MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[John Rusnak]

A few quick thoughts on the posts from the weekend...sorry for being a day outdated, lol...

As for financial aid at the d3 level...while there is no true athletic scholarship, I think an investigation around the country would relveal that it's rather amazing what money can turn up for athletes that schools want.  The academic scholarships, grants, special loans, jobs on campus, etc. , it's amazing how this stuff ends up in their hands.  I'm not saying none of it is warranted, but don't think for a minute that the financial aid office and athletic departments aren't linked.

As for Adrian's woes...first, you can say that they are undersized, etc, etc, but who recruited these guys?  If you're a 2nd year coach, yes, you get some latitude for your players, but when you've been coaching for a long time (BR tenure, anybody?), there is no excuse not to have the right players in your program.

As for recruiting those players, there are 300 some d3 schools in this country.  Let's say it's 400 with 12 guys on a roster.  That's 4,800 guys from a pool of how many hundreds of thousands that graduate every year.  Plus, at the d3 level, while you certainly need some talent, an athletic team that is well coached can compete with almost anybody at this level.  But even forgetting that, it's not hard to bring in 2-3-4 guys a year.

You mean that you can't get one kid from the GR area to come down?  How about Detroit?  Toledo?  Cincy? Cleveland?  Or anywhere else in the world?!

Now, I grant you Adrian's campus doesn't help.  But even still, if you can get people to buy into your vision as a coach, get them to come for the school, then the rest sorta blurs into the background.  If you're winning rings, you won't care about much else.

[John Rusnak]

By the way, from the talk on the board, the Hoopsville guy's call of Calvin making a run isn't looking so bad anymore, is it?

[AndersDY]

As the brother of a current Hope frat boy, I can tell you Hope students get by just fine. Perhaps the dorms are kept pretty dry, but there are certainly plenty of places around campus where one would have no problem finding a beverage.

However, it is my understanding that drinking is more of a pre-game ritual for Kalamazoo fans than those from Hope or Calvin. I have only been at a game in Kzoo twice, but I do remember when I was there for the '96 game in the Bosma era when Kzoo took Hope down to end the regular season. The majority of the student secton was the group apparently referred to as 'the Stingers' (not sure if that is still the name) and whether they'd been drinking or not, they were more aggressive and hateful toward the visiting crowd than any other MIAA student section I've seen. I honestly can't recall if there was a single bleep-worthy word at any point, but actions were plenty. For whatever reason, the Stingers were selected as the anthem singers for the pre-game, a song they quickly made quite a mockery of. Most of the cheering throughout the game included some sort of venom for the visiting crowd rather than simple celebration. I sat near Spanky (the vocal leader for the Dew Crew at the time) for that game and when Kzoo pulled it out in the end, the students rushed the court, but several of the Stingers felt obligated to run right toward Spanky and get in his face about the win quite aggressively.

I'm sure somebody at every MIAA game somewhere is swearing. One person cursing a foul call vs. organized cheers which include swearing (is that what was in question Saturday?) are certainly different animals. I have not been back to Kzoo in a while, but through all my Hope-Calvin games, I've never seen a group of fans being as vicious as my one Kzoo experience. Every spirited student section will probably get on the case of opposing players or fans: "where's your banners?"... "back to basics".... "aaaair baaallll" etc. but there is certainly a broad line between getting on the opponents' case and showing outright hatred.

Were the actions in question Saturday an issue of individual bad apples or an organized effort to attack visiting fans? It's impossible to do much about the outbursts of individuals, but if it is a pervasive attitude within the whole student section, that is certainly outside the norm.

[kcrest]

Lost in all the talk about:

*swearing (I don't worry about it when I bring my 9-year-old daughter to Calvin games)

*recruiting (I don't buy the statement that every coach tells kids what they want to hear and I think Peter Overbeek would have some thoughts there)

*out-of-state recruiting (Calvin's national alumni base and national CRC ties give it an edge but its strong, strong religious committment might also be a negative for some recruits)

*whether Veldhouse can play the 2 (um, no doubt about that)

has been Crawford's run at Steve Honderd's MIAA shooting percentage record.  To me that's one of the more interesting topics on the board because Honderd was an amazing, amazing player and to see that 15-year-old record threatened is a real surprise. 

