'18 MA SG - A.J. Reeves (PC)

[UCH21377]

We can't be knocking Cooley. He's looking good again for next year. Yes he has another step to take with the program but so do we

[ramster]

Wow Cooley continues to kill it... Well PC has an amazing future...

Cooley has done well with his recruiting. He however needs to start winning NCAA games. While he has four appearances, he has as many wins as Dan Hurley in his sole trip. An NCAA record of 1-4 with the seeding and recruits Cooley has had should not be considered good.

The one NCAA game that he won was a gift from Southern Cal.

[ramster]

Wow Cooley continues to kill it... Well PC has an amazing future...

Cooley has done well with his recruiting. He however needs to start winning NCAA games. While he has four appearances, he has as many wins as Dan Hurley in his sole trip. An NCAA record of 1-4 with the seeding and recruits Cooley has had should not be considered good.

Cooley has probably underperformed by a game in the NCAA Tournament. They are 1-4, but have been favorites in 1 (a game they lost), and underdogs in 4. I think they should have 2 tournament wins, but I don't think it's an egregious underperformance.

Over the next few seasons, he's created a significant talent upgrade up and down the roster if he can keep them healthy and in the depth chart. His 2017 and start of 2018 recruiting class have been absolutely stellar. If he can also bring in Duke/Locke, that'll be part of a huge influx in underclassman talent.

Even though he's had some tremendous talents (Cotton, Dunn, Bentil, Henton), they've never really been surrounded by an extremely talented core. It's basically been those guys with a bunch of B- at best players.

I will agree that it is not an egregious underperformance but it is an underperformance And not an overperformance in NCAA win loss performance. So while Cooley has many fans on the URI Board, that is obvious from posts last season and in prior seasons. For a guy who makes double the salary of DH, signed a contract that the head of PC called a contract for life during the last signing, has a very nice Practice Facility in progress (something the majority on this board do not want or do not think should be a top priority or priority at all), plays in top 2nd ranked conference, gets $4 million a year from FS1 contract, seats 13,000 plus in the city of Providence owned arena, pays assistant coaches significantly more money that URI coaches receive, etc then Cooley and PC should perform well in the NCAA and should out-recruit URI. I know of few reasons why they shouldn't. I don't like it but the advantages PC has over URI in salaries, overall budget, league affiliation, arena size......people can pissed off when we are outrecruited but fact is we are more competitive to PC in recruiting than we have. Even since the Jim Harrick days. We are recruiting 3 star pkaters and now knocking on the door of 3 star players - far far different than during the long, long Baron era. Shows the impact a good Head Coach can have versus a below average head coach. We are steadily closing gap though.

[rjsuperfly66]

You can only consistently land big recruits and recruit at a high level if you are not afraid of failure.
If you only want to go after value or under-the-radar guys, they're going to be easier to get but then you're only gonna have those types of guys on your team.
I think Cooley recognizes this and therefore has dealt with all the big misses in the past, but realizes the importance of these types of guys which is why he never ran from it and kept going all-in on select players.
Last 2 years have illustrated it perfectly and is why Cooley has landed big recruit after big recruit.

[ghostofsly]

Wow....Really...cracking on Cooley because he is 1-4 in the tournament. ( lost twice to North Carolina , lost to Dayton on their home court and split with SoCal ) We have gone to the tournament once in 20 years and lost what ...7 in row to those guys.....they have gone to the tournament 4 years in a row ...number of guys drafted ..top 20 recruiting class and another on the way. Realty check ....HELLO...is anybody home..... We have major catching up to do here...........

[rambone 78]

Cooley's recruiting budget is probably double ours. That's why he can go after the higher profile players....Dan has to be more selective.

[TruePoint]

Recruiting budget is a real thing, I'm not denying that. But you bring it up all the time like its salary that he has to pay recruits. First, he's obviously a great recruiter. No one is taking that away from him. But second, his program's budget is twice ours, so he has more to sell. That's the big difference. If our recruiting budgets were exactly the same but he had 2x the amenities and perks to sell to recruits, you'd still expect to see him have more success.

[Seawrightspostgame]

Budget Budget Budget.

Budget.









Budget.

