OK, I’ll weigh in I suppose. First, nothing is going to change with NCAA basketball. This is the new dynamic, players are coming into the mid and low majors for only two years at most and then transfer. Great players that is.
What we need to do is recruit from majors and lower organizations (Division II and lower) in addition to the two year youth players. We just have to expect them to leave. A JV system of sorts. We become the JV before players like Cooper move up to Varsity.
Coach Powell is embracing this new dynamic, making the best of it. It becomes a part of the process. Player A goes to mid major and leaves after two seasons before making the big bucks at a major.
On the flip side of that, you have Player B who goes to a major and it doesn’t work out playing time wise. Then after two years goes to a mid major and makes less money but he also gains playing time. I see a bit of a pattern developing here and it’s not so bad. And it seems familiar…
We just have to buy into this new dynamic. Those who know how to work it will thrive. Or at least they’re willing to work within that system will thrive. Can VU do that?!? IDK, at least Coach Powell is willing to work within this new dynamic.
You want Valpo basketball fans to buy into the new dynamic of being at the bottom of the MVC?
Sure…if that’s all you got out of what I said, then yes…
Since that's all your saying....which is what Powell is saying even if he doesn't think he's saying that.
What he implied/said in his message was to continue his current process which is to bring in non heavily recruited HS/Preps and marginal...at least to this point...transfers from other programs. They would be allowed to build their profile at the high end and then move on. That's what has happened with Schwieger. Could also happen with Wright but since it hasn't we won't talk about that. This process has led to Valpo finishing in the bottom 3 in the league with consecutive Freshman of the year and an all league player.
Powell wants to continue this....apparently...and you support it.
So why should anyone get anything other than this out of your comment? This year, potentially could have been the best case scenario with Wright and Schwieger around. This is what you want to continue?
Sure, it’s what I want, again…if this makes you feel better, to be a ‘90s angst-filled teen who reels out of control at every perceived slight, then you be you.
But for those who want to be realistic then you can embrace what has become, basically a two-year system. There will still be guys who stay the full four years, but that will be increasingly rare as time goes on.
It appears you have no intention of actually discussing what Powell said and how it may apply to the future. All the juvenile bullshit name calling certainly says more about you than anyone on the board.
Carry on.
But I’ve already answered you, it’s not based off what Coach Powell said, I just said it’s the new dynamic and we have to work well within that!!! And you said no…but of course it is, it’s the new dynamic and we have to work within that!!! I’m telling you how it’ll work, you just don’t like the sound of that.
I took me awhile to find it, but I was pretty sure it was reported last year that 14 of 15 All-Conference players transferred or graduated. I found the post-By March 27th, only Duke Deen and Indiana State players hadn’t entered the portal. As we know, once Indiana State NIT run was over, the entire team disbanded. Given the kind of NIL money that is out there, I imagine that a similar thing will happen this year. This is the state of college basketball, so it doesn’t matter that Valpo’s NIL funds are non-existent, the MVC teams that have some NIL funds are still losing their best players.
When I first heard the news of Cooper’s departure, my first thought was I might be done with being a season ticket holder for Valpo basketball after 30 years. Hearing what RP said and understanding what kind of money Cooper is likely to get, I’m willing to give RP one more year. If he improves the team again, I will sign up for another year, finish in a similar place in the standings, then I’m done!
When I first heard the news of Cooper’s departure, my first thought was I might be done with being a season ticket holder for Valpo basketball after 30 years. Hearing what RP said and understanding what kind of money Cooper is likely to get, I’m willing to give RP one more year. If he improves the team again, I will sign up for another year, finish in a similar place in the standings, then I’m done!
Same here, except it's been 40 years for me. I'm hoping Powell, having seen the disappointing results these first two years, rethinks his "everything stays the same" statement and revises his recruiting strategy. Sure, get a promising freshman, maybe Pettigrew, but focus more on bigger, stronger, experienced transfers from D-II or Juco and D-I players looking for greater playing time, all ready for a physical MVC conference. One more year near the bottom of the standings will count as three strikes and out!
It is me, or is mens college basketball on the downswing?