Anyhow I wish Crawford nothing but the best, except against Calvin, but I'd be sorry to see Steve's mark fall too.

[oldknight]

By the way, from the talk on the board, the Hoopsville guy's call of Calvin making a run isn't looking so bad anymore, is it?

Nobody would be happier to eat crow than me. Based on the Knights' continuing improvement it's not entirely out of the question, though still a longshot. Pass the ketchup and mustard please.

[John Rusnak]

Crawford should be shooting that kind of percentage...it's not that hard to make layups...

[John Rusnak]

I will grant you, he has improved his free throw shooting this year from 60% up to 66% ...that's 10% ...hey, it beats the s&p and dow lately!

[bulldogalum]

As for Adrian's woes...first, you can say that they are undersized, etc, etc, but who recruited these guys?  If you're a 2nd year coach, yes, you get some latitude for your players, but when you've been coaching for a long time (BR tenure, anybody?), there is no excuse not to have the right players in your program.

As for recruiting those players, there are 300 some d3 schools in this country.  Let's say it's 400 with 12 guys on a roster.  That's 4,800 guys from a pool of how many hundreds of thousands that graduate every year.  Plus, at the d3 level, while you certainly need some talent, an athletic team that is well coached can compete with almost anybody at this level.  But even forgetting that, it's not hard to bring in 2-3-4 guys a year.

You mean that you can't get one kid from the GR area to come down?  How about Detroit?  Toledo?  Cincy? Cleveland?  Or anywhere else in the world?!

Now, I grant you Adrian's campus doesn't help.  But even still, if you can get people to buy into your vision as a coach, get them to come for the school, then the rest sorta blurs into the background.  If you're winning rings, you won't care about much else.

You've got a point here.  But remember, this team was expecting Mike Lewis to be back this season.  He made a decision not to play (and by the way, I don't blame him at all for this decision) and as a result, the Bulldogs are lacking a physical force on the inside.  Adrian has always done a fine job of recruiting guards and shooters, but when you lack an inside presence it's easy for an opposing defense to focus its energies on the perimeter.  Trust me, they're working to fix the problem right now.

As for the campus, you're right again.  There are many things that need to be improved in order to get the campus to the level I'd like to see it at.  The good news, however, is that those things are being planned and executed as I write this.  Construction has already begun on a new football stadium that will be a very impressive structure right on campus.  New exercise facilities have been added to the Merillat Center.  New offices are being installed in the Merillat Center.  The Admissions Office moved from its dreadful location in the center of campus to the old president's house.  The School has purchased apartment complexes bordering campus for upperclassmen housing.  Plans are being formulated for improving the dorms.   Changes at Ritchie Dining Hall will be in place next fall.  No longer will Adrian College be behind other campuses in the MIAA as it pertains to campus facilities.  

I think in the past, there were plenty of recruits who liked Coach Riley, and bought into his philosophy, but simply opted to go elsewhere, mostly because of the facilities at other schools compared to Adrian.  I know, in my years at Adrian, I had a great experience because of the people there.  As a school, Adrian is strong.  The negatives are all the non-academic things.  I had a great time, but I had to overlook the poor quality of dining (trust me, worse than your school), depressingly bad dorms, and administrative policies that were somewhat less than ideal.  With a new administration in place, they're taking huge steps to improve all the old problem areas, and that should translate into better recruiting soon.  

[kresgekrazy]

I had a language class at Albion.  They taught us all kinds of swear words.  First they started off with the basics.  A_ _, S_ _ _ _, and d _ _ _.  Second semester they would teach us the other four letter words H _ _ e, A _ _ a, and even a six letter zinger C_ _ _ _ _.  The final was compound derogatory comments.  For example, "H _ _ e  s_ _ ks!"

I never enjoyed so many tests in my entire life.  Except for the sex ed course I took from that one lady.  Wait... that was a frat party.  Now that was a short class (but I paid attention).

Just kiddin Dutchies!

Don't hate the playa hate the game.

Nate 

[hopenum1]

After all this time, I thought that Albion had at least a little bit of an academic reputation. The last post by Kresge along with the construction of the horse stables last year has driven me to think otherwise. (horse noises)

[devossed]

I sat near Spanky (the vocal leader for the Dew Crew at the time) for that game and when Kzoo pulled it out in the end, the students rushed the court, but several of the Stingers felt obligated to run right toward Spanky and get in his face about the win quite aggressively.

