CSNbbs

This certainly will irritate the UT fans, who think that they could honestly get a big name coach. I love it.

LOL.....
Back in '99, they (back when they were Southwest Missouri St.) kicked UT's butt by 30 (sound like a familiar number?) in the second round of the NCAAs. Alford (yeah, *that* Alford) was their coach at that time. I know some on here think highly of Knight; I detest him, so I've always looked down on SMSU after they hired Alford. He's been gone 12 years, now, though, leaving for Iowa after that season.
Before that, they had a several-years-long run of great teams under Charlie Spoonhour (who left there to go to St. Louis and have a good run of successful teams there - now at UNLV I think). But, as Goldfinger would say, "I digress".........

Don't know much about this guy, but he's probably a better pick than most would realize........

Yeah the Vol message boards aint happy

Most fans knew a big name wasn't coming for several reasons. 1. Mike Hamilton always looks to hire a young coach (See Kiffin, Pearl, Todd Raleigh, Derek Dooley) and outside of Kiffin all the coaches have came from mid level programs. He can hire that type in a little cheaper than a big time coach. 2. Sanctions. UT is going to get something, so someone like Anthony Grant, Jamie Dixon or whoever isn't going to be interested. 3. A.D. on the hot seat, most people don't like taking a job like that if they feel that the A.D. may get fired.
Now, I'm going to direct this at every ETSU fan on this board who spends time pissing, moaning and loving the bad luck of UT. It's ridiculous, you sound stupid, it has to stop. ETSU as a university and fan base spends more time pissing and moaning about what UT has, does, or their enormous fan base because ETSU doesn't have it. Instead of spending that time fussing because UT has an NBA level arena, not to mention world class athletic facilities, focus on finding ways to help ETSU get to that level. People on this board want to be taken seriously, they want the administration on this board to listen to their ideas, questions, complaints, general suggestions, etc... but how can that be when your time is spent making comments about loving how another school's fans are irritated. It makes you sound like cheeseballs that call in to Bill Meade's radio show and give themselves dork-@$$ nicknames that contribute nothing to intelligible sports talk.
Lastly I'm going to say this as a fan of both schools, don't be upset at UTK because years ago they had sense enough to invest in the front door of their university, and ensure that it would be built in a way to develop a large alumni base, and develop loyal, non university attending fans. This might be very hurtful to some of you, but some of the people we love on here and revere as legends at ETSU are the ones who FAILED THIS UNIVERSITY and the people who have undying support for the Bucs. So, instead of focusing negative energy and bitterness to the "haves" within intercollegiate athletics, why not focus your attentions more to becoming one of the "haves" in college athletics. It can be done, VCU, Richmond, George Mason, Butler, and Gonzaga have all proven it can be.

(03-27-2011 08:09 PM)Buccaneerlover Wrote: [ -> ]Most fans knew a big name wasn't coming for several reasons. 1. Mike Hamilton always looks to hire a young coach (See Kiffin, Pearl, Todd Raleigh, Derek Dooley) and outside of Kiffin all the coaches have came from mid level programs. He can hire that type in a little cheaper than a big time coach. 2. Sanctions. UT is going to get something, so someone like Anthony Grant, Jamie Dixon or whoever isn't going to be interested. 3. A.D. on the hot seat, most people don't like taking a job like that if they feel that the A.D. may get fired.
Now, I'm going to direct this at every ETSU fan on this board who spends time pissing, moaning and loving the bad luck of UT. It's ridiculous, you sound stupid, it has to stop. ETSU as a university and fan base spends more time pissing and moaning about what UT has, does, or their enormous fan base because ETSU doesn't have it. Instead of spending that time fussing because UT has an NBA level arena, not to mention world class athletic facilities, focus on finding ways to help ETSU get to that level. People on this board want to be taken seriously, they want the administration on this board to listen to their ideas, questions, complaints, general suggestions, etc... but how can that be when your time is spent making comments about loving how another school's fans are irritated. It makes you sound like cheeseballs that call in to Bill Meade's radio show and give themselves dork-@$$ nicknames that contribute nothing to intelligible sports talk.
Lastly I'm going to say this as a fan of both schools, don't be upset at UTK because years ago they had sense enough to invest in the front door of their university, and ensure that it would be built in a way to develop a large alumni base, and develop loyal, non university attending fans. This might be very hurtful to some of you, but some of the people we love on here and revere as legends at ETSU are the ones who FAILED THIS UNIVERSITY and the people who have undying support for the Bucs. So, instead of focusing negative energy and bitterness to the "haves" within intercollegiate athletics, why not focus your attentions more to becoming one of the "haves" in college athletics. It can be done, VCU, Richmond, George Mason, Butler, and Gonzaga have all proven it can be.

Im glad it wasn't Rick Byrd....

