VCU does it again… good for them.

[Spider17]

Here's a question I hope we won't ever have to answer, but... Would people be willing to fold the football program if that led to an elevation of the basketball program to the level that we all want?

I don't think there's any reason we can't be good in all sports, but it feels like this is a question our administration would bring up as a way to justify things.

I forget who asked on the old forum but there was a question on would you be okay with dropping football if we went to the Big East and the majority said yes.

With Mooney as our coach I would definitely not sacrifice anything to see if he can elevate our program. It wouldn’t surprise me though if that’s our next excuse for when we stink again. Blame the football team getting revenue that could go to basketball instead.

If we had a coach like Josh Schertz and could legitimately become a power team in the Big East, I still wouldn’t discontinue the football program because there’s too much history there, but I would put it as a definite 3rd or 4th priority. Thankfully we never really have to compete with football money being in FCS. Even more so in the PL where I doubt there will be any NIL for players except the idea of giving them to seniors like Villanova does. That was a good idea.

So I don’t think I would ever want to discontinue our football program but if we had a really good coach and can be in the big east and that meant our football program would not be as relevant anymore, I’d be okay with that.

Still these “either or” questions are getting into dangerous territory Eight. Like I said, don’t give Mooney and the admin anymore excuses to try and explain why they suck at their jobs. They might go after football next. Maybe women’s tennis too saying they have too many scholarships that instead could go to basketball. Anything to ignore the very obvious decision of getting a different coach.

 

[Spider17]

I don't have a problem with Lacrosse being good - or great. But it just seems that there is this intricate web in which PQ prioritizes Lacrosse and not hoops. So he will never fire Mooney, nor put pressure on Hardt. As Steve Seymour once told me, Mooney has the best job in America, pays great and ZERO pressure from admin. Turnse out he was so right.

I don’t know PQ so I can’t speculate if one has to do with the other.

All I’m saying is men’s lacrosse is definitely not the problem here. They are #2 in the country, have made the conference title game every season, have garnered a lot of respect among lacrosse circles, represent our university tremendously on a national level, and can legitimately win a national championship in our lifetimes. They deserve all the funding they’re getting and more.

If anything, men’s lacrosse should be a blueprint and standard for how all our other sports should operate.

Maybe PQ can think to himself, if our men’s lacrosse program that only started in 2013-2014 can be the #2 team in the country a decade later, maybe our men’s basketball team can do better than losing in the A10 pillow fight game every year.

 

[carolinaspider]

Here's a question I hope we won't ever have to answer, but... Would people be willing to fold the football program if that led to an elevation of the basketball program to the level that we all want?

I don't think there's any reason we can't be good in all sports, but it feels like this is a question our administration would bring up as a way to justify things.

I have wondered if that is on the drawing board. NCAA champs in 2008 and 20 years later, defunct!

 

[carolinaspider]

I don’t know PQ so I can’t speculate if one has to do with the other.

All I’m saying is men’s lacrosse is definitely not the problem here lol. They are #2 in the country, have made the conference title game every season, have garnered a lot of respect among lacrosse circles, represent our university tremendously on a national level, and can legitimately win a national championship in our lifetimes. They deserve all the funding they’re getting and more.

If anything, men’s lacrosse should be a blueprint and standard for how all our other sports should operate.

Maybe PQ can think to himself, if our men’s lacrosse program that only started in 2013-2014 can be the #2 team in the country a decade later, maybe our men’s basketball team can do better than losing in the A10 pillow fight game every year.

Have friend at golf course who is retired lacrosse coach and Syracuse player. Last Summer he told me that UR was
on the cusp of being a major player and that Chermotti is the real deal and loves the school. I guess he was in the know.

 

[sman]

Hubert Davis probably deserved to be fired for that disaster tonight. His team got up 17 and just started jacking threes without using any shot clock and he did nothing to stop them. Then down the stretch when everyone was clearly gassed, he didn't substitute or call timeouts. How many layups did they miss between OT and the last few minutes of regulation? Embarrassing.

