How long do you give Floyd to turn things around?

[MinerManiac]

During the last offseason there was a very vocal group of posters here on MinerDigs that were dissatisfied with the fact that the Miners had again failed to make the NCAA Tournament under Coach Floyd, and had again been blown out in a post season game. One poster then put up a poll to see what the consensus was on the board. An overwhelming number of the voters in the poll supported Coach Floyd, numbers that did not reflect what was being said in the messages threads at the time. This was an indication to me that, while Floyd did have some very vocal supporters in those threads, most of his supporters who read this board preferred to stay out the arguments.

Now the call for removing Coach Floyd has become louder than ever. While there are still a couple of ardent Floyd supporters who defend him on the board, the vast majority of those who post regularly here want Floyd to either be fired or to step down. But does that reflect the consensus of the community who reads this board, or, like last offseason, are there a number of Floyd supporters who have chosen not to enter the debate? I am also curious as to whether or not those who do support Floyd have a breaking point, one in which they will also start wanting the basketball program to move in a different direction.

So the question is this: how long do you give Floyd to turn things around before you will be calling for him to be replaced? I am defining "turning things around" as winning a regular season CUSA Title and/or receiving an NCAA Tournament bid. Please vote "He should have been fired before the beginning of the season" only if you were calling for him to be fired before the season began. If you supported him then, but want him gone now, either vote "He should be fired now" or "He needs to make the Tournament this season, or fire him".

Now some might think that he has done a great job here at UTEP, winning over 20 games in three of his five years here. If you think that this is a better barometer for doing a good job here at UTEP than conference titles and NCAA Tournament appearances, then the option "The job should be his for as long as he wants it" might be the best choice for you.

As for me, I said before the season began that I thought that this would be a rebuilding year. I expected the team to struggle this season, though, to be honest, I didn't expect the four consecutive blow out losses we had in December, or the losses to Norfolk State and UTSA. Still, I said before the season that I would give Floyd and his staff until next season to turn this thing around, and that is how I voted.

 

[utep2step]

Let Touchet handle the duties. His game is progressing a ton. He's no Jimmer Fredette (BYU '07-'11), but the potential is there.

 

[JCorona]

If by March 12th 2016 UTEP is not C-USA tournament champions and receiving the Auto Bid then Floyd should resign from UTEP. He will then be free to pursue all those jobs his name keep coming up for. I have no doubt he is a great coach and he might have one last run in him but it's becoming painful to support him. I wish him the best of luck and hope he takes his next team to the tourney.

 

[unihorn]

I would sum up the results so far as "short leash."

 

[66miners]

methinks you're asking the wrong question... it should be
How long do you give Bob Stull to turn things around?

 

[jdubb66]

Depends. There are reasons to be optimistic namely the large number of good young players he's recruited . If he can retain those then I would give him 2 years. If we have another exodus of players at the end of this year, there is no need to keep him on any longer.

 

[allminer]

Much fairer poll than the last one. Good job.

 

[liebestraum]

Once I realized Floyd was running a revolving door with players, I ceased to be optimistic about his tenure at UTEP. I no longer pay attention to who we recruit or how well they play in high school or junior college because I am never sure who will actually be suiting up once the season starts.

And with the nearly different cast of characters every year, I feel like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.

I would welcome a change.

lieb

 

[STexMiner]

I think there should be two different levels. If the team actually shows improvement over the next month and a half and wins the tourney, I could see letting him come back. But, if we bumble our way to a 10 seed, somehow fluke our way to the tourney championship, and lose a 16-16 play in game to NJIT, I don't think even that would be good enough to convince me.

That being said, I voted for fire him now. I think the best we can ask of this team right now is to end up .500 in conference and maybe a first round win in the conference tournament. In this conference, that's just not good enough. You might say that this team is young. I would disagree. Vint's a fifth year senior. Flaggert and Caldwell have been in the program for three years. Touchet, Winn, Harris, and Morris are in their second year. Artis played in the Pac-12. They may be new; they're not young. They've played together since the beginning of October. They should show a little bit more familiarity with each other than they're showing. Has anyone improved from the start? Maybe Hooper. Most of the team is either about the same or has regressed. The season's going nowhere, the program has firmly stagnated. I just don't see why he needs to stick around any more.

