Miller tells UConn to Stick It!

San Fran Falcon · Post by **San Fran Falcon** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:25 am

I'm curious if anyone knows. Who approached who first about this potential BG/UConn game? If UConn asked us..I would take that as a compliment and we should jump at the opportunity. Even if we went prospecting and got them to bite...we take it. f**k the whole home and home bullshit. If we want to be "big time" then we need to play vs. the "big time". I don't care where it's at.

As much as most of us don't want to admit. We are a mid-major. Plain and simple. 20 years from now...we'll still be a mid-major unless we go and play the "big dogs" at their places. Yep, we made the Sweet 16 last season, we advanced to the 2nd round of the NIT this season. You know what, who cares? If we want serious consideration for the big dance, we need to play big time teams. That won't happen if we tell UConn to f**k off. Anytime we get that chance...we need to jump at it. Curt just held us back by not accepting the challenge.

Schadenfreude · Post by **Schadenfreude** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 9:44 am

I think it was okay for Curt Miller to say no to Connecticut. I'm okay with that.

If we could get the home and home, then, yeah, he has to go for it. Anderson would be a zoo for a game like that.

But, frankly, I'd rather see our team try to work out a game or series with a team just below Tennessee or Connecticut in terms of talent -- perennial Top 10, rather than Top 5. To me, that would be a far more interesting matchup.

HoustonFalcon · Post by **HoustonFalcon** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 1:26 pm

I wonder if they were going to pay if we came there. If that were the case, then I think we should have taken it also. A lot of the Southland conference teams get their head beat in by the Big 12 top teams just because they are getting paid to be there. I also know Duke pays lower level teams to play them at their place.

BGSUE · Post by **BGSUE** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 12:17 am

Again Curt is protecting his turf---wait 'til the Sebo Center opens then IMO we will have people wanting to play there. 8) We're still going to be young & all that so take things slowly & progress. Sneak up on the big womens' programs.

We almost pulled it off against Duke. Rumor has it that we go to the pre-Thanksgiving tourney in V.I. 09/10--don't know who's going to be there but it's a really good tournament.

Sorry I said Sebo

it's Stroh Center

now my post should make sense. Tough week

TG1996 · Post by **TG1996** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 12:23 am

hockeysue wrote:wait 'til the Sebo Center opens then IMO we will have people wanting to play there. 8)

It's been awhile since I've been back to BG, but have they added a basketball court to the Sebo Center? Or will it just be a game of HORSE on the Nerf hoop in Coach Brandon's office?

(For the record, I know what ya meant... but... well... yeah.

)

Falconboy · Post by **Falconboy** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 12:31 pm

Although I like Curt's willingness to take a stand and say no to UConn for not giving us a home and home game , I also think it was the wrong move at this time. Our prestige as a basketball program isn't quite at the level we need for us to going around telling top basketball programs no we won't play them. We have to take every chance we have at playing a top 5 school.

I have a feeling we're lacking a real good team on next years sched to help us come tourney time cuz of this. So we must beat everyone non-conference and just lose no more than once in Mac play for us to have a good at-large shot if we come up short in Mac Tourney somewhere. Next season of all seasons we need to be upping the level of teams we play. Is the complete non-conference sched available yet? I'm surprised if it its as it usually takes till around summer to get it completed.

On another note, I do believe we should have an easier time getting some high ranking programs to give us some 1-1's or at least 2-1's once we move into the Stroh Center.

JoeFalcon · Post by **JoeFalcon** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 2:51 pm

Falconboy wrote: Our prestige as a basketball program isn't quite at the level we need for us to going around telling top basketball programs no we won't play them.

We were perfectly willing to play them as long as the terms were fair. We still don't even know what those terms even were or who approached who.

The bottom line is that Curt is paid to look out for the interests of the Bowling Green Falcons, not the Connecticut Huskies. He's not going to go out prostituting his team to the highest bidder if he doesn't think it's the right move for the program.