I agree that we should not be fussing about UT having good facilities. Personally, I dont care what they do. Others can be fans of both UT and ETSU (its not a sin).

I certainly would not trade the position that UT is in for ETSU's position. UT will be one of the worst teams in the SEC the next few years, have been embarrassed nationwide, and now we probably have a better coach. Their facility is better, but the product the next few years will make attendance go back to where it once was- and the Dome is a better home court advantage than a half full Thompson Boling Arena.

Murry Bartow is not better than Cuonzo Martin or Bartow would be in Knoxville. As for Coach Byrd, that was very disrespectful the way they did him.

With relation to being a split fan, UT/ETSU, my thoughts wonder back over the years to those times when ETSU's then athletic peers separated themselves from ETSU and moved on. Thinking of East Carolina for example, ETSU was on par with them in football once. I remember taking a lot of pleasure in ETSU's victory over ECU in Johnson City in old Memorial Stadium in a late 60's. And Marshall, ETSU stayed with them in football most of that series. From the time ECU started growing its football program, they didn't have to contend with a split fan allegiance issue. There were no split North Carolina/East Carolina fans. ECU folks hated Carolina and were rabid Pirate fans only. The rest is history. Look at where they are now, about to expand their stadium to 58,000. And Marshall, I doubt that there are few split Marshall/West Virginia fans. Marshall folks simply don't follow WVU. Like ECU with UNC, they just want to play them on the football field. What has ETSU gained from this dual fan loyalty situation? Well, take a look at ECU and Marshall athletics with relation to ETSU athletics today and there's your ugly answer!

(03-28-2011 09:03 PM)Buc66 Wrote: [ -> ]With relation to being a split fan, UT/ETSU, my thoughts wonder back over the years to those times when ETSU's then athletic peers separated themselves from ETSU and moved on. Thinking of East Carolina for example, ETSU was on par with them in football once. I remember taking a lot of pleasure in ETSU's victory over ECU in Johnson City in old Memorial Stadium in a late 60's. And Marshall, ETSU stayed with them in football most of that series. From the time ECU started growing its football program, they didn't have to contend with a split fan allegiance issue. There were no split North Carolina/East Carolina fans. ECU folks hated Carolina and were rabid Pirate fans only. The rest is history. Look at where they are now, about to expand their stadium to 58,000. And Marshall, I doubt that there are few split Marshall/West Virginia fans. Marshall folks simply don't follow WVU. Like ECU with UNC, they just want to play them on the football field. What has ETSU gained from this dual fan loyalty situation? Well, take a look at ECU and Marshall athletics with relation to ETSU athletics today and there's your ugly answer!

Excellent observations of which I can't agree more. It will be interesting to see if Tennessee returns to the Wade Houston era after the penalties hit. I hope the new guy lets the Bucs play.

The fact continues to be that Johnson City is dealing with a cultural issue that does not care about sports overall as much as many areas (except high school), does not relate to ETSU like other areas relate to their university, and the students are commuters who do not care about sports. Top that off with a crazy athletic administration, and this is why we are where we are today. I really dont think there is much split fans, I think most students are UT fans (if they are from this area) that go to ETSU and come some come to the games to have something to do. Then they graduate and no longer support the program. We do have some old timer ETSU hard core fans, but these are not close to enough to support the program at the level of East Carolina, etc. Those like me that went to ETSU and still support the team wholeheartedly is not common. And even I wont pay for an overpriced season ticket where i am required to join BASA.

Martin is 61-41 at Missouri State. He was 153–129 in his time as an assistant and Purdue. His team won the CIT last year and went to the NIT this year. While none of these are terrible numbers, Rick Byrd is a much better coach and Bartow isnt far behind if any.

Dual allegiance makes absolutely no sense to me unless you get your undergrad from one university and and your masters from another or some situation along those lines. I paid to attend ETSU and I'm proud of the education I received there and their athletics program will be the only one I ever support in any regard. etsubuc, how can you consider yourself to be someone that supports the team "wholeheartedly" but you won't pay for an "overpriced" season ticket? Season tickets are the best deal going.

Best deal going? Season tickets in the upper level, where everyone that comes on gameday to buy a ticket can sit, is the same cost that going to every home game any paying normal admission would be. So if there is even the slight possibility that you might miss a game- it is much better to just buy the tickets as the season goes along. And you get no savings if you do commit to buying for all the games.

If you want lower level seats in CC, DD, EE- it is $60 more per season per person than buying all the tickets at game day. For me and my wife, that would be $120/year, if I wanted to bring my child that would be $180/year more.

That is before I pay to join BASA, which I believe $100 is the minimum.

So basically, for my commitment to buy tickets for every game, I get charged $100 more to sit in the same seats as the general public if I were to just buy tickets during gameday, or $280 more if I wanted to buy tickets for my family to sit in the lower level.

