Gotta admit

[unlove]

I’m struggling to pull the trigger on my season tickets for the upcoming season. I keep hearing that the team will compete for the MWC title and is in a strong position to make the NCAA. I struggle to see it. We had the horses last year but didn’t have the coaching to get them there, at least not in the first few months of the season. Having DJ & Whaley back is great. Hill maybe can fulfill his potential. Hicks ought to take at least a small step forward. But I struggle to see the rest of the returnees plus the newcomers making this team a contender for the Dance, not even the MWC title. Knowing DJ is likely gone after this season just makes it tougher to invest in this program yet again. Staff should been all in on getting the best talent around him and swing for the fences this year, but it just looks like a mediocre team on paper. Someone please tell me I’m wrong, that we have more going for us than I understand. Can someone convince me that this is not the year to drop my season tickets?

 

[Rebel1986]

I’m struggling to pull the trigger on my season tickets for the upcoming season. I keep hearing that the team will compete for the MWC title and is in a strong position to make the NCAA. I struggle to see it. We had the horses last year but didn’t have the coaching to get them there, at least not in the first few months of the season. Having DJ & Whaley back is great. Hill maybe can fulfill his potential. Hicks ought to take at least a small step forward. But I struggle to see the rest of the returnees plus the newcomers making this team a contender for the Dance, not even the MWC title. Knowing DJ is likely gone after this season just makes it tougher to invest in this program yet again. Staff should been all in on getting the best talent around him and swing for the fences this year, but it just looks like a mediocre team on paper. Someone please tell me I’m wrong, that we have more going for us than I understand. Can someone convince me that this is not the year to drop my season tickets?

Look how long it took for football, and now look at how great last season was, so miracles can happen!

 

[j. spilotro]

I’m struggling to pull the trigger on my season tickets for the upcoming season. I keep hearing that the team will compete for the MWC title and is in a strong position to make the NCAA. I struggle to see it. We had the horses last year but didn’t have the coaching to get them there, at least not in the first few months of the season. Having DJ & Whaley back is great. Hill maybe can fulfill his potential. Hicks ought to take at least a small step forward. But I struggle to see the rest of the returnees plus the newcomers making this team a contender for the Dance, not even the MWC title. Knowing DJ is likely gone after this season just makes it tougher to invest in this program yet again. Staff should been all in on getting the best talent around him and swing for the fences this year, but it just looks like a mediocre team on paper. Someone please tell me I’m wrong, that we have more going for us than I understand. Can someone convince me that this is not the year to drop my season tickets?

I don’t know that the Rebels will be a little better or a little worse, but it should fall between that. And I think the conference has taken a hit at the top. Big hit.

If all that is true and the Rebels “competed” within conference last season, then it’s logical to say UNLV will have a chance.

It’s about the only selling point there is … unless UNLV basketball is a tradition for you and your loved ones.

 

[bcvegaspt]

I'm in that same camp. I can see who's on the team and I've watched them as objectively as I can. I'm just failing to see IT in the team overall. DTJ, yes. He's the Truth. The rest... maybe's, possibly's, hopefully's... If A, then B, and A - C = D type of stuff.

I'm just not there, either.

 

[WarthogRebel]

I think it's nearly impossible to tell.

If our newcomers are average at best, then we'll be in the middle of the pack. If we have a couple of breakout studs then we'll compete for the top.

Last year most of the pre-season rating services had Utah State 8th or 9th in the MWC. And they were wrong.

As for tickets, I get them because I'm a homer and it's cheap entertainment.

 

[RebelScrub]

I’m struggling to pull the trigger on my season tickets for the upcoming season. I keep hearing that the team will compete for the MWC title and is in a strong position to make the NCAA. I struggle to see it. We had the horses last year but didn’t have the coaching to get them there, at least not in the first few months of the season. Having DJ & Whaley back is great. Hill maybe can fulfill his potential. Hicks ought to take at least a small step forward. But I struggle to see the rest of the returnees plus the newcomers making this team a contender for the Dance, not even the MWC title. Knowing DJ is likely gone after this season just makes it tougher to invest in this program yet again. Staff should been all in on getting the best talent around him and swing for the fences this year, but it just looks like a mediocre team on paper. Someone please tell me I’m wrong, that we have more going for us than I understand. Can someone convince me that this is not the year to drop my season tickets?

