Brando's Comments (Bama not a "basketball" school)

[CrimsonProf]

Wanted to throw this out for discussion. I found Tim Brando's comments about Gottfried now being at a "basketball school" obnoxious. Now, this is not about Mark Gottfried, so y'all don't make into that kind of thread.

My point is that during our relatively successful run that last up to the NIT bid in 2006-07, we had a ton of fan support. Students stood in line and even camped for tickets. Crowds were pretty enthusiastic. I worked in a law firm a for a few years during that run, and the local legal and business community was very excited about basketball.

Our fanbase isn't perfect, not by a long shot, but to suggest that we won't support basketball is a falsehood.

One caveat: Support is sluggish before Christmas, but then again, there were 14,000 people at the BJCC for the OSU game three nights before Christmas.

 

[Ldlane]

Re: Brando's Comments

I don't think that it's attendance, but rather people don't know when to cheer for Basketball. Not a lot of "noise" when the opposing team is shooting FT's, not chanting "DEFENSE". Etc.... I remember at FSU in the 90's attending games. The games were full but it was like a church inside.

Wanted to throw this out for discussion. I found Tim Brando's comments about Gottfried now being at a "basketball school" obnoxious. Now, this is not about Mark Gottfried, so y'all don't make into that kind of thread.

My point is that during our relatively successful run that last up to the NIT bid in 2006-07, we had a ton of fan support. Students stood in line and even camped for tickets. Crowds were pretty enthusiastic. I worked in a law firm a for a few years during that run, and the local legal and business community was very excited about basketball.

Our fanbase isn't perfect, not by a long shot, but to suggest that we won't support basketball is a falsehood.

One caveat: Support is sluggish before Christmas, but then again, there were 14,000 people at the BJCC for the OSU game three nights before Christmas.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

Re: Brando's Comments

I don't think that it's attendance, but rather people don't know when to cheer for Basketball. Not a lot of "noise" when the opposing team is shooting FT's, not chanting "DEFENSE". Etc.... I remember at FSU in the 90's attending games. The games were full but it was like a church inside.

UNC certainly knows how to cheer for BB - they roar and boo from the tipoff to the final buzzer...

 

[257WBY]

Re: Brando's Comments

Look at the amount of post on the basketball forum as compared to the football forum and tell me Alabama is a basketball school. I don't think it is necessarily a derogatory comment. I consider Florida a football school, even though they have a fine basketball program.

 

[Ldlane]

Re: Brando's Comments

And you know "fan support" isn't buying a ticket, sitting and eating nachos for the whole game. It's standing, cheering, and firing the team on the court up. Fans can make it an unpleasant place for opponents to play with "NOISE"!

 

[BamaMTA06]

Re: Brando's Comments

I don't think that it's attendance, but rather people don't know when to cheer for Basketball. Not a lot of "noise" when the opposing team is shooting FT's, not chanting "DEFENSE". Etc.... I remember at FSU in the 90's attending games. The games were full but it was like a church inside.

That's my biggest issue with the basketball crowds. All they do is yell "foul" and "travel" every trip down the court. Someone will say, "Coleman was rocking last night." It's easy to be loud when you are up by 15. What about during warm ups or the team is down by 4?

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

Re: Brando's Comments

UNC certainly knows how to cheer for BB - they roar and boo from the tipoff to the final buzzer...

That's been a pleasant change, Earle. Carolina used to pump recorded noise into the Dean Dome to raise the energy level because they surrounded the court with the biggest benefactors. It was like a lawn party in there through much of the 90s. I once sat close to the court for a UNC/UA game up there and got a dressing down from an 11-year-old Heelian for cheering too loud.

All that said, Carolina fans know the game. They travel well, and they sell out every home game.

 

[Ldlane]

Re: Brando's Comments

That's been a pleasant change, Earle. Carolina used to pump recorded noise into the Dean Dome to raise the energy level because they surrounded the court with the biggest benefactors. It was like a lawn party in there through much of the 90s. I once sat close to the court for a UNC/UA game up there and got a dressing down from an 11-year-old Heelian for cheering too loud.

All that said, Carolina fans know the game. They travel well, and they sell out every home game.

