Nadine asks Medved about hanging the 1997 banners and playing St. Thomas

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everybody knows my name said:
St Thomas is not the Little Sisters of the Poor. They were equal to the Gophers this year - maybe better - and they're getting better every year. It's said that they have aspirations of moving up to the Big East, and with a great coach and a new arena, and being the #2 program in a talent-rich state, they're well positioned. They're going to be whatever they want to be.

The Gophers are also headed for good times. I believe Niko is going to have them riding high in 3-4 years. It'll be like the Clem Haskins years, minus Jan Ganglehoff. Remember that, all you old-timers? Remember when the morning after a Gophers game, everybody was talking about the big win and our great players? I