Tourney Trip

When we started our annual pilgrimage to the NCAA tournament 10 years ago, I’m not sure anybody could have predicted where we would be in life. It was not a certain thing the trip would continue on into the future either. Once we saw how it was done, we learned from our mistakes, honed our craft, and made this thing the reunion a group of friends needs to keep in touch when they all have lives and jobs that now span the entire country.

When we had the idea to start a website, it was just going to be a log of sorts. The original plan was to have an online like scrapbook (Jimmy’s words, not mine) of pictures and bar tabs. Twitter has allowed me to span it into a way to talk hoops with others across the country. This website has also enabled me to secure media credentials and dip my toe into what it would be like to do sports for a living. Not sure I’m going back in, not yet anyways.

It has also impressed the need to evolve our website into something a bit more refined and real. Up until now, I have tried my best to run this thing. I am not a professional, and it has shown a few times. We have been lucky enough to have our project undertaken by @jskarp – an equally passionate sports fan – to help us turn this website into something capable of documenting our thoughts and hoop dreams well into the future. For that, the trip collective takes their hats off to Justin.

With that said, there may be some internet dust around here while this thing is brought online. It’s the summer, and there are no games to go to, so nobody may be the wiser. If you notice, and we’re gone for a while, don’t worry, cause we’ll always be back.

It’s been said before. The trip is perpetual.

One of the hottest topics of conversation in the Las Vegas area since the end of last year has been the proposed multi-purpose arena on UNLV’s campus. The UNLVNOW campaign has brought the idea of an on campus football stadium, along with a new basketball stadium, and a larger venue to host non-sports events in Las Vegas – and rolled them into one nice shiny package.

Over the course of this current semester in school I have chosen to invest some time investigating the public perception of such a project and understand both sides of the equation. Why would it be good for UNLV or Las Vegas? Why would it be bad? There are a ton of angles to look at this from.

Do they even need a new stadium? The Thomas & Mack is pretty sweet, although I think that has a lot to do with the numbers and National Championship banner hanging in the rafters. Cash does rule everything around us (thanks Meth), and a new stadium will both consume and generate cash at an insane rate. The great part about the current proposal is that the cash will come from an investment firm, instead of the university itself, at least in some form.

Also, let’s be honest, sports in our country are a huge deal. If you do not believe a popular sports team generates revenue and enrollment, you need to see your way out of a conversation like this. I aspire to be an academic mind at some point in my life. I also understand the importance of knowledge, and know universities are one of the few hubs in our country that push us forward. Sports are often seen as an anchor when it comes to academics. For many schools, sports are the only way they are known on a national or even regional scale. How else would anybody know what Virginia Commonwealth University is, or where it was, if it weren’t for the fact they were in the Final Four this year (YOUDON’TWANTTOGOTOWARWITTHERAMS, DONTSTARTNOSTUFFWONTBENOSTUFF). I’d bet my confederate three dollar bill that their enrollment sees an uptick in the coming years, and one could argue it will be due to the exposure from playing in the Final Four.

This all comes home to UNLV. Before their basketball team became relevant or even dominant in college basketball, they were known as Tumbleweed Tech, an old building in the middle of the desert. The Runnin’ Rebels put UNLV on the map and helped them to achieve the modest success as a university they now experience today. Allowing an investment firm to develop the proposed stadium, and all of the wonderful amenities would allow UNLV to play its home football games on campus. The buzz would be amazing. It would also allow for the basketball team to play in a state of the art arena. With the new coach, and the strides the team has made the past 5 years, this seems like the only logical way to go. UNLV could be big time once again, and an amazing new stadium, the first thing visitors will see when leaving McCarren airport via taxi, WILL help.

So yes, after careful consideration, I heavily support a new stadium. So does my partner in this project, for many of the same reasons listed above. I know you’re all shocked. I’m a UNLV fan, and I like to have a comfortable seat when I observe sporting events. I am also currently enrolled at UNLV. I look forward to watching this stadium be developed, constructed, and occupied by the sports teams I will root for during the foreseeable future. I also understand that this can do nothing but further improve the reputation and national standing of UNLV.

Yesterday, I was just as shocked as everybody else to follow along online as Kruger left Las Vegas for Oklahoma, and their suffering basketball program. Oklahoma did make the Final Four in 2002, and competes in a conference with bigger names, teams, and bigger money. I feel Kruger had run his course here at UNLV. He has brought the program back from the ashes to that of a top 25-30 program over the past few years. Kruger had hit a wall though, not advancing the team in the tournament, and not taking the next step in ways BYU and SDSU did this year. We still owe Lon Kruger a thanks for what he’s done on Las Vegas the last 7 years though.

Moving on, UNLV basketball is now at a crossroads. Kruger put in 7 tough years, bringing things to where they are today. Expectations should be to make as big of a splash as possible. The last 24 hours all I have read about was Dave Rice and Reggie Theus. Here are reasons why I don’t want either one.

