I hope the moderator of the BearcatsDen message board does not mind, but I am posting some excerpts of his review of the Bob Huggins call in show last night. There are a lot of interesting things to think about and I thought some new and current Big East members would be interested in what the future holds for UC in the Big East.
Here is the link to the message board and post:
<a href='http://www.bearcatsden.com/index.php?act=ST&f=25&t=849' target='_blank'>http://www.bearcatsden.com/index.php?act=ST&f=25&t=849</a>
Here are some of the more interesting comments:
A.D. Bob Goin's impressions
Season was exceptionally good. Another team in the NCAA tourney. Bob did a great job coaching. We all wish we could win a few more. Played hard, just didn't make the shots when you had to in Indy. Played with a lot of courage.
Huggins is on the phone
Sorry he can't be there. The fans are great. Thanks to all the fans who show up to the game. But I have to find a guy who can get a rebound. We are west of the Mississippi. We are well received, and we're doing well out here.
Goin: The ratings were tremendous, a lot of tall, fast, thick juniors had a chance to watch how UC plays.
Huggs: That was the largest crowd to see a NCAA tourney (non-final 4 games). That's a huge testament to UC and KY. We are looking forward to recruiting some outstanding players in state. Some people came up to me in the airport and said it was the greatest game they ever saw, and I said it wasn't my favorite.
Goin: Students are doing well academically. We can be proud.
Huggs: Maxiell has graduated. Lucas has graduated and is going to grad school and is pursuing another graduate degree. All juniors are on schedule to graduate.
A.D. bob Goin calling it quits
By this time next year Nancy (Zimpher) and the board of trustees will have identified my replacement. I've really enjoyed my stay and I hope that when I leave it's a little better than I found it. [MAJOR UNDERSTATEMENT AND HE IS TOO HUMBLE]
Varsity Village has taken a lot of work. We are on schedule. New everything. This time next year it will all be done. The new athletic center will be as good as any in the country.
Plan for Shoemaker? When I leave I will leave plans on how to expand the arena, or do we implode it and built a dedicated arena? In 2009, 5/3rd will be 20 years old and that's about time to think about a new arena.
Nippert Stadium - I'll leave plans for a new pressbox and lift it up and put in more seats Keep Nippert about 40,000 seats (you don't want to lose the charm of Nippert Stadium) and go down to PBS when we need more seats. OSU coming back in the future.
Big East
How will UC do in the Big East?
We need players who have some size. Every night you're going up against a great team. Need 13 scholarship, and every player needs to contribute.
[And for all of those that said UC got invited because of Louisville, or basketball only, etc. - My favorite comments about] How'd we get here (in the Big east)
It's evident that UC is a research one university >$300 million in research funding. We needed to make UC as desirable as we could. From day one, I knew UC could compete in better a conf than CUSA. We couldn't afford to lose our shot at the Big East so I had a lot of sleepless nights. But UC stepped up and it was an easy sell. UC is a great secret, but we need to get out what we're doing here. After the Big East ADs and Presidents saw what we had, they said we would be good partners, and that was a great day. UC is a tremendous academic institution.
Coach Huggins's contract
Since I've been here the situation is the same. When our schedule fit together we talk about everythign in that program. We've been through some rough waters, but those waters are smoothing out. We will discuss what the program needs and what sacrifices need to be made. I'm confident that when that meeting is over we'll be on the same page.
Will UC add a LaCrosse team?
The possibility is there. We have to make sure all our other programs must be scholarship. We need people to donate to the scholarship fund. Right now it cost $6.5-7.5 million. We have 16 programs and we need to make sure those are taken care of before we add a 17th. 16 teams is pretty typical for a Big East school, but we are $10 million shy of other Big East programs. We'll get to that level, but we can't add new programs until we get to that level.
Very Interesting - Forced to play CUSA teams in the future because of the move to the Big East
We paid 6-7 million dollars to leave and if they want to give some of that back, we'll play them in the future.
What's on you plate for the future?
Transition to the Big East is difficult. Make sure all the logistics are ready
Funding for Varsity Village. Improve academic standing, for basketball only. Just keep moving. Replacing field turf for football.
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Bob Huggins show - very interesting comments