Where have you gone, Joe Dimaggio...

I miss that guy!

[devossed]

*recruiting (I don't buy the statement that every coach tells kids what they want to hear and I think Peter Overbeek would have some thoughts there)

Please don't lump Pete in the same category as Jager or Holt.

[Carl Yastrzemski]

I do believe the fans from out West are wearing some orange and blue glasses and drinking some orange Kool-Aid when they think their student section is a bunch of angels.

The worst thing you can pin on the stingers and Krazys is occasional bad language. This is far different than a few members of the Dew Crew breaking into a car and stealing an object after a game at Kresge.

So do be so quick to throw stones at other schools.

Nate, I heard Featherstone and Phil Dong had that same professor for that class.

University of Michigan just released the name of their new Head Coach. Brian Ellerbe is poised and ready to take Michigan to not only to the top of the Big 10, but to the top of the nation as well. Look for Michigan to dominate instate recruiting.

[devossed]

Your friend says that 'K' could use some of your players.  How about the guys that Kalamazoo recruited who went to Hope with the idea that they were going to have a great Varsity career?  I am sure that Coach Passage would love to have Brett Jager in a Hornet uniform.  Dan Holt?  Jeff Spencer?  Scott Glaser?  And the worst thing is that most Hope fans would probably let 'K' have 'em because of your wonderful transfers.  (The second worst thing is that most Hope fans probably have no idea who Jeff Spencer is).

Can the same be said to Coach Gorno in reference to Kalamazoo's Tennis recruiting?
or Coach Northuis in reference to Calvin's Cross Country recruiting?
or Coach Walters in reference to Alma's softball recruiting?

Bottom line is players are drawn to successful programs.

Well put, Dren. It is true that players go where they really do want to go. I know for a fact that the Hope staff often tells recruits to come there only if they want a real education first with a chance to play basketball second...And Jeff Spencer dug his own grave with his poor decision-making.

*********************************************************************

Now for a couple of thoughts about this weekend's games (caught both Calvin/Hope)

*Calvin really needs to bring back the concession stand Frosty's...

*Nice to see Draayer break out of his mini-slump, but even nicer to see Dustin Smith represent. Maybe Hope did overlook both he and DJ Mocini for hoops...And I still like all 3 of them over Mo Brookins for my designated end-of-game-shooter.

---------

*Greg Immink has shown a renewed focus the last few games and seems to be making a case for best point guard in the league. It will be great to see how the rematch with Bailey goes on Saturday (those who don't remember = Bailey shredded Hope's defense and made Immink look like a JV player last time).

*Nice to see Jeff Carlson break out of his slump and regain the touch.

*Sat near the Van Solkema family during this game--boy did they seem not-to-happy with Derek not playing. But what did they expect??? Please try to understand the importance of chemistry when a team is 18-1 and aiming for their best record in 10 years. His time will come soon enough...

[dothedew]

It's been an enjoyable season so far for the MIAA...I usually never post and instead just read what everyone else has to say. I don't feel that I should have a say since I only get to one or two games a year since I'm now living out in NJ.
I personally don't remember an instance of a hope fan breaking into a car in the last few years??? I'd kinda like you to back that one up.
Out East I go to a lot of D-I games and not only do these games not have the great feel that a D-III game does the fans are downright wrong....I mean wrong. I've even picked up a few new phrases that I didn't know before. Be lucky you get to stay in that MIAA bubble and enjoy the conference for what it is...great basketball played by great kids (most of them)
The reason Kzoo gets so upset with Hope is the fact (as mentioned) that we are their biggest rival for football/basketball...unfortunately for them our main "hatred/rival" goes to Calvin in basketball and Albion in football.
On the other note...there are plenty of beverages to be found in and around the hope campus and holland community...however for the most part and "almost" entirely the dew crew is full of students that don't drink before the games...a lot of us WILL go out AFTER the game though. I think the lack of a "pre-game" is one of the big things that has kept the Dew Crew special over the years and has kept us/them out of trouble.
Either way...GO HOPE and DEW THE DEW!!!