KeaneyBlue - The URI Basketball Forum

Bill makes some important observations here and it is time for all supporters to come together and help raise this program to a stronger and more sustainable level. This can be done by each of us in our own way, equivalent to our financial and emotional resources. Let's make the URI basketball future brighter than ever before. GO RHODY!

http://www.providencejournal.com/sports ... s-momentum

P. S. I know this article has been posted elsewhere, but this is a subject deserving of its own thread.

Would love to see several hundred thousand, as in dollars, donated to the URI foundation in the next few months.

Just curious does anybody know the % of teams that charter flights to and from road games ?? I have no idea

reef, I'll guess that most, if not all, P5 schools charter most of their road games.

As for mid majors.....most don't. BE schools I'm sure do, since they have tons of cash from Fox.

I think Dayton and VCU charter all their road games that are more than a few hours driving time away, which in Dayton's case is all of them.

To Bone's point, I think only Dayton and VCU in our league. And that is what we aspire to, so that is what our goals should be.

Yes indeed and if that's what DH wants that needs to happen

Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but this article almost feels like Dan fed Koch what he's looking to see this offseason to keep him from looking at other jobs. Another year plus and some more money for him. In return he's willing to up his buyout which helps the school. But mostly once again he's looking for program enhancements. And none of it seems unreasonable.

Have to add St. Louis to the list of A10 schools that charter....Majerus would have never taken that job if not........

RR2, maybe but imo it's too soon for Dan to get in anyone's ear about that stuff...yet.

The staff has to hit the ground running here very soon what with the signing period coming up....and are any of our players going to leave, like CT?

.....see, if you wish, my last post in March 20' topic.....

rambone 78 wrote:Have to add St. Louis to the list of A10 schools that charter....Majerus would have never taken that job if not........

RR2, maybe but imo it's too soon for Dan to get in anyone's ear about that stuff...yet.

The staff has to hit the ground running here very soon what with the signing period coming up....and are any of our players going to leave, like CT?

See, I think now is absolutely the time to do it. We all know success can be fleeting. A lot of the things he seems to want look like things that are rewards for being successful. However in today's world of college athletics, it's the opposite, these "extras" are necessary to become successful. We can spend more on targeted investments now because we have extra money and our tournament appearance will mean less resistance to spending by the state population. Now is the time to invest more aggressively so we can have a better future.

I think there were contingency plans in place for improvements to happen if Dan met certain goals.....and now they can start to happen....

I don't think Dan will get much of a bump up yet, but his assistants should....Cox might be a target for a D1 job......

rambone 78 wrote:I think there were contingency plans in place for improvements to happen if Dan met certain goals.....and now they can start to happen....

I don't think Dan will get much of a bump up yet, but his assistants should....Cox might be a target for a D1 job......

Dave Cox would be on my radar if I was UMass or now VCU... VCU makes a ton of sense because he's from the area... hopefully they take care of everyone and continue to build on this!

One of the most impressive things about DH is that he is always negotiating for program enhancements as the primary objective in his contract extensions.

.....additional revenue source......parking fees.....annually to the USF Sun Dome an AAC game, the parking fee is $10......not decks/ramp just surface lot parking......ouch!

Better TV broadcasts of local games.....? Signs along RT 95. URI Home of the A-10 Champs"

NorthernRamFan wrote:

rambone 78 wrote:I think there were contingency plans in place for improvements to happen if Dan met certain goals.....and now they can start to happen....

I don't think Dan will get much of a bump up yet, but his assistants should....Cox might be a target for a D1 job......

Dave Cox would be on my radar if I was UMass or now VCU... VCU makes a ton of sense because he's from the area... hopefully they take care of everyone and continue to build on this!

Cox will be a head coach again one day and probably very soon. It was a year ago that they were able to elevate him to associate head coach, with related benefits, to keep him. When you see the same names being hired time and time again (ex: Brian Gregory), you realize how hard it is for assistants to break into the main job. Quinnipiac may be a good job for that or LIU-Brooklyn.