 

[MinerManiac]

Thanks to everyone who voted in the poll, especially those who also left a comment in this thread. Here are my observations from the votes:

The obvious observation, like unihorn said, is that if was up to us here on MinerDigs, Floyd would be on a very short leash. I'm sure that most of us, myself included, are shocked and saddened that we feel compelled to vote this way. But if we go by the most popular response above, to give him until the end of next season to win the conference and/or make the NCAA Tournament, it will be seven years that he's had to build the program. That's WAY more than enough time.

I'm really surprised that the last two options didn't receive significantly more votes. Even though I realize that there are only a very few still ardently supporting Coach Floyd publicly on this board, I still figured that there would be more who were silently sticking with him.

I'm also surprised that the option to fire him now didn't received more votes. This was an extremely popular refrain after our loss to Norfolk State. My guess is that most of the people uttering that sentiment at the time have decided to give him this year and the CUSA Tournament to turn things around.

Back in 2010, when Floyd was hired as our head coach, I'm sure that everyone would have been surprised had they known that the fans would want him to be on a short leash during his sixth season. However, had we hired anyone else I bet that they would have been on a short leash MUCH sooner under similar circumstances.

 

[MineroFanatico]

So of the 50 votes (as of now), non-support/support of CTF is nearly 50/50. 24 want him gone by season's end if he doesn't reach the Dance, some of those 24 actually want him gone...like yesterday. 26 want to give him more time. A little more than a year from now, if he still hasn't made the tourney, 22 of those 26 supporters will flip and want him gone also. That obviously would be the overwhelming majority of us die-hards. If it were up to the fans, and it might be to some extent, at least indirectly, next year will be a pivotal year.

My guess is, if the season continues along the same trajectory it has been on so far this season, a few will jump to non-supporter status a bit earlier than projected and Floyd's approval rating will drop below 50%...at least on this board.

 

[EPsports27]

Stull will never fire him. He will sign him to another contract extension. Stull hands out contact extensions like candy on halloween.

 

[LaserCoog]

So of the 50 votes (as of now), non-support/support of CTF is nearly 50/50.

Interesting spin. Perhaps an alternative analysis would be that well over 90% of the poll respondents either already wanted him fired, want him fired immediately or at the end of this season, or after next season (save a championship or tournament appearance next year). That hardly looks like 50% support from this seat in the house. Looks more like one foot out the door and the other on a banana peel...

 

[artistarts28]

I give Floyd one more season to turn things around. This season was a throw away season after losing Hunter and Washburn. The way I see it Floyd and staff know what they are missing to compete and I expect them to get the players needed to get UTEP back to the big dance. Next year no more excuses, it's time to produce a winner

GO MINERS!

 

[utep2step]

I wouldn't go to the extreme and call it a throw away season. He took high risk and gambled on players and it's blown up in his face. If UTEP had Chris Washburn, he would have limited Diaz from FIU and thing wouldn't be as dire. But, he recruited players with questionable dedication to his program and here we are, reacting like a bunch folks who see that ugly spider on the wall and want to kill it with fire.

 

[miner1liner]

Did any of you attend Floyd's get together last night? If so, can you elaborate on whether or not there were some "pointed" questions asked and what was his demeanor in answering the questions as well as his overall attitude. Does he show remorse at the state of the program?

 

[TrojanMiner]

Once I realized Floyd was running a revolving door with players, I ceased to be optimistic about his tenure at UTEP. I no longer pay attention to who we recruit or how well they play in high school or junior college because I am never sure who will actually be suiting up once the season starts.

And with the nearly different cast of characters every year, I feel like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.

I would welcome a change.

lieb

^^^ This ^^^

 

[STexMiner]

For those who want to give Floyd one more shot at the tourney next year, what makes you believe that it'll happen, given what we have coming back and what we have coming in? If it's anything other than blind faith, what's the use at this point?