Same way at the FSU games in the 90's. The group behind the basket were people that were benefactors that they called the "Hoop n Holler" squad. They just sat there!

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

Re: Brando's Comments

Look at the amount of post on the basketball forum as compared to the football forum and tell me Alabama is a basketball school. I don't think it is necessarily a derogatory comment. I consider Florida a football school, even though they have a fine basketball program.[/QUOTE

Agree to a point. But it doesn't have to be an either/or. Florida is a great example. So are the Big 10 schools. When it's football, you cheer like hell for football. When it's basketball season, even though you like football better, you cheer like hell for the basketball team. Last time I checked, they wear an A on their jerseys too.

Alabama students don't consistently do this. Neither do the town folk. And I don't really buy the notion that folks don't understand or appreciate the sport. It's a pretty simple game. So what's going on? Why can't we fill the house 15 times a year for our basketball team?

Maybe there are darker factors at work. They were there when I was a student an ice age ago, and I think they still influence parts of our fanbase today.

 

[Ldlane]

Re: Brando's Comments

Look at the amount of post on the basketball forum as compared to the football forum and tell me Alabama is a basketball school. I don't think it is necessarily a derogatory comment. I consider Florida a football school, even though they have a fine basketball program.[/QUOTE

Agree to a point. But it doesn't have to be an either/or. Florida is a great example. So are the Big 10 schools. When it's football, you cheer like hell for football. When it's basketball season, even though you like football better, you cheer like hell for the basketball team. Last time I checked, they wear an A on their jerseys too.

Alabama students don't consistently do this. Neither do the town folk. And I don't really buy the notion that folks don't understand or appreciate the sport. It's a pretty simple game. So what's going on? Why can't we fill the house 15 times a year for our basketball team?

Maybe there are darker factors at work. They were there when I was a student an ice age ago, and I think they still influence parts of our fanbase today.

That basketball is not a "white" game? I say that because I grew up in Selma and that's a way a few of my relatives on the otherside of the family viewed things.

And I stress to people not to turn this into a "non-sports" topic!

 

[Matt0424]

Re: Brando's Comments

That basketball is not a "white" game? I say that because I grew up in Selma and that's a way a few of my relatives on the otherside of the family viewed things.

And I stress to people not to turn this into a "non-sports" topic!

That's the sense I get from a lot of fans...but it stems from their dislike for the NBA , and just trickles down. TO me it's asinine, I mean look at the starting line up for football...

Plus...we have the Swede!

 

[BAMA1979]

Re: Brando's Comments

That's been a pleasant change, Earle. Carolina used to pump recorded noise into the Dean Dome to raise the energy level because they surrounded the court with the biggest benefactors. It was like a lawn party in there through much of the 90s. I once sat close to the court for a UNC/UA game up there and got a dressing down from an 11-year-old Heelian for cheering too loud.

All that said, Carolina fans know the game. They travel well, and they sell out every home game.

I can remember FSU's Sam Cassell referring to the crowd in Chapel Hill as being a "wine and cheese" crowd. A lot has changed in the 20 or so years since he made that comment.

 

[deuce_deuce]

Re: Brando's Comments

Bama is not a bball school. If you ask the vast student body or fanbase what is one sport they can't live without, over 90% would say football. We are a football, gymnastics, & softball school for right now. Lets win a championship in bball or got to the final four back to back times before being mentioned as a bball school. Our past success in football has contributed to us being known as a fball school. Put it this way, if Bama played football in an 60,000 arena in London we would represent similar to how Duke would in bball. But how much support do we have in the early season tournaments for bball. Its not a put down, its reality.

Plus, we do have a swede & a guard from belgium.

 

[CrimsonProf]

Re: Brando's Comments

Bama is not a bball school. If you ask the vast student body or fanbase what is one sport they can't live without, over 90% would say football. We are a football, gymnastics, & softball school for right now. Lets win a championship in bball or got to the final four back to back times before being mentioned as a bball school. Our past success in football has contributed to us being known as a fball school. Put it this way, if Bama played football in an 60,000 arena in London we would represent similar to how Duke would in bball. But how much support do we have in the early season tournaments for bball. Its not a put down, its reality.