Hubert Davis is awful. How can he go 6 deep with that roster? team looked exhausted. think they scored 8 points in the last 7 minutes of regulation plus 5 minutes of OT. and it wasn't due to amazing defense. see this presser? lol

https://x.com/search?q=hubert%20davis&src=typed_query

 

[*23*]

Agree about Hubert. Think he has run his course at Carolina. But it seemed that way in the past. I believe saw a figure that he spent 12 million on roster this year. Seems like that may have been his last chance.

 

[Outsider]

Basketball schools like Villanova play at the highest level of basketball while always maintaining an upper level echelon FCS football program, lacrosse, and other sports (even without our facilities).

A grew up outside of Philly in the 70's and 80's, Villanova was always a very good basketball school when Rollie Massimino was coaching. If they had a football program, no one really knew about it.

 

[Outsider]

They are to a certain extent....I know that for a fact..there is leeway, but I'm not familiar with how much.

It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me to have higher academic standards than the rest of the programs in your conference. Regardless, I don't feel player talent is a major concern for ya'all. It's more about what you do with that talent.

 

[*23*]

Never forget, Martelli Juniors mentor. In this case the student turned out great despite the mentor.

 

[Outsider]

Rhoades, Odom, Martelli Jr. would have all come here had we gone after them. We didn’t.

I have to disagree/ These coaches wouldn't want to work for your AD. They worked for VCU because they came in knowing it was a path to bigger and better things. Our Admin knows and accepts VCU is a steppingstone for successful people. UR isn't a path for career advancement; seems your admin wants long term coaches like back in the old days.

 

[Spiders4ever]

Agree about Hubert. Think he has run his course at Carolina. But it seemed that way in the past. I believe saw a figure that he spent 12 million on roster this year. Seems like that may have been his last chance.

Damn, what happens to your coaching career after you get fired from your alma mater?

 

[Urmite]

Full disclosure. I'm a long time moral and financial supporter of VCU and JMU. As an outsider looking in:

I think a school the size of UofR that has a fan/supporter base that wants success at a high level in both basketball and football is in a tough place. Look at JMU football, this day in age; it takes a ton of money to put a successful football program together but at the expense of their basketball program. VCU will never have a football team mostly because the folks with the money know that football would kill the goals of the basketball program. I believe D1 football at UofR is a boat anchor to basketball and many of the Olympic sports. Most good mid-majors seem to choose between being a basketball school or a football school.

Coach Mooney has brought is some great talent over the years and had some great success. However, I think he's gotten too "old" to coach today's basketball players. I find the UR brand boring to watch. I think bringing in a young coach that may have limited head coaching experience would change the culture of the program.

I never bought into UR academic requirements are a real thing. My son played AAU with a kid that ended up playing at UR around 10 years ago (I can't remember his name, a Hanover kid) the kid needed a tutor just to qualify to pay HS. If there is an academic requirement at UofR, that's stupid. Todays D1 athletes are no longer "student/athletes" they are employees.

Only 5 months before football

I don’t think Football is a monetary drag on Basketball at the Alabama, Ohio State level.
I think it definitely is at the ODU, UMass, JMU level.
I think it is much less at the UR, W&M, Villanova level.

 

[Urmite]

Good points Outsider, was making the same about academics. Just another excuse that has been used off and on thru the Mooney years. UR is not trying g to play football at the highest levels though, and had a lot of success with Tarrant and Beilein while playing FCS level. Number one indicator is having a coach that can drive the bus. I was a big Mooney fan early on, but was on record at the time that would be fine with him taking the BC job. We should always be a good spot for an up and comer like Beilein was at the time.

I would still support what UR is attempting to do, if it was working.

I would love to have 8 players on the team each year who were on academic scholarship at top New England private schools while those players were playing at G league level in basketball.

It just doesn’t seem possible in the current environment.

 

[Fatherspider]

All my VCU friends are celebrating and I'm happy for them. But this makes me even sadder. Of all the schools in this country, why is once proud University of Richmond now saddled with an idiot AD and a groundhog day worthless coach?
WHY???

Sadly its partly the fault of the UR fanbase. Except for the billboard, there is just too much complacency. Still attending games, donating, not voicing enough displeasure. VCU fans wouldnt have put up with two of CM’s seasons much less 21. He would have been gone 15 years ago.

