(05-13-2013 07:30 PM)ETx Owl Wrote:  I have been chastised for being negative, and in some instances questioning Wayne , but I have realized that in baseball , parity has hit and of course we have been spoiled by success for many years and we dont like it. Baseball has been our flagship to brag about athletically. It has always given me great pleasure to read where Aggies and Longhorns would rather beat us than anybody, and a victory over Rice baseball was a feather in their cap. If you polled the state of Texas today, I think we would be at the top of the measuring stick still. Look at the miserable record almost all of our state teams have this year.

That is an interesting point. But Rice hasn't been to the CWS in a while and hasn't looked dominant even as we've continued to host in the post-season. I love the team and continue to follow, but its hard to get quite as jazzed up when the team is good instead of great. I miss the days when Rice would lose fewer than 5 conference games all season and routinely swept conference foes. I miss the days when Rice was feared. I think those days can return and I'm not sure why we've had a few down years in a row.

I am excited about football season, but that happens every year and another miserable start would be pretty crushing.

I'm also a little more excited about basketball a year removed from "the departed." But the possible DeBose defection on the heels of a million other defections is beyond troubling.

And to me, Greenspan still hangs over everything, dampening my exitement. I know some of you support him. I've never met him in person and he's certainly never said or done anything to me personally to make me feel that way. But I've just heard way too much negativity from many corners of Rice athletics, and I'm not particularly well-connected. How the University can continue to support him and seem to think he's doing an even mediocre job astounds me. And it makes me a little less excited than I otherwise would be about everything, baseball included. My exitement level would go up 50% if he was gone, and 100% if Rice hired an alum who had achieved success outside the college sports arena that they could bring to the leadership spot.

There has been some great thought and effort put in to these responses. I would suggest, though, that the decrease in views might also be contributed to the temporary disabling of "Guest Access" on CSNbbs. Many people read the boards but have never bothered to register.

I just finished my 1L year on Friday so my close following of baseball has been significantly limited this spring. Ironically, this is the first year since we started playing in the postseason that I've had any real flexibility, so this would be my last best opportunity to make it to Omaha, at least for some time (though that could change quickly if one of my recent interviews pays off). Will be following from here on and hoping the owls start to click at the right time, a la Fresno State / Oregon State.

(05-14-2013 11:07 AM)texd Wrote:  I just finished my 1L year on Friday ...

texd, what's a "1L year"?

(05-14-2013 11:35 AM)Almadenmike Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 11:07 AM)texd Wrote:  I just finished my 1L year on Friday ...

texd, what's a "1L year"?

That would be the first year of law school, Bob for $25.

The first and longest of numerous acts of hazing to enter the law profession.

(05-14-2013 11:44 AM)texd Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 11:44 AM)gmath Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 11:35 AM)Almadenmike Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 11:07 AM)texd Wrote:  I just finished my 1L year on Friday ...

texd, what's a "1L year"?

That would be the first year of law school, Bob for $25.

The first and longest of numerous acts of hazing to enter the law profession.

Thanks! Glad you made it through. Good luck, going forward.

Personally, I'd gotten sick of the unhappy tone and squabbling on the in-game threads. I told myself this year I'd only read through threads after I knew we won, to give myself the impression that we're just a big old group of happy, fun Owl fans. But turns out that reading a thread when you know the outcome isn't that compelling, so I've pretty much not followed it on the board at all this year.

(05-14-2013 01:48 PM)JOwl Wrote:  Personally, I'd gotten sick of the unhappy tone and squabbling on the in-game threads. I told myself this year I'd only read through threads after I knew we won, to give myself the impression that we're just a big old group of happy, fun Owl fans. But turns out that reading a thread when you know the outcome isn't that compelling, so I've pretty much not followed it on the board at all this year.

Don't blame you.

(05-14-2013 01:48 PM)JOwl Wrote:  Personally, I'd gotten sick of the unhappy tone and squabbling on the in-game threads. I told myself this year I'd only read through threads after I knew we won, to give myself the impression that we're just a big old group of happy, fun Owl fans. But turns out that reading a thread when you know the outcome isn't that compelling, so I've pretty much not followed it on the board at all this year.

I'm in this boat. The game threads just aren't enjoyable, both for the results and the negativity in the posts. I've taken to avoiding going in game threads at all. Hard to want to follow along when every other post begins with "And Rice fails to advance the runner AGAIN..."

(05-14-2013 04:35 PM)NicevilleWRC Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 01:48 PM)JOwl Wrote:  Personally, I'd gotten sick of the unhappy tone and squabbling on the in-game threads. I told myself this year I'd only read through threads after I knew we won, to give myself the impression that we're just a big old group of happy, fun Owl fans. But turns out that reading a thread when you know the outcome isn't that compelling, so I've pretty much not followed it on the board at all this year.

I'm in this boat. The game threads just aren't enjoyable, both for the results and the negativity in the posts. I've taken to avoiding going in game threads at all. Hard to want to follow along when every other post begins with "And Rice fails to advance the runner AGAIN..."

It would certainly be more enjoyable if the posts all read " And once again Rice successfully translates a leadoff walk into yet another run, streching the lead to..."

I thought I was the only one not reading all the negative threads and posts.

Let me get the :slow clap: going.

Yall are fine, you've got brand name and will always get the cream of the crop, it's not easy dominating in baseball.

I don't have reduced interest at all, just reduced time.

I coach my son's baseball team, run with my daughter regularly (and son as well), and my second daughter has volleyball games that I attend when I'm not coaching at the same time.

