UTEP's Tim Floyd likes prospects of good competition

[unihorn]

And echoes with the sounds, of salesmen, of salesmen, of salesmen:

http://www.elpasotimes.com/story/sports/college/utep/2017/06/28/uteps-tim-floyd-likes-prospects-good-competition/437518001/

 

[Minerforlife]

I feel like it's always groundhogs day with Floyd. He always talks up the incoming class as the saviors. Six months later they are all gone and we start the yearly rebuild. If all seven guys are still here next summer the program will be in better shape.The problem with the Floyd era, other than arrogance and getting outcoached, is the roster turnover and lack of player development. If he can retain all his players for once the program will have a fighting chance. This is his eighth mulligan hopefully the eighth time is the charm.

The basketball program has many problems. The program is totally irrelevant in a one bid league. For years we've all known attendance was going to fall off a cliff. The season ticket base especially in the donor levels is very old we lose some every year and there aren't younger people replacecing them. There's been no strategy to build the fan base or make the program competitive. There are many big problems facing the program. It won't be fixed overnight. What we need are small concrete steps. The first of these steps is to retain and develop players.

 

[unihorn]

I feel like it's always groundhogs day with Floyd. He always talks up the incoming class as the saviors. Six months later they are all gone and we start the yearly rebuild. If all seven guys are still here next summer the program will be in better shape.The problem with the Floyd era, other than arrogance and getting outcoached, is the roster turnover and lack of player development. If he can retain all his players for once the program will have a fighting chance. This is his eighth mulligan hopefully the eighth time is the charm.

The basketball program has many problems. The program is totally irrelevant in a one bid league. For years we've all known attendance was going to fall off a cliff. The season ticket base especially in the donor levels is very old we lose some every year and there aren't younger people replacecing them. There's been no strategy to build the fan base or make the program competitive. There are many big problems facing the program. It won't be fixed overnight. What we need are small concrete steps. The first of these steps is to retain and develop players.

Very well said.

I think another easy step would be improving the fan experience, specifically the food. If you want someone to go to a 7:00 game after work, give them better dinner options than a hot dog that tastes like a raw baby armadillo.

 

[Haskins Fan]

Very well said.

a hot dog that tastes like a raw baby armadillo.

How many in here have tasted a raw baby armadillo?

 

[JCorona]

Well Unihorn, UTEP and chef Goodyear are rolling out a fancier menu.

 

[unihorn]

Well Unihorn, UTEP and chef Goodyear are rolling out a fancier menu.

Really? Go on...

 

[JCorona]

Really? Go on...

Yeah there is going to be premium food selection. Gourmet burgers, supreme nachos, award winning paletas and apparently a plate of chile torreados with scallions. All of them prepared from scratch from an experienced and happy Sodexo culinary artist.

 

[unihorn]

Yeah there is going to be premium food selection. Gourmet burgers, supreme nachos, award winning paletas and apparently a plate of chile torreados with scallions. All of them prepared from scratch from an experienced and happy Sodexo culinary artist.

That's great to hear -- long overdue.

 

[JCorona]

That's great to hear -- long overdue.

I prefer $10 bar s hotdogs with great value ketchup and $10 natty light if we are fielding NCAA caliber teams.

 

[unihorn]

I prefer $10 bar s hotdogs with great value ketchup and $10 natty light if we are fielding NCAA caliber teams.

Can I has both?

 

[JCorona]

Can I has both?

The citizens of El Paso deserve fine cuisine and conference championship basketball teams. I'm starting to take sips of the koolaid and optimism is creeping into my mind thinking this will be the year we get both.

 

[unihorn]

The citizens of El Paso deserve fine cuisine and conference championship basketball teams. I'm starting to take sips of the koolaid and optimism is creeping into my mind thinking this will be the year we get both.

I'm not drinking it this year -- show me.

 

[USAFminersfan]

I'm not drinking it this year -- show me.

Same here. We're putting our hopes on a couple of 5'9 freshman pg's. Just doesn't give me the warm fuzzies

 

[Vegasminer]

Sure hope you Negative-Nellies get disappointed and we have a great season.

 

[utep2step]

Very well said.

I think another easy step would be improving the fan experience, specifically the food. If you want someone to go to a 7:00 game after work, give them better dinner options than a hot dog that tastes like a raw baby armadillo.

Stick to the churros or funnel cakes

 

[USAFminersfan]

Sure hope you Negative-Nellies get disappointed and we have a great season.

Nobody would be disappointed for a great season. It's just that some of us take Floyd's dick out of our mouths just long enough to realize he hasn't don't shit in 8 seasons

 

[miner661]

Gather around kiddos. Its metaphor time with USAFminersfan.

 

[Roy_Bigwood_05]

Nobody would be disappointed for a great season. It's just that some of us take Floyd's dick out of our mouths just long enough to realize he hasn't don't shit in 8 seasons

 

[unihorn]

Nobody would be disappointed for a great season. It's just that some of us take Floyd's dick out of our mouths just long enough to realize he hasn't don't shit in 8 seasons

 

[Vegasminer]

USAFfakeminerfan, thank you for admitting that you had Floyd's Dick in your mouth. Asshole!

 

[USAFminersfan]

My pleasure

 

[Vegasminer]

Good answer. : )

 

[nattybry]

Nobody would be disappointed for a great season. It's just that some of us take Floyd's dick out of our mouths just long enough to realize he hasn't don't shit in 8 seasons

Season hasn't started yet so it's 7 seasons, but your point is well put

 

[Rocketsr]

While some on here can't understand when they drop the soap and Floyd keeps obliging is beyond me.

