Dan Silly-o says...

[Joe]

Bien nailed it. There are exceptions, but those are cases where they have a) great marketers and easier conferences.

Look at what Gonzaga has done, they went from having no money to being a basketball powerhouse. Of course they used some of the greatest marketing schemes we've ever seen. Selling Cinderella, travelling to play anyone (and beating them), playing well in March.

Look at Southern Illinois, the cast offs in a basketball crazy region of the country.

They both have something in common, they are in leagues where they spent more than everyone in their league and were able to be consistently good there. Neither would have made it in the Big East.

USF is in the 1st or 2nd hardest basketball conference in the country. We cannot get away with spending less than the big boys most times. The day will come, but in order for the basketball team to become a consistent winner we're gonna need the football earnings to increase.

[Bullpride08]

You know joe those schools caught lightning in a bottle earlier, built with some young solid coaches, and won with the under-appreciated overlooked talented, got to multiple NCAA Tournaments- Gonzaga has been in the tourney I believe this will be there 8th consecutive year...and 11 of the past 14, you go from Cinderella to contender real quick with that much consistent success.  I believe since this Zag run started I understood their donor levels have jumped over 10x, season tickets which were once easy to pick, their games are now sold out...a new hoops facility is in the works....

It just takes once and to capitalize on that opportunity which is how smaller schools do it.

Take Memphis for an example...so can say hey if they can do it in C-DOA why not us...well remember Memphis has been to 3 Final Fours, one championship game, a top notch coach, top notch facilities, wonder fan support...a winner is built one building block at a time.

[Markeymark]

Coach MAC is not ever going to have the opportunity to build a BB program with the kind of money that is being spent on football right now.

Maybe this is why Seth and USF couldn't come to some kind of agreement? This opinion of SILLY-O couldn't help but make me think, "Which do I care more about?" My answer...

football @ this point

I can't disagree with your sentiment, since basketball isn't getting any substantial support and probably won't for a long time to come.

I think Seth's leaving had more to do with the fact that he was here for 7 years and another opportunity came along, so he took it. The program was finally getting some respect in CUSA. The early years in CUSA were no picnic either. If Seth could have got a couple more quality players to sign here (Keyon Dooling, Casey Sanders, etc) he would probably have left much sooner because we would have been in the NCAA's a couple times.

McCullum was hired as a CUSA coach, before the Big East move was close to being a reality. A couple more years at the CUSA level might have enabled him to better prepare for what we're dealing with now...just a thought.

[Bull Matrix]

People, we are not saying that USF should dominate the BIG EAST in basketball. That is not going to happen. What most USF fans want is a NCAA bid. 1992!!!!! The last FN NCAA bid which is embarrasing right now. Wash St looks like they are going to make the NCAA for the first time since 1994. It is imperative that USF makes the NCAA one of these years before they will get any support. Being in the BIG EAST gives USF more opportunity to make the NCAA since there are always going to be more bids. Spending big money is for the UConn's, UL's, and Syracuse's of the world that want to win the BIG EAST title year after year. All USF wants to do is make the NCAA once in an blue moon. And if it takes some up and coming coach that will jump ship after he gets USF in the dance then so be it. It can be done without all that money you know.

[Joe]

If you think it will be easier to make the NCAAs in the BE, I have a bridge in Brooklyn.

This is going to be a problem down the and that is why I doubt the future of the 16 team "super league" that is the BE basketball. UConn isn't making the tourny. Syracuse is on the bubble.

Most say the BE is only getting 7-8 teams in on most years, because no matter how you slice it a good team, in our league (especially with 18 games coming into play next year) is going to end up with 10-11 losses because of the cutthroat lineup they have to go through.

USF in order to make the tourney is going to have to have a great season or a great run.

[smazza]

Build our football program first. That's where we make our mark.

$4M dining hall and $6M practice facilities & softball upgrades should be priorities.

Fund basketball further when we get to our first BCS game.