I’m struggling to pull the trigger on my season tickets for the upcoming season. I keep hearing that the team will compete for the MWC title and is in a strong position to make the NCAA. I struggle to see it. We had the horses last year but didn’t have the coaching to get them there, at least not in the first few months of the season. Having DJ & Whaley back is great. Hill maybe can fulfill his potential. Hicks ought to take at least a small step forward. But I struggle to see the rest of the returnees plus the newcomers making this team a contender for the Dance, not even the MWC title. Knowing DJ is likely gone after this season just makes it tougher to invest in this program yet again. Staff should been all in on getting the best talent around him and swing for the fences this year, but it just looks like a mediocre team on paper. Someone please tell me I’m wrong, that we have more going for us than I understand. Can someone convince me that this is not the year to drop my season tickets?

just get tickets this year. It’s easier to drop tickets the year after when he goes to a better team.

 

[Rebel1986]

They made a huge effort to reduce the price of the tickets, but without a significant improvement in the coach, and play of the team, we likely will be in the middle of the pack. There are enough pieces of the puzzle for the team to improve, but the question is will the coaching improve?

 

[1Tripoda]

It will be better than last season. The consistency will get better as the year progress. The issues with Kalib and Keylan really threw last season a wrinkle. CKK will do a lot better this year.

 

[Rebel1986]

It will be better than last season. The consistency will get better as the year progress. The issues with Kalib and Keylan really threw last season a wrinkle. CKK will do a lot better this year.

I hope that is true!

 

[bcvegaspt]

More of the same.

It's like in school when you go to the next year with new supplies. "This new eraser will be better than the last one" or "This Opeechee folder is better since it has the multiplication table in it."

A = C - D x F/3

 

[j. spilotro]

I hope that is true!

Any predictions are going to more based on hope than actual knowledge. I do miss the days where you had 6-7 guys returning, you plug in a few guys who you’ve tracked for a year since they were on an actual recruiting radar … some won’t have an impact, and depending on the strength of recruiting, some will. Easier to formulate an opinion based upon better knowledge. It’s a lot of guesswork right now. And that goes even if you think they won’t be good.

I think that was a lot of the offseason fun, tracking high school players for future recruiting and taking actual stabs at predictions. That’s pretty much dried up.

 

[TimothyC3]

I am all in for season tickets as always. Watching DJ is worth the price of the ticket. Also, impressions of the new players will slowly trickle in since they are all now on campus..

 

[TimothyC3]

 

[Jay's Rebel's]

Any predictions are going to more based on hope than actual knowledge. I do miss the days where you had 6-7 guys returning, you plug in a few guys who you’ve tracked for a year since they were on an actual recruiting radar … some won’t have an impact, and depending on the strength of recruiting, some will. Easier to formulate an opinion based upon better knowledge. It’s a lot of guesswork right now. And that goes even if you think they won’t be good.

I think that was a lot of the offseason fun, tracking high school players for future recruiting and taking actual stabs at predictions. That’s pretty much dried up.

That uncertainty is what makes college ball special.. Tracking, recruiting, being able to put together a roster that compliments one another.. It was strategic, it was time consuming, it was showing loyalty.. Now it’s dollar signs $$$, “dried up”.. I don’t blame the kids, would milk this time period for as much as i could as well..

Just sad to see.. Taken a lot of the pride out of things.. NCCA needs to come down with a format moving forward, mite even get to a point of a roster budget, negotiating contracts.. could you imagine?

 

[j. spilotro]

That uncertainty is what makes college ball special.. Tracking, recruiting, being able to put together a roster that compliments one another.. It was strategic, it was time consuming, it was showing loyalty.. Now it’s dollar signs $$$, “dried up”.. I don’t blame the kids, would milk this time period for as much as i could as well..

