ADVERTISEMENT

Can't figure it out

gep

Walk On
Gold Member
Oct 26, 2001
322
4
18
Why does a school like Gonzaga St. Mary's College and several other schools get the players to end up in the top 20 and Nebraska does nothing is it coaching or just recruiting could someone please give me an answer thank you
 
Location?
Tradition?
Location?
Conference? (As in maybe they look good cuz their conference sucks?)
Location? (I don't have a clue where either is located, east or west or central... )
 
Why does a school like Gonzaga St. Mary's College and several other schools get the players to end up in the top 20 and Nebraska does nothing is it coaching or just recruiting could someone please give me an answer thank you


Living in Eastern Washington I follow Gonzaga closely. First of all Few likes living in Spokane. Spokane is pretty conservative, almost with a small town feel. (It's the exact opposite of Seattle which in my view along with Portland and San Francisco have dissolved into Liberal chaos. Today in Seattle the city is clearing a huge homeless tent camp and there are protesters that want to stop it. Some city council members don't support the clearing of the camp and the Mayor is crying over the issue. The camp is full of rats and human feces and people protest) Mark Few likes to fly fish and the Spokane River goes right through Spokane. The median price of homes is about the same as Lincoln, just slightly higher. Washington does not have a state income tax. He only has an average salary, but he gets the money to recruit anywhere. Past and present players from France, Poland, Japan, Lithuania, Germany, Canada and all over the U.S. St. Mary's is basically Team Australia
 
  • Like
Reactions: Bugeater
It can seem easy when you look at a Wichita State, Gonzaga, Creigton, etc, but it can also look hard when you see teams like Georgia, Penn State, Texas A&M, etc, also struggle.

The main key is possibly getting lucky with the right coach or player and then consistency. Keep him and build a culture. But if it were easy we wouldn't see the same Kentucky, Duke, Kansas, Carolina contend year after year.
 
Why does a school like Gonzaga St. Mary's College and several other schools get the players to end up in the top 20 and Nebraska does nothing is it coaching or just recruiting could someone please give me an answer thank you

take away the 5* and many 4* recruits whoa re going to gravitate to Duke, Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas etc

if you were a midlevel D1 recruit - would you rather go to Gonzaga, St Mary's, Wichita St, Creighton etc - places where as a basketball player you are going to be at the top of the food chain (no football) and have a pretty good chance of playing in the NCAA tourney or Nebraska - where basketball ranks behind volleyball and you have little chance of playing in the tourney

the NCAA tourney is one of the great sporting events in all of athletics - if you rarely or never go you are going to have a hard time recruiting
 
Not sure I agree with that JLB.

It isn't like power 5 schools have to choose between having good football teams and good basketball programs.

Wisconsin, Michigan and Michigan St have been good at both in the past, Ohio St as well. It can be done.
 
Why does a school like Gonzaga St. Mary's College and several other schools get the players to end up in the top 20 and Nebraska does nothing is it coaching or just recruiting could someone please give me an answer thank you


I went to St Mary's. Graduated in 99. They vastly improved with the Aussie connection. As Randy Bennett says, Deledova and Patty Mills didnt know the difference between St Mary's and UCLA, and he wasn't going to tell them. You get those guys there and their friends follow. Plus they tend to keep some of the top local talent outside of the guys who can choose their school. Lastley, both Bennett and Few can coach and they are top guy in charge at their schools as each has no football. When SMC dropped football in 96 all sports improved dramatically .
 
Bonus Question: explain the Texas Longhorns basketball program. Hire hottest coach in country. Still suck.
Shaka Smart won't stay down long. Texas will be good soon. Not sure if they can turn it around in one season but within the next two years, they will be a powerhouse again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LonghornInOmaha
Not sure I agree with that JLB.

It isn't like power 5 schools have to choose between having good football teams and good basketball programs.

Wisconsin, Michigan and Michigan St have been good at both in the past, Ohio St as well. It can be done.


agree, you can absolutely have both .. but I think going to the NCAA tourney on a fairly regular basis needs to be part of the equation
If I am being recruited by one of the schools you listed it is pretty likely I am going to play in the tourney .. the basketball programs at those schools are also well respected and not a punch-line

at Nebraska it is considered historic to make the tournament .. personally I would rather go to a BigEast school or a mid-major and get to experience the NCAA tournament regularly

big hill to climb for Nebrasketball .. needed to capitalize on the 2014 season and NCAA appearance and didn't
 
Why does a school like Gonzaga St. Mary's College and several other schools get the players to end up in the top 20 and Nebraska does nothing is it coaching or just recruiting could someone please give me an answer thank you
The real reason Nebraska is lousy is the Jesuit school in Omaha has gotten all the best players and coaches in the sparsely populated area the past 25 years.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BayAreaBigRed
The real reason Nebraska is lousy is the Jesuit school in Omaha has gotten all the best players and coaches in the sparsely populated area the past 25 years.

No and if's and but's about that.

The style of play doesn't hurt them either.
 
Last edited:
How to punch a ticket to the big dance: Win your conference.

Why not go to a school that can win their conference just so you can make the big dance every year?

When one school gets to the top of the food chain in a small no name conference, you can tell recruits that they have a great chance to play in the tourney for all 4 years of their college career.

It could be as simple as that... automatic bids for conference champions.
 
There's a curse on NU baseball like the Cleveland Indians or for 107 years for cubs or 80 something for the Boston red socks. Do give me location location look not to far south KU
 
Gonzaga enters its 20th consecutive West Coast Conference championship game Tuesday in Las Vegas against a Saint Mary's program that has advanced to 14 of the past 15 semifinals.