 

[unihorn]

For those who want to give Floyd one more shot at the tourney next year, what makes you believe that it'll happen, given what we have coming back and what we have coming in? If it's anything other than blind faith, what's the use at this point?

That's a fair question, which I'll stick my neck out on.

First, it's not blind faith; for me, it's more about hoping to see a favorite son of the program make good here. I think older fans appreciate this sentiment more than younger fans, which is understandable.

Second, I just don't see UTEP eating Floyd's contract.

Third, I think he'll pull in another surprise recruit or two that could make the difference next year.

I'm not sure I believe it will happen, but I'd like to see it happen.

 

[artistarts28]

We as fans can see the glaring deficiencies that have hampered this team this year. No inside muscle and poor defense which has hurt our guard play that we expected was going to be a strength. Add an inside player from a JC with hopefully some growth from Jones and Thomas and UTEP should look different muscle wise. Floyd's tenure has been frustrating at times but it's hard to except Floyd not succeeding here at UTEP. I would agree it is blind faith because everything seems to point in the direction that Floyd will not succeed. Just can't see CTF going out like this.

 

[jdubb66]

The biggest addition next year should be Kelvin Jones. He's a legit 7' with mobility and strength. Adding one more inside guy from a JC should help. Given the expected growth and development of the current roster we should see a leaps and bounds difference in next years team. If we lose players in the off season, we'll be back at square one next year. No seasoned vets and a new learning curve for talented but inexperienced youth. The measuring stick for this coaching staff should be how well they retain the current roster of players.

 

[UTEPy79]

Josh Puga's article "time running out on Floyd era": spot on. Kudos. A must read.

 

[MineroFanatico]

Josh Puga's article "time running out on Floyd era": spot on. Kudos. A must read.

Yeah, a little thin, but none the less a good read.

 

[STexMiner]

I might be with you regarding having hope if this team could improve. But, we're not really talking having a player or two make some strides and the rest simply progressing normally. It's probably going to take a vast majority of this team to make some fairly significant strides to get to the point where they would even be in the conversation. So far, it hasn't happened. As I said above, the team as a whole hasn't gotten better this season, and virtually no one has improved individually. I don't think that's a very good sign if you're hoping for a good offseason.

In the longer term, this might not be something you want to hear, but I think it's getting fairly close to a proven fact. Player development hasn't exactly been this coaching staff's strong point. Over the past 4 and a half years, who has shown marked improvement from when they started to when they finished? Definitely Lang, probably Vint, maybe Bohannon? Anyone else? Cooper, Washburn, Hunter, McKenzie Moore, Jalen Ragland, Streeter? This is Willms's fourth year in the program and Flaggert's third. Anyone of them drastically improve? A few improved marginally, some didn't, but I don't think any one of them showed drastic improvement. (And, it's pretty sad that I could only think of ten players that stuck around long to ask the question about).

I don't know. Maybe this is the that good, drama-free offseason we've been looking for the past half decade. But, I think the odds are that it won't.

 

[unihorn]

We're all kind of saying the same thing.

 

[efrainUtep1]

I'm sorry, I have to say this. Every so called Utep "fan" expects a winning BB or FB team every year although most top prospects look at the school as nothing more than a slight step above high school basketball. Top that with a much smaller athletic budget than other big name Texas colleges and add in a fan base that only fills the Sun Bowl or Haskins Center when the team is winning gives none of you the right to pass judgement or call for the resignation or firing of Floyd or Kugler. Miner FB wins a couple games, the Sun Bowl is near capacity. They lose a game, the stadium is half filled for the next game. Same with BB. With that kind of "we support you if you win but bitch and skip the next game if you lose" fan base, what do you expect from our teams? Don't you think future recruits read this board too and understand the BS criticism they'll have to face if they fail to live up to the ridiculous expectations this wishy washy fan base expects. How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd? He could leave at anytime, go to a much bigger school, get paid at least double what he makes here and be a winning coach again. Instead, he sticks by the school that he thought would be behind him, he sticks with the school where he learned the basics of defense from the great Haskins and he sticks with the school where he has to work that much harder to land a 2 or 3 star player compared to the other major Texas colleges. What do you all expect???? National championships??? When the mentality of the fan base changes, it will reflect on the win/loss record of our FB/BB teams. After all, the women are killing it this season but no one seems to notice.

