Josh Pastner would be an absolute disaster.

Couldn't win at either of his head coaching spots (only tournament appearance at GT was in the Covid year).

(02-22-2024 09:54 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  I've been hearing talk of Rice's being interested in Josh Pastner, should Pera not be retained. Of course, if Rice continues to play as they did against UAB, there won't be a need for change.

I doubt the game against UAB was an indication of things to come. They played terribly, and we couldn't miss a shot. It's time for a change.

(02-23-2024 08:43 AM)ExcitedOwl18 Wrote:  Josh Pastner would be an absolute disaster.

Couldn't win at either of his head coaching spots (only tournament appearance at GT was in the Covid year).

Agree. He would be a terrible choice. I hope it's just hearsay. He'd likely come cheaply just to get another head coaching job, but I'm confidant that McClelland is going after the best candidate possible.

All this nonsense has gone on long enough with Rice basketball. We haven't had a decent program since Brent Scott was playing. We only have one NCAA Tournament appearance. The indifference towards basketball has to end. It's a sport that we should be able to excel in. It doesn't require a lot of scholarships, just fifteen talented players and three very capable coaches.

Rice has a good baseball coach, now it's time to find a good one for basketball. Our gym needs to be full.

Technically it’s 13 players and 4 coaches on the men’s side.

And I would say the Harris/McKrieth/Gillespie teams weren’t bad. That was a much tougher conference than we have now. But it was still 20 years ago. But 20 is better than 30.

(02-23-2024 09:19 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote:  Technically it’s 13 players and 4 coaches on the men’s side.

And I would say the Harris/McKrieth/Gillespie teams weren’t bad. That was a much tougher conference than we have now. But it was still 20 years ago. But 20 is better than 30.

Those were good teams. It has been too long. It's time to take basketball seriously. It only helps our national visibility and our standing in realignment by having competitive basketball. The investment pays for itself. Points.

I would hold off with anointing Cruz as a good coach just yet.

(02-23-2024 11:23 AM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  I would hold off with anointing Cruz as a good coach just yet.

And the clock is ticking

Isn't this just the beginning of Cruz's third season? Given the state of the program before he arrived, I wouldn't look for a breakout season until next year.

Cruz is at a huge disadvantage with respect to other schools. Most, if not all, of the players are on partial scholarships. The cost is prohibitive as those families must bear the remaining payments. So, at Rice, players pay to go to school, while those at LSU and other such programs get paid to go there. Rice must begin stacking financial aid on top of the athletic scholarship money. Otherwise, no coach could be successful.

(02-23-2024 04:04 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  Cruz is at a huge disadvantage with respect to other schools. Most, if not all, of the players are on partial scholarships. The cost is prohibitive as those families must bear the remaining payments. So, at Rice, players pay to go to school, while those at LSU and other such programs get paid to go there. Rice must begin stacking financial aid on top of the athletic scholarship money. Otherwise, no coach could be successful.

+1

Wayne Graham - the right coach at the right time for Rice. Chances of that happening again in today's world of college athletics are slim, but we can always hope.

(02-23-2024 11:23 AM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  I would hold off with anointing Cruz as a good coach just yet.

Ourland typically has about a 3 game emotional memory.

Cruz won 3 straight this week, he’s golden.

Mark my words… if we beat Temple in MBB for a 3 game streak, Ourland will be all-in for the HC.

(02-23-2024 04:04 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  Cruz is at a huge disadvantage with respect to other schools. Most, if not all, of the players are on partial scholarships. The cost is prohibitive as those families must bear the remaining payments. So, at Rice, players pay to go to school, while those at LSU and other such programs get paid to go there. Rice must begin stacking financial aid on top of the athletic scholarship money. Otherwise, no coach could be successful.

Wayne spent his last decade or so operating under the same constraint. LSU, TCU, and Baylor really mastered the art of using other forms of aid to stretch out partial scholarships. LSU did so to the extent that they were famously able to offer a full ride to Alex Bregman. That was probably at least as big a cause of the decline in Rice baseball during Wayne's last years as anything else.

At one on the Minute Maid Park events I sat next to a family whose son played for TCU. They told me that their son had really, really wanted to play for Graham, but the out-of-pocket difference was over $20,000/year and they simply could not afford that.