 

[brooklyn brownstone]

The saddest part is that everything VCU is doing isn’t any different than we can do. We are both in the same conference, same city. We both have have nice facilities.

VCU chooses to spend big on players, we don’t. VCU chooses to set high standards for themselves, we don’t. VCU chooses to be aggressive and schedule the best they can, we don’t. VCU chooses to hold coaches accountable if goals aren’t met, we don’t. VCU chooses to have institutional commitment to basketball and remove any self-imposed obstacles keeping them from getting good recruits, we don’t.

Rhoades, Odom, Martelli Jr. would have all come here had we gone after them. We didn’t.

I’m at the point where I can’t even hate on VCU anymore. You have to respect what they’ve done and the commitment they have to excellence in the sport. 10 A10 finals out of 13 A10 tournaments. 3 A10 tournament championships in 4 years where we finished bottom 4 of A10, 3 out of 4 years. In what was supposed to be a down year for them with a first year coach, they shared an A10 regular season title with the best SLU team in a long time, won the A10 tournament, and beat UNC in the NCAA tournament. Like I said before, good for them. You work hard and have complete alignment across the board and good things happen. They deserve it.

your last paragraph here is everything summarized.

They care about winning and support the hoops team, from marketing to NIL to game experience to not being afraid to set expectations, to going out and finding new coaches every 3-4 years and being unafraid of having coaches poached.

UR does most of the above very poorly. We have an AD who would rather not make waves as he sleeps toward retirement and a "that's good enough that we tried" mentality towards almost everything.

Mind blowingly dumb program UR is running. Lip service program.

 

[Fatherspider]

Here's a question I hope we won't ever have to answer, but... Would people be willing to fold the football program if that led to an elevation of the basketball program to the level that we all want?

I don't think there's any reason we can't be good in all sports, but it feels like this is a question our administration would bring up as a way to justify things.

Not necessary. There is one single reason UR sucks at hoops now, and it because of Buffooney Mooney.

 

[Spider17]

I have to disagree/ These coaches wouldn't want to work for your AD. They worked for VCU because they came in knowing it was a path to bigger and better things. Our Admin knows and accepts VCU is a steppingstone for successful people. UR isn't a path for career advancement; seems your admin wants long term coaches like back in the old days.

I agree with the first part of what you said, disagree with the latter. UR would be a dream for any coach looking to step up in competition. On one hand they can come here and coach for a school that has great resources, facilities, and conference affiliation. No one is stopping that person if they do well and want to move up a level. If the coach produces mediocre results, then the coach wouldn’t have to worry about getting fired and can get paid good money to underachieve.

So if they win, can move up a level if they choose. If they lose, won’t get fired and can get paid a lot of money to produce mediocre results. Worst case scenario is contract expires. Sounds like a good gig to me.

 

[whampas]

Here's a question I hope we won't ever have to answer, but... Would people be willing to fold the football program if that led to an elevation of the basketball program to the level that we all want?

I don't think there's any reason we can't be good in all sports, but it feels like this is a question our administration would bring up as a way to justify things.

No sport should have to suffer at the expense of men's basketball. Football, lacrosse, WBB, baseball are not causing men's basketball to flounder. Our do nothing administration and visionless leaders are responsible. I was pissed at Danny Rocco but as it turns out, I owe the man an apology.

 

[SpiderRick]

Have friend at golf course who is retired lacrosse coach and Syracuse player. Last Summer he told me that UR was
on the cusp of being a major player and that Chermotti is the real deal and loves the school. I guess he was in the know.

I'm sorry, but lacrosse? Ten years ago we didn't even have a lacrosse team. Most people have never seen a game, ever watched a game, and even fewer know the rules or how to play the game. They play outdoors in February and March for crying out loud. And we're discussing dropping football and lowering our basketball standards even further? Are we really discussing this?

What if Quelly had a daughter on the women's tennis team, we going to drop everything for that?

This whole Quelly Hardt Mooney thing is just MADDENING. There are lots of rich people around, what the eff makes quelly so special anyway.

 

[Gallipoli]

Illinois is favored by 11.2 over VCU.