For six months now I have listened to ETSU fans denigrate our fine league and my beloved Stetson. Now I shall speak.
Let's me begin by letting you Bucs fans in on a little secret. (I didn't realize it was a secret, but apparently it is.) The Atlantic Sun Conference is a baseball league. Yes, I would love it if basketball were better (and you guys are supposed to help raise us in that regard), but it's the diamond where our league shines.
For many years our proud league has routinely placed two... and often three... teams in the NCAA tourney. Even more routine has been the number of All-Americans who have come out of our league. Too many to count.
Stetson University (in case you're on a game show) is one of just 21 D1 schools to have made it to the NCAA Regionals five of the last six years. In the last 15 years, we have produced 21 All Americans, two million dollar plus first-round draft choices, and sent over 40 players to the professional ranks. We have made the Regional Finals six times and were ranked as high as #7 in the nation in 2001 when our record stood at 43-7.
When ETSU accomplishes this in a major men's sport (we only play two of the three since neither of us plays football), please let me know.
So far this has been a down year for our program, yet we still have two wins on the road against top-ten teams...not bad for a down season eh?...And we've done it with an athletic budget nowhere near the size of an ETSU....
By the way...add another All-American to our illustrious list (Chris Johnson in case you're on a game show anytime soon).[/b]
Your majesty,
Your post is right on the money and you very well may be correct in your assessment of ASun baseball. Unfortunately, we as ETSU fans were promised that in return for the demise of our football team that our basketball team would be taken to a higher level. Your post validates the concerns of the ETSU fans. That concern is that the A-Sun does not fulfill that promise. We fans weren't told that we would go into a league with our mission to raise their status in basketball, we were led to believe that we would join a league that had already earned status in basketball.
It is unfortunate that there is such a mismatch of ETSU (a basketball school) in the A-Sun (a baseball conference).
Respectfully,
BucDoctor
Amen. Enough said.
By the way, when was baseball added as a "major" college sport? I thought football and basketball were the only sports considered major. Does baseball pay its way at any school?
Sorry, I didn't mean to get down on baseball. The his majesty is right. ETSU is stuck in a baseball conference. We were promised a better basketball conference.
Baseball is of course not as big as football and basketball but it certainly bigger than the rest. Ive seen several articles referring to Texas trying to complete the unthinkable national titles in all 3 "Major" sports at once so some of the media obviously think its major. College Baseball does support itself at many schools particularly in the SEC and places like Texas.
By the way King of Stetson-long time no hear from-I was beginning to wonder if you,HatterChatter,and the rest of Stetson baseball fans had jumped of a bridge or something after watching Stetsons lousy baseball start. What has happened to our teams! LOL-well I know whats happened to mine-injuries-losing McBryde,Widlansky, and McKenna have been devastating and now tomorrow night will come an announcement of another major blow to FAU's depleted lineup. :(
high as #7 in the nation in 2001 when our record stood at 43-7.
When ETSU accomplishes this in a major men's sport (we only play two of the three since neither of us plays football), please let me know.
ETSU was ranked #10 in Basketball in the early 90's....
ETSU was ranked as hight as #7 in basketball in the early 90s.
College baseball is most definitey a major college sport and has been considered so my the media and the NCAA for quite some time. ESPN's decision to begin coverage of EVERY game at the Super Regional level and beyond in the NCAA baseball tournament is indicative of the money being generated. In terms of the numbers of professional atheltes being produced, baseball definitely deserves that honor.
As for "actually paying for itself"...well..at Stetson, at Rice, Cal Fullerton, etc, it IS the big money maker. We are consistently in the top 10% in attendance every year and routinely go to the tournament which gives us a big fat check at the end of the season from the NCAA. Baseball helps subsidize all our men's sports.
Lastly, when I said when ETSU has accomplished what we have accomplished I meant the whole list of Stetson achievements...not just one item.
I didn't post to knock ETSU, just to set the record straight. At Stetson we are very proud of what we have accomplsihed. (I should have added 14 NCAA appearanc es in 30 years.) We are not some D2 school moving up.
In closing, I appareciate the good natured and respectful replies.