The problem that Rice has is that NCAA rules require that any supplemental scholarship money must be available to all students ion the same basis in order not to count against athletic scholarship limits. It's pretty hard to argue that money is equally available to all when a shortstop gets it and a 1590 SAT chem/physics double major doesn't. LSU, TCU, and Baylor don't have such a wide disparity between athletic and academic populations, so their argument is easier to justify, particularly to administrations that are more friendly to athletics than Rice's.

The Rice Investment helps out some, but only for poorer students. The guys whose parents could afford to send them to travel teams and showcase events probably don't qualify for much from the Investment. Jess (who actually coached Rice baseball for a time) used to help baseball with numbers by recruiting multi-sport football players and allowing them to play other sports.

What would really help Rice baseball would be a grant of, say, $20,000/year to each student who is admitted. Perhaps it could be structured as a loan with minimal repayment terms. On top of the Rice Investment, it could make Rice truly affordable to everyone. Perhaps something can be done with NIL money, but whatevert that is, LSU, TCU, and Baylor can do the same thing.

(02-27-2024 09:30 AM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  

(02-23-2024 04:04 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  Cruz is at a huge disadvantage with respect to other schools. Most, if not all, of the players are on partial scholarships. The cost is prohibitive as those families must bear the remaining payments. So, at Rice, players pay to go to school, while those at LSU and other such programs get paid to go there. Rice must begin stacking financial aid on top of the athletic scholarship money. Otherwise, no coach could be successful.

Wayne spent his last decade or so operating under the same constraint. LSU, TCU, and Baylor really mastered the art of using other forms of aid to stretch out partial scholarships. LSU did so to the extent that they were famously able to offer a full ride to Alex Bregman. That was probably at least as big a cause of the decline in Rice baseball during Wayne's last years as anything else.

At one on the Minute Maid Park events I sat next to a family whose son played for TCU. They told me that their son had really, really wanted to play for Graham, but the out-of-pocket difference was over $20,000/year and they simply could not afford that.

The problem that Rice has is that NCAA rules require that any supplemental scholarship money must be available to all students ion the same basis in order not to count against athletic scholarship limits. It's pretty hard to argue that money is equally available to all when a shortstop gets it and a 1590 SAT chem/physics double major doesn't. LSU, TCU, and Baylor don't have such a wide disparity between athletic and academic populations, so their argument is easier to justify, particularly to administrations that are more friendly to athletics than Rice's.

The Rice Investment helps out some, but only for poorer students. The guys whose parents could afford to send them to travel teams and showcase events probably don't qualify for much from the Investment. Jess (who actually coached Rice baseball for a time) used to help baseball with numbers by recruiting multi-sport football players and allowing them to play other sports.

What would really help Rice baseball would be a grant of, say, $20,000/year to each student who is admitted. Perhaps it could be structured as a loan with minimal repayment terms. On top of the Rice Investment, it could make Rice truly affordable to everyone. Perhaps something can be done with NIL money, but whatevert that is, LSU, TCU, and Baylor can do the same thing.

I didn't know that the baseball players were on partial scholarships. That's a huge disadvantage. Rather than our collective raising money to pay players, I'd like to see that money applied to athletics scholarships, coaching salaries, and the overall 'experience' for athletes at Rice. I think that's the most effective way to combat the exorbitant NIL payments being made by other universities.

(02-27-2024 03:36 AM)owl at the moon Wrote:  

(02-23-2024 11:23 AM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  I would hold off with anointing Cruz as a good coach just yet.

Ourland typically has about a 3 game emotional memory.

Cruz won 3 straight this week, he’s golden.

Mark my words… if we beat Temple in MBB for a 3 game streak, Ourland will be all-in for the HC.

True on the emotional memory, false on the prospects of supporting coach..

NCAA permits a maximum of 11.7 scholarships for baseball. 32 players (max) may receive scholarship money, with each player receiving a minimum of 25%.