Must be a tough conference if the same team gets to the CCG every year for 20 years...

Like I said above, it might help being in a crappy conference because you can tell recruits that they are guaranteed to win 20 games and make it to the tourney every year.

If I was a recruit, I would like to be on a team that wins 20 games or more every year instead of one that might win 15 on a good year and has no chance to make it to the tourney...
 
There's a curse on NU baseball like the Cleveland Indians or for 107 years for cubs or 80 something for the Boston red socks. Do give me location location look not to far south KU
KU recruits nationally and can get basically anyone they want from anywhere, try again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: newAD
Instead of deluding myself, I'm just gonna assume that we're screwed playing basketball in the Big 10. Face it, we're lucky they made the tourney once under Miles. Jesus Christ himself couldn't make Nebrasketball a consistent contender in this conference. I guess we should've joined the Summit League.
 
Shaka was vastly overrated. Gimmick offenses don't get you very far in a real conference.
Just really hard to know if the latest guy to get a mid-major deep into the tournament is the next Rick Pitino or even Jim Larranaga, who move up the coaching ladder and start landing Power 5 talent, or if they're just a coach who can get a group with mid-major talent to gel. The guys in the latter category may still be fine coaches, but they don't last long at a place like Texas.
 
Just really hard to know if the latest guy to get a mid-major deep into the tournament is the next Rick Pitino or even Jim Larranaga, who move up the coaching ladder and start landing Power 5 talent, or if they're just a coach who can get a group with mid-major talent to gel. The guys in the latter category may still be fine coaches, but they don't last long at a place like Texas.

exactly. Nebraska is 0/3 with their Collier, Sadler and Miles.
 
Instead of deluding myself, I'm just gonna assume that we're screwed playing basketball in the Big 10. Face it, we're lucky they made the tourney once under Miles. Jesus Christ himself couldn't make Nebrasketball a consistent contender in this conference. I guess we should've joined the Summit League.

Can we petition for membership in basketball only? Travel costs would be cheaper.
 
I went to St Mary's. Graduated in 99. They vastly improved with the Aussie connection. As Randy Bennett says, Deledova and Patty Mills didnt know the difference between St Mary's and UCLA, and he wasn't going to tell them. You get those guys there and their friends follow. Plus they tend to keep some of the top local talent outside of the guys who can choose their school. Lastley, both Bennett and Few can coach and they are top guy in charge at their schools as each has no football. When SMC dropped football in 96 all sports improved dramatically .

Bennett can't get over the hump when it comes to the Zags. Randy always has that look as if he is about to kick the family dog right after another loss to Few and Company. It is hard to be a rival when you are 2-12 over the last 14 games.
 
Gonzaga enters its 20th consecutive West Coast Conference championship game Tuesday in Las Vegas against a Saint Mary's program that has advanced to 14 of the past 15 semifinals.

Must be a tough conference if the same team gets to the CCG every year for 20 years...

Like I said above, it might help being in a crappy conference because you can tell recruits that they are guaranteed to win 20 games and make it to the tourney every year.

If I was a recruit, I would like to be on a team that wins 20 games or more every year instead of one that might win 15 on a good year and has no chance to make it to the tourney...
I've been to the Gonzaga campus and IMO it's a cool place. On top of that the Stockton connection has paid HUGE dividends. His basketball camps attract some of the best young talent from all over the west coast. In addition the stability of their coaching staff makes for an obvious advantage. Good coach at a good school with a winning tradition with probably one of the most likeable former NBA stars in the world promoting that program equals a winning combination.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: TwinsRRUs
Fans said the same thing about Nebraska baseball. Then Dave Van Horn came along and changed everything. During its membership in the Big XII, Nebraska had a winning record against Texas, a program that is college baseball royalty.

To build a program you have to scratch, bite, and pull hair to recruit scrappy underrated players that you can then coach up over time. As you win more games, recruiting gets easier. Media exposure improves, fan attendance goes up, and the program gains momentum. Danny Nee had it going for awhile. They won 26 games in the 1990-91 season. It can be done.

Nebraska has had some decent coaches in Collier, Sadler, and Miles. Since the program has continued to struggle, even after a huge facilities upgrade by the administration, you have to wonder if there isn't something else happening. Are there internal power struggles in the athletic department that are a barrier to success? Are high school coaches in the state turning players away from Lincoln? Is Nebraska refusing to play ball with prep schools and select teams when that is the standard in the industry these days? College basketball recruiting is as shady as it gets. I wonder if Nebraska hasn't taken the moral high ground to their own detriment. If that's the case, then they need to give Miles a lifetime contract, admit they are not going to do what it takes to win, and let us all come to terms with our own mediocrity.
 
I've been to the Gonzaga campus and IMO it's a cool place. On top of that the Stockton connection has paid HUGE dividends. His basketball camps attract some of the best young talent from all over the west coast. In addition the stability of their coaching staff makes for an obvious advantage. Good coach at a good school with a winning tradition with probably one of the most likeable former NBA stars in the world promoting that program equals a winning combination.

I went to Stocktons camp when I was a kid. I'm now 40. It was awesome. I grew up in Utah, so I and ALL my friends attended every year. First overnight sports camp ever
 
  • Like
Reactions: dinglefritz
I went to Stocktons camp when I was a kid. I'm now 40. It was awesome. I grew up in Utah, so I and ALL my friends attended every year. First overnight sports camp ever
A friend of mine coached big men several years there and hung out with Stockton at his cabin. He's 6-10 and he's got a picture of him guarding Mark Eaton in a pickup game at the camp. Eaton made him look like a dwarf.Eek
 
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest posts

ADVERTISEMENT