[reef]

It's all going to come down to big dance appearances and wins once u get there

[ace]

Wow....Really...cracking on Cooley because he is 1-4 in the tournament. ( lost twice to North Carolina , lost to Dayton on their home court and split with SoCal ) We have gone to the tournament once in 20 years and lost what ...7 in row to those guys.....they have gone to the tournament 4 years in a row ...number of guys drafted ..top 20 recruiting class and another on the way. Realty check ....HELLO...is anybody home..... We have major catching up to do here...........

Oh, hi. And yes, when more than half the teams in your conference make the tournament, it does become about winning some games there and not just making it... which has nothing to do with what the geographically close A10 team does.

[ace]

Wow Cooley continues to kill it... Well PC has an amazing future...

Cooley has done well with his recruiting. He however needs to start winning NCAA games. While he has four appearances, he has as many wins as Dan Hurley in his sole trip. An NCAA record of 1-4 with the seeding and recruits Cooley has had should not be considered good.

I'll take Cooley's resume over Hurley's everyday of the week and twice on Sunday.

And I'm sure Hurley would take the all-conference players Cooley inherited from the previous coach instead of the TJ he did, along with a BE team's resources and hype, but it's a cold, unjust world, so what are you going to do? And while PC and URI fans go back and forth, there's a big basketball world out there that doesn't care much about either. Cold.

[ace]

Budget Budget Budget. Budget. Budget.

Acting like it doesn't matter doesn't change the fact that it does. Once a program reaches a certain level, they're good. I don't think anyone really needs a locker with a 43" monitor instead of a nameplate, although Texas seems to. But, there's levels below that that make a measureable and real difference. What quality program has to negotiate for a training table? Bussing twenty hours in a six day span because no charters? It matters. A budget that would include funds to keep a guy like Murphy and also add and retain Cox? That makes the program better. Of course it's tedious to hear about it, but that doesn't make it any less true. And URI is in an ok place. All those teams below them? So little margin for error.

[RF1]

Wow....Really...cracking on Cooley because he is 1-4 in the tournament. ( lost twice to North Carolina , lost to Dayton on their home court

You must have taken the PC course on revisionist history taught by instructor Kevin McNamara. The Friars did not lose to Dayton on its home court. They lost to the Flyers at Nationwide Arena (home of Columbus Bluejackets NHL team) in downtown Columbus, OH. The venue is some 70 miles from UD Arena and to my knowledge none of the Flyer players had ever played a college game there previously. Dayton had to first beat Boise St 56-55 in the play-in game which was played on its home court before advancing for the chance to even face PC. Many thought it was an injustice to the Flyers to have been seeded so low for the play in game given their record on Selection Sunday of 25-8, good RPI rating, and 2nd place finish in both the A-10 regular season and tournament. The only team that was screwed by having to play Dayton on its home court in 2015 was Boise St.

[rjsuperfly66]

Ace, where I disagree with you is talking about the Big East resources and hype. When the BE7 decided to split off in 2013, it was largely seen as a comical decision. There's roughly a 28 page thread on this site alone, with tons of hysterical remarks in hindsight.

Why would anyone join those teams?
The Big East name will die over time.
Anyone to join them is shortsighted.
Those programs will never be able to fill up their big off-campus arenas.
Where will the tournament bids come from?
Could Xavier prove superior to Villanova?

The list goes on and on...What the Big East has done to make a name for themselves is impressive. The reason it's "The P5+BE" is because the Big East earned it. It's because they have put 55% of their programs into the tournament. It's because they've won games home, road, and neutral OOC, to set themselves up to be able to beat the crap out of each other in conference. They haven't been handed all of this good will and hype. It's been earned and well-deserved. So maybe PC hasn't performed as highly as they should have in the tournament, but they have earned every single birth the last four years.

[ace]

Yo, you deleted, reposted, and I still don't care. You always show your hand, although the taking out 7 in a row was noted. It's weird that I'm here. It's even weirder that you are. Carry on.

[ace]

You deleted again?! I'm not wrong, I definitely don't care much about what you have to say. I'm very right about that, and it started when you defended a rapist and took as truth sources that had a reason to be biased. I've also liked the BE since I was a kid, FFS, so whatever little conversation you think you're engaging in here, you're not.