King of Stetson
-r RPI Team W-L WP OWP OOWP SOS -r
58 0.5562 Mercer 17-10 0.630 0.5330 0.5291 0.5317 79
70 0.5477 North Florida 13-11 0.542 0.5797 0.4897 0.5497 49
72 0.5476 Stetson 11-12 0.478 0.6015 0.5092 0.5707 33
81 0.5437 Jacksonville 19-7 0.731 0.4567 0.5305 0.4813 182
90 0.5330 East Tennessee State 14-9 0.609 0.4929 0.5376 0.5078 130
114 0.5118 Belmont 10-11 0.476 0.5744 0.4220 0.5236 96
116 0.5103 Kennesaw State 9-11 0.450 0.5390 0.5133 0.5305 84
137 0.4984 Florida Atlantic 12-12 0.500 0.5068 0.4802 0.4979 151
154 0.4869 Gardner-Webb 9-10 0.474 0.4717 0.5307 0.4914 164
159 0.4841 Campbell 7-14 0.333 0.5374 0.5281 0.5343 73
166 0.4809 Lipscomb 10-9 0.526 0.4435 0.5102 0.4657 204
Your Majesty
As I mentioned in another thread, the ASUN did not steal us from the SoCon in a hostile takeover. We got booted out from the SoCon because of our administration. We don't blame you.
As stated above, we were hoping for/ promised a move up in BB. Now there has been some debate on the ETSU boards if the ASUN is a step down or a lateral move in BB. But nobody, even the ASUN faithful, believe it is a move UP for us. The ACC alumni in me would say we made a lateral move. The ETSU alumni in me would say we made a step down in BB. The truth is somewhere in between. But not UP in anybody's book.
We were more of a BB school than a FB school. But to lose FB, our BB should have moved up. Say CAA, like Ga State.
Your Majesty, how would you feel if your school dropped BB and you moved into the SoCon for Baseball ? Was that a move up in baseball ? Was that worth dropping basketball for ? Didn't think so.
I would be proud of Stetson's history in baseball. I guess you guys should be good in a sport whose players wear hats ! ;-)
Nevertheless, I don't think the average fan thinks baseball is an equal of BB or FB. I would consider baseball to be more of a "Mid-major" if I may borrow a basketball term. Now if you really love baseball, like by brothers for example, you might disagree. I think the minor leagues in baseball dilute the college game some.
Best of luck in baseball this season.
I would agree that the mve to the ASUN was not a move up "basketball wise" for ETSU. On the other hand, I am very impressed with your Athletic Department's pledge to the conference to step up in baseball. You are doing that. What a shame that you Buc fans don't love diamond ball!
As far as your comparison, if we dropped D1 basketball it would be very unlikely that we would still qualify to play D1 baseball. Consequenlty, we must stay in D1 for everything.
My wish is that you guys develop into a proud member of our league (hopefully, not another UCF who hated us throughout their tenure), but to do that you guys would have to embrace the league's commitment to baseball excellence and be satisfied with that. Again, college baseball is not as big as college football or basketball (a fool knows this), but it IS a major college sport and one of which millions enjoy...I'm one..(case you didn't know).
And to you Bucs fans, good luck in basketball next year (except when playing us).
UCF must have liked the A-Sun more than we thought considering how much time their fans still spend on this board.
At least the pictures in their signatures are attractive.
Good post Stetson,
I posted this about a week ago, before the first round of the NCAA tourny:
Here is how the SOcon and A-Sun rank according the the NCAA RPI, thre out of the top four are Asun teams:
I'm not trying to creat an A-Sun SOCon war, but the Southern Conference is the same level as the A-Sun. A one bid league that will always get a 13 seed at best. It is not like ETSU left the SEC for the ASun.