How did Lottich's approach to division II and high major transfers work out? Mixed results. Steve Alford gave a solid take on this recently after a game. Not sure if he's correct, but almost all coaches say they don't like the model and we have to adjust to the new norm. The genie is out of the bottle and the players are chasing the money first. Very few mid majors will be relevent if the model is not fixed to accommodate all levels. Of course we know that won't happen. It's the minor leagues for professional ranks at the P5 schools. Might as well make earning a degree optional, let the players decide if they want to earn one. Yes it's worth mentioning Drake's model as a success, but would anyone be surprised if Stirtz and or McCollum left Drake in a few weeks?
I don't know what Powell's perfect solution is to recruiting at Valpo, but I don't envy his position. Recruit under the radar guys, coach em up, develop them and then watch them leave after two years or go the DII, III, NAIA P5 transfer route.
A photo I took of the team exactly ten years ago (3/15/15) when Valpo was called for their tournament bracket by CBS on Selection Sunday, a glorious pre-NIL/transfer portal day:
This is awesome. I don’t know why the school doesn’t post these kinda of accomplishments. The school should realize that they have had success like this.
This is such a frustrating thread, but one that has to be talked about. Which camp are you in?
1) Quitting on the team and dumping your season tickets because you are mad at college basketball as a whole.
2) Justifying that finishing last every year is okay because the university get some more $$ based on the success of the other schools.
3) Believing that one more year (for the 8th year in a row) might make a difference.
4) Fully recognizing that we are a small fish in a huge pond with the current NIL/Portal situation. And recognizing that we need to align with other small fish.
I'll take number 4).
I won't be quitting on the team with my 27 years of season ticket ownership. To those who are quitting or stomping their feet and threatening to quit.......bye.
How did Lottich's approach to division II and high major transfers work out? Mixed results. Steve Alford gave a solid take on this recently after a game. Not sure if he's correct, but almost all coaches say they don't like the model and we have to adjust to the new norm. The genie is out of the bottle and the players are chasing the money first. Very few mid majors will be relevent if the model is not fixed to accommodate all levels. Of course we know that won't happen. It's the minor leagues for professional ranks at the P5 schools. Might as well make earning a degree optional, let the players decide if they want to earn one. Yes it's worth mentioning Drake's model as a success, but would anyone be surprised if Stirtz and or McCollum left Drake in a few weeks?
I don't know what Powell's perfect solution is to recruiting at Valpo, but I don't envy his position. Recruit under the radar guys, coach em up, develop them and then watch them leave after two years or go the DII, III, NAIA P5 transfer route.
I would have been much happier with Powell's comments had he focused on the program being more competitive. He focused on individual players building their resume and leaving and that this was a good thing (presumably for them).
We just went through two seasons of consecutive freshman of the year and an all conference player being on the roster and still finished at the bottom of the league although they advanced in the conference tournament to a position to get into the final. I guess that's progress. I didn't hear Powell say he would do anything different. If he doesn't how does he make the team competitive within the conference unless winning a couple of games in the conference tournament is all that matters. He can't depend on enough players of value sticking around for 4 years but consistently expecting freshmen or even sophomores to be competitive in the league no matter how good they are seems to be a long shot. He's going to have to go to other sources of players to grab one and two year players who are more prepared to jump right in and contribute at a high end. I didn't get this from Powell's comments.
As I recall Valpo has $100K+ in annual NIL funding, lowest in the MVC. In contrast, INSU has >$700K, and even then lost their coach to SLU from the A-10, which had a budget double that. In turn INSU’s best returning players left, destroying what might have been a Top-10 team nationally this year, and relegating it to MVC also-ran status. That’s some perspective on just how far Valpo is away from ever being competitive, even in the MVC let alone nationally.
Without a competitive NIL bank, Valpo loses on 3 fronts. We can’t compete for HS players being recruited by MM programs with money to spend, we can’t compete for the better veteran players in the portal for the same reason, and we can’t hold onto hidden gems like Cooper and All.
It’s time for a reality check. This is recruiting with both hands tied behind our back. Short of the tooth fairy putting 3 quarters of a Mil under Roger’s pillow every year into infinity, this situation is unsolvable. Valpo did nothing to cause this. It’s a system intentionally run amok, consumed by power and greed, a place where the “little guy” like our once proud program is no longer welcome.
