How is HC Bob Richey?

[FUBeAR]

Dang. You turn your head for 30 seconds and bam….

Gut punch. Didn’t need this to start the weekend.

So, I guess this is what college basketball has become...a lousy sport with no loyalty...as soon as you lose youre out the door...no fun being a fan anymore

I am just about fed up with college sports. You are right. It is not fun right now, and it is only going to get worse.

We could still be good, but we chose to build a more comfortable place to watch a mediocre team rather than putting the money into NIL. It isn’t complicated. But we bought into this idea that somehow our guys were different. Saban said on the news this week that on visits recruits no longer even care about facilities. They care about the bottom line. That’s the way it is. You can adjust or lose. We’re richer than the rest of our conference. This new world should benefit us.

I don’t want this new world. I don't think I can get excited about cheering for a group of players, loyal only to the dollar, who I have bought. It’s like being part owner or shareholder in a professional team… it doesn’t interest me, no matter how many wins it brings.

Same, Bootie.

Although FUBeAR is aware this is a fantasy, he deludes himself that an “NIL Collective” - which is nothing more than a sham euphemism for a “Boosters Pay Players” organization, no matter how much they try to claim otherwise - associated with Furman Athletics would not pay $1 to induce a single student athlete to come to and/or remain at Furman. This was not the intent of NIL lawsuits won and/or the subsequent rule changes. It has nothing to do with student athletes being compensated for them developing and marketing their “individual brand.” (BTW - for the “exploiting” crowd - FUBeAR is A-OK with student athletes deriving unlimited compensation for the (real) work they do to develop and market their own “individual brands” during their time as student athletes at Furman.) FUBeAR is certain that no NIL Collective will ever pay $1 of FUBeAR’s money to pay student athletes to come to and/or to remain at Furman.

FUBeAR would prefer Furman Football and Basketball go winless than to see Furman Athletics become a sports organization of Professional Players. If we’re already there, FUBeAR will need to reassess his Furman ‘fanhood.’

If we have to ‘reimagine’ Furman Athletics to avoid ‘going there’ (going Pro or going winless), FUBeAR prefers that direction, so that he can continue supporting and enjoying Furman Athletics.

[Davemeister]

Does reimagining Furman Athletics mean DII?

[FurmanFan23]

No! Last season we beat an ACC team. No need to move to D2! That is overkill beyond proportions

[FurmanFan23]

Everyone else in the SOCON is going to have to adjust. We are not the only ones.

[youwouldno]

D-II has no peer institutions, it's pretty much D-III as the only alternative.

But given Furman has recently collected millions in donations to build up the D-I programs, it would be a couple decades before something like that realistically could happen.

An academic oriented D-I conference (in the southeast) would be interesting, but I doubt there's any interest among the institutions themselves. Davidson for instance will be chasing basketball glory until the bitter end.

[Monday]

Everyone in the SoCon has already adjusted. We have been mocking our conference foes for years about player retention while largely being insulated from it. If it wasn't for MB and JS staying last year this drop off and roster churn would have happened in 22-23.

My prediction is that athletic depts will adjust and the portal will cool down when players start to see that there isn't always a better place for them. Then again, they are teenagers making decisions for themselves.

None of us know the reasons or perceived opportunities our transferred players saw but finishing their careers like Noah Gurley (bench player for an elite program) is their best, most likely future. If that's what they want, then great.

[furpop16]

Everyone in the SoCon has already adjusted. We have been mocking our conference foes for years about player retention while largely being insulated from it. If it wasn't for MB and JS staying last year this drop off and roster churn would have happened in 22-23.

So the question is - what was the "secret sauce" that kept MB & JS committed to CBR's program?

My $.02: ever since CBR noted the team "didn't look like they were having fun out there" - which IIRC was quite early in the season - I worried there was a pervasive attitude problem. Perhaps this house-cleaning is just what we need to get the mojo back.

[FurmanFan23]

The bad news is that most of our opponents have already had their arena renovation while ours is just getting started. THis allows them to focus on NIL collectives for their repsoected programs.

[Paul C]

Per the Chattanooga beat writer FU has the best NIL program in the SoCon....

[Furmanoid]

No! Last season we beat an ACC team. No need to move to D2! That is overkill beyond proportions

We did lose to a mediocre DII this year didn’t we?

