is more challenging…there’s less money driving the bus in other sports. But other schools are dealing with it and getting at least some decent games on their schedules. The only possible explanations seem to be that we don’t want the games or we’re inept at trying to get them.
 
SFspidur said:
It’s pretty simple…if we think our teams are good (women’s hoops, men’s lax), we schedule tough. If we think our teams aren’t good (or might not be), we schedule easy.

I do think men’s hoops scheduling is more challenging…there’s less money driving the bus in other sports. But other schools are dealing with it and getting at least some decent games on their schedules. The only possible explanations seem to be that we don’t want the games or we’re inept at trying to get them.
Click to expand...
I totally understand. I guess my point is that I really don't accept that explanation (not that you're wrong, just the overall validity of the approach).

And, if what you're saying is true, then its highlighting a very significant problem with the current state of one of those programs and the approach we're taking and perhaps allowing them to take.

Our MLAX program hasn't been in existence very long and clearly one of the reasons WHY we're good is because we've scheduled this way and have had this approach since the beginning. There's no choice but to recruit for the schedule that we insist on having and the level of company that we insist on keeping BECAUSE the program and scheduling MANDATES it. I think the same is becoming true of our Women's basketball program.

I give a ton of credit to Coach Chemotti and Coach Rousell and their staff. I think we're extremely fortunate to have them both. They'd legitimately both find a way to fly to Mars if that was the only place that a top program would play us.

I'm not a Mooney hater by any stretch, but if it's that we're not good enough to play a better schedule then we need to be better and if we don't schedule better then how can we get better and it's a vicious cycle IMO.

So, if all that's happening is that the CEO has decided that he'd rather go 17-13 every year because 9-21 isn't very palatable and may get him another picture on the side of the highway.... then I think we need to re-examine what the hell we're doing because this isn't the way to lead the program and get better over time.
 
SFspidur said:
The only possible explanations seem to be that we don’t want the games or we’re inept at trying to get them.
Click to expand...
The common fan is never going to know, but it sure seems like there has been a change in approach. This year the answer seems to be that the goal was to get as many home games as possible and that of course lead to no “marquee” games. I simply don’t understand why Southern VA is on the schedule similar to Mount Olive last year. What is the “pro” for either of those games?
 
VegasSpider said:
I totally understand. I guess my point is that I really don't accept that explanation (not that you're wrong, just the overall validity of the approach).

And, if what you're saying is true, then its highlighting a very significant problem with the current state of one of those programs and the approach we're taking and perhaps allowing them to take.

Our MLAX program hasn't been in existence very long and clearly one of the reasons WHY we're good is because we've scheduled this way and have had this approach since the beginning. There's no choice but to recruit for the schedule that we insist on having and the level of company that we insist on keeping BECAUSE the program and scheduling MANDATES it. I think the same is becoming true of our Women's basketball program.

I give a ton of credit to Coach Chemotti and Coach Rousell and their staff. I think we're extremely fortunate to have them both. They'd legitimately both find a way to fly to Mars if that was the only place that a top program would play us.

I'm not a Mooney hater by any stretch, but if it's that we're not good enough to play a better schedule then we need to be better and if we don't schedule better then how can we get better and it's a vicious cycle IMO.

So, if all that's happening is that the CEO has decided that he'd rather go 17-13 every year because 9-21 isn't very palatable and may get him another picture on the side of the highway.... then I think we need to re-examine what the hell we're doing because this isn't the way to lead the program and get better over time.
Click to expand...
Vegas, completely agree with you here. And why is our MBB coach untouchable when 2 years running, we scheduled a crap OOC because apparently we've internally already concluded preseason that our team sucks.
 
RichmondNative said:
The common fan is never going to know, but it sure seems like there has been a change in approach. This year the answer seems to be that the goal was to get as many home games as possible and that of course lead to no “marquee” games. I simply don’t understand why Southern VA is on the schedule similar to Mount Olive last year. What is the “pro” for either of those games?
Click to expand...
Ironically, scheduling a D3 game won't hurt our resume because they aren't counted. If you want to do a D3 game make it a scrimmage as they used to be. The only reason we are putting a D3 on the schedule is pad our win total.

What does hurt our resume is the plethora of Quad 4 games coupled with the lack of Quad 1 and 2 games.

To me, our end game with this schedule is to bump our Win-Loss record, so that we can sell everyone that we are making progress in comparison to last year and thus we just need to stay the course. Which is just a pathetic existence and frankly a disservice to every player donning the uniform this year, as we are not challenging them and also giving them no hope but some miracle A-10 run to reach the NCAA.
 
our entire schedule is made to pad our win total.
it's not for the fans or student body, that's for sure. we don't want to watch weak teams where we can't even get excited about a win.
it's not for the players who want to earn street cred.

I think Mooney's heard so much about 55% being used against him that he knows he needs to put up more wins regardless of whether it helps the team dance or not.
 
sman said:
our entire schedule is made to pad our win total.
it's not for the fans or student body, that's for sure. we don't want to watch weak teams where we can't even get excited about a win.
it's not for the players who want to earn street cred.

I think Mooney's heard so much about 55% being used against him that he knows he needs to put up more wins regardless of whether it helps the team dance or not.
Click to expand...
We are on the same page. What is sad about this whole thing is they are fooling no one with this and only bringing on more scrutiny by doing it this way.

If they think that if this year team goes out and wins 20 games and doubled its win total from last year that everyone will be elated. If 18 of those 20 wins are Quad 3/4 and D3 wins, no one is going to look back at this year and see it as a success in the NIL era, it will just be one more lost year in the Mooney tenure.

The only people they will have impressed with this is themselves.

And I feel worst for the players, I'm sure kids moving up to an A-10 school, do so to in part to increase the level of competition. I bet all of their former schools are playing much tougher OOC than we are.
 
