Coach Mo

[Braves4Life]

Im not discounting the Sweet 16 run because that was awesome, but that should be the rule, not the exception IMO. I guess I will put it this way - We want to be like Butler, not George Mason.

I LOVE your optimi$m jrish but I'm afraid you're living in a fanta$y world. Today'$ NCAA i$ in bed with E$PN and the other Network$. It i$ almost impo$$ible for a mid-major to reach that level of $ucce$$ anymore.

 

[squirrelgotdead]

Mid-Majors have had more high-level success this decade than any other since ESPN started.

If you had told me in 1995 the schools that would make the Sweet 16 and even beyond...Gonzaga, Kent St, George Mason would go to the Final Four and Butler play in the National Championship game, I would have laughed you out of the room.

The minute you buy into that belief, or sell yourself short is the minute you make the choice to be irrelevant.

And the same applies to football with the rise of Boise State, Utah and others.

 

[jrish12]

At least in basketball they play to determine who is in the championship, not some stupid computer.

 

[Braves4Life]

Mid-Majors have had more high-level success this decade than any other since ESPN started.

That is true, but I was referring to the consistency that jrish hopes for. I just do not see a mid-major having the ability today to consistently go to the Sweet-16 each year like a Duke, Mich. St. KU, or UK.

 

[jrish12]

That is true, but I was referring to the consistency that jrish hopes for. I just do not see a mid-major having the ability today to consistently go to the Sweet-16 each year like a Duke, Mich. St. KU, or UK.

I was just saying that George Mason was more a flash in the pan and Butler has been a consistent team in the NCAA tournament. Currently, not to offend anyone on this board, but we are more like George Mason right now a flash in the pan from that sweet 16 run instead of being a consistent force getting into the NCAAs and contending for league titles. I agree that it is tougher for mid majors to go far in the tournament now, especially with the expanded tournament as another way of keeping them out and getting marginal BCS schools into the tournament.

 

[theBUer]

I agree that it is tougher for mid majors to go far in the tournament now, especially with the expanded tournament as another way of keeping them out and getting marginal BCS schools into the tournament.

Not to pick on your specifically, but this is the attitude that I don't really care for. Yes the number of mid-major at-bids is low compared to those from power teams, but mids should not base their status on how many bids they get. Instead, what they should do is schedule better opponents (even if it means no return game) and win games they are supposed to win.

Look at the Big East. The best teams in that conference all expect to run the table come tourney time. They don't boast about their conferences getting multiple bids, they almost expect it.

When the Big East and Big 10 get a fair amount of bids, they do so because the conferences have a reputation of being a meat grinder. I'm not kidding myself that there are some awful teams in those aforementioned leagues, but there is definitely a creme de le creme that separates the contenders from the pretenders.

 

[Braves4Life]

.....we are more like George Mason right now a flash in the pan from that sweet 16 run .....

I'm not even sure we're that good......

2005–2006 George Mason 27–8 15–3 T-1st NCAA Final Four
2006–2007 George Mason 18–15 9–9 T-5th
2007–2008 George Mason 23–11 12–6 3rd NCAA 1st Round
2008–2009 George Mason 22–11 13–5 2nd NIT 1st Round
2009–2010 George Mason 17–15 12–6 4th CIT 1st round