This is such a frustrating thread, but one that has to be talked about. Which camp are you in?
1) Quitting on the team and dumping your season tickets because you are mad at college basketball as a whole.
2) Justifying that finishing last every year is okay because the university get some more $$ based on the success of the other schools.
3) Believing that one more year (for the 8th year in a row) might make a difference.
4) Fully recognizing that we are a small fish in a huge pond with the current NIL/Portal situation. And recognizing that we need to align with other small fish.
I'll take number 4).
I won't be quitting on the team with my 27 years of season ticket ownership. To those who are quitting or stomping their feet and threatening to quit.......bye.
Spot on
#4 is only alternative
Despite what 72 and others want to believe...
I guess if one of you "fair weather" fans wants to jump off a roof, maybe you should just wait so several can jump together. The idea that fans are going to give Valpo "one last chance" or stop buying season tickets, seems rather strange to me. Where else are you going to get this form of entertainment in Valparaiso, Indiana?? If you look at the results, we were maybe 30 point combined from a 20 win season. We had one senior in the rotation. Now we know Cooper is gone but also know we are getting one of the best high school players in Illinois.
We are apparently getting a sixth year from Schmidt. So if All comes back we have six of the top eight scorers and a loss of a total of 20 points per games, on average.
If you remember, there was one of 10 players in the Valley, who were named to the first or second teams last year, who returned to their teams. ONE.
There is no reason to think Powell won't be putting a competitive team on the floor.
We are making the best of a very bad situation.
Our problem of a limited NIL budget is magnified because the MVC is a AAA league to the P5 conferences. Our players are good enough to move up and also have the national media exposure. Other mid majors have that problem on a lesser scale.
Because of that there are players that will want to come to Valpo and the MVC. We’re higher up on the basketball food chain than say, the Patriot League.
Players come and go. We’re fans of the name on the front of the uniform.
I’m going to trust Roger that he can still put together a good team. There’s a lot of basketball talent out there. It seems like he has a plan and is carving out a niche.
Okay, 72, you must have a different definition of "fair weather fans." As Inigo Montoya said: "I don't think that means what you think it means." If you combine tjjvalpo and me, we have been fully dedicated fans for a total of about 70 years, and my time includes those three Homer years when the team went 4-24, 5-22, and 5-22. Hardly fits the term "fair weather fan"
Oddly, you also seem somehow heartened that "we were maybe 30 points combined from a 20-win season." I'll have some of that Kool-Aid please!
As for your comment that "there is no reason to think Powell won't be putting a competitive team on the floor"; how about the fact he said "we are going to do it again" and "we are not going to change," when the team just finished the past two years in 12th place and 11th place?
We are just holding Powell to his promise (as even he said we should) of building a championship-level program. If somehow he does construct a good team next year, as you suggest, then I guess nobody will "jump," and all will be well.
There is no reason to think Powell won't be putting a competitive team on the floor.
You mean other than the fact that he hasn't to this point?
This is such a frustrating thread, but one that has to be talked about. Which camp are you in?
1) Quitting on the team and dumping your season tickets because you are mad at college basketball as a whole.
2) Justifying that finishing last every year is okay because the university get some more $$ based on the success of the other schools.
3) Believing that one more year (for the 8th year in a row) might make a difference.
4) Fully recognizing that we are a small fish in a huge pond with the current NIL/Portal situation. And recognizing that we need to align with other small fish.
I'll take number 4).
I won't be quitting on the team with my 27 years of season ticket ownership. To those who are quitting or stomping their feet and threatening to quit.......bye.
I’m a 4 too. Reason: Go to DII and feed a kid or two upward to the underside of this lopsided cluster. Yeah, you might lose a kid or two along the way but you can at least BUILD A FRIGGIN PROGRAM at that level. McCollum did it at DII. Look at IWU. In the meantime while this chaos sorts itself out you can ….
▶️ win more games and provide an entertaining product (face it, it’s all relative to where you are sitting at the time)
▶️ improve attendance at the ARC (see above) which, BTW, would be considered a good facility in some DII conferences
▶️ qualify for a national championship run
▶️ and maybe, just maybe, get alums inspired again
