Based on current contracts where do we stand? I know Ohio plays at Marshall but other than that not sure. Hoping we get the Bonnie's in Athens this year.

There's always the Purdue agreement to consider, though I'm not familiar with the years on the schedule of that agreement.

Teams I'd like to see next year (or almost every year)

Marshall
Morehead State
Cleveland State
And one of the following Cincinati/Dayton/Xavier

This is the game we need to schedule. I'm sure NKU would love to schedule a home-and-home with us. We can't get a home-and-home with UC or X, so this allows us to play a game in the Cincinnati market.

I agree with you both. Let's add that if on a Saturday, it would be a great place for the Alumni Assn to have a little road trip Bobcat Bash. And, they have a very nice arena.

Wright State would be a good series. The ex-South Dakota State coach vs the ex-North Dakota State coach. Call it the Freezer Bowl Series.

As long as we understand we're playing most of them on the road. I wouldn't endorse going up to Lansing or over to Bloomington, but otherwise I like it. The Illini game is unlikely as long as Groce is there if I were guessing.

Penn State, I'd be all over that if they'd play Ohio. Va Tech is one I'd enjoy too, and it's pretty close.

FlashGary: I think a major key was our coach, Gentleman Jim Snyder, he had so many connections and such respect throughout the coaching community. I still remember the story about Snyder going up to George Ireland, the Loyola coach, minutes after his team won the national championship to congratulate his good friend. Snyder said he was flabbergasted when the first thing out of Ireland's mouth was asking Jim to make sure OHIO signed the new home-and-home agreement that was in the works. Saul will have to here a long time to have that kind clout!

I see where you're coming from, OU Country. I personally would want to get at least a 1-for-2 with teams such as Penn State and Va Tech. You'd have to be a top 40 team for us to go there without them coming here. I totally agree with you that there are a ton of teams on our level or just above that would be nice to get home-and-home with. Just look at mid majors who have made the NCAA tournament twice in the last four seasons. Try to get deals with a few.

The big difference I see between scheduling now and during my time in Athens is when we play non-conference teams. In the early 70s, we didn't play as many home games when school wasn't in session earlier in the season. Hence, the likes of Wisconsin, Penn State and Cincinnati came to the Convo later in the season. Those games were played in-between the conference schedule and drew big crowds.

I don't know why, but we don't do that anymore; why we don't schedule even one of those type of games; that was a service the Bracket Buster game provided. Oh, were those games great, because the big teams all came to the Convo featuring big players, meaning, all-Americans. Va Tech had Allan Bristow. UC had Derrick Dickey AND Lloyd Batts. Wisconsin had Leon Howard and the 6-11 Hughes twins. Penn State had Ron Brown. Missouri had John Brown. Fairfield came in with Richie O'Connor. These were all nationally-known ballers.

Those really were fun times. Hope coach Phillips can build us up back to that level to where quality teams with those type of players will come to the Convo. It can be done. I think John Groce was close. Just think what we would have had if he had stayed a few more years. WE would have had Caris LeVert instead of Michigan, playing WITH the DJ Cooper team. If coach Groce stayed on, recruiting that level of player probably would have continued. Who knows what heights the program would have reached? If coach Phillips stays as he says he will, and he's able to recruit guys who could hold their own on the big major level, we may get there.

Ohio would have to pay up to get some of those schools out there to come to the Convo. Some bigger teams flat out won't ever come to Athens, nor will they ever see the desire or need to. But there are others out there that will, but it comes with a price tag. Personally, I'd much, much, much rather see Ohio pay up to at least bring one big named school to Athens every once in awhile instead of paying all the unappealing ones it has in recent years simply to stock up on a bunch of non conference home games. Ohio pays money to host every round of poor tournaments it plays in like the CIT and CBI and pays bad D-I teams to come to Athens for non conference home games. I'd rather see that money go to get a named team to come even if it means playing more road games in the non conference. You could also offset it by taking to the road to play a guarantee game or two vs big named schools. And let's face it, those are the kind of games the players want to play too, it's not just the fans who want to see it. If Ohio is going to schedule bottom of the barrel teams when it is in rebuilding mode, then it should schedule some good road teams, even if it means road games, when it's a contender like it is now.

Jeff not to mention that when coach Snyder coached there were NOT 351 Division I basketball playing institutions. As an example in 1971 there were 19 DI basketball playing conferences, today there are what 32? Since 71, we've seen close to 160 new basketball playing members to the DI landscape, that has more to do with this than anything

The amount of new basketball schools is a good point that isn't talked about. In football the scheduling has eased up some with Ohio State and Michigan State willing to play MAC schools at least at home when before they wouldn't to legitimize other instate programs. Basketball went the other direction with P5's limiting the exposure to good mid majors to avoid more VCU's and Wichita State's popping up.

Lowering our standards to agreeing to a 1 for 1 with NKU is not going to help. The only Horizon school OHIO should be playing is Cleveland State with the road game at the Q. All the schedule needs is a couple of home/away series with P5 or Big East schools to reduce the amount of payday games and moving more of the payday games to weekends to help attendance. Every coach has promised to make the adjustment but every year its the same type of basketball schedule.