GP1

The AD should be immediately shown the door and the President of Duquesne should go crawling on his hands and knees to the former coach and ask him back. It's amazing the number of fools working in college athletics. Duquesne Basketball The coach at Duquesne had a few winning seasons at a school that only had a few winning seasons in the last 40 years. They only won 3 games the year before he was hired. If athletic directors weren't so short sighted, they would look to hire a guy like him.

It may not be a great hire, but it is a good enough hire. Groce knows one thing about modern day sports. Find a star and live/die with him. He rode Cooper as long as he could and probably could have done it for another successful year. Time to cash in though. If he can find a star in IL somewhere, he'll do fine....Cooper was a star IL basketball star. Find another star and he could be there 7 years from now. There were other names mentioned...all of them would have been making a mistake to take this job and should wait for a higher profile job if possible. For now, Groce is the best Thomas can do so he isn't really in over his head as much as he is doing the best he can with what he has to work with...he did a good job of this at Akron.

The champion should be The University of Akron. I'm just a guy with a computer who is willing to serve the University if asked. They know I'm interested. It can be more than just watching games together. The guy who did OSU programs had 50/50 drawings and all profits went to their Foundation. They had donation forms OSU supplied him with laid out at all events. They have a contract with the bowling alley uptown Charlotte for football games...The establishment agrees to pay a donation of 10% of revenues generated during the game including 30 minutes pre and post game to the OSU Foundation. They get around 250 to go. 10% of people drinking and eating for four hours can generate a lot of income. It seems like a lot of work, but it isn't. The restaurant has people who get paid to figure out what to do with these events.

Do you think any of the schools you mentioned are looking for a coach who has never won an NCAA Tournament game?

Tomorrow, the President of Duquesne should fire the AD. Then, he should call up the fired coach and beg him to come back. Three kids left the team after their AD turned down an invitation to that lame non-NIT tournament (CIA...whatever) among other reasons. Mark Madden blog This is a case where the President of the University should have told the AD, "He is more important than you. I'd fire you before I'd let you fire him. Turn in your resignation if you don't like it." I actally told a sales manager who reported to me that one time. He was one of those guys who wanted to hire "his guys" and I told him I would fie him before I let him fire seasoned successful sales reps in order to hire his friends.

It was the beginning of the end for JD. Jacq had the accuracy to deliever the ball to him after Getsy. He would have been an NFL player all the way. Oh well, life goes on....

I know the guy who was President of the OSU AA in Charlotte. Every summer, he had an event at a Charlotte Knights game (White Sox AAA). All it takes is one phone call to the team and they basically set it up. All he had to do was contact everyone on his list by e-mail. It hardly takes any time. I'd love to captain a Charlotte UofA alumni group. I know four families from my little town who are UofA grads. With a little assistance from the University in the form of e-mail lists, I bet I could have 20-30 UofA alumni at an event at a Knights game this summer.

I just got home from San Juan 30 minutes ago. If the University sponsors a trip, or if you feel the need to take a trip, don't think twice.

What if the local leader of the OSU Alumni Association called the Aeros and orgainzed this event? Something tells me directing anger at the Aeros or the OSU AA might be misplaced. As far as the sandwich board, I think it is a great idea. If we are going to pay Tressel $200K per year, let's get some production out of him.

I would be interested to know how important the running ability of the QB is in Coach B's mind. Is the looking for a Tebow or is he looking for a better thrower like RGIII(although, RGIII is a great runner)? I don't know the answer to this and would be interest in knowing.

In any business transaction, there has to be a win/win for both parties. In football, we play OSU and our win is the million dollars they pay us. Their win is an easy win and a packed stadium. In basketball, their chance of losing is greater so they don't get the easy win. OSU doesn't need the zips on their schedule and we don't need them on ours.

I agree. We acted desperate. The JT hire was a complete Athletic Department issue and with the hiring of TB, we didn't need to act in desperation. Desperation can make people lose their integrity. I think we sold our soul to the Devil in this case. Shame on those in a position of authority at UofA for letting this happen. I have yet to hear a good argument as to why this was a good long term hire.