That is the infuriating thing with Mooney and Hardt. They are able to control the narrative by only taking softball questions in the media and only doing media with vetted sources. I think our podcast duo is doing a tremendous job, getting ready to give the new episode a listen now. But right away moon is creating the narrative how his job is to create good young men. I thought that was the parents job??? I mean he is only recruiting the highest character guys we are told. So i don't think that job is too hard. It's not like when Shaka was at VCU and a lot of the players grew up without a father figure. AND he won big.
I don't think it's our podcasters job to call out moon. And they would get whiplash finding out how fast they lose access. But to me it was another clear example of where moon was using them to shape the narrative that he has this super hard job to mould these young men, and ohh there is only so much time left in the day to also win games and schedule opponents and figure out this NIL thing.
 
sman said:
our entire schedule is made to pad our win total.
it's not for the fans or student body, that's for sure. we don't want to watch weak teams where we can't even get excited about a win.
it's not for the players who want to earn street cred.

I think Mooney's heard so much about 55% being used against him that he knows he needs to put up more wins regardless of whether it helps the team dance or not.
Click to expand...
You bring up an interesting point about 55 pct being used against Mooney. I’d really like to know if that’s a self awareness factor or not. It should certainly be an embarrassing point, but who knows what he reads, hears, or cares. It kind of falls into a similar category of pushback on acceptability of a crappy OOC schedule and complaints by the dedicated fans on a forum. My gut tells me Mooney could care less on both accords.
 
*23* said:
But right away moon is creating the narrative how his job is to create good young men. I thought that was the parents job???
Click to expand...
Wow. Yes. That is the parent's job. Certainly, the coach should be a role model, run a clean program and help young men develop, but those are job prerequisites for a Division 1 coach. It is amazing how Mooney has been able to morph his basic job prerequisites into how we define success at UR for him doing his job. It is further amazing that he is got Hardt to buy into that when quite obviously our prior women's coach, our prior baseball coach both did all of that and yet their contracts were not renewed, presumably for not winning enough. But we have a different standard for Mooney.

A Division 1 MBB coach job is to win basketball games. Period, end of story. Until, UR embraces that philosophy the ceiling for our MBB will remain low.
 
97spiderfan said:
The only reason we are putting a D3 on the schedule is pad our win total.
Click to expand...
A pad of 1 win doesn’t make any sense to me. I guess the only explanation is there is a strong desire to open with a win and none of the Q4 opponents could accommodate the UR home schedule.

2024-25 OOC - 6 Home, 4 Away, 3 Neutral
2025-26 OOC - 9 Home, 2 Away, 2 Neutral

As seen above, the obvious difference between seasons is home games, thus my point that this was intentional. All of this year’s home games are Q4 or don’t count in the NET and that is simply because the P5 teams are not going to give you a home game typically. Look at Virginia Tech’s OOC for example. They play 3 A10 teams (Duq, St J, GM) this year and all are at Cassell (one exhibition, 2 OOC games). I am sure UR could have gotten something, but simply did not want to travel.
 
vt4700 said:
Disgusting. Embarrassing. Inexcusable. Makes me lose all interest in our program until A-10 play starts, and even when that happens I will still be pissed about this piece of garbage schedule.
Click to expand...
Welcome back.

One positive for the OOC schedule is everyone can agree it is atrocious. The other is that it is going to make every A10 game seem like a tournament game.
 
SFspidur said:
So based on last year's NETs, here is the quad breakdown:

Q2
128. at Belmont

Q3
114. vs Illinois State (depending on MTE matchups)
124. vs Furman (depending on MTE matchups)
191. at Elon

Q4
176. ECU
190. Southern Illinois
218. W&M
269. Gardner–Webb
270. vs Charlotte (depending on MTE matchups)
293. ODU
294. VMI
296. Charleston Southern
361. The Citadel

Non-DI
Southern Virginia
Click to expand...
That is atrocious. Please pass the peyote.
 
Hi all, happy to be a new member on the board. I came over as a long time lurker on the rivals board (hence the "sensible" name). I graduated within the last decade and have been a season ticket holder for football and basketball for many years now. This schedule has me seriously questioning the point of getting season tickets this year - might as well hold off until conference play in January. So disappointing. I never missed a home game in college and very rarely have I since graduation, but this has me rethinking that, especially with the increase in cost. Anyways, excited to be here to discuss richmond hoops from a very frustrated alum and fan.
 
SensibleSpider said:
Hi all, happy to be a new member on the board. I came over as a long time lurker on the rivals board (hence the "sensible" name). I graduated within the last decade and have been a season ticket holder for football and basketball for many years now. This schedule has me seriously questioning the point of getting season tickets this year - might as well hold off until conference play in January. So disappointing. I never missed a home game in college and very rarely have I since graduation, but this has me rethinking that, especially with the increase in cost. Anyways, excited to be here to discuss richmond hoops from a very frustrated alum and fan.
Click to expand...
I'd hate to see an empty RC for the players, but really this is the only way to show Mooney our disapproval with this attempt at a schedule.
other teams manage to get a few good games ... if not at home then at least on the road or neutral.
 
SensibleSpider said:
This schedule has me seriously questioning the point of getting season tickets this year - might as well hold off until conference play in January.
Click to expand...
Welcome aboard and I find myself wrestling with the same decision. Went to all the games last year and didn’t enjoy the OOC ones then either. Now they are giving me more of something I don’t want.
sman said:
I'd hate to see an empty RC for the players, but really this is the only way to show Mooney our disapproval with this attempt at a schedule.
Click to expand...
There were a good number of empty seats last year and it will be interesting to discover if there are even more this year. I can’t say “see” because I likely won’t be in the building.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top