[ramster]

Wow....Really...cracking on Cooley because he is 1-4 in the tournament. ( lost twice to North Carolina , lost to Dayton on their home court and split with SoCal ) We have gone to the tournament once in 20 years and lost what ...7 in row to those guys.....they have gone to the tournament 4 years in a row ...number of guys drafted ..top 20 recruiting class and another on the way. Realty check ....HELLO...is anybody home..... We have major catching up to do here...........

Again,
Cooley makes double the salary
Recruiting budget way above URIs
13,000 seat arena
2nd ranked conference in Big East
$4 million a year from Fox Sports 1
New Practice facility being built

PC should be outrecruiting URI

Major catching up to do? Of course. Just as the items I listed. Realistically URI is not going to catch up to PC, but the gap has significantly narrowed in the past six years. That's the key.

[Seawrightspostgame]

Maybe I should cancel my URI season tickets and get some PC tickets. They got it all figured out.

[theblueram]

This from ESPN's Most Challenging College Basketball Job in each State:


Rhode Island: Rhode Island Rams
The Rhode Island-Providence rivalry is one of the best -- and most underrated -- in college basketball. Both Danny Hurley and Ed Cooley have coached top-25 teams in recent seasons. But Rhode Island's struggles against its biggest rival persist. The Rams are 56-74 against Providence overall, and they've lost the past seven matchups. In a state that small, those marks matter.

[ramster]

Maybe I should cancel my URI season tickets and get some PC tickets. They got it all figured out.

Nope, that's not my point. My Point is to keep things in perspective.
Hurley and Cooley are not playing on equal battlefields, not equal resources.
Cooley gets high rave son this board, rightly or wrongly but he does in general.
Look at what Dan Hurley inherited here with the two best players on the team leaving, academic performance,
Hurley has done more with less and moved the program steadily forward.

And they don't have the most important thing figured out as their 1-4 NCAA record would attest with the USC win being a gift.

Hurley 1, Cooley 1
Keep your tickets. Hurley just might take the lead this year.

[RhowdyRam02]

Ace, where I disagree with you is talking about the Big East resources and hype. When the BE7 decided to split off in 2013, it was largely seen as a comical decision. There's roughly a 28 page thread on this site alone, with tons of hysterical remarks in hindsight.

Why would anyone join those teams?
The Big East name will die over time.
Anyone to join them is shortsighted.
Those programs will never be able to fill up their big off-campus arenas.
Where will the tournament bids come from?
Could Xavier prove superior to Villanova?

The list goes on and on...What the Big East has done to make a name for themselves is impressive. The reason it's "The P5+BE" is because the Big East earned it. It's because they have put 55% of their programs into the tournament. It's because they've won games home, road, and neutral OOC, to set themselves up to be able to beat the crap out of each other in conference. They haven't been handed all of this good will and hype. It's been earned and well-deserved. So maybe PC hasn't performed as highly as they should have in the tournament, but they have earned every single birth the last four years.

Respectfully disagree on the Big East earned it. Those schools were handed giant TV checks by Fox because they needed any content at the height of the TV rights boom, before anyone knew how the Big East would respond in the new college sports atmosphere, which allowed them to invest at a Power 5 level. The Big East earned it the same way a trust fund kid earns their money, they fell into it.

[rjsuperfly66]

Respectfully disagree on the Big East earned it. Those schools were handed giant TV checks by Fox because they needed any content at the height of the TV rights boom, before anyone knew how the Big East would respond in the new college sports atmosphere, which allowed them to invest at a Power 5 level. The Big East earned it the same way a trust fund kid earns their money, they fell into it.

I guess my counter-argument to that is how fast were these programs able to put money into play?

PC did not announce their practice facility until after they made the NCAA Tournament 3 straight times. Cotton, Kris Dunn, and LaDontae Henton came to PC well before that money was in play. Was making the tournament solely a product of their increased TV contract, or because they had finally landed a coach who could coach?

Same with Villanova, most of the core of their National Championship roster was recruited before the split, back in 2012 and the beginning of 2013. So did those kids finally figure out how to play and Jay Wright how to coach because of the Fox money?

If you wanted to argue now that it was easier for BE teams to recruit because of money they've been able to invest back into the program, I'd completely agree with you. But in terms of becoming "The P5+BE," I think that was built mostly independent of the money, at least in the fact that most of these players winning games in the BE were brought on before the money was a factor.

[RF1]

PC along with every other new Big East member gets more than TEN TIMES the money (4M) from TV rights that URI gets via the A-10.

