Next year’s opponents

[West coast authority]

Menzies is trying to add some names to our schedule. They’ll help the overall rpi but aren’t powerhouses right now. Think Illinois last season. Overall he’s trying to build some interest so that more fans will attend (guess who’s in his ear about that). He still wants to make sure he gets his w’s.

With the roster he has so far he’s not abandoning those cupcakes just yet.

 

[BornRebelRed]

It’s really ALL about the opponent. Play good teams with a name. Win or lose, it is still MUCH better rpi wise and attendance wise. If I Were DRF , I would force Coach Menzies to cut WAY down on home cupcakes. It is only a lose lose situation when you play them. Give us fans an attractive schedule. More fans equals more hype. Wake up Coach. Just do it.

 

[j. spilotro]

Menzies is trying to add some names to our schedule. They’ll help the overall rpi but aren’t powerhouses right now. Think Illinois last season. Overall he’s trying to build some interest so that more fans will attend (guess who’s in his ear about that). He still wants to make sure he gets his w’s.

With the roster he has so far he’s not abandoning those cupcakes just yet.

Illinois; name team from a power conference but not very good. The type of team you want on the road. Not at home like last year, but for next year as a road game, will be more appropriate.

Will be interesting to see what they come up with for OOC. Last year was an incredible fail with scheduling. Can’t have a #290-310 OOC with a top 20 recruiting class, it reeks of “scared to play, let’s pile up sure wins”.

 

[MonsterJam]

Further, dropping one of those cupcake games at home 'UNLV-style' essentially destroys your chance for an at-large and kills your already slim attendance.

This program is still reeling. I thought we would be in a better position in year 3 with Menzies.

The administration should reconsider the ticket arrangement for fans. Close off the balcony section and send all of the balcony ticket holders downstairs. Move the existing lower level ticket holders closer to the floor and fill in the gaps. This will result in a better experience for the fans, the students the players. When the demand drives high enough again (if ever), open it back up.

 

[West coast authority]

Illinois; name team from a power conference but not very good. The type of team you want on the road. Not at home like last year, but for next year as a road game, will be more appropriate.

Will be interesting to see what they come up with for OOC. Last year was an incredible fail with scheduling. Can’t have a #290-310 OOC with a top 20 recruiting class, it reeks of “scared to play, let’s pile up sure wins”.

His preference is to have those 200+ cupcakes but he’s getting a lot of pushback right now. They would have been ok when he was here before because UNLV was still the hottest ticket.

 

[j. spilotro]

Further, dropping one of those cupcake games at home 'UNLV-style' essentially destroys your chance for an at-large and kills your already slim attendance.

This program is still reeling. I thought we would be in a better position in year 3 with Menzies.

The administration should reconsider the ticket arrangement for fans. Close off the balcony section and send all of the balcony ticket holders downstairs. Move the existing lower level ticket holders closer to the floor and fill in the gaps. This will result in a better experience for the fans, the students the players. When the demand drives high enough again (if ever), open it back up.

That comes with issues. You can’t expect Dr Moneybags at halfcourt 10th row up to pay his standard price if you are going to move down Mr Blue Collar from the balcony and put him 3 rows behind Dr Moneybags for his balcony price. And you can’t really expect UNLV to slash lower bowl tickets in half, either.

I get what you are saying in theory though.

We should be in better position heading into year three, I agree. I think last year’s schedule (OOC) was a huge miscalculation that backfired (pile up wins against very bad teams). We raised the white flag for a 2018 at large in June of 2017. Bad precedence. If your goal isn’t the NCAAT, then the motivations for head coaching here are wrong. It means you don’t understand the fan base and expectations (I agree we’ve ALWAYS overinflated our expectations and IT HAS been a problem... but it’s not going to change so you have to deal with it instead of trying to change the very strong and long held belief of the fans). This isn’t San Jose or Utah State... patience isn’t something most fans will grant.

Whether it’s realistic or not, you have to give yourself a chance at an NCAA at large bid. I’d rather fail trying to make it than fail because there wasn’t a chance to begin with. Even in the first year of MM, we knew there’d be zero chance at an NCAAT, but the OOC schedule gave them the opportunity (which was too lofty and led to national embarrassment, but that schedule was intended for a talent laden, experienced team, not a patchwork team).

I just don’t think you can “play it safe” at UNLV. You have to aim high or the heat turns on.

 

[MonsterJam]

Good point on the complications you point out. The irony of it all: in the 80's, the Thomas & Mack wasn't big enough. 30 years later the Thomas & Mack is too big of a venue.

...and that's with a population that has more than tripled.

 

[RebelScrub]

Just move into Cox arena already

 

[j. spilotro]

Good point on the complications you point out. The irony of it all: in the 80's, the Thomas & Mack wasn't big enough. 30 years later the Thomas & Mack is too big of a venue.

...and that's with a population that has more than tripled.

If there’s ever a book on how to destroy a dynasty from within, it will be authored by UNLV with the forward from Maxson. And there will be a couple dozen contributors spanning a couple decades.