 

[UTEPy79]

Yes, the topic of the approaching end of the Floyd era has been talked about on this board - that's one minor thing: a message board. A journalistic article of opinion carries more cache - however thin - due to its perceived value over a squakbox of comments, observations, rants, trolling & sniping.

 

[MineroFanatico]

I'm sorry, I have to say this. Every so called Utep "fan" expects a winning BB or FB team every year although most top prospects look at the school as nothing more than a slight step above high school basketball. Top that with a much smaller athletic budget than other big name Texas colleges and add in a fan base that only fills the Sun Bowl or Haskins Center when the team is winning gives none of you the right to pass judgement or call for the resignation or firing of Floyd or Kugler. Miner FB wins a couple games, the Sun Bowl is near capacity. They lose a game, the stadium is half filled for the next game. Same with BB. With that kind of "we support you if you win but bitch and skip the next game if you lose" fan base, what do you expect from our teams? Don't you think future recruits read this board too and understand the BS criticism they'll have to face if they fail to live up to the ridiculous expectations this wishy washy fan base expects. How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd? He could leave at anytime, go to a much bigger school, get paid at least double what he makes here and be a winning coach again. Instead, he sticks by the school that he thought would be behind him, he sticks with the school where he learned the basics of defense from the great Haskins and he sticks with the school where he has to work that much harder to land a 2 or 3 star player compared to the other major Texas colleges. What do you all expect???? National championships??? When the mentality of the fan base changes, it will reflect on the win/loss record of our FB/BB teams. After all, the women are killing it this season but no one seems to notice.

Most of us expect MORE than what has been produced. Also, this is a forum, where opinions can be rationally, or not so rationally, discussed. Don't be ridiculous. I haven't put UTEP and national championship in the same sentence since 1992. Honestly, I can only speak for myself, but I would settle for winning mighty CUSA's title, or tournament as a start. If you think that's asking too much, you must be easy to please.

 

[Minerforlife]

I'm sorry, I have to say this. Every so called Utep "fan" expects a winning BB or FB team every year although most top prospects look at the school as nothing more than a slight step above high school basketball. Top that with a much smaller athletic budget than other big name Texas colleges and add in a fan base that only fills the Sun Bowl or Haskins Center when the team is winning gives none of you the right to pass judgement or call for the resignation or firing of Floyd or Kugler. Miner FB wins a couple games, the Sun Bowl is near capacity. They lose a game, the stadium is half filled for the next game. Same with BB. With that kind of "we support you if you win but bitch and skip the next game if you lose" fan base, what do you expect from our teams? Don't you think future recruits read this board too and understand the BS criticism they'll have to face if they fail to live up to the ridiculous expectations this wishy washy fan base expects. How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd? He could leave at anytime, go to a much bigger school, get paid at least double what he makes here and be a winning coach again. Instead, he sticks by the school that he thought would be behind him, he sticks with the school where he learned the basics of defense from the great Haskins and he sticks with the school where he has to work that much harder to land a 2 or 3 star player compared to the other major Texas colleges. What do you all expect???? National championships??? When the mentality of the fan base changes, it will reflect on the win/loss record of our FB/BB teams. After all, the women are killing it this season but no one seems to notice.

This is ridiculous. The fan base is and has been very supportive. Our attendance s extraordinary. Name another school that would get 8000 people to come to a game against FIU when you have an rpi in 250s. Theres not one. This program has been to three ncaa tournaments in the last 23 years. The fact that we continually average 8000 a game is a testament to the fan base. The same goes with football.

As for Floyd, he's damaged goods nobody wants him. If hes fired here he wont get a big time job. He may het a job at a low profile school like A&M Corpus or SELA, but even thats doubtful. He is only here because nobody else wants him, he has tried to leave every season. We owe him no debt of gratitude or loyalty. When rabs was fired he was offered the job was offered the job to Floyd and he laughed and turned it down. He only took the job this time because he had no other options.