Plus, we do have a swede & a guard from belgium.

I was never suggesting that we are a basketball school, but Brando seems to want it both ways...

my point was that during Gottfried's heyday, there was a tremendous amount of support, especially once conference play started up. On that note, the only schools that will get huge crowds against nonconference cupcakes are basketball-only schools or schools in large metro areas like OSU, Texas, Wisconsin, Michigan, etc. And keep in mind that we had very good crowds for the VCU and Georgetown games.

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

Re: Brando's Comments

This is absolutely what I'm talking about.

That basketball is not a "white" game? I say that because I grew up in Selma and that's a way a few of my relatives on the otherside of the family viewed things.

And I stress to people not to turn this into a "non-sports" topic!

 

[CrimsonProf]

Re: Brando's Comments

This is absolutely what I'm talking about.

I don't disagree with this sentiment, but the biggest issue, IMO, is simply student support. Greeks don't bother with basketball, for example, and I'd wager that, at best, only 25% of the student body regularly attends basketball games.

Locals in Tuscaloosa are decent enough, but I agree it could be much better. Part of that is demographics, though. Again, the huge crowds we see on ESPN tend to be either at b-ball only schools like UNC or Duke, or in areas much larger than Tuscaloosa like Austin, Columbus, Ann Arbor or Madison. Even the NC schools are in an area that is growing by leaps and bounds in terms of population and economic resources.

 

[Ldlane]

I can remember FSU's Sam Cassell referring to the crowd in Chapel Hill as being a "wine and cheese" crowd. A lot has changed in the 20 or so years since he made that comment.

Having gone to school with him, I'm surprised he could come up with that! Just an aside, Charlie Ward and Bob Sura played on that team. Ward carried a 4.0 GPA. The team GPA was 1.7!

 

[CrimsonEyeshade]

Re: Brando's Comments

Prof, metro areas are part of it. But they fill the gyms every night in the Big 10 and the Big 12 at college town that are similar in size to Tuscaloosa. They play football at these places, too.

But you're right. The major factor is student support. And since C.M. Newton was hired almost 45 years ago now, a significant portion of the University of Alabama student fan base couldn't give a rip about their school's basketball team. Race is part of that. It's what drove Newton away and it continues to influence the program in significant ways.

Off the soapbox and back to work.

This is absolutely what I'm talking about.

I don't disagree with this sentiment, but the biggest issue, IMO, is simply student support. Greeks don't bother with basketball, for example, and I'd wager that, at best, only 25% of the student body regularly attends basketball games.

Locals in Tuscaloosa are decent enough, but I agree it could be much better. Part of that is demographics, though. Again, the huge crowds we see on ESPN tend to be either at b-ball only schools like UNC or Duke, or in areas much larger than Tuscaloosa like Austin, Columbus, Ann Arbor or Madison. Even the NC schools are in an area that is growing by leaps and bounds in terms of population and economic resources.

 

[CrimsonProf]

Re: Brando's Comments

Prof, metro areas are part of it. But they fill the gyms every night in the Big 10 and the Big 12 at college town that are similar in size to Tuscaloosa. They play football at these places, too.

But you're right. The major factor is student support. And since C.M. Newton was hired almost 45 years ago now, a significant portion of the University of Alabama student fan base couldn't give a rip about their school's basketball team. Race is part of that. It's what drove Newton away and it continues to influence the program in significant ways.

Off the soapbox and back to work.


My point - and we essentially agree - is that the only schools who consistently back it out for basketball and football are those schools in large metro areas. Tuscaloosa simply isn't it.

 

[day-day]

Re: Brando's Comments

That's the sense I get from a lot of fans...but it stems from their dislike for the NBA , and just trickles down. TO me it's asinine, I mean look at the starting line up for football...

Plus...we have the Swede!

Maybe not a race thing from a negative point of view. It could be that a majority of people that make up Alabama's student body and boosters (most of who are white) grow up with little to no interest in basketball; thus low support for basketball. I know when I was a kid, I had a large number of white friends who were not interested in basketball but I don't know of any of them that felt this way due to a black/white thing.

Still, the results are lower support than there should be for a big-time program especially considering the recent growth in the university.