 

[axingfools1]

While some on here can't understand when they drop the soap and Floyd keeps obliging is beyond me.

For me its not about Floyd. I'm not a fan a CTF or his perpetual style now. I stopped being so a few years ago. I also stopped buying season tickets out of distain. That being said I still love UTEP MBB and these are kids/a program that needs fan support and perspective. From an objective point of view, Floyd did a good job with last year's team after the debacle with Winn and then people calling for his job. He stayed quiet and went to work. IMO his job is on the line. All the years of BS and nothing to show for it and the program is hanging by a thread. We understand that more than Stull seems too. I'm excited for this season and I've stated why on other threads. One big season and this whole thing can change (whether Floyd is the coach or not).

 

[Minerforlife]

For me its not about Floyd. I'm not a fan a CTF or his perpetual style now. I stopped being so a few years ago. I also stopped buying season tickets out of distain. That being said I still love UTEP MBB and these are kids/a program that needs fan support and perspective. From an objective point of view, Floyd did a good job with last year's team after the debacle with Winn and then people calling for his job. He stayed quiet and went to work. IMO his job is on the line. All the years of BS and nothing to show for it and the program is hanging by a thread. We understand that more than Stull seems too. I'm excited for this season and I've stated why on other threads. One big season and this whole thing can change (whether Floyd is the coach or not).

Good post. No matter who the coach is I will always support the team. I hope Floyd finally figures it out. My issue is with the athletic department is how they run the program. UTEP spends a ton on basketball. UTEP is in the top 25% of d1 schools in basketball budgets. We outspend everyone in cusa in basketball. Cusa is a terrible hoops conference. Last year it was 23rd in conference rpi, that's worse than the WAC. Given the poor quality of opponents and amount of money we spend we should be dominating C-USA. For the huge investment we make in basketball we are getting zero return. When you give a coach more resources and money than any other school in the conference you have to demand results.

My bigger issue is why is UTEP dumping this much money into the hoops program. The fact of the matter is that it's makes zero sense to dump that much money into a hoops program in a one bid conference. The only way to increase the profile of the university and the athletic program as a whole is to improve the football program. If we shifted money from the basketball program to football bringing the basketball budget in line with our conference foes we could pay our football coach a top g5 salary. The top g5 salaries in texas are smu 2 million a year and UH 1.5 million a year. If we shifted 1.5 million to football we match those salaries. Playing in an fbs conference it makes no sense to throw money at the basketball program and not go all in on football. Football is the cash cow how you raise revenue and your schools profile. For the first time in history we should go all in on football.

Honesty if we cut the basketball budget does anyone think the results will be much worse than they are now? We've been to three ncaa tournaments in 25 years. During the lifetime of current UTEP students the football program has been more successful than bball, and we all know that the football program hasn't be a world beater.

I know there are some who disagree. However, would you rather be Boise State, UCF and Houston or SFA or nmsu. Boise State, UCF and UH are all former conference mates and all have won new years five bowls. Their football programs have raised the profile of their universities and been a wind fall for fundraising. SFA had an awesome three year run in basketball and will continue to be the dominant team in Southland. The Southland is similar to cusa, one bid league close to same rip ranking. Has SFA's run raised their profile? Probably a little. When people think of basketball powers or programs do they do they think of SFA? No. NMSU has been to the ncaa tournament 7 out the last eight years or something like that and they can't find a conference. Their basketball program is nice but it's not helping the university or athletic program overall. I think everybody would rather have a football like Boise UCF or Houston than a hoops program like SFA or NMSU.

Football is the most importantly sport and cash cow. It's beyond stupid to throw as much money as we do into hoops. It's time to go all in on football and see what happens. That's the only way to improve the athletics program overall.

 

[axingfools1]

I think you are on to something there Minerforlife. Re-appropriate the money to make the University's athletics program more high profile, demand more from the coaches and either dominate the conference or get us back together with previous conference foes. Are you listening Stull???

 

[unihorn]

Are we a basketball school or a football school?

 

[Minerforlife]

Are we a basketball school or a football school?

In reality neither. The last quarter century has produced 3 ncaa tournaments and five bowl games. In today's climate playing in an fbs conference football has to be the priority.

 

[MinerInWisconsin]

In reality neither. The last quarter century has produced 3 ncaa tournaments and five bowl games. In today's climate playing in an fbs conference football has to be the priority.

I have to disagree with you about how UTEP spends on MBB and FB. UTEP needs to be good in both to be successful. No reason to ignore MBB in order to prop up FB. UTEP already spends as much or more as our major competitors in both sports. The link below has data from 2015, the latest available on the equity in athletics site. UTEP compares well in both major sports except for FB head coach. Assistant coaches in FB are doing well at UTEP but the head coach is not when compared to most other schools. LT head FB coach makes about the same as Kugler and is much more experienced and successful. I think one of the major problems we have with UTEP FB is the hiring of head coaches. Experience and proven success at another level should have been the most important consideration, not the fact that a man played for the athletic director in the past and has proven to be a good O-line coach. Kugler might end up being successful but he is learning on the job. Not fair to UTEP and it's fans.



https://ope.ed.gov/athletics/#/compare/details

 

[JCorona]

Are we a basketball school or a football school?

I would say we are a track and field school.

 

[PURPLEFIRE]

On that note basketball is looking pretty good this year.... at least reason for hope anyway and we haven't had any major hiccups yet it looks like we will have good depth this year --- hopefully that pans out