 

[MinerManiac]

I'm sorry, I have to say this. Every so called Utep "fan" expects a winning BB or FB team every year although most top prospects look at the school as nothing more than a slight step above high school basketball. Top that with a much smaller athletic budget than other big name Texas colleges and add in a fan base that only fills the Sun Bowl or Haskins Center when the team is winning gives none of you the right to pass judgement or call for the resignation or firing of Floyd or Kugler. Miner FB wins a couple games, the Sun Bowl is near capacity. They lose a game, the stadium is half filled for the next game. Same with BB. With that kind of "we support you if you win but bitch and skip the next game if you lose" fan base, what do you expect from our teams? Don't you think future recruits read this board too and understand the BS criticism they'll have to face if they fail to live up to the ridiculous expectations this wishy washy fan base expects. How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd? He could leave at anytime, go to a much bigger school, get paid at least double what he makes here and be a winning coach again. Instead, he sticks by the school that he thought would be behind him, he sticks with the school where he learned the basics of defense from the great Haskins and he sticks with the school where he has to work that much harder to land a 2 or 3 star player compared to the other major Texas colleges. What do you all expect???? National championships??? When the mentality of the fan base changes, it will reflect on the win/loss record of our FB/BB teams. After all, the women are killing it this season but no one seems to notice.

This post interesting, and I think that some of the ideas in here could have been made into a very good post. Basically, your opinion is that Floyd has done a good job as a coach here, and are arguing that winning 20 games each of the last three seasons, making a CBI and an NIT in the process, is about as good as we can expect. I disagree with this idea, as I have much higher standards for the basketball team, but do think that this idea could have been made into an intelligent, coherent post.

Unfortunately you placed a lot of stuff in here that is flat out ridiculous. The idea that any division one basketball program, including ours, is only a slight step above high school is flat out wrong. We worked FAU pretty easily last week. FAU would destroy any high school team that you placed against them. No recruit compares us against his high school team. They concern themselves with the school, the team, the city, their relationship to the coaches who are recruiting them, their perceived ability to win at the school, their perceived chance to earn playing time, etc,. and compare that against the same criteria for the other schools that are recruiting them. And while it may seem to you that UTEP would lose in a lot of these comparisons, that's not necessarily the case. Gillispie was able to bring in Fili Rivera, Omar Thomas, and Jason Williams. Barbee brought in players like Randy Culpepper, Julyan Stone, Arnett Moultrie, and Derrick Caracter. Back in the 80's, Floyd and Bradburd brought in Fred Reynolds, Juden Smith, Jeep Jackson, Tim Hardaway, Antonio Davis, David Van Dyke, Marlon Maxey, and others. It is possible to bring talent to El Paso.

As to the question, "How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd?". I thought similarly when we hired him. But looking at the post Haskins coaches, all of them, except for the train wreck that was Rabadeaux, have had more success here and in fewer season than Floyd has had.

You asked if we expected national championships here. I can't speak for everyone else, but as for me, no, I don't expect national championships. What I do expect is for us to compete for a conference title almost every year, and win more than our fair share of them. I also expect us to receive some NCAA Tournament invitations. Oh, and winning a couple of post season games, and being competitive in the ones we don't win, would be a nice change. Under Floyd we have been blown out in the three post season games (2 NIT, 1 CBI) that we have played.

Also, there have been rumors during every off season that Floyd has been here that he has been looking at bigger programs. Now these could be just that, rumors, but it could also be a case of "where there's smoke, there's fire". Unless you have inside information into Floyd's dealings and can say with certainty that he hasn't sought another job, you can't conclusively say that he "sticks by the school."

Finally, look at the poll above. The most popular response is to give Floyd another year to win a conference title and/or earn an NCAA Tournament bid. I was one that voted that way. This gives Floyd seven seasons to accomplish what Gillispie did in two and Barbee did in four. The only reason that I am giving Floyd this much time is because he is Tim Floyd, because I have wanted him to return some day as head coach since he left for Idaho, and because of the success he has enjoyed as a college coach at his other stops. If anyone else had received the job back in 2010, and had experienced similar results and struggles, I would have called for his head a long time ago.