Just sad to see.. Taken a lot of the pride out of things.. NCCA needs to come down with a format moving forward, mite even get to a point of a roster budget, negotiating contracts.. could you imagine?

I don’t mind uncertainty … what fun is it if you know (unless you know you’ll be one of the best). But I also like having a more informed idea of what is reasonable to expect.

I think they’ve ruined college sports. I mean they’ve really changed the actual substance of following a team. Everything that made it special (to me) has become largely inconsequential.

It doesn’t help that our program holds zero of the unique substance/identity/pride that used to exist. We are just a bland face in the crowd … nothing edgy, rebellious, no identity … you combine with where we are at and have been at with what college sports have become …

 

[RebelScrub]

It will be better than last season. The consistency will get better as the year progress. The issues with Kalib and Keylan really threw last season a wrinkle. CKK will do a lot better this year.

It will be better than last season. The consistency will get better as the year progress. The issues with Kalib and Keylan really threw last season a wrinkle. CKK will do a lot better this year.

Dude, you are the most homer of Homer fans trip..

View embedded media

“Hey coach, ready to vie for 4th place this year?”

“Ready”

 

[Rebel1986]

That uncertainty is what makes college ball special.. Tracking, recruiting, being able to put together a roster that compliments one another.. It was strategic, it was time consuming, it was showing loyalty.. Now it’s dollar signs $$$, “dried up”.. I don’t blame the kids, would milk this time period for as much as i could as well..

Just sad to see.. Taken a lot of the pride out of things.. NCCA needs to come down with a format moving forward, mite even get to a point of a roster budget, negotiating contracts.. could you imagine?

The NCAA has been bought and paid for by the big schools for decades. Coach Tark had it right in regards to his statement that "The NCAA is so mad at Kentucky, it's going to give Cleveland State two more year's of probation."

Recent decisions by the NCAA are ultimately going to involve the court system, and most likely the current form of the NCAA, which is controlled by the bigger schools, will most likely disappear in the next few years to be replaced by a system directly run by the universities, or even the far out possibility that it ends up controlled by the players isn't out of the realm of possibility.

 

[Rebel_Luv]

IMO i think CKK=Rice(BSU) i think he has a ceiling and the ceiling is not that high. I just dont think he has the Charisma to attract the NIL money and the players that want to play for him instead of $ and playing time. Seems like we have some players in his tenure that is more about ME than team.

 

[Babalouie]

And what was the last team or two that didn’t have a ME player or two?

I already have my tickets. Cheap entertainment and fun to be at the games but it could be a lot more fun if there was better play on the floor.

 

[j. spilotro]

And what was the last team or two that didn’t have a ME player or two?

I already have my tickets. Cheap entertainment and fun to be at the games but it could be a lot more fun if there was better play on the floor.

Don’t know. When you drop 5-6 per season at home, against teams you shouldn’t, it feels closer to a root canal than entertainment.

 

[Rebel1986]

Don’t know. When you drop 5-6 per season at home, against teams you shouldn’t, it feels closer to a root canal than entertainment.

There is no doubt that in order to bring fans back, they must win all the games at home that they should win! No more 30+ point loses to AF (even a loss by 1 to AF is too much). Losing to Southern was beyond bad! The Seton Hall lost by 23 showed the team did not come ready to play and had quit within the first five minutes of the game.

 

[unlove]

Amen to that. I have such a tough time watching the Rebs lose, especially at home. Having been here for the glory years it’s oh so hard to watch the mediocrity. I try not to put unfair expectations on the team, it’s just not right. But I’m not also not sure how much longer I can keep shelling out for season tix when nothing changes year after year. I really need to see some year to year progress and I’m struggling to see it.

 

[Boston Rebel 2]

There is no doubt that in order to bring fans back, they must win all the games at home that they should win! No more 30+ point loses to AF (even a loss by 1 to AF is too much). Losing to Southern was beyond bad! The Seton Hall lost by 23 showed the team did not come ready to play and had quit within the first five minutes of the game.