Jacobs4Heisman · Post by **Jacobs4Heisman** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 3:04 pm

As much as I would love to see us play UConn, I'm with Joe here. Our scheduling philosophy has been superb the last 5 years, so I'm willing to give the staff the benefit of the doubt here.

If we get the chance to play a top-5 team in 3 years, I bet we'll take it.

tiznow · Post by **tiznow** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:42 pm

JH4 is right about Joe Falcon being right. Screw U Conn

threestooges · Post by **threestooges** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 10:33 pm

Plus, from one sentence in Ryan's article, we certainly don't know the whole story. Maybe Curt said no thanks for 08-09, but kept the door open to play UConn in future years. He didn't schedule Duke until the Mann-Honegger-Horne-etc. class were seniors. I gotta echo the sentiment that Curt and his staff seem to know what they are doing, so let's give them the benefit of the doubt.

TG1996 · Post by **TG1996** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 10:38 pm

threestooges wrote:Plus, from one sentence in Ryan's article, we certainly don't know the whole story.

Yep.

Or UCONN could have wanted us to play a five-for-one, and pay for their trip here.

Or they could have wanted us to play on donkeys.

Curt Miller has my faith in doing the right thing for the program. He's earned it four times over.

BGFalconfromCincy · Post by **BGFalconfromCincy** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 1:26 am

TG1996 wrote:Or they could have wanted us to play on donkeys.

Falconfreak90 · Post by **Falconfreak90** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 10:54 am

JoeFalcon wrote:
Falconboy wrote: Our prestige as a basketball program isn't quite at the level we need for us to going around telling top basketball programs no we won't play them.
We were perfectly willing to play them as long as the terms were fair. We still don't even know what those terms even were or who approached who.

The bottom line is that Curt is paid to look out for the interests of the Bowling Green Falcons, not the Connecticut Huskies. He's not going to go out prostituting his team to the highest bidder if he doesn't think it's the right move for the program.

I agree. Who am I to question what Coach Miller does? With his track record, I agree with everyone else that he and the staff know exactly what they're doing.

FIVE PEAT

Metz · Post by **Metz** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 11:16 am

No offense to everyone...but who's to say playing UConn here would pack Anderson Arena? I love our team and think the support is growing, but I honestly don't believe we would get 3,000+ for a game yet (I know it definitely takes more than 3000 to "pack" Anderson). Losing in the MAC Tourney and not going to the dance is going to make a lot of people forget about how good the team really is.

Take a step out of being a BG fan that loves our women's team and tell me what you see. I see a program with a coach who's had a great last few years, just lost more seniors and a HUGE one in Kate, and isn't as good as they were in past years because they didn't win the MAC Tourney, and only made the NIT and lost in the 2nd round instead of making the NCAA and losing in the sweet sixteen.

Get upset with this, but I really think it's true. The media hype has gone down. For true fans like we all are, we pay attention. But for people who aren't, like the ones we would need to get Anderson packed, it's not dangling in their faces anymore. This is really why we're a mid-major.

I love this team and honestly think they are going to be better next year than this (not trying to take anything away from this years senior class!!). But besides people who follow women's bball or BGSU sports, who else will really know that we have the FOY player in Prochaska coming back, probably the best transfer pick-up in a long time with Nikki, and another solid recruiting class coming in?

It is really sad IMO, but I really don't see any team getting Anderson Arena above 3,000 for one event ever again. Unless of course our the women make the Final 4 in the NCAA tourney next year, or the men's team wins the MAC, MAC Tourney and maybe a first round NCAA tourney game.

kdog27 · Post by **kdog27** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 11:44 am

Metz wrote:No offense to everyone...but who's to say playing UConn here would pack Anderson Arena?

I was thinking the same thing. Where is the precedent that shows we will pack the joint? Maybe we could get that many but what would lead UConn to believe we could. We have been real good for five years now and have never sniffed 5,000.