[ramster]

Chicken meet egg.

[RhowdyRam02]

Respectfully disagree on the Big East earned it. Those schools were handed giant TV checks by Fox because they needed any content at the height of the TV rights boom, before anyone knew how the Big East would respond in the new college sports atmosphere, which allowed them to invest at a Power 5 level. The Big East earned it the same way a trust fund kid earns their money, they fell into it.

I guess my counter-argument to that is how fast were these programs able to put money into play?

PC did not announce their practice facility until after they made the NCAA Tournament 3 straight times. Cotton, Kris Dunn, and LaDontae Henton came to PC well before that money was in play. Was making the tournament solely a product of their increased TV contract, or because they had finally landed a coach who could coach?

Same with Villanova, most of the core of their National Championship roster was recruited before the split, back in 2012 and the beginning of 2013. So did those kids finally figure out how to play and Jay Wright how to coach because of the Fox money?

If you wanted to argue now that it was easier for BE teams to recruit because of money they've been able to invest back into the program, I'd completely agree with you. But in terms of becoming "The P5+BE," I think that was built mostly independent of the money, at least in the fact that most of these players winning games in the BE were brought on before the money was a factor.

I think Villanova and especially PC were able to be in the right place at the right time. PC got a very good to great coach in and had their program on the upswing right as the conference shrank and they were able to compete at a better level within the conference. And now they have a ton of TV money and national publicity kicking in all at the same time. Is PC's run the last few years the same if UConn et al are still in the conference? Interesting question we'll never know the answer to.

[ramster]

He is the view for next season for PC since there is so much interest in their program here

[Seawrightspostgame]

Is PC's run the last few years the same if UConn et al are still in the conference? Interesting question we'll never know the answer to.

Come on that is an easy one. Absolutely not.

It shows in the tournament. Nova had their magical run. But that is exactly what it was, magic. Nobody in the know will confuse their success with the year-in and year-out success of the Duke/UNC/UK/KUs of the world.

UNC rolls out the ball for a team that is maybe 30th best in the history of the Tar Heels and they have a legit shot at a national title. Nova needs arguably its best team. Same goes for the rest of the Big East. Then on top of that they will need the tournament matchups to shake out in their favor.

[ghostofsly]

Again,
Cooley makes double the salary
Recruiting budget way above URIs
13,000 seat arena
2nd ranked conference in Big East
$4 million a year from Fox Sports 1
New Practice facility being built

PC should be outrecruiting URI

Major catching up to do? Of course. Just as the items I listed. Realistically URI is not going to catch up to PC, but the gap has significantly narrowed in the past six years. That's the key.


Narrowed ????....lost 7 years in a row.

Why don't we

Get More Resources ...dump Football
Increase Funding Raising..
Have a vision..Have a Long term PLAN....
Plan to build a Practice Facility
We have a better area...Hello
Advertise ....sick of seeing Friar Town everywhere
More Funding....

[Seawrightspostgame]

I would welcome a publicly stated vision with bench marks and a big fund raising drive.

Not rolled out in a meeting, but in a mailing/emailing/calling initiative.

My Grad school called me for a donation the night of the day I graduated. I don't think I have ever been asked for money from URI.

[Iggy1979]

The factor being left out of this discussion is player evaluation. Teams can close the gap by being better at it. Look at last year's class: Langevine and Dowtin were 3 star recruits with grades in the 70s. URI didn't have to beat out the big guys to get them but they accurately evaluated them. They were in on Fatts early, too.

[ramster]

Again,
Cooley makes double the salary
Recruiting budget way above URIs
13,000 seat arena
2nd ranked conference in Big East
$4 million a year from Fox Sports 1
New Practice facility being built

PC should be outrecruiting URI

Major catching up to do? Of course. Just as the items I listed. Realistically URI is not going to catch up to PC, but the gap has significantly narrowed in the past six years. That's the key.


Narrowed ????....lost 7 years in a row.

Why don't we

Get More Resources ...dump Football
Increase Funding Raising..
Have a vision..Have a Long term PLAN....
Plan to build a Practice Facility
We have a better area...Hello
Advertise ....sick of seeing Friar Town everywhere
More Funding....