It's a season of life I'm not going to miss. When my oldest was 5 (2003), I must've seen 25 games, including some in Omaha, and she was in tow for most of them.

there will come a day when I can catch 25 games again. But not for awhile.

Most of my eldest daughter's cross-country meets are in the morning, and except for rare afternoon fall ball games, I can still make every home football game, albeit I arrive late for a few.

And I always looked forward to my every other year November road trip to SMU with the whole family (sigh).

I hate that my game attendance is curtailed (not eliminated), but I'm happy that the interfering activities are here.

So I rely on the game threads. I just expect the negative stuff.

If I drank, the negative posts could certainly be the basis for a drinking thread (a la the "Hi Bob" on the old Bob Newhart show).

It's like clockwork, and more regular than a bus schedule. You take the bad with the good.

Frankly this has been about as apathetic as I have been since the 80s. The conference thing, Greenspan (or is that the same), overall performance, bskb meltdown, kids getting older, a non-admission issue ( you don't want to get me started). I can't recall a year that I have had less optimism since 88-basketball started coming around then, then there was fb resurgence to a point in the early 90s, the great baseball years, the Harris and mckreith bskb years, strong womens soccer, the tennis twins, 2 bowl teams in 3 yrs. but despite the bowl game and women's tennis, has there been a year since 88 or 89 that has been less enjoyable across the board than this? And who are our "rivals"? UTSA, UNT and ECU. Back then, the SWC with crowds and traditions.

All of this has led me to decide to cancel soccer, volleyball, wbskb tickets, which were seldom used, drop 4of8 fb and BB tix, not always used and thinking about cutting back 4 bskb tix to 2. Many of these were donations as most of the time these weren't used or partially. And owl club and RBI club- yup will probably get cut too. If rice doesn't care and greenspan's employment is clear evidence of that, why should I chase good money with bad. In the meantime, uh and smu build stadiums, hire coaches and make an effort in marketing. Rice's big splash-an unfunded and unnecessary ezf and tennis facilities. Bobby may not have been the greatest but most sports improved post 88(now granted there was no where to go but up) and with pede and team, there was marketing effort. Very very very sad

I have a long post on the conference realignment thread that I won't repost here. Basically, there is no strategy, never has been. Losing is okay as long as you have a good enough excuse, and if you don't know where you are going, the path of least resistance will get you there. And what we are seeing is where 40 years of that leads. I've got a strategy for fixing it. That's what the other post is about. Would love some feedback, so please go over and take a look.

Wayne put together an amazing program, largely by operating outside the historic Rice paradigm. I worry that perhaps even baseball is now being driven down by its environment.

I have done nothing with my ticket order and Owl Club materials. Not sure what I'm going to do.

For those that think we're having a down baseball season, Stanford (who were consensus preseason Top 10) just lost their 6th consecutive game-- this time being shutout 3-0 to #280 Santa Clara at home (after being swept by Nevada at home and losing a weekend series to Utah at home earlier in the season). They're RPI has dropped out of Top 100 (according to Warren Nolan), and their record is only 26-21, with weekend series left against top ranked UCLA and then Cal. They're only 8-14 vs. Top 100 and only 9-5 vs. Top 101-200.

(05-14-2013 10:26 PM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  For those that think we're having a down baseball season, Stanford (who were consensus preseason Top 10) just lost their 6th consecutive game-- this time being shutout 3-0 to #280 Santa Clara at home (after being swept by Nevada at home and losing a weekend series to Utah at home earlier in the season). They're RPI has dropped out of Top 100 (according to Warren Nolan), and their record is only 26-21, with weekend series left against top ranked UCLA and then Cal. They're only 8-14 vs. Top 100 and only 9-5 vs. Top 101-200.

This is a very good baseball team, playing in a paradigm/era where scoring is low, offense is down, and parity abounds.

We appear to be the best team in the state of Texas at the moment.

If the team comes together (and they certainly have shown they don't quit under any circumstances) at the right moment, I still think they can surprise those on this board who are currently feeling apathetic because we aren't winning by wide margins often enough, or by our own standards, just often enough.

With regard to baseball, we've certainly been spoiled, but that doesn't mean this team isn't very, very good, and better than our attitudes around here sometimes reflect.

And yes, I'm optimistic about next fall, but not Optimistic - - that's Buddy's job.

(05-14-2013 11:46 PM)Rick Gerlach Wrote:  

(05-14-2013 10:26 PM)waltgreenberg Wrote:  For those that think we're having a down baseball season, Stanford (who were consensus preseason Top 10) just lost their 6th consecutive game-- this time being shutout 3-0 to #280 Santa Clara at home (after being swept by Nevada at home and losing a weekend series to Utah at home earlier in the season). They're RPI has dropped out of Top 100 (according to Warren Nolan), and their record is only 26-21, with weekend series left against top ranked UCLA and then Cal. They're only 8-14 vs. Top 100 and only 9-5 vs. Top 101-200.

This is a very good baseball team, playing in a paradigm/era where scoring is low, offense is down, and parity abounds.

We appear to be the best team in the state of Texas at the moment.

If the team comes together (and they certainly have shown they don't quit under any circumstances) at the right moment, I still think they can surprise those on this board who are currently feeling apathetic because we aren't winning by wide margins often enough, or by our own standards, just often enough.

With regard to baseball, we've certainly been spoiled, but that doesn't mean this team isn't very, very good, and better than our attitudes around here sometimes reflect.

And yes, I'm optimistic about next fall, but not Optimistic - - that's Buddy's job.

In short, +1 to Walt's post.