They start the season every year with one of these inexplicable losses and it results in attendance starting on a down note. No doubt they need to skip that this season.

 

[Couev]

They start the season every year with one of these inexplicable losses and it results in attendance starting on a down note. No doubt they need to skip that this season.

Or they pick the first game after a hot streak to lay an egg at home and kill all the momentum they've been building. We have a gift of losing games that make sure the stands will stay empty.

 

[RebelScrub]

IMO i think CKK=Rice(BSU) i think he has a ceiling and the ceiling is not that high. I just dont think he has the Charisma to attract the NIL money and the players that want to play for him instead of $ and playing time. Seems like we have some players in his tenure that is more about ME than team.

There is no doubt that in order to bring fans back, they must win all the games at home that they should win! No more 30+ point loses to AF (even a loss by 1 to AF is too much). Losing to Southern was beyond bad! The Seton Hall lost by 23 showed the team did not come ready to play and had quit within the first five minutes of the game.

Or they just simply ran out of gas. You could tell by the body language that the twins were all just going through the motions.

 

[Boston Rebel 2]

Or they pick the first game after a hot streak to lay an egg at home and kill all the momentum they've been building. We have a gift of losing games that make sure the stands will stay empty.

Whether it be losing to the Australian Rules Football team or losing to NAU or to Air Force or to Southern or to Labrador, Canada they definitely have the magic formula for keeping fans away nailed down.

 

[dcut03]

Reasons to be skeptical: Not as "talented" as last year. We still haven't seen much of a coherent or purposeful offense in 3 years. Having more than 1 really bad losses last year. Maybe an even tougher OOC could kill momentum.

Reason to have a little hope: A better balanced roster. DJ could be the best returning player in the league, and Whaley could make the top 10. Seemingly a competent PG back up, and a significantly improved back court overall. We have the largest roster retention year over year in the CKK era. We did compete admirably against the better teams on our schedule last season.

It could be a little worse, about the same, or better. I do think that the coaching staff has to show improvements, especially offensively in order to be substantially better. We could have a better finish in conference, but without the big wins OOC, which looks to be pretty tough. I would call that a wash, maybe a slight step backward.

Remember this is a first time HC in his 4th year without a ton of experience before that. Still potential to improve. I get the reason to be skeptical with this idea, especially offensively, since there has not been seemingly any major effort to improve this over the first 3 years. TBH, this year will likely show if that will happen. More player retention with a decent defense to build upon ( and not reteach to 13 new guys), and of course one of the best PG's in the west coast.

Personally I need to see it. If we still try to "out talent" everyone with a lot of standing around then I think we know our ceiling, which is basically last season (or perhaps last season without the bad losses). And that in itself is a conundrum, because last season without the bad losses is a tournament team. But a tournament team that likely cannot get out of the first weekend. What then?

 

[j. spilotro]

Reasons to be skeptical: Not as "talented" as last year. We still haven't seen much of a coherent or purposeful offense in 3 years. Having more than 1 really bad losses last year. Maybe an even tougher OOC could kill momentum.

Reason to have a little hope: A better balanced roster. DJ could be the best returning player in the league, and Whaley could make the top 10. Seemingly a competent PG back up, and a significantly improved back court overall. We have the largest roster retention year over year in the CKK era. We did compete admirably against the better teams on our schedule last season.

It could be a little worse, about the same, or better. I do think that the coaching staff has to show improvements, especially offensively in order to be substantially better. We could have a better finish in conference, but without the big wins OOC, which looks to be pretty tough. I would call that a wash, maybe a slight step backward.

Remember this is a first time HC in his 4th year without a ton of experience before that. Still potential to improve. I get the reason to be skeptical with this idea, especially offensively, since there has not been seemingly any major effort to improve this over the first 3 years. TBH, this year will likely show if that will happen. More player retention with a decent defense to build upon ( and not reteach to 13 new guys), and of course one of the best PG's in the west coast.