 

[MineroFanatico]

Now that is one hell of a coherent, intelligent and interesting post, just to borrow a few of your afore mentioned adjectives. Nicely said, MinerManiac!

 

[PositivelyPete]

I like how Floyd defenders will bring up the women's team and their lack of support. Nobody cares about girls basketball. This ain't UConn.

 

[UTEPy79]

Or Tennessee.

 

[miner661]

UTEP 58
USM 71

Fire Floyd right now.

 

[jdubb66]

I change my vote.

 

[efrainUtep1]

This post interesting, and I think that some of the ideas in here could have been made into a very good post. Basically, your opinion is that Floyd has done a good job as a coach here, and are arguing that winning 20 games each of the last three seasons, making a CBI and an NIT in the process, is about as good as we can expect. I disagree with this idea, as I have much higher standards for the basketball team, but do think that this idea could have been made into an intelligent, coherent post.

Unfortunately you placed a lot of stuff in here that is flat out ridiculous. The idea that any division one basketball program, including ours, is only a slight step above high school is flat out wrong. We worked FAU pretty easily last week. FAU would destroy any high school team that you placed against them. No recruit compares us against his high school team. They concern themselves with the school, the team, the city, their relationship to the coaches who are recruiting them, their perceived ability to win at the school, their perceived chance to earn playing time, etc,. and compare that against the same criteria for the other schools that are recruiting them. And while it may seem to you that UTEP would lose in a lot of these comparisons, that's not necessarily the case. Gillispie was able to bring in Fili Rivera, Omar Thomas, and Jason Williams. Barbee brought in players like Randy Culpepper, Julyan Stone, Arnett Moultrie, and Derrick Caracter. Back in the 80's, Floyd and Bradburd brought in Fred Reynolds, Juden Smith, Jeep Jackson, Tim Hardaway, Antonio Davis, David Van Dyke, Marlon Maxey, and others. It is possible to bring talent to El Paso.

As to the question, "How often do you think UTEP will land a coach like Floyd?". I thought similarly when we hired him. But looking at the post Haskins coaches, all of them, except for the train wreck that was Rabadeaux, have had more success here and in fewer season than Floyd has had.

You asked if we expected national championships here. I can't speak for everyone else, but as for me, no, I don't expect national championships. What I do expect is for us to compete for a conference title almost every year, and win more than our fair share of them. I also expect us to receive some NCAA Tournament invitations. Oh, and winning a couple of post season games, and being competitive in the ones we don't win, would be a nice change. Under Floyd we have been blown out in the three post season games (2 NIT, 1 CBI) that we have played.

Also, there have been rumors during every off season that Floyd has been here that he has been looking at bigger programs. Now these could be just that, rumors, but it could also be a case of "where there's smoke, there's fire". Unless you have inside information into Floyd's dealings and can say with certainty that he hasn't sought another job, you can't conclusively say that he "sticks by the school."

Finally, look at the poll above. The most popular response is to give Floyd another year to win a conference title and/or earn an NCAA Tournament bid. I was one that voted that way. This gives Floyd seven seasons to accomplish what Gillispie did in two and Barbee did in four. The only reason that I am giving Floyd this much time is because he is Tim Floyd, because I have wanted him to return some day as head coach since he left for Idaho, and because of the success he has enjoyed as a college coach at his other stops. If anyone else had received the job back in 2010, and had experienced similar results and struggles, I would have called for his head a long time ago.