(02-27-2024 09:51 AM)Ourland Wrote:  

(02-27-2024 09:30 AM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  

(02-23-2024 04:04 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  Cruz is at a huge disadvantage with respect to other schools. Most, if not all, of the players are on partial scholarships. The cost is prohibitive as those families must bear the remaining payments. So, at Rice, players pay to go to school, while those at LSU and other such programs get paid to go there. Rice must begin stacking financial aid on top of the athletic scholarship money. Otherwise, no coach could be successful.

Wayne spent his last decade or so operating under the same constraint. LSU, TCU, and Baylor really mastered the art of using other forms of aid to stretch out partial scholarships. LSU did so to the extent that they were famously able to offer a full ride to Alex Bregman. That was probably at least as big a cause of the decline in Rice baseball during Wayne's last years as anything else.

At one on the Minute Maid Park events I sat next to a family whose son played for TCU. They told me that their son had really, really wanted to play for Graham, but the out-of-pocket difference was over $20,000/year and they simply could not afford that.

The problem that Rice has is that NCAA rules require that any supplemental scholarship money must be available to all students on the same basis in order not to count against athletic scholarship limits. It's pretty hard to argue that money is equally available to all when a shortstop gets it and a 1590 SAT chem/physics double major doesn't. LSU, TCU, and Baylor don't have such a wide disparity between athletic and academic populations, so their argument is easier to justify, particularly to administrations that are more friendly to athletics than Rice's.

The Rice Investment helps out some, but only for poorer students. The guys whose parents could afford to send them to travel teams and showcase events probably don't qualify for much from the Investment. Jess (who actually coached Rice baseball for a time) used to help baseball with numbers by recruiting multi-sport football players and allowing them to play other sports.

What would really help Rice baseball would be a grant of, say, $20,000/year to each student who is admitted. Perhaps it could be structured as a loan with minimal repayment terms. On top of the Rice Investment, it could make Rice truly affordable to everyone. Perhaps something can be done with NIL money, but whatever that is, LSU, TCU, and Baylor can do the same thing.

I didn't know that the baseball players were on partial scholarships. That's a huge disadvantage. Rather than our collective raising money to pay players, I'd like to see that money applied to athletics scholarships, coaching salaries, and the overall 'experience' for athletes at Rice. I think that's the most effective way to combat the exorbitant NIL payments being made by other universities.

The way I understood it in the 1960s, if you had somebody on a football scholarship who played another sport, he didn't count against the other sport's limits. But if you had a athlete on partial for another sport who played football, he counted against football's total. I'm not 100% certain that either a) that understanding was entirely correct then, or b) that it has not changed since then.

(02-27-2024 11:51 AM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  NCAA permits a maximum of 11.7 scholarships for baseball. 32 players (max) may receive scholarship money, with each player receiving a minimum of 25%.

So it affects Rice more adversely than others because tuition is so high. I get it. Cruz has his hands full.

Am I right that all basketball players are on full scholarship? Volleyball players?

(02-28-2024 09:21 AM)Ourland Wrote:  

(02-27-2024 11:51 AM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  NCAA permits a maximum of 11.7 scholarships for baseball. 32 players (max) may receive scholarship money, with each player receiving a minimum of 25%.

So it affects Rice more adversely than others because tuition is so high. I get it. Cruz has his hands full.

Am I right that all basketball players are on full scholarship? Volleyball players?

There are 16 on the roster

The NCAA allows 13 scholarships in men's basketball (15 for women).
Here is a list of all of the scholarship limits.

(02-28-2024 09:42 AM)Grungy Wrote:  

(02-28-2024 09:21 AM)Ourland Wrote:  

(02-27-2024 11:51 AM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  NCAA permits a maximum of 11.7 scholarships for baseball. 32 players (max) may receive scholarship money, with each player receiving a minimum of 25%.

So it affects Rice more adversely than others because tuition is so high. I get it. Cruz has his hands full.

Am I right that all basketball players are on full scholarship? Volleyball players?

There are 16 on the roster

The NCAA allows 13 scholarships in men's basketball (15 for women).
Here is a list of all of the scholarship limits.

Partial scholarships are not permitted in head count sports (at Rice, that's men's and women's basketball, volleyball, women's tennis and football).

Peakes, Andrews-Heitz and Perkins are walk-ons for the men. For the women, Zheng was a walk-on last year but it’s possible she’s on scholarship this year.