Dan has a clear vision of the program he wants to run, which has been honed over the last 7 years. He also knows improvement will be incremental. And, there have been improvements which they've negotiated, to some people's chagrin, over the last few years. The travel has been one of the most obvious. I remember the first year, they were taking a bus to Philly games, even two that were back-to-back on the schedule. They took the train down once this season but flew back.

The talk at VCU, before Wade left, was that they were set to sit down and talk about program enhancements, and that's a program that's already so far ahead. The push never stops.

Yea we need billboards with coach Hurley and co. I see the PC ones. Also, I think Koch mentioned the "PC Mural" at the airport and its a disgrace. Visitors should be seeing THE States University when arriving at the Ocean State. Rhody runs on dunkin....but only in south county. Lets expand that slogan to the north. There are plenty of marketing tools available that the school needs to take advantage from, now we have a successful foundation to build on.

bigappleram wrote:To Bone's point, I think only Dayton and VCU in our league. And that is what we aspire to, so that is what our goals should be.

Don't forget about SLU.

The only thing I'll say is the fact that URI couldn't charter a flight from Pittsburgh and because of that had to connect in Baltimore after the A10 title is an absolute joke.

I also know that they still fly into Bradley on occasion. The day after the Valparaiso game I saw the URI team bus in a park n ride right near the airport as I work right near the airport. That told me it was there to pick up the team coming from Chicago. They couldn't have at least gotten a flight to TF Green? Bradley is probably an hour and a half at least from campus.

I'm not asking them to charter every flight but 2 things should be happening. They should be chartering flights to cities that don't you can't fly from Green directly to and if you can go direct from Green to that city they should be going from Green, not Bradley.

RAM TOUGH

I LOVE IT

I see it as 2 separate factors, both of which need to operate at a high level for us to A) keep Hurley, 2) keep us at the top of the standings, and D) sustain that for a long time.

1) is very obviously the fan and donor support. Even I was shocked at how many Rhody fans came out of the woodwork during this run. Hopefully this and some banners, coupled with the excitement of EC's final year will fill up the Ryan Center. Maybe now that we're back, people will want to donate and buy tickets again. The support of the last few weeks really put into perspective how far we had fallen during the lost years pre-Hurley. If what we had these last few weeks is there in November...this March will just be the beginning.

2) the continued support from the athletic department. Getting the financial support is good, but how we use it is key. Hopefully the bulk to this cash influx is directed to basketball. One of the best selling points we have as a program to both Dan and prospective recruits is that basketball runs this campus. Being king dingaling and getting to call the shots like Dan is in a position to do is a huge plus for him and the team. When you compare us to a school where football drives the bus and basketball gets the scraps, it's good to be king. Thorr has proven that he understands this and it gives me faith that he won't Ron Petro this whole situation.

I have said over and over that the best thing about every offseason DH contract negotiation is that it involves program enhancements and guarantees. That in itself should be reason enough to continue to give Dan everything he asks for.

Dan made his demands and got us to where he promised us. He kept his end of the bargain. It's up to us and the athletic department to recognize that and commit our full support.

To simplify:

The Rams just won the A10 Tournament and advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

Your move, fans. What you got?

ATPTourFan wrote:To simplify:

The Rams just won the A10 Tournament and advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

Your move, fans. What you got?

no doubt in my mind opening night is a guaranteed 7,657

......implement a modest seat license program on season ticket holders in especially the court side sections like 105/205 etc as examples; parking fees; increase single game ticket prices across the board.....fiddle around with a lower than current minimum donor level with access to the underwhelming food/drinks in the Alumni Lounge.....this is not a pick one or the other.....now after picking your self up from the floor.....and think to the above and say no way......what you got?

How much would it cost to park my covered wagon after the long journey from pvd?

.....quite simple issue.....are we gonna find our future of this program or not.....no?

Seawrightspostgame wrote:How much would it cost to park my covered wagon after the long journey from pvd?

King for a day, I would say 5

ElmCityRhody wrote:RAM TOUGH

I LOVE IT

Does Dodge own that trademark?