@jz84...Great quote and thanks for posting. It goes to show that TB knows how to communicate with college athletes that gets the best out of them. "Coach" is another name for a teacher. When a coach yells constantly (The previous guy was a Charlie Weis follower...do the math), it is a sign the guy really isn't a very good instructor of young men. It's no longer the 1950s. When I hear that things are more intense and relaxed as well, I hear..."We are playing the game we love to play at a higher level and having fun doing it." Very positive sign for the program. One might even say that by the end of spring practice, many of these players will have gone through a revelation of some sorts as it involves football.

You can fast forward the video. How are they going to pay for the "building process" if they don't sell ads?

All of this is true. However, there would be a noticeable difference. There are a lot of kids playing in the MAC who would rather take their chances with a big bonus and some income in a minor league system, with a chance of making the NFL than a dead end career in a college they would never graduate from if it wasn't for Exercise Science degrees. The talent would drop off quickly. DIII would be unwatchable.

People don't want to watch slow and smaller players. That's why the NFL is so popular...fans like the athletic talent. The coaching? I can't think of the name of a single college baseball coach including the Zips. Most would fade into the minor league system, or go coach high school baseball or sell insurance. I could care less of the players go to school or not. School is a nice side story, but not the reason people go to games. Traditions and loyalities? How many people attended the OSU vs Mich baseball weekend last year? One can't hang their hat on tradition. Quality entertainment is something to hang your hat on, but not tradition. I don't mean to sound rude and it isn't intended to be so. The truth is, the better the talent in college football has gotten, the more people watch. Americans, through all of their faults, don't like crap.

It could or could not ruin it. A minor league system would lower the quality of play for football and basketball. Levels like DIII would be almost completely unwatchable. A good example is college baseball. Most experts about baseball agree that minor league baseball is better at every level than the best college baseball teams. This is why I don't like college baseball. One could go see the Aeros play and see better players at almost every position than they would see at even a national championship baseball team. Many of the monuments athletic directors have built in honor of themselves and to boost their resumes over the last 15 years would sit half empty. Not a way to support the "building process". College athletics would collapse under their own weight because of the facilities they have to maintain with less revenue. My opinion, I like the minor league system idea, but I think schools have built such monsters in terms of facilities, universities across the country would be damaged by the lower interest. The answer is to find a way to get the players paid so schools can pack stadiums and feed the monster.

I like the idea. I also like the direction this could go. Once a player has an agent, he could use his agent to set up endorsement deals so they could make further money off of their fame. I don't mean actual clothes he wears while playing the game, but things like signing autographs for money could be acceptable. The agent could get 10% of the autograph sesson as payback for the loan. The lesson shouldn't be just about taking money, but paying it back also. A little risk needs to be introduced to the players as well. As long as a "student/athlete" can meet his sports and school requirements by the university, it shouldn't matter how he gets money or how much money he gets.

The oddest part is we are so close to being able to do it. In fact, I would say we are exactly where we need to be to win a game or two in the ncaas.

ZipsWin! asked this question on another thread, where is Big Zip? Either he is on vacation, or he has nearly bitten entirely through his tongue by now.

With all due respect Dr Z, I don't think Arnold Horshack would make much of a basketball player. Boom Boom Washington...maybe, but not Horshack.

Talent... They have talent, but not as much as the Zips. Coaching.... Ours had trouble managing the game late in our last two games. Theirs is in control late. Both are good coaches though. Luck... Too late in the year for luck, but it does take some. You didn't mention the "c" word....Composure. Looking at the stats, Cooper had a good game, but shot below 50%. What he does is make plays when they need to be made late in a game. He has a short memory and isn't rattled by setbacks. His coach has confidence in him and he has confidence in himself. Right now, is there any other player in the MAC you would want with the ball in his hands late than Cooper? Lots of teams can be good against the MAC West in February. Hell, everyone is good against the MAC West. It's those teams that win in March that get to call themselves winners.

A violation of ncaa rules by Bruce Pearl. Shocking.... This should be a huge news story as one of the schools in question, #3 seed Baylor, is in the Sweet 16. I wonder if the media will make an issue of it.

There is an old saying, "Everything that could have happened, did." OU is the best program in the MAC right now. With the talent we have, I should be saying that about us. They win games when it matters and the outscored us in three games this season 212-192. The beat us playing their game...they beat us playing our game. They have won games in the NCAA Tournament two of the past three years. We can't seem to win a post season game past the MACT. They are doing what good programs do. We are still in the "building process".

Nobody made the comparison. Smart may be bringing in better athletes than KD.