Mac is doing as well as expected with his limited funds.

sorry-the 10 million should be used to build basketball,softball and baseball

[Bull Matrix]

Joe,

C-USA may only have one bid this season if Memphis wins that C-USA tourny. To me, USF is better off being in the BIG EAST because there are usally going to be 7 to 8 bids a year. So basically, USF needs to finish in the top half of the standings to get a chance at earning a bid. A team like Seton Hall made the big dance last season, and they had a lame duck coach. I am not saying that it is going to be easy because you are right in that the bottom four teams in the BIG EAST could compete with the top of mid major leagues like C-USA. I am just saying that I like being in a league with more bids than being in a conference with only 1 or 2 bids.

[RandyGator]

ANYONE, that listens to Silly-O has to have his thought process questioned!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bulls96go]

About Leavitt's cafeteria request, how did they miss that when building the athletic facility?  Kinda make ya shake your head & wonder.

cost.

$$$$ talks and with a limited amount we must prioritize

it is the next step and will help all sports with recruiting just like the sweet new gym in the "football" athletic facility

[bulls96go]

The funny thing is Bien, I work with a few IU and UK alum, they all ask the same question..."How the ^#&* can Florida be a basketball powerhouse?"

Simple answer, the BCS. The BCS makes for football teams a non BCS title team can make 5 times what it makes for a national champion in basketball. Is it very suprising that the top 3 basketball teams right now are football schools? No! Those schools have made so much money off the BCS and the college football system that they can feed their basketball programs countless amounts of money to keep them competitive.

Is it any suprise why Louisville, Kansas, UConn, and IU have put so much money into their football programs the last few years?

USF basketball might catch lightning in a bottle and have a godd season here and there. However, if anyone really expects them to be competitive year in and out with the current funding (especially since we don't have the booster money that many schools have) is highly mistaken.

Well Joe I would say UF makes it with the BCS, AND the SEC.  The SEC pays out more dollars to their members than any other conference, and has the most tv exposure.  Additionally, UF has some very deep pocketed donors that have made sure the dollars stay in UF Athletics.  

Those, as well as the BCS have led to UF's success.  Also, UF made some masterful moves in the 80's and 90's on men's hoops that have led to this success.  Keep in mind when Norm Sloan was brought back in 80' he had built himself into a bit of a legend, and a coup for a poor UF hoops program.  He built them to a Sweet Sixteen team...Vernon Maxwell, Dwayne Davis, Schintzius, Pat Lawrence, Livingston Chapman, albeit he cheated but he got the ball rolling in Gainesville to bring recognition to the hoops program.  Bringing in Norm in 80' would be the equivalent to USF bringing in Huggins, Norm had already been in a Final Four and had like 300 wins before returning to UF.

He left, and they fell into probation but at that point dollars were flowing in and the O'Connell Center started it's reshaping.  They made another masterful move hiring Lon Kruger, and really only experienced two down years during the sanction years.  Lon built that program into a Final Four team, a real strong team that was built from a very humble beginnings not the top notch recruits Norm landed (possibly by cheating).  After that Final Four support poured in and so did dollars.  They hired one of the top coaching candidates in the land in Billy Donovan, and then the commitment flowed in they built the new practice facilities, more upgrades to O'Connell, and the hoops offices.

At this point right now you'd struggle to find 10 hoops schools that have facilities equal to UF.  So when UF stacks up they can say to recruits that we've got top notch facilities, a top notch coach, since 1980 we've been to the NCAA's 15 times, and 8 years in a row, three Final Four appearance and one National Championship, and oh yeah we put about 12k in the O-Connell Center for every game. Hmmmm, hard to beat that.

UF could afford to bring in sloan and kruger for the very points you mentioned.

i don't think USF can go that route, we do need to build a solid product while we "wait" for the dollars to hire big name or top up-and-commer...IMO mac has build a foundation and needs one more year to see if he can cont to improve...DW needs this year to find the next "cheap" diamond in the rough to bring in next year to cont. to build if mac fails. just my opinion.