(03-21-2010 06:19 PM)bucfan1968 Wrote:  MTSU won't play us because we won the last series we had with them, and they probably don't want to schedule any more ASun teams because they are too busy losing to Belmont.

MTSU has the big head since they became the largest school in the state. They are even looking down on Tennessee on occasion. That's why it would be great to be a Sun Belter so MTSU would be forced to face the facts...ETSU can whoop them in basketball!

MTSU and ETSU were founded the same year 1911 as teachers colleges. We started even but MTSU in the last twenty years has had a plan...a plan to be the best in the state. They have been aggressive...enlisting the help of Albert (Global Warming) Gore to fund their massive communications building. They have used their geography well hosting virtually all high school state championship games exposing thousands to their campus. Athletically they have moved up while ETSU has been moving backwards (no football, ASun basketball). It been a bumpy road for the blue raiders but this past year they have turned the corner...beating Maryland in football is no rinky dink. Fans have even started attending...it's called paying your dues. I don't think ETSU has ever been willing to do that...we want it now or we quit. Patience is part of growing an athletic program.

So we started even and now MTSU is kicking our butt. They are so high and holy they won't play us in the anniversary year of our mutual founding? I think all good Bucs should take that as a slap in the face and solicit help in forcing MTSU to come down of their high an mighty mountain. Governor Bredesen...you are chair of the board of regents...come on, lets have a little basketball centennial basketball match...and after the game is over...support ETSU's move to join MTSU in the Sun Belt. I know you can get them to sponsor our candidacy.

MTSU should be our top rival... both board of regents schools while Chattanooga is in the University system. It used to be when we were both in the OVC. MTSU has vision... ETSU seems to wandering around blind...hitting things. My this is getting me depressed so I will quit now.

estufan1, any rumblings of playing some bcs schools?

(03-22-2010 12:05 PM)youngbuc Wrote:  estufan1, any rumblings of playing some bcs schools?

Let's hope so! Not having any on the schedule during Pigram and Tiggs' senior year killed our chances of a better seed. We should have a team that's capable of winning big games next year and we need to prove it!

(03-21-2010 06:19 PM)bucfan1968 Wrote:  MTSU won't play us because we won the last series we had with them, and they probably don't want to schedule any more ASun teams because they are too busy losing to Belmont.

unfortunately, you're probably right there...

As an older fan I remember when Belmont and Lipscomb were NAIA and it drives me and at least some other fans to distraction when KErmit's teams lose to belmont or other squads from conferences that most MT fans view to be at a level lower than the Sun Belt (not that the Sun Belt mbb has been any great shakes this past season).

Our men's coach continues to catch some heat even though they tied for the best record in conference with north texas and troy.

oh, and as far as the idea of ETSU joining the Sun Belt, the conference CEO's have pretty well stated that any prospective members will have to be a FBS (1A) program. That's mean a football program meeting the requirements (whatever they will be after the moratorium passes) for FBS football.

As far as being high and mighty, I don't think any MT fan has illusions that our men's basketball program is above playing etsu...

I think most MT fans believe that our men's program should be better than what it is and has been for awhile.

Overall MT's athletic program is pretty successful. The final 2009 NACDA Director's cup standings for programs in the top150 from Tennessee were:

#23 ut-knoxville
#67 vanderbilt
#76 Middle Tennessee
#99 ut-chattanooga
#111 memphis
#133 ETSU

Thanks for the information...just confirms what suspicions are for ETSU... the Bucs are not competitive. Considering the funding...ETSU is probably doing better than money allows.

Congratulations MTSU. You are kicking our butt. If MTSU is willing to play, then the problem is on ETSUs end. All Buc fans ought to voice their displeasure.

When the decision makers want to do something at ETSU, it seems to get done...i.e.: medical and pharmacy schools and canceling football. One thing I learned as a student is that they don't care. School spirit seems to be in the hands of the community... not the faculty or students.

If I'm the tenure granter... attendance at school functions is part of the equation. You want to work at ETSU?... you better support the extra curriculars especially athletics.

The more examination...the more frustrating. These problems are easy to fix...but there seems to be no desire to do the repair work. Status quo is the way to go in ETSU land.

Perhaps I should abandon my undergraduate school and support my graduate school...then I would be a front runner...plus my graduate school has no mountains....only a year and a half years of investment. I just can't get the Bucs out of my blood.

Where are these statements wrong?

Did you track down the link? Whoa...big surprises. We need to give Dave Mullins a raise. ETSU is significantly out performing schools that pour more dough into their athletic programs.

Still doesn't excuse the fact we don't have football!

Overall MT's athletic program is pretty successful. The final 2009 NACDA Director's cup standings for programs in the top150 from Tennessee were:

#23 ut-knoxville
#67 vanderbilt
#76 Middle Tennessee
#99 ut-chattanooga
#111 memphis
#133 ETSU
[/quote]

Now that the Final four is over...Murry should be back in his office putting the finishing touches on recruiting and the out of conference schedule. Any word on playing MTSU in the mutual anniversary year of our foundings? I believe our record against the Blue Raiders is 24 and 35...the last meeting in 1999... ETSU has won the last two which could be why MTSU is bashful about playing...or maybe it's ETSU that doesn't want to play...I don't know since ETSUs athletic department is so poor at communicating. It's no way to build a fan base I'll tell you that.

We need an insider report so we can know. Who is the spy?

Seeing how we are in this perpetual schedule with UTC and Tennessee Tech I don't see a way we can add MTSU without hurting our SOS.

MT and ET have played each other quite a bit in pre-season scrimmages, so I don't think there is any animosity there.

