OK, I've heard enough empty opinions. Let's analyze some facts: RECORD: Since out of conference schedules are so diffrent, lets look at LSU's SEC record the last few years: 2002-2003 (8-8) 3rd in West 2001-2002 (6-10) 4th in West 2000-2001 (2-13) 6th in West *With a win at AU we will be 9-7 and 2nd in West for 2003-2004 Analysis: OK, we are improving, perhaps not at a rate acceptable to many of you, but we are improving. If we win against AU we will have the same exact SEC record as Miss. St. had last season. Yes, that's right: the same Miss. St. team that is #5 in the country. If you look at State's SEC wins over that time period (7, 10, 9) it's comparable. I use Miss. St. because they're a team a lot like ours over the last decade (minus sanctions). Don't compare us to Kentucky, that's absurd. It's like comparing Alabama's baseball team to ours. The 99-00 season was a great year, but in the middle of NCAA sanctions as bad as ours, I believe it to be more of an anomaly than anything to base educated arguments on. It was a testament to Brady's recruiting ability if anything. The real key is what's going on now. We are poised to have our best SEC record since 99-00. Which leads to this: look at the players we lost after last season: Torris Bright, Sr. Collis Temple III, Sr. Ronald Dupree, Sr. Don't tell me we're not a young team after losing three senior starters. That makes this season a lot more impressive than people make it out to be. If we make the Dance after this kind of leadership lost, I'll be happy. I'm not saying I'm incredibly ecstatic about where we are right now. We are mediocre, but we're not stuck there. These young guys play with a lot of heart (something attributable to Brady whether you like it or not), but they also have talent. I know many of you will look at this a completely different way, and that's cool. I just wanted to explain why I think Brady should get another year or two so that we can see what he can do with this talent. OPEN FORUMS ARE A GREAT THING AND THIS IS JUST MY VIEW OF THE SITUATION.
I smell the "end of the world guys" coming........"empty seats, wah wah". Nice post TL. It kills some of these self proclaimed experts to admit Brady and the young team have for the most part, represented LSU well this season at 8-7 in SEC play. Look at our future...
Why in the hell would it kill anyone to admit success? The real issue here is how to define success...
agreed. and i define success for lsu basketball like this: 1. we should be in the top half of the sec every year, and win the west periodically. 2. we should make the tournament almost every year. two NITs in a row should mean a fired coach most of the time. 3. we should have a team that can make the sweet 16 periodically, and the final four maybe every 6 or seven years. i think those are realistic expectations for lsu. however, brady came in under severe limitations, so i will let it slide that he hast made the final four yet. since he is now on equal footing, i would expect him to make the tournament this year, and do some damage in it next year. i think it is absolutely moronic to want to fire brady now. we are second in the west, and we are going to the tournament. there is nothing wrong with that. people have bandwagon brains, and they love to get angry, that doesnt mean second in the west is bad.
the way i look at it is that at the beginning of the season i thought 9-7 sec record at best. we have a good chance of making that mark, but i think without the injury to lloreda we would have won 4 of the last 5 instead of only 1 of 5. that would give us 12-4 record. truly amazing. and brady would have been up for national coach of the year, but one injury and the sky is falling
do you know how many times you could repeat this trend for the football program........and guess what......the fans would not be sold.......showing you are just "improving" over and over again doesn't cut it.......we want a ncaa championship in basketball period......anything less is unacceptable.......
yep we won so many games in the 1990s in football, no way we would have lost for almost 10 years just no way.
i can't figure it out.......i thought we had the formula working on and off in the '80's but the consistency never came through......talent can only take you so far.....you have to have the coaching.......it has to be the priority......the commitment.......
I will say 1 thing about the 80's Bill Arnsbarger........ a coach is everything..... I hope I spelled his name right!
That is a very good point, he made ALL the difference in football, but I don't think that comparing basketball to football is a good analogy. (Arnsparger, I knew it didn't look right so I looked it up). I addressed why I feel this way in the "what you don't like about Brady" post.