Xavier!!!!!!!!
- Thread starter newAD
- Start date
Saw Xavier in person once this year and on TV several times, and they've never really looked that good - but they are a tough, resilient group. I thought they would take down Florida State but didn't give them any shot at beating Arizona. Very happy they did, though. Further evidence that the Basketball Gods won't let Sean Miller in the Final Four until he can act like a human being for two hours.
I once worked at Xavier. Tiny place. About 4500 students. The campus is very small and is squeezed into a residential neighborhood in Cincinnati.
And yet... somehow they manage to field a winning basketball team. Imagine that ...
And yet... somehow they manage to field a winning basketball team. Imagine that ...
Key words in your post...in Cincinnati. Xavier is surrounded by a large number of people within probably a 4 hour driving range capable of playing D-1 basketball. It helps. Still impressive.
Starters from Connecticut, Miami and Minnesota and a contributor from Chicago.
I get the argument, but Xavier isn't pulling in the top players from the 4 hour radius. Mack is just a great coach.
I get the argument, but Xavier isn't pulling in the top players from the 4 hour radius. Mack is just a great coach.
Is Xavier a Jesuit college or how do they pull some of these kids in. I get the attraction of smaller class size etc of a school like Creighton but still. I haven't been to Cincinnati. Downtown Omaha is a heckuva recruiting tool for a kid and for minority students there is obviously a lot more social activities available within their comfort zone and those are the only reasons I can figure out how those schools are able to pull the talent they do. I recall the question from a guy Callahan was recruiting when he visited Lincoln "where's all the sisters?".
If it comes down to the "sisters" then recruits must be really shell shocked when they visit Creighton's campus. I'm just going to go out on a limb and say you have never visited their campus if that is your thought. Creighton is not pulling in kids because they fall in love with downtown Omaha...in all actuality, there is not much of a difference between downtown Omaha and Downtown Lincoln. Creighton is pulling in kids because of their offensive identity. I guess it pays to have one. Or at least one that works and or can recruit to.
Just a very well-coached team. Coach Mack has made the NCAA tournament 7 out of 8 years, and won at least one game in the tourney 5 of those 7 years. Impressive for a school that size.
Their associate head coach, Travis Steele, is a guy I'd keep my eye on as an AD. His recruiting is a big reason for Xavier's success. He was the AAU coach for the Indiana Adidas Elite program before getting into the college game. Being that we are an Adidas school, he's probably a guy that could funnel quite a bit of talent here.
Their associate head coach, Travis Steele, is a guy I'd keep my eye on as an AD. His recruiting is a big reason for Xavier's success. He was the AAU coach for the Indiana Adidas Elite program before getting into the college game. Being that we are an Adidas school, he's probably a guy that could funnel quite a bit of talent here.
Cincinnati is a fairly cool city but nothing fantastic. About on a par with Omaha I would say.
Anyone remember Xavier trash-talking Lincoln back in 1988? NEVER FORGET!!!
I'm waiting for the day when Barrow Alaska Barber College wins a game in the NCAA Tournament and we get a lesson on how it's way easier to get players to go there than to Lincoln.
And they have history. You can fall out of bed and win if your school has history.
No but you took cheap shots at Miller and I thought it was sour grapes from someone who probably knows little about him or the UofA program. I live in Arizona and attended the UofA when basketball was about as successful as it is in Lincoln. Lute (or Loot to the butthurt Hawkeyes) Olson built the program from almost nothing, yet left it in tough shape when his mental health seemed to go bonkers. Miller has done a great job getting the program back to Olson's level in record time. Not surprisingly he is frequently interviewed in the media and does ok with it, not funny like Miles but intelligent and respectful of opponents. Even before Xavier won he sung their praises and their coach's praises, a former Miller assistant. Same thing immediately after the game and the only finger pointing he did was with his thumb. No crying about officials or injuries or bad breaks, just noted his own bad coaching that failed to put them in good positions for shots. Maybe someday we'll get a decent coach who can build our program, but in the meantime many of our fanbase resemble the loser fanbases of our old Big Eight football opponents, jealousy being the principal characteristic.
I do went to the First and Second round in Lincoln..
Believe the quote was " playing and being sent to Lincoln is like going to Siberia".