I'd love to see MT vs. ET in both men's and women's hoops.

Don't ya'll have a pretty good baseball team, as well?

I'd much rather play East Tennessee than Belmont, Lipscomb, or SIU-Edwardsville.

(04-07-2010 02:40 PM)KAjunRaider Wrote:  MT and ET have played each other quite a bit in pre-season scrimmages, so I don't think there is any animosity there.

I'd love to see MT vs. ET in both men's and women's hoops.

Don't ya'll have a pretty good baseball team, as well?

I'd much rather play East Tennessee than Belmont, Lipscomb, or SIU-Edwardsville.

From my perspective...the feeling is mutual. I wish ETSU was as forward thinking as MTSU. If the ASun has a claim to fame it's baseball...and ETSU is competitive but certainly not college world series material. I suspect that if MTSU was in the ASun...they would be cleaning up and taking automatic bids as often as ETSU has. The rivalry would be blood boiling. We need that and we need to get our attendance back up...ETSU is going the wrong way in virtually every category and it's painful to watch.

Please do what you can to get ETSU and MTSU together again. Boots would be proud.

(04-06-2010 06:06 PM)BucNut22 Wrote:  Seeing how we are in this perpetual schedule with UTC and Tennessee Tech I don't see a way we can add MTSU without hurting our SOS.

Wouldn't playing MTSU help our SOS. They aren't Milligan.

(04-07-2010 03:21 PM)Mister Jennings Wrote:  

(04-06-2010 06:06 PM)BucNut22 Wrote:  Seeing how we are in this perpetual schedule with UTC and Tennessee Tech I don't see a way we can add MTSU without hurting our SOS.

Wouldn't playing MTSU help our SOS. They aren't Milligan.

Why would they help? Every OCC team we played this year with the exception of UTC finished with a higher RPI than MTSU. We gain nothing by beating them while losing gets us docked with the selection committee. Adding MTSU this past year would have meant leaving off a team with a good record and a good RPI (I`m not counting UTC because we are locked in with them).

Who would you have us drop in order to add MTSU?

How 'bout N. Georgia?

(04-07-2010 06:59 PM)Mister Jennings Wrote:  How 'bout N. Georgia?

Ok I`ll give you that, I forgot they were even put on the schedule.

(04-07-2010 06:59 PM)Mister Jennings Wrote:  How 'bout N. Georgia?

That game was a complete failure in every sense of the word. It was a crappy game that couldn't (and didn't) do anything to help from either strength-of-schedule or competition factor. It could only have hurt, which it almost did because we played poorly and almost lost.

The 'feel good' vibes of the throwback game, or whatever they were trying to do over there, didn't materialize either. The place was cramped, run-down, difficult to get into/out of, and wasn't even full. It looked like a high school game.

Let's hope we can pick up one additional GOOD opponet this year and stop playing these D-2 crapfests mid-season. Keep that in the pre-season where it belongs...and even then, how about a good D-2 program and not the annual Milligan plus Mars Hill/Wingate/Tusculum/Carson-Newman rotation?

I'll go on record as saying I like the local D-II tune-up.

I also don't think ETSU has played Tusculum since 1960 or '58 or so, but let me stick to topic.

The reason is I don't have a problem with a game that reinforces ETSU as the dominant university in the area. I think having a game against a local D-II is somewhat altrustic and it is good to promote local college basketball.

So if ETSU plays a Milligan in November, I think it's a positive.

If you want to tell me ETSU should play a strong out-of-conference schedule, I agree.

But a tune-up against a local Division II isn't a bad way to start the season.

(04-10-2010 11:57 PM)PittsburghBucs Wrote:  I'll go on record as saying I like the local D-II tune-up.

I also don't think ETSU has played Tusculum since 1960 or '58 or so, but let me stick to topic.

The reason is I don't have a problem with a game that reinforces ETSU as the dominant university in the area. I think having a game against a local D-II is somewhat altrustic and it is good to promote local college basketball.

So if ETSU plays a Milligan in November, I think it's a positive.

If you want to tell me ETSU should play a strong out-of-conference schedule, I agree.

But a tune-up against a local Division II isn't a bad way to start the season.

I`m fine with with exhibition games, the problem is that North Georgia wasn't an exhibition game.

(04-10-2010 08:55 PM)TheShadow Wrote:  

(04-07-2010 06:59 PM)Mister Jennings Wrote:  How 'bout N. Georgia?

That game was a complete failure in every sense of the word. It was a crappy game that couldn't (and didn't) do anything to help from either strength-of-schedule or competition factor. It could only have hurt, which it almost did because we played poorly and almost lost.

The 'feel good' vibes of the throwback game, or whatever they were trying to do over there, didn't materialize either. The place was cramped, run-down, difficult to get into/out of, and wasn't even full. It looked like a high school game.

Let's hope we can pick up one additional GOOD opponet this year and stop playing these D-2 crapfests mid-season. Keep that in the pre-season where it belongs...and even then, how about a good D-2 program and not the annual Milligan plus Mars Hill/Wingate/Tusculum/Carson-Newman rotation?

Good job Shadow. I can't agree more. Bring on MTSU...but it has to be a home and home series.

Good year to play Kentucky early in the season, they just had 5 or 6 players declare for the draft.

Interesting conversation on talk radio down here last week.
How long will Calipari last at KY?
Losing 5 players early will kill their APR.
He can easily get a pile of "1 & done" guys at KY, but eventually he'll start losing scholarships.
Or will he?
Would the NCAA be brazen enough to look the other way?!?!?!?!