I
You don't think the gap between PC and URI has narrowed in the past 5 years?
Most here did not seem to want a practice facility
I very much want the practice facility similar to VCU, PC, UMASS,,,,,

[ghostofsly]

The factor being left out of this discussion is player evaluation. Teams can close the gap by being better at it. Look at last year's class: Langevine and Dowtin were 3 star recruits with grades in the 70s. URI didn't have to beat out the big guys to get them but they accurately evaluated them. They were in on Fatts early, too.
0 x

Thats all good and fine ......but there are only so many diamonds in the rough you will find....you leave yourself no margin for error...

You have to able to get some blue chippers ....What bothers me is the 3 local blue chips guys ..we did not even get a sniff. While our friends on Smith Hill were all over them...and probably will grab 2. You have to be able to recruit in your own back yard.

[ghostofsly]

What is your definition of Narrowed ??

One NCAA bid on 20 years ??
Shot at one next year...but not a certainty.
You can stick your head on the sand ....and say no practice facility is needed ....but all our competitors have one..
My point is ...we have a window opportunity with this coach to stay at the top of conference and get an NCAA bid every year.
However structure needs to be put in place ...pay your coaches...fly charter...practice facility ...more recruiting budget..etc
With out it ...it will always be one step forward two step back....Again you can stick your head in the sand...

[Iggy1979]

Everything you say that is needed is happening except the practice facility. They pay the assistants more, they fly charter more, the recruiting budget has been increased. The size of the staff has been increased. They pay the head coach more. Don't make it sound like no upgrades have been made when the opposite is true.

[Rhody74]

Talk of "narrowing the gap" has to consider that because of Cooley's efforts, PC is a moving target. The gap remains because Cooley has done a bangup job of attracting major talent. If PC was still at the pre-Cooley level, URI would've surpassed it by now.

[Ram1019]

Wow....Really...cracking on Cooley because he is 1-4 in the tournament. ( lost twice to North Carolina , lost to Dayton on their home court

You must have taken the PC course on revisionist history taught by instructor Kevin McNamara. The Friars did not lose to Dayton on its home court. They lost to the Flyers at Nationwide Arena (home of Columbus Bluejackets NHL team) in downtown Columbus, OH. The venue is some 70 miles from UD Arena and to my knowledge none of the Flyer players had ever played a college game there previously. Dayton had to first beat Boise St 56-55 in the play-in game which was played on its home court before advancing for the chance to even face PC. Many thought it was an injustice to the Flyers to have been seeded so low for the play in game given their record on Selection Sunday of 25-8, good RPI rating, and 2nd place finish in both the A-10 regular season and tournament. The only team that was screwed by having to play Dayton on its home court in 2015 was Boise St.

And Dayton beat PC with a very short roster that year. PC had a full week of rest after getting knocked out by Villanova in the BE Tournament. Dayton had just come off the championship game vs VCU and then the Boise State play-in game before facing PC and then still beat them.

[ramster]

What is your definition of Narrowed ??

One NCAA bid on 20 years ??
Shot at one next year...but not a certainty.
You can stick your head on the sand ....and say no practice facility is needed ....but all our competitors have one..
My point is ...we have a window opportunity with this coach to stay at the top of conference and get an NCAA bid every year.
However structure needs to be put in place ...pay your coaches...fly charter...practice facility ...more recruiting budget..etc
With out it ...it will always be one step forward two step back....Again you can stick your head in the sand...

How is it that I am one of the few here who wants the practice facility and that's Head in the sand?
I'm not talking about the degregorio and Baron years, only last 5 with Hurley.
As for dropping football to aid basketball that has many many threads devoted to it. You can catch up in the URI Other Sports section - no shortage of opinions or articles on that. Thor has publicly said he is not dropping football so you will need a new AD to get that.
We are picked to finish first in A10, picked in some preseason polls so it's not as gloom and doom as you might think. But I'm all in for practice facility100% but problem could be the HC did not see it as a high priority this spring. I'll go with his priorities at this point.

[NorthernRamFan]

Practice facility isn't top priority, video room is, Hurley told this to me straight to my face, total cost would be under 100k. He's very understanding that our school is strapped hence why he's been patient. The problem is there's no $$$

[Seawrightspostgame]

What ever came of the broken tubs?
Do we have working tubs now?
I hear PC has tubs. We gotta get our tubs working.