I like my tagline: "Eternal Ramnation!"

edit - used to be my tagline. I forgot I changed it to "Bleed Keaney Blue" a couple of years ago.

I already know that some friends and members of my family including myself,will be season ticket holders now or at a minimum, will be buying a mini package. "Just win" was a huge tag line for this board, and we won. Feels great to say, and fans see that now.

Da_Process_Survivor wrote:

ATPTourFan wrote:To simplify:

The Rams just won the A10 Tournament and advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

Your move, fans. What you got?

no doubt in my mind opening night is a guaranteed 7,657

As long as that's the night that they're unfurling the banners, there's no doubt in my mind either. Regardless of opponent.

Rhode Warriors and their Rhode Block defense.

section(105) wrote:......implement a modest seat license program on season ticket holders in especially the court side sections like 105/205 etc as examples; parking fees; increase single game ticket prices across the board.....fiddle around with a lower than current minimum donor level with access to the underwhelming food/drinks in the Alumni Lounge.....this is not a pick one or the other.....now after picking your self up from the floor.....and think to the above and say no way......what you got?

As a resident 205er and Silver Ram making a commitment to doubing and jumping up to a Golden Ram level, I would prefer to not have to/wouldn't pay an additional licensing fee on top of that. I wouldn't mind if they started requiring a donation at a certain level to sit in certain areas, for instance courtside season tickets require you to be a Keaney Level ($10k+) donor.

You also have to balance this out with not alienating the season ticket holders who have been there through thick and thin, and not just the bangwagoners with money. You can't always guarantee good times, but having a core group there through thick and thin is invaluable. When John May was there in development, he always said "we're going to start taking care of our guys" meaning the loyal fans. That's important.

You don't want to run your athletic department like a certain former interim AD/deputy AD and be shaking hands with someone but looking over them to see who was more important that they can talk to. Thorr gets that. Thorr is gracious and gives the time of day to any and all Rhody fans and is genuinely happy to be in their presence.

There needs to be a slight ascent to the "seat licensing" angle. Maybe you do it by priority points? People with x amount based on their # of tickets/years maybe only require a $100 or $500 donation to sit in the section they already do, while newcomers lower on the priority points poll should be required to donate $1000 or $2500 to try and break into those new seats?

(By the way when I was doing all the bitching in the thread that should not be named about how dumb it makes all of us look and how the board loses all credibility? These are the types of posts I was talking about).

Right, I don't think seat licenses will work here. WAAAAY TOO early for that talk.

VCU is doing it by minimum donation level.

We already re-seat on the basis of priority points and the program has been waiting for the right time to do another re-seating.

At this point, I think the goal is to just get our average attendance up beyond 6000 (for the love of god let's get this done next season) and get more people into the donating mode.

VCU has sold out 99 straight home games, so that's obviously another universe compared to where we are now.

.....just asking, my post was the dumb one?

Lost ya, 105. What do you mean?

Is there any sort of program available to sponsor a seat or two for season tickets? Veterans, etc.? Is that more valuable than the same monetary donation to URI athletics?

I'd like to support the University, but live in Louisville and cannot do so with season tickets for myself.

So for someone who is interested in donating for the first time, what is the best/easiest way to do that. I've already donated, but for someone who is on the fence and wants to know how to go about it this seems like a good thread to include that info. Anybody with more knowledge on the subject than me care to provide some info for everybody? How does a fan make sure their donation goes to the basketball program for example?

I think you are all forgetting that there were a lot of empty seats for many games this season. what i
see will happen if you start raising ticket prices or add seat licenses is more empty seats and if you
charge for parking, even more empty seats. Tickets for decent seats are far from cheap now and
you still don't see regular sell outs. There will have to be a sustained run of success before you can
realistically consider any of this imo. Money from NCAA appearances over a few years will help and
donations from people with deep pockets, but you can't afford to price out average fans who can
barely afford prices as they are now. I think that would be a bad gamble at this point.

Let's sell the seats we got before we charge for parking and jack our long time / non trust fund baby loyal fan base for more dough.....

