Again, I know they dont mean much, but I also put together a list of all the OOC opponents, and where they finished in their respective conference preseason polls. (I listed all the teams in the Paradise Jam, even though we will only play 3)


Team - Conference - Preseason Rank
==================================
Florida Gulf Coast - A-Sun - 2 of 8
Tennessee State - OVC (East) - 6 of 6
Tulsa - AAC - 4 of 11
Indiana St.* - MVC - 6 of 10
Norfolk St.* - MEAC - 3 of 13
Hofstra^ - CAA - 1 of 10
FSU^ - ACC - 6 of 15
DePaul^ - Big East - 8 of 10
S. Carolina^ - SEC - 7 of 14
Marshall - C-USA - 9 of 14
St. Bonaventure - A-10 - 9 of 14
Cleveland State - Horizon - 7 of 10
Ohio Dominican - GLIAC (South) - 5 of 8
Jackson State - SWAC - 6 of 10
Arkansas-Pine Bluff - SWAC - 7 of 10
UC Riverside - Big West - 5 of 10


* - Second Round of Paradise Jam
^ - Third Round of Paradise Jam

The interesting thing is Jeff, I still think UB could be solid. I think Miami is better than they're picked, I mean the team is full of upperclassmen. Kent is a bit of a wild card, losing so many seniors, but they still have Jimmy Hall and a couple nice transfers. Frankly, of all the teams in the MAC East, Ohio is the biggest unknown with all the new faces.

It's probably gonna be a long year up on the tundra of BG. I think Akron could run away with the regular season. They have plenty of returning players and maybe better depth at guard than Dambrot has ever had.

I like Pomeroy but is there anything more useless than a formula to figure out preseason rankings of college teams, particularly when you don't factor in 40% of a team's starters because they are transfers?

If we're last, the rumblings about football will pale in comparison to what you'll see on here in the winter.

Big difference in experience with an extremely young basketball team and senior laden football team. Next year there will be big expectations for basketball but this is a development year.

I think we know with the way Saul has talked that Jaaron, Kenny and Tony will be what we expect or better. This year, just like last, will come down to the complementary players. Last year Laster and Taylor were inconsistent and Treg was a bundle of erratic but entertaining energy. Can Laster be more than energy? Can Khari drive to the hole? Can Gollon, Block and Dartis shoot the lights out? Can Wadley play 10 solid minutes of ball where he's not just taking a spot on the floor? Is Treg ready to use his "most shots taken over the summer" and make it into a legit scoring threat? If we can say "yes" to man of these questions then we have a great chance for special things like the team that beat Georgetown. Who's D.J. Cooper? Will Armon Bassett be anything special? Can Tommy Freeman shoot? Can Devaughn Washington rebound and play "D?" All were questions with resounding YESSSSSSSESSSS.

Bobcat1998, your post is right in line with what I was trying to say.

Alan, I agree with you. Since I've been a Bobcat, basketball expectations have always been higher.

With Solich the football program is/was able to reach 90% of its potential. Didn't have a winning record in MACCs or bowl games but at least made them. Ohio will always be vulnerable to a smack down in MAC play. Boise State the dominator themselves was smacked down in the MWC the other week. Football success outside the Top 10 schools is fungible. In basketball, Ohio only scratched the surface in 2012. Saul Phillips has a blank canvas to paint his program. With Saul I expect its going to take a while but it will be worth it once his program arrives.

I hope you are right but as of now I'd say that's a big question mark. Groce beat out some pretty big programs for Cooper and Levert. I'm not saying that our recruits aren't going to be great players but the teams that are in the mix for them are of a decidedly lower caliber than the guys Groce was recruiting against.

I've got high expectations THIS year. This program has an awful lot of resources dedicated to it to have 10 win seasonS (emphasis on the PLURAL) racked up in a row.

Many people on this board said our team last year didn't have great talent. I thought that was wrong then and I still believe that was wrong. Look at Maurice Ndour. He suffered an unlucky injury, but it is pretty clear from his guaranteed contract in the NBA that he is not short on talent. Our problems last year wasn't talent, it was chemistry. Our players didn't fit together out there. They had individual talent, but they didn't play as a team.

I'm really big on Saul. I think he is going to build something special in Athens. I like the players he brought in and I think we will see a quick turnaround similar to the women's program last year. I expect this team to have growing pains early, but by year-end I think the early playing time for the young guys is going to show in a big way. If that doesn't happen, I think Saul is going to get heat. I'm a big believer in NOT ripping coaches online (except Browns coaches on twitter) but I expect it if we don't play well in hoops this year.

I agree that expectations are higher, but I think that's logical. The program has a much longer and richer history, and has never suffered anything akin to the 15+ lost years in the 80s and 90s like the football program. I think the other factor is that the ceiling for mid-majors is so much higher and reaching the elite level is so much more realistic. Basketball is still a game where the P5 hasn't ruined everything (yet). Great MAC teams can credibly dream of a Sweet 16 run or better. Or a 7-9 MAC record can still get you a chance to humiliate basketball royalty in the NCAA Tournament if you play your cards right. It's nothing like that in football.

Unfortunately there are too many new faces to be melded into a cohesive unit this year for us to have any high expectations. If we are a .500 team then we have shown some improvement. To expect anything more, IMHO, is wishful thinking.
I now see Saul more measured in his press interviews than he was last year. I think he may have learned his lesson and come down from cloud 9 and his hire with a 5 year deal at $550,000.00 per.
He has only 1 senior on this team which certainly adds additional pressure on the new players he has brought in. If these guys don't perform this year than it could take longer for us to return to previous winning seasons.






GO BOBCATS