Dave Rice – He’s an assistant. Assistants learn to be head coaches at smaller schools, because so many of them flame out. If UNLV wishes to carry itself as a national program, it has to act like it. Nationally relevant programs do not hire assistants for vacant coaching positions. They hire proven coaches who have shown they know how to win running that program. Dave Rice supposedly runs the offence for BYU, and handles some recruiting. I’d hope so, he’s an assistant! Just because someone has played for UNLV before doesn’t mean he should be the coach either. I want a coach who has won 25+ games at his own program.

Reggie Theus – Wow. Another guy who played for UNLV. That’s great and all, but I just don’t see it. He coached two years at New Mexico State, taking the first chance he could to leave for Sacramento. Wait, this was his second chance, as he left for Creighton for about 8 days, before that job decided it wasn’t open. He chased the money, and I believe he would again. A step up from Dave Rice tho, as at least he’s shown he can run a program. Although this program recruited David Pope, a 5 star athlete who was involved in some questionable dealings, enough to get SHOT. Dar.

So there are my thoughts on those two guys. Here is who I think UNLV should be looking at.

1. Gary Waters – Guy is awesome. Went 27-9 this year. Has won 20 games every season he’s been at Cleveland St. except once. Would be a tournament regular if he didn’t play in the same conference as Final Four darling Butler. He recruits in the midwest, and somehow manages to land talent like Norris Cole, even though there are a thousand other schools recruiting his same region.

2. Bruce Pearl – Yeah, he was booted from Tennessee. I know. He will probably have sanctions to serve, which means he’ll be out of the game for a little bit. My hope is that when Dave Rice flames out, Bruce Pearl will be ready to coach again, and UNLV will come calling. He is passionate, he’s a great coach and great recruiter. No brainer as far as basketball goes. As far as BBQ’s and what not go, who cares, this is Las Vegas. Embrace what you are, fire up the hot tub!

3. Doug Wojcik – Current coach at Tulsa, the cradle of successful college coaches. Bill Self? Check. Tubby Smith? check. Nolan Richardson? check. All have won NCAA titles. All started out as head coaches at Tulsa. Been at Tulsa for six years, nearly poached away twice in the past two off seasons. Win totals since he’s been there? 20, 25, 25, 23, 19. He did have 19 wins this year, but he also made the championship game of his conference tournament. He’s a solid recruiter as well.

4. Sam wants to consider Rick Majerus. He may be a bit old and his leg might fall off or something from what I hear. At least he’s ran several programs, been to a Final Four, and has always recruited top tier talent. Right now he’s in St. Louis, trying to crack through a touch A-14 ceiling. I bet he’d consider the gig.

People in this town always reference the glory days of UNLV basketball, the times where they came up from nothing and stuck it to the man, to the tune of 4 Final Fours and a National Championship. Everybody always wants to embrace a return to these times. The Runnin’ Rebels indeed. Instead, we are considering an unproven assistant, who has been an assistant since 1992 (Dave Rice) and a former star and darling of the city, who’s taken his chance to grab money whenever he’s gotten it (Reggie Theus). Skip these former players, stop embracing your fond memories of Tark’s teams when thinking about this decision and look towards who is producing results NOW.

After the second session here in Chicago, and the crowd stumbled into the aisles to revel in the VCU victory over Georgetown, an announcement came over the loudspeaker, one we’ve come to expect. The tip times for our third session were announced.

It has threatened to end our trip.

Due to the new television rights schedule crap with trutv and TBS and shit, there are now tip times on Sunday at 9:40 PM. In the past, you can expect Sunday’s games to tip in the early afternoon, allowing these games ample time to complete for people with late travel plans, to, you know, return to normal life.

Instead, we sit here with our games tipping well into the evening, and people with flights to return home at the same time.

The NCAA is more concerned about spreading out television games on their four stupid networks in order to capture as many viewers over as many games as possible. In doing this, they are fucking us over, along with other fans with travel plans back to Indiana (Notre Dame and Purdue).

So we sit here in our stupid hotel room with no ability to meet the obligation of going to the games we’ve planned on for the last six months. Screw you NCAA.

After a Wednesday filled with travel and drinking tall boys in the hotel room, the trip reunited and began the tournament the only way we know how – eating food themed after a city and drinking at local watering holes.

I would just like to say the shit establishment of Top Hats, or High Hats or High Tops, or whatever it is, is a shit establishment.

Michigan State lost last night, but it was not because we weren’t doing our part in a bar in Lincoln Park. If you heard Oasis last night in the town of Chicago, it is certainly because of the Tourney Trip crew.

We now rally this morning so we can go sit in the United Center for 12 hours. Your NCAA corporate sponsors are Coke Zero and sore asses. Not from gay sex.

One final note, do not ever order anything called a Snoop Dog and expect it to cure what ails you. Just get another drink and sing along to the song.

So long Kalin Lucas.