Outside of the Southern conference, the Southern conference is viewed about the same level as the A-Sun. It has been about 10 years since a SoCon school has won a game in the NCAA's. The Asun last won five yeras ago. According to tha Socon record book, the league has never recieved more than one invite to the NCA's, the Asun has on multiple occasions. As recently as two years ago, the A-Sun had three teams in postseason play, two NIT and one NCAA. The leagues are even, except the A-Sun does not have football.
http://web1.ncaa.org/app_data/weeklyrpi/rpi3.html
94 Davidson
115 Belmont
143 Lipscomb
157 Gardner-Webb
159 Ga. Southern
169 Chattanooga
172 Elon
188 Col. of Charleston
212 Fla. Atlantic
225 East Tenn. St.
220 Furman
235 Appalachian St.
265 Western Caro.
267 Stetson
279 UNC Greensboro
288 Wofford Southern
293 Campbell
303 Mercer
319 Citadel
331 Jacksonville
It appears that MOST Buc fans seem th think that the SOCon was a major conference in basketball. THE SOUTHERN CONFERENCE IS A LOWER MID-MAJOR in BASKETBALL, JUST LIKE THE A-SUN!!!
Quote:It appears that MOST Buc fans seem th think that the SOCon was a major conference in basketball. THE SOUTHERN CONFERENCE IS A LOWER MID-MAJOR in BASKETBALL, JUST LIKE THE A-SUN!!!
I don't think anybody ever said the SoCon was a major conference. Midmajor at best. Whatever the defintion of a midmajor really is.
Both are one bid conferences. I agree. As I said earlier, the ACC alumni part of me sees no difference. I know my ACC friends don't. Some still remember ETSU beating NC State a few times and ETSU top ten ranking at one point.
Let us say for the point of argument that there is no real difference betwen the two, then that makes are argument that we did not MOVE UP !
Drop football to stay the same ? Would that make sense ?
Belmont Bruin, would you be happy if you moved to the SoCon and were told you were definitely moving UP ? Especially if you had to drop baseball or basketball to play the other ? That could not happen, of course, but speaking hypothetically ?
I actually like alot of the ASUN schools. Good academic schools and a desire to get better in sports.
Belmont is definitely on the move.
Wish we were. :( We could if our leaders would lead.
Quote:r RPI Team W-L WP OWP OOWP SOS -r
58 0.5562 Mercer 17-10 0.630 0.5330 0.5291 0.5317 79
70 0.5477 North Florida 13-11 0.542 0.5797 0.4897 0.5497 49
72 0.5476 Stetson 11-12 0.478 0.6015 0.5092 0.5707 33
81 0.5437 Jacksonville 19-7 0.731 0.4567 0.5305 0.4813 182
90 0.5330 East Tennessee State 14-9 0.609 0.4929 0.5376 0.5078 130
114 0.5118 Belmont 10-11 0.476 0.5744 0.4220 0.5236 96
116 0.5103 Kennesaw State 9-11 0.450 0.5390 0.5133 0.5305 84
137 0.4984 Florida Atlantic 12-12 0.500 0.5068 0.4802 0.4979 151
154 0.4869 Gardner-Webb 9-10 0.474 0.4717 0.5307 0.4914 164
159 0.4841 Campbell 7-14 0.333 0.5374 0.5281 0.5343 73
166 0.4809 Lipscomb 10-9 0.526 0.4435 0.5102 0.4657 204
That is very impressive, however I can only wish the Atlantic Sun basketball RPI looked like that.
Im sorry i havent had a post in forever. All this talk about etsu basketball makes me laugh. I wouldnt complain about not moving up. Its not even like you guys won the ASUN basketball championship this past season. In fact you finished 12-8, behind four ASUN teams. I dont understand what you are upset about. It seems that you would have done much worse if your school had moved "up" to a better bb conf. So i would be glad to be in the asun. By the way KSU is going to be MUCH improved next season. We will actually have some size and height coming in... add that to our guards and we are set. Last season we didnt even have a true center lol. nuts i tell you. good luck to all.
kevin
kr983,
You seem to have missed the entire point and the crux of debate at ETSU, this has nothing to do with the A-Sun (or even this past years ETSU mens basketball team), but everything to do with an unfulfilled promise that ETSU basketball would become a premier sport.
A move up to a better conference would have brought "name" competition to Johnson City, more revenue, and with more revenue comes a chance to improve.
Now this is not a slam on the A-Sun but a description of the glorious future that ETSU fans were promised and the reality that occured. It was a lateral move, not a move up as forecasted.