[KevanBoyles]

They could find the money if they wanted to

[rodfromcranston]

Honest assessment of this "gap".
PC had TV money and the big recruiting budget under Keno Davis
and Tim Welsh.
CFL was undefeated at The Ryan for years, and beat PC at the Dunk.
It was only in his final two seasons that he fell to .500.
Where was this "gap" then, with a mediocre coach at the helm in
both programs?
The gap is caused by Cooley's four straight NCAAs,
a top 15 recruiting class, likely followed this cycle by another.
Yes, they are 1-4 and we are 1-1 in the NCAAs.
Still some here pound their chests as if one month of great
ball makes us a top flight program.
Only consistent winning does that.
This year will tell us if this will happen.
Not only on the court, but in a vital recruiting cycle.
Until then, it all remains to be seen.
I HATE the 0-7 vs. PC. I don't recall ever losing to them
seven years in a row. It needs to end.

[ghostofsly]

Forget it..... Not getting what I am saying ......Video Room ?.. Think Big ,Think Long Term ...A long term capital funding plan and vision needs to be put in place for sustained excellence. If you want to put on band aids ( throw a little bit of cash for coaches pay , charters etc ) then fine. Don't whine when the coach leaves for a gig with more resources and pay as Cooley keeps kicking our heads in ( 7 in a row and counting ) until he leaves for a huge dollar pro or college job......

Same old small minded chicken little inferiority complex thinking.....

I don 't want to be good for just next year but for 20 years....

[rambone 78]

Listen to Rod people. He knows his shit.

A 9 game winning streak doesn't define a program. Consistent success does. That's what Cooley, even with his lack of NCAAT success, is doing.

We have to start bringing in higher level talent. We haven't done that yet. Yes we're involved with higher level recruits, but we have to land some.

[Rhody15]

What ever came of the broken tubs?
Do we have working tubs now?
I hear PC has tubs. We gotta get our tubs working.

I remember when I first heard this story before the season, all I could do was laugh and say "typcial University of Rhode Island bs."

[reef]

DH gets the other monkey off his back next year As URI beats PC at RC

[ramster]

Forget it..... Not getting what I am saying ......Video Room ?.. Think Big ,Think Long Term ...A long term capital funding plan and vision needs to be put in place for sustained excellence. If you want to put on band aids ( throw a little bit of cash for coaches pay , charters etc ) then fine. Don't whine when the coach leaves for a gig with more resources and pay as Cooley keeps kicking our heads in ( 7 in a row and counting ) until he leaves for a huge dollar pro or college job......

Same old small minded chicken little inferiority complex thinking.....

I don 't want to be good for just next year but for 20 years....

Get More Resources ...dump Footballs. Thor has said he will not drop football. Has been debated countless times in the Football Section. Has been said Football costs URI $500,000 per year to support. Thor has said it football were to be dropped that the $500,000 would NOT go to Basketball.
Increase Funding Raising.. for sure agree. Question is how. Any specific ideas?
Have a vision..Have a Long term PLAN....I assume URI has a long term plan. Would be a good question to ask.
Plan to build a Practice Facility - completely agree 100% but most on this board will not. Articles have indicated this is not a priority for URI due to costs and funding
We have a better area...Hello Agree with it being a fantastic arena. I love it. But PC holds 13,000 and RC holds 7,500
Advertise ....sick of seeing Friar Town everywhere For sure PC has $4million per year from Fox Sports 1 to invest. Thor, Dooley and Hurley do not have the money that PC has, not even close
More Funding....Agree. That is the challenge. That is what is keeping the Practice Center from being built

[rambone 78]

If a video room is a mostly one time cost of less than 100K, can't see why they don't do it.....they are getting 2.4 million over 6 years for the NCAAT.....that money is a bonus.

[Rhodymob05]

Yea the marketing in other parts of the state not named south county is pretty poor. URI "territory" is from Burriville to Tiverton and Pawtucket to Westerly, the entire state.

[ramster]

Listen to Rod people. He knows his shit.

A 9 game winning streak doesn't define a program. Consistent success does. That's what Cooley, even with his lack of NCAAT success, is doing.

We have to start bringing in higher level talent. We haven't done that yet. Yes we're involved with higher level recruits, but we have to land some.

URI never had a choice between Cooley and Hurley. It's not like the 2 were available and we picked the wrong guy. Cooley wanted PC and PC wanted Cooley.