Ill go to most of the home games, but I wont pay more to do it! As is, I get the family pack each game day, and get in for $220 less per year than paying for that same season ticket on the upper level.

My point was that season tickets are reasonably priced and I attended every home game this year starting with Carson Newman. I sit in the lower level and it worked out cheaper for me to buy season tickets than to buy a ticket for every game not including the BASA membership, but I support BASA and have no problem making a contribution. I have never looked to purchase season tickets with any other University, but I have been told ETSU's options are less expensive than many.

They certainly are cheaper than UT season tickets. And if you count the exhibition games (I dont go to these), you are right we had 18 home games at 10/each, which is the exact same cost as a season ticket in the gold section.

If the BASA requirement was not in place, I would have bought season tickets for the past 3 years. I might have even donated to BASA, but not by being blackmailed into doing so. But everyone has their own concept of value, and if ETSU is happy with the amount of season ticket holders that they have in the current format, they should keep it that way. Ill continue to buy tickets for the games i go to unless I have an incentive to buy a season ticket, instead of a monetary punishment.

Well said etsubuc. As I've noted many times, the current season ticket format is a punishment for loyalty, and the requirement to join/contribute to BASA (who completely turned their backs on football) is simply extortion. The powers that set this policy have no idea how deed the resentment is for doing it this way - a second time, no less.....

I do not know of many or any college athletic programs that can survive without donations and last I checked, scholarship funding is a good thing.

Scholarship funding is a good thing; extortion - not so much......
If a university desires to increase scholarship funding, then alienating the donor base/alumni is not the way to proceed....

(03-29-2011 02:50 PM)etsubuc Wrote: [ -> ]They certainly are cheaper than UT season tickets. And if you count the exhibition games (I dont go to these), you are right we had 18 home games at 10/each, which is the exact same cost as a season ticket in the gold section.

If the BASA requirement was not in place, I would have bought season tickets for the past 3 years. I might have even donated to BASA, but not by being blackmailed into doing so. But everyone has their own concept of value, and if ETSU is happy with the amount of season ticket holders that they have in the current format, they should keep it that way. Ill continue to buy tickets for the games i go to unless I have an incentive to buy a season ticket, instead of a monetary punishment.

This has not been a problem for me because I have always donated to Buc athletics..but I understand how you feel. My Uncle and Aunt in Sevier County were long time UT football season ticket holders..more than 20 years.. and then some years back they got the letter from the University saying they needed a donation of several thousand dollars in order to continue to buy their tickets.. My Uncle had retired by that time and they were having problems just paying the ever increasing ticket prices.. so they had to give up their Saturdays at UT football games.. they were crushed.. my Uncle never got over the pain..he talked about it for years until he died.....
This policy makes more sense for UT than ETSU because UT has such a large fan base..they don't have to be loyal to their long time fans..they had many fans waiting and more than ready to take my Uncle's seats..
ETSU doesn't have that many fans to piss on or piss off..

I agree there is no reason for Buc fans to write anything about Bruce Pearl..for or against.. the Vol fans are doing it by the thousands.. when the news came out that one of the final things that cost Pearl his job was the fact that one of his players had recently tested positive for drugs..and against university policy Pearl let him come back and play in the tournament...one more nail in Pearl's coffin...

Bruce lovers jammed the lines at Knoxville radio sports talk shows giving that player hell ..they really went off on him.. he was scum for getting their coach fired..

Other UT players were quoted in the paper as saying they could not believe how their fans trashed him.. that he was not a bad person as they were trying to make him out to be..I will not put his name in this post.

Again they failed to see that it was not the player failing a drug test that hurt their coach.. it was him trying to cover it up...just like it was not a back yard cook out that brought him down.. it was the cover up and Pearl lying to the NCAA.. and getting his assistant coaches to lie which cost them their jobs as well..

Then.. just hours after the new coach had his press conference..a Pearl lover called in on a Knoxville sports talk show and referred to him using a racial slur... WOW!!!!!!!!!!! what class....

And one more thing..I'm tired of hearing the Pearl lovers say..everybody does it.. I believe most college coaches and administrators know the rules and try to obey them..

As for what Pearl did and what Kiffin and their staffs did to UT .

I don't believe Coach Bartow has done those things or coach Kemp..

You say EVERYONE does it..I don't believe Pat Summitt does it.. and you would have to show me the evidence to make me believe it..

You believe EVERYBODY does it.. but I don't think coach Dooly does it..
if they all do it then coach Martin has been doing it at his previous school.. and I can't believe that because the administration at UT says all the Pearl and Kiffin crap is not going to continue at the university..
and I read that they backed off on the first coach they wanted when they discovered that he had NCAA problems some years ago..

So good for UT.. I believe they have good and honest people in place to lead their sports teams.. and I wish them success!!!