A little more marketing is in order. As someone already said TF Green airport frairtown? Really?

Yeah if the seats were at 67% this year. Shoot for 80% or something. Ensure all the money coming from the tournament goes to the team.

Really seize the momentum with outreach events and making the people that do have money feel like they are a part of the team.

Seat licensing and squeezing people? You could do that over the period of multiple years by making it known that it is coming, the department wants it done, and it could happen any year. Tell Koch, Tell anyone that has the fan base's ear that licensing or any big change is coming and people will adjust.

Dont spring fees and squeeze people that have paid and supported a program through the lean years so quickly.

Another thought, do we have athletic bricks? I know there are bricks memorializing people that donated in the quad but maybe if there is enough interest there could be a more elaborate entryway to the Ryan center with bricks and some sort of statue?

2 years of success spur that? just this year? IDK.

I would buy a brick on the way in. A tiered offering from say $400, $800, $1600? With differing sizes in a master design for the walkway that you can put a few words?

I know URI has this in other places, and honestly they might have it in front of the Ryan center and I dont remember despite going to all of the home games this year.

My Grad school has used this to spur donations in multiple places on its campus.

......I believe the are already bricks outside the RC entrance, not at all sure if it is on going campaign.....sometimes bricks on the inside too!!

There is a commemorative brick plaza outside the Ryan Center, but it doesn't appear to be an ongoing campaign.

section(105) wrote:.....just asking, my post was the dumb one?

I don't think it was dumb at all. It was a great question and a road that we need to start looking towards.

adam914 wrote:So for someone who is interested in donating for the first time, what is the best/easiest way to do that. I've already donated, but for someone who is on the fence and wants to know how to go about it this seems like a good thread to include that info. Anybody with more knowledge on the subject than me care to provide some info for everybody? How does a fan make sure their donation goes to the basketball program for example?

I think the easiest way to start is to make a gift to the URI Foundation here: URI Foundation Donation Page

There are options to direct your gift in a number of ways. The URI RAMS Fund is a general athletics fund that the athletic department directs to its greatest areas of need. You can also direct your donation specifically to the basketball program (Fast Break). They also give you options to make your gift in installments or to make it a recurring gift.

If you don't like doing this kind of thing online, or if you have questions you want answered, or want to structure some sort of tailored gift arrangement to benefit the basketball program, you shouldn't hesitate to reach out directly to the URI Foundation: athletics@foundation.uri.edu / 401.874.7900

hrstrat57 wrote:Let's sell the seats we got before we charge for parking and jack our long time / non trust fund baby loyal fan base for more dough.....

A little more marketing is in order. As someone already said TF Green airport frairtown? Really?

Oh yeah. It's right at baggage claim. Every time I'm there I have to look away. There's also the huge "Friartown" billboard right before the Rt. 10 exit (16) on 95N.

I'd be shocked if we can't get the average attendance above 6,000 next year.

I'm feeling like we are going to be preseason top 25 again next year, with even more hype. People across the country know us now. The excitement will be here big time going into the season.

I'm hoping that even if we lose a big game next year we should be able to get good attendance the next game after that, because of our success this year. People can believe in us again.

PRT, I hope so....and I hope that we can get a few good teams to show up for the OOC schedule too. Not just PC.

That would help.....we don't need a home schedule littered with Stiff City opponents.

Fans might have to get used to appreciating getting the Valporaiso, Belmont and William & Mary's of the world in the Ryan Center instead of hoping for P5 schools. They seemed to do a great job of building effective schedules the last two year without the name sizzle.

RhowdyRam02 wrote:Fans might have to get used to appreciating getting the Valporaiso, Belmont and William & Mary's of the world in the Ryan Center instead of hoping for P5 schools. They seemed to do a great job of building effective schedules the last two year without the name sizzle.

The hope of this run is that maybe our name gets hot and P5 schools will want us on their schedules now.

Even if we do get on their schedules, the real name brand P5 schools don't play true road games in OOC. We should be able to get creative and get teams in here that people will know whether they are technically P5 or not.