If you switched Hurley to PC and Cooley to URI do you think the programs would switch?

I don't think the gap is only because of Coaches.
Arena - 13,000 vs 7,500
FS1 - $4 million per year to PC for 12 years - a lot of cash
BE Conference Ranked #2, A10 Ranked #8
Coach Salary $2 million vs $1 million
New Practice Facility being Built vs no plans for Practice Facility

Playing fields are not equal is all I am saying. They are not equal for recruiting or for advertising or for building practice facilities

Hopefully they will be some day.

Not in any way saying I am satisfied with the URI Program where it is now. But I do know enough about what I have seen over the past 5 years to know I am pleased with the progress that has been made to date. Pleased with the quality of individuals recruited as people, students and players. Pleased that we won our 1st A10 Championship this Century and 2nd in History of the school, pleased with 1st NCAA Tournament and NCAA Victory this Century.
It's a good start. I know enough from what I have seen to approve of the direction of the program and that we have the right Coaching Staff. Do I want to see more this year? of course, and the year after and the year after.

But I also think that if Hurley leaves I will be disappointed. That is why I think keeping up with PC, UMASS, UCONN, VCU, Dayton is critically important in regards to Practice Facilities and the like. It would not be that surprising to me to see URI fall back to the middle of the pack in the A10 if Hurley departs. We have not been to the point of having a Bench full of 3 star and 4 star players since Harrick. Now recruiting 3 star and 4 star players with regularity. Baron never did that.

[RhowdyRam02]

Forget it..... Not getting what I am saying ......Video Room ?.. Think Big ,Think Long Term ...A long term capital funding plan and vision needs to be put in place for sustained excellence. If you want to put on band aids ( throw a little bit of cash for coaches pay , charters etc ) then fine. Don't whine when the coach leaves for a gig with more resources and pay as Cooley keeps kicking our heads in ( 7 in a row and counting ) until he leaves for a huge dollar pro or college job......

Same old small minded chicken little inferiority complex thinking.....

I don 't want to be good for just next year but for 20 years....

Get More Resources ...dump Footballs. Thor has said he will not drop football. Has been debated countless times in the Football Section. Has been said Football costs URI $500,000 per year to support. Thor has said it football were to be dropped that the $500,000 would NOT go to Basketball.
Increase Funding Raising.. for sure agree. Question is how. Any specific ideas?
Have a vision..Have a Long term PLAN....I assume URI has a long term plan. Would be a good question to ask.
Plan to build a Practice Facility - completely agree 100% but most on this board will not. Articles have indicated this is not a priority for URI due to costs and funding
We have a better area...Hello Agree with it being a fantastic arena. I love it. But PC holds 13,000 and RC holds 7,500
Advertise ....sick of seeing Friar Town everywhere For sure PC has $4million per year from Fox Sports 1 to invest. Thor, Dooley and Hurley do not have the money that PC has, not even close
More Funding....Agree. That is the challenge. That is what is keeping the Practice Center from being built

I'm not going to debate dropping football again, but I will point out we have no idea what would happen to that money. Thorr has said it won't be reinvested in athletics, before when we were dropping conferences it was. Seems like Thorr is saying whatever suits his current plans the best, so let's stop acting like it's Gospel what would happen to that money because it's the last thing he said.

In regards to the practice facility, I don't think there's been a single person on this board who is completely against it. Everyone against it has seemed to believe that both basketball and the whole athletic department have bigger needs right now. If a person with deep pockets donated the money for the project I don't think anyone would chain themselves to the ground to keep it from getting built.

Also, it's a lot easier for PC to fund their practice facility considering they don't have debt payments for their arena. We could have a practice facility too if we were still playing in Providence. This is better.

As for Friartown fundraising, I think people are worried way too much. Great, they have murals in Green. What do you think the return on investment for those murals are? I'd say close to zero. There's no one from RI not affiliated with PC that's sitting there pissed off that they're still waiting for their bags that's like, "that's right, I live in Friartown, I should go out of my way to look up when they're playing and go." And I don't think a tourist or business traveler is like, "Wow, Friartown, that sounds awesome, I need to go while I'm here!" It's only purpose is to give PC fans a little chub while they're waiting for their bags and to get under the skin of URI fans. Not exactly a great investment.