Personally I need to see it. If we still try to "out talent" everyone with a lot of standing around then I think we know our ceiling, which is basically last season (or perhaps last season without the bad losses). And that in itself is a conundrum, because last season without the bad losses is a tournament team. But a tournament team that likely cannot get out of the first weekend. What then?

If you have season tickets, I think it’s a bad time to drop them. This is a pivotal year. I don’t think a gray area will save things. Either we do well and it makes the season ticket positioning better for next year coming off a good year or we don’t do well and you have season ticket positioning for a new coach.

 

[unlove]

If you have season tickets, I think it’s a bad time to drop them. This is a pivotal year. I don’t think a gray area will save things. Either we do well and it makes the season ticket positioning better for next year coming off a good year or we don’t do well and you have season ticket positioning for a new coach.

Now that’s the most logical rationale to keep my season tickets I’ve heard yet! Thanks Joe.

 

[j. spilotro]

Now that’s the most logical rationale to keep my season tickets I’ve heard yet! Thanks Joe.

Some say logical, some say crazy.

But with the price of UNLV tickets, it makes sense to hold them at this point. Something will change. We will either start winning at an NCAAT level or we will attempt to find a coach that can do that …

 

[Couev]

Reasons to be skeptical: Not as "talented" as last year. We still haven't seen much of a coherent or purposeful offense in 3 years. Having more than 1 really bad losses last year. Maybe an even tougher OOC could kill momentum.

Reason to have a little hope: A better balanced roster. DJ could be the best returning player in the league, and Whaley could make the top 10. Seemingly a competent PG back up, and a significantly improved back court overall. We have the largest roster retention year over year in the CKK era. We did compete admirably against the better teams on our schedule last season.

It could be a little worse, about the same, or better. I do think that the coaching staff has to show improvements, especially offensively in order to be substantially better. We could have a better finish in conference, but without the big wins OOC, which looks to be pretty tough. I would call that a wash, maybe a slight step backward.

Remember this is a first time HC in his 4th year without a ton of experience before that. Still potential to improve. I get the reason to be skeptical with this idea, especially offensively, since there has not been seemingly any major effort to improve this over the first 3 years. TBH, this year will likely show if that will happen. More player retention with a decent defense to build upon ( and not reteach to 13 new guys), and of course one of the best PG's in the west coast.

Personally I need to see it. If we still try to "out talent" everyone with a lot of standing around then I think we know our ceiling, which is basically last season (or perhaps last season without the bad losses). And that in itself is a conundrum, because last season without the bad losses is a tournament team. But a tournament team that likely cannot get out of the first weekend. What then?

I see what a lot of what you see, but I think I'm 5% more pessimistic as to how things will fall. But I understand the things you're seeing and can empathize with them pretty readily.

Kruger and the staff showed improvement this year. They took more risks on defense and gameplanned pretty well---but the offense was again very simple and pedestrian and designed for pieces that they didn't really have. Game prep, and in game changes were better this year than last. He signed a pretty good recruiting class and used a lot of the portal guys to fill holes/roster shortcomings.

I also think that as an AD you will be a little more patient at this salary level while you're working hard for your endowment program--especially if this football team performs as well as I think they will and you have to plan for a raise or candidate search for Football-even just in due diligence. At least if adults are running the department these days...and Kevin works super cheap for the results he's getting.

We're a mostly cranky bunch these days.

 

[RebelScrub]

Amen to that. I have such a tough time watching the Rebs lose, especially at home. Having been here for the glory years it’s oh so hard to watch the mediocrity. I try not to put unfair expectations on the team, it’s just not right. But I’m not also not sure how much longer I can keep shelling out for season tix when nothing changes year after year. I really need to see some year to year progress and I’m struggling to see it.

Some say logical, some say crazy.

But with the price of UNLV tickets, it makes sense to hold them at this point. Something will change. We will either start winning at an NCAAT level or we will attempt to find a coach that can do that …

You should work the telephones at UNLV tickets.

“We have 2 key returning players who bring much ‘experience’ from our highly successful NIT team.

“Don’t forget, we have 4 star big high Cottrell who has a foot injury and a OU transfer who has a bum knee. Things look great!!!