[Furmanoid]

Dang. You turn your head for 30 seconds and bam….

Gut punch. Didn’t need this to start the weekend.

So, I guess this is what college basketball has become...a lousy sport with no loyalty...as soon as you lose youre out the door...no fun being a fan anymore

I am just about fed up with college sports. You are right. It is not fun right now, and it is only going to get worse.

We could still be good, but we chose to build a more comfortable place to watch a mediocre team rather than putting the money into NIL. It isn’t complicated. But we bought into this idea that somehow our guys were different. Saban said on the news this week that on visits recruits no longer even care about facilities. They care about the bottom line. That’s the way it is. You can adjust or lose. We’re richer than the rest of our conference. This new world should benefit us.

I don’t want this new world. I don't think I can get excited about cheering for a group of players, loyal only to the dollar, who I have bought. It’s like being part owner or shareholder in a professional team… it doesn’t interest me, no matter how many wins it brings.

Same, Bootie.

Although FUBeAR is aware this is a fantasy, he deludes himself that an “NIL Collective” - which is nothing more than a sham euphemism for a “Boosters Pay Players” organization, no matter how much they try to claim otherwise - associated with Furman Athletics would not pay $1 to induce a single student athlete to come to and/or remain at Furman. This was not the intent of NIL lawsuits won and/or the subsequent rule changes. It has nothing to do with student athletes being compensated for them developing and marketing their “individual brand.” (BTW - for the “exploiting” crowd - FUBeAR is A-OK with student athletes deriving unlimited compensation for the (real) work they do to develop and market their own “individual brands” during their time as student athletes at Furman.) FUBeAR is certain that no NIL Collective will ever pay $1 of FUBeAR’s money to pay student athletes to come to and/or to remain at Furman.

FUBeAR would prefer Furman Football and Basketball go winless than to see Furman Athletics become a sports organization of Professional Players. If we’re already there, FUBeAR will need to reassess his Furman ‘fanhood.’

If we have to ‘reimagine’ Furman Athletics to avoid ‘going there’ (going Pro or going winless), FUBeAR prefers that direction, so that he can continue supporting and enjoying Furman Athletics.

We could reimagine and doing NIL.
We could reimagine and go DIII.
Or we can stay the course.

I’m not sure this stuff is going to impact FB much. Just kinda messes up the basketball prospects. Real college sports is DIII. The rest is whatever level of bogusness you’re willing to accept.

[Roundball]

Everyone in the SoCon has already adjusted. We have been mocking our conference foes for years about player retention while largely being insulated from it. If it wasn't for MB and JS staying last year this drop off and roster churn would have happened in 22-23.

My prediction is that athletic depts will adjust and the portal will cool down when players start to see that there isn't always a better place for them. Then again, they are teenagers making decisions for themselves.

None of us know the reasons or perceived opportunities our transferred players saw but finishing their careers like Noah Gurley (bench player for an elite program) is their best, most likely future. If that's what they want, then great.

I just want to say this once again in reference to Noah Curley. Noah graduated from Furman. Furman did not have the graduate degree that he wanted so he had no choice but to move on. Noah was beloved by his teammates and fans at Alabama. Noah is a very smart young man. He is getting his graduate degree of choice, one that will propel him to a successful life. Noah made absolutely the right decision for now and for his future.

[Paul C]

To Roundballs comment, if a player gets his or her degree from FU and still has eligibility I have no issue with them moving on.

I’m thinking that the days of redshirting might be coming to an end.

[paladinfan12]

To Roundballs comment, if a player gets his or her degree from FU and still has eligibility I have no issue with them moving on.

I’m thinking that the days of redshirting might be coming to an end.

I concur, Foster and Whitt should have degrees. I appreciate what they contributed and wish them the best.

I'm unsure on the degree status of Pegues and Williams. I hope that they have a path to graduation either at Furman or elsewhere.

[cavedweller2]

I’m fairly sure that a number of the kids we recruit already have extensive college credit by the time they get to college. Couple that with a redshirt year and attending class year round and they can easily complete degree requirements in 3 years. What do they do then if the University doesn’t have a grad program they want to pursue? Move on with 2 years eligibility left.