Minermaniac, thank you for "posting" a response instead of attacking it. I respect you for that. So let me explain my post to you.....When I asked how often UTEP could land someone like Floyd, I misspoke. Utep could and has. My problem is that after a couple of good years, they leave. On the other hand, Floyd has stayed. He could have left, but he hasn't. Every other successful coach has. How does Utep end this? You say you have higher standards for this program but your standards and the quality of players that this school recruits are two different things entirely. Don't blame the coaches, blame the athletic department budget. Do you think Floyd and the staff could afford or should sleep over at a recruits home like Calipari? Now you bring up the names of many great past Miner players that others recruited and brought to Utep but you failed to mention Omega Harris, Vint and others who play now or have recently graduated/gone to NBA. Comparing recruiting classes from 5, 10, 20 years ago to today's is "flat out ridiculous". Today's 5 star player has nothing on their mind other than getting into the NBA. If their goal was to attend a great educational institution and receive a degree, many smaller Ivy League type schools would be constants in the NCAA tournament. You say, "They concern themselves with the school, the team, the city, their relationship to the coaches who are recruiting them, their perceived ability to win at the school, their perceived chance to earn playing time, etc,. and compare that against the same criteria for the other schools that are recruiting them. And while it may seem to you that UTEP would lose in a lot of these comparisons, that's not necessarily the case." If all of these 5 star players or even 4 star players concerned themselves with the school they attend, wouldn't more of them stay the 4 years and earn degrees before jumping to the NBA or European Basketball leagues?? You and others expect Utep to compete for conference titles every year. When Haskins was still here, if he failed to win the conference, everyone cried for his termination. Don't believe me?? Go back and look at the sports pages from that era at the library. Then look at all of the teams from the end of the Haskins era until now that were mediocre at best. Every coach for Utep has had his share of poor recruiting classes. The Billy Gillespies recruited well, then left and found themselves in serious trouble. The other Barbee's were given players recruited from prior coaching staffs. They did well and then...left. Now, I hate to say it because the narrow minded will go crazy over this but the women are kicking ass. That's not good enough for El Paso??? I read comments saying, "We're not UConn or Tennessee." No, we're not. But that is how great programs are born. With the backing from fans. Those that made those comments are openly saying that because the women's BB team is doing great, it makes no difference because they are women and should be ignored. WOW, what a great fanbase. Then they wonder why recruits, when researching Utep, decide not to come here. As for Floyd, all of you can call for his termination. Afterwards, we can look forward to another 3-4 years before having a winning record again....or if you think you can do better, apply to be the head coach and let's see how much better you can do.

 

[efrainUtep1]

Yes, the topic of the approaching end of the Floyd era has been talked about on this board - that's one minor thing: a message board. A journalistic article of opinion carries more cache - however thin - due to its perceived value over a squakbox of comments, observations, rants, trolling & sniping.

So what are you saying?

 

[efrainUtep1]

Most of us expect MORE than what has been produced. Also, this is a forum, where opinions can be rationally, or not so rationally, discussed. Don't be ridiculous. I haven't put UTEP and national championship in the same sentence since 1992. Honestly, I can only speak for myself, but I would settle for winning mighty CUSA's title, or tournament as a start. If you think that's asking too much, you must be easy to please.

No, you are easy to please being happy with winning CUSA titles. Is that all you are rationally happy with? If it was, you would expect Much more than what has been produced.

 

[efrainUtep1]

This is ridiculous. The fan base is and has been very supportive. Our attendance s extraordinary. Name another school that would get 8000 people to come to a game against FIU when you have an rpi in 250s. Theres not one. This program has been to three ncaa tournaments in the last 23 years. The fact that we continually average 8000 a game is a testament to the fan base. The same goes with football.

As for Floyd, he's damaged goods nobody wants him. If hes fired here he wont get a big time job. He may het a job at a low profile school like A&M Corpus or SELA, but even thats doubtful. He is only here because nobody else wants him, he has tried to leave every season. We owe him no debt of gratitude or loyalty. When rabs was fired he was offered the job was offered the job to Floyd and he laughed and turned it down. He only took the job this time because he had no other options.

8000 a game is a testament to the fan base? As of the census of 2010, 649,121 people lived in El Paso, but 8,000 a game is a testament to the fan base? Really?

 

[efrainUtep1]

I like how Floyd defenders will bring up the women's team and their lack of support. Nobody cares about girls basketball. This ain't UConn.

"Nobody cares about girls basketball." Wow, spoken by a true fan.