Rams 2013-2014 Schedule

theblueram · Unread post by **theblueram** » 10 years ago

RoadyJay wrote:UMASS Lowell? They are D2. Why would we play another D2 team after the Southern Conn game on 11/1?

This is there first year in the American East. Moved all sports to D1 (except Hockey which was already D1)

RoadyJay · Unread post by **RoadyJay** » 10 years ago

theblueram wrote:
RoadyJay wrote:UMASS Lowell? They are D2. Why would we play another D2 team after the Southern Conn game on 11/1?
This is there first year in the American East. Moved all sports to D1 (except Hockey which was already D1)

You're good blueram!

Blue Man · Unread post by **Blue Man** » 10 years ago

I am SO PISSED we aren't playing at NC A&T. It's literally been a dream of mine to go see a game there. Can we make the RC like the dawg pound one day???

ATP and co...look at 2:30 for how i plan us to be during timeouts in 205. Rod you can join in the line from 207.

scine20 · Unread post by **scine20** » 10 years ago

If that's really the home OOC that's worse than any that Baron had.

BFC · Unread post by **BFC** » 10 years ago

Right now, standing up and clapping qualifies as "making a scene" at the Ryan Center, imagine if they played "HO GET OUT".

Blue Man · Unread post by **Blue Man** » 10 years ago

BFC wrote:Right now, standing up and clapping qualifies as "making a scene" at the Ryan Center, imagine if they played "HO GET OUT".

I would die a happy man.

twisted3829 · Unread post by **twisted3829** » 10 years ago

this seadons schedule is going to be tough to schedule, not good enough to be an ok loss but not bad enough to be a sure win

RF1 · Unread post by **RF1** » 10 years ago

twisted3829 wrote:this seadons schedule is going to be tough to schedule, not good enough to be an ok loss but not bad enough to be a sure win

That is what happens when your program has 20 or more losses in the preceding two seasons.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

I'm more worried about our team's development than I am about being entertained by the visiting opponent this year. I'm fine with the schedule. We are playing a good mix of "extended preseason" and "measuring stick" games.

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 10 years ago

the preseason NIT will make up for an otherwise weak OOC schedule.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

Most casual rhody fans and hoop fans in the area don't know any better than wins and losses. If the Rams are winning games in entertaining fashion, fans will come and by A10 schedule, they'll be locked in!

RoadyJay · Unread post by **RoadyJay** » 10 years ago

So this is the schedule as we know it right now.. I'm going with 11-5 in the conference and 8-3 out of conference for a total of 19-8 based on the 27 games we know of right now.

I also expect at least 1 win in the A10 Championships, so 20 wins is definitely doable in my mind.

What do you all think?

HOME
Exhibition
Southern Conn. St. 11-01-13

Non-conference
Maine 11-08-13
North Carolina A&T 11-15-13
UMASS-Lowell 11-23-13
Providence 12-05-13
UNH 12-22-13

Conference
Dayton
Fordham
Saint Joseph's
UMASS
Duquesne
George Mason
Richmond
Saint Louis

AWAY
Non-conference
Arizona (NIT)
George Mason 11-30-13
Detroit 12-08-13
Brown 01-02-14
LSU 01-04-14
SMU

Conference
Dayton
Fordham
Saint Joseph's
UMASS
La Salle
George Washington
St. Bonaventure
VCU

NEUTRAL
Non-conference
TBD (Arizona)
TBD (site TBD)
TBD (site TBD)

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 10 years ago

Not thrilled with the home nonconference schedule (except for PC, of course). But at least we should get a bunch of wins out of it. I'd be interested in seeing the full NIT field.

jmck · Unread post by **jmck** » 10 years ago

Todd Bozeman must have had his sandwich order screwed up after this game. He looked pretty pissed after the third player fouled out.

URI96 · Unread post by **URI96** » 10 years ago

Umass Lowell makes me want to throw up in my mouth. This is the bottom of the barrell. NC A&T is not much better. This would be a 0 of 10 ranking if PC was not on the schedule.

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

Who cares, 96? I'd rather them play teams that will allow them to work out the kinks in OOC this year. If you aren't building a résumé for an at-large, it doesn't matter who you play in OOC. And if this team is to miraculously make a Tourney push, it will be because they won the conference or came damn close. I want the team to do whatever it has to in order to peak for the conference portion. If this year results in close to 20 wins with a clear upward trajectory for the program, next year and going forward we'll be able to put together a résumé-building OOC schedule.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

Dan said he wanted a mix of tough and easy games for this year's OOC schedule. So many new players in the mix.

For the 2014-15 season, I expect a tougher overall OOC schedule. It's going to be tough to get good teams to come to Kingston, we're going to have to play most of the good teams on the road, but that's a fact of life for an A10 program. See Temple under Chaney.

There will be more home and homes, and 2 for 1's. We'll be getting the 1's for the most part.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 10 years ago

No matter what the excuses, this is a very disappointing home OOC schedule. A far cry from the year we played Houston, De Paul and Utah at home. Last year the Rams opened the home season against Norfolk State, a NCAA team the previous year, and with the attraction of a new coach and the promise of a new era at URI, the game drew 5045.

This year in a season of high expectations, the Rams will open against Maine and challenge will be to beat that attendance. Will we???

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

You guys care waaaay too much about who we are playing. I don't go to games to watch the other team.

Rhody72 · Unread post by **Rhody72** » 10 years ago

Just some comments:
1. Few coaches will complain about a weak schedule that they created.
2. This may be a new team in official games, but most of these guys practiced together all of last year.
3. The paucity of good opponents are harbingers of a very good or very bad team. I believe the latter.
4. URI will be like Wagner 2 years ago - great record and no great post-season invite.
5. The away OOC schedule disappoints me more than the home OOC schedule.
6. A loss or win versus URI can really bring down a team's RPI because of URI's SOS.
7. No NCAA bid this season - but it wasn't expected anyways unless we win the A10.
8. The schedule will magnify the importance given to bad losses.
9. I'm predicting a 22+ win regular season.

reef · Unread post by **reef** » 10 years ago

We got some cupcakes at home !!!

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

Rhody72 wrote:9. I'm predicting a 22+ win regular season.

Can we book this right now for the prediction contest?

Gonebarongone · Unread post by **Gonebarongone** » 10 years ago

No other way around it. Gross OOC schedule. As a fan, I always try to talk myself into a tournament bid. This does not help. In fact, it hurts. The committee has come down very hard on bubble teams with weak OOC. This is like 300+ OOC SOS bad.

rambone 78 · Unread post by **rambone 78** » 10 years ago

What can Dan do? I'm sure he tried to get a couple more good teams to come here.

There's still a few more games TBA. Maybe it'll end up being a little better, maybe not.

Rhodymob05 · Unread post by **Rhodymob05** » 10 years ago

I agree with ATP, a winning record is what is seen and advertised to the average fan. Which will make them come to games. My PC fan buddies are the only ones that will mention the "cupcakes" to me,
...since I do it to them every season. But to start off I just want to see wins!

ramfan85 · Unread post by **ramfan85** » 10 years ago

Teams like URI need a representative OOC schedule. Just getting wins doesn't cut it. Not if you really think you have a good team.

NHRamFan · Unread post by **NHRamFan** » 10 years ago

It takes two to tango. We can complain all we want about UMass Lowell, UNH, etc., but unless we have large amounts of cash to buy a "good" opponent, DH probably had to settle since at some point you have to pull the trigger or go without. Ladies and gentlemen - we all trust DH to put together a competitive team; let's trust him to improve our schedule year over year as well! We all want instant gratification!!

Billyboy78 · Unread post by **Billyboy78** » 10 years ago

I'm thinking of getting one of the mini plans, which is usually one game per month. So, two of those OOC games will be part of the 5 game plan. I sure hope PC is one of the games included, because the package won't be very attractive if they are not.

Obadiah · Unread post by **Obadiah** » 10 years ago

The best way to play a BCS school to boost your RPI is to meet them at a neutral site tournament, like last year's Ohio State game. This should be a goal for every season and the fact that one is not happening this year is a wasted opportunity.

rhodylaw · Unread post by **rhodylaw** » 10 years ago

This team needs some gain some early season confidence. I don't like the cupcakes either but I know Dan hated the super tough OOC schedule last year because the team wasn't ready for it. It will not hurt this team to start the season with some Ws to get confidence into the conference schedule.

I know the league lost X and temple but the A10 is still a stronger league than Wagner was in. Cupcakes are ok as long as you win some against good competition.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

Billyboy78 wrote:I'm thinking of getting one of the mini plans, which is usually one game per month. So, two of those OOC games will be part of the 5 game plan. I sure hope PC is one of the games included, because the package won't be very attractive if they are not.

Yes, any mini plan will include PC, since they will exclude that game from single-game ticket sales unless they absolutely have to. With the high interest in both teams, I think it will be sold out weeks in advance and Rhody will do VERY well with these miniplans since fans of both teams won't have many other options to get a PC game ticket.

Also, on the schedule, we know they have been adding more games late into this Summer which proves that they working for the best possible matchups, but sometimes you have to settle when the well runs dry.

I always thought an at-large was not going to be possible this year, but I CAN see the team potentially get hot and with a favorable Barclays draw, they may force their way in!

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

Obadiah wrote:The best way to play a BCS school to boost your RPI is to meet them at a neutral site tournament, like last year's Ohio State game. This should be a goal for every season and the fact that one is not happening this year is a wasted opportunity.

I know it isn't neutral site, but we are playing Arizona in a tournament. That is the Syracuse/Duke/Pitt/Texas/Ohio State game this year.

People are talking about a weak OOC slate hurting our tournament résumé, like we are expected to be a bubble team. Unless a miracle occurs, we will need to win the conference tournament to get into the NCAA's. That is just the reality of where we are in the rebuild process. If we're going to end up in the NIT anyways, I'd rather play a schedule that will allow us to win some game comfortably early, because we have guys that haven't played in two years, veterans who've never experienced winning, and a potentially long rotation that needs to be sorted out. The best way for this team to maximize its potential - whatever that may be - is to peak during the conference part of the season. And the best way to do that is give our guys the chance to grow into this season.

bigappleram · Unread post by **bigappleram** » 10 years ago

Arizona
LSU
PC
Detroit
VCU
Lasalle
St Louis
+1-3 other A10 teams that will emerge as good victories if we were to win.

Those are our statement games this year, I trust that scheduling this team was a very tough task that is easy to criticize from afar from folks who largely don't know the intricacies of doing so. Win 6-7 of those 10 games above and beat pretty much everyone else and you have a decent resume. Not including anything else that is going to be added, if 2 other strong games are added does that chance perception? Let's chill everyone, trust the regime.

kal-65 · Unread post by **kal-65** » 10 years ago

why umas Lowell give a 2 for 1 with Syracuse,bc st johns pitt Harvard is a top 30 team this year

I d rather see buffalo than lowell

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 10 years ago

kal-65 wrote:why umas Lowell give a 2 for 1 with Syracuse,bc st johns pitt Harvard is a top 30 team this year

I d rather see buffalo than lowell

Won't happen.

TexRam · Unread post by **TexRam** » 10 years ago

Rhody72 wrote: 5. The away OOC schedule disappoints me more than the home OOC schedule.

I'm curious, what exactly disappoints you more about the away ooc? The distance?

bressler3south · Unread post by **bressler3south** » 10 years ago

That's a damn good question. If the home OOC schedule were half as challenging as the away schedule, then there wouldn't be any question come (any) tourney-time!!!!!!!!!

ace · Unread post by **ace** » 10 years ago

Unread post by **TruePoint** » 10 years ago

Exactly. As usual, DiSano is on point.

reef · Unread post by **reef** » 10 years ago

Mix in a few cupcakes at home with a couple of tough roadies, not too shabby

scine20 · Unread post by **scine20** » 10 years ago

The home OOC schedule looks like a good hockey OOC schedule. All that's missing is a trip from BU to make the OOC home schedule complete.

Blue Man · Unread post by **Blue Man** » 10 years ago

I think we're getting wayyyy too caught up in the SOS.

You have to remember the mustacio'd dark lord of ineptitude isn't roaming the sidelines any more. SOS was a problem in the past because we would always play to the level of our opponents - we'd drop games we should have easily won, and NEVER win the big games we needed to get into the tournament.

Think of last year. We played OUR game...we just weren't a good team. Dan isn't going to be one to squander opportunities, especially when we have so few.

I don't think Dan will be in the making of excuses business, and I also know that our SOS won't be as bad as Wagners. If this team can avoid a terrible loss, and steal a ranked win...22-23 wins could be enough to make them an NCAA team.

Rhody74 · Unread post by **Rhody74** » 10 years ago

I think we're lumping our HOME OOC schedule, which is weak, with our road OOC schedule, which is pretty good. We have to face the facts that at our stage of development, we're not going to get good teams to come here, since beating URI is no longer a sure thing.

Also, we don't know what's going to happen with the preseason NIT. We know about Arizone, but there are three other games including, potentially, a couple at home TBD.

I trust that Hurley is doing the best he can, schedule-wise.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

Rhody74 wrote:I trust that Hurley is doing the best he can, schedule-wise.

Exactly, do ANY of us think Hurley and his staff haven't tried to create the VERY BEST possible schedule this year, HOME and AWAY?

sf2010 · Unread post by **sf2010** » 10 years ago

I think the only disappointing thing about the schedule is that all of the OOC marquee games (besides PC) are on the road. I'm also not sure what 72 was talking about with being disappointed by the road schedule. I think it's very challenging, and I love playing tough games on the road to prepare for A10 battles.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

72 must have had a typo there: road - >> home.

rhodyfan3 · Unread post by **rhodyfan3** » 10 years ago

I agree with ATP, Dan and his staff definitely tried to put together the best possible schedule. This schedule is tentative anyway, there could be a few more games added on. However, from a students perspective, the teams mentioned in the Home OOC will not entice me to go. If I wasn't a huge URI basketball fan, I'd probably skip out on most of those mentioned. I'm hoping their record is good during the first half of the season because if it isn't, the student section will be a ghost town.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

Students don't care about opponents all that much, but what they do care about is the "Game Day" atmosphere as long as it's fun and exciting and popular. The style of play will be so much better and the OOC schedule will allow the Rams to really get some wins which will include dunks, steals, alley-oops and putbacks that will get the students on their feet.

Justns11 · Unread post by **Justns11** » 10 years ago

When I was in school a few years ago (graduated 2009) I would always try to get my roommates and other friends to come to the home games with me and whenever I asked them to come, their first question was, "Who are we playing?". So I think the opponent matters to the 'average fan', but it obviously didn't matter to me.

Unread post by **ATPTourFan** » 10 years ago

But if the team is winning regularly at home and in an exciting fashion, people will be there to watch the RAMS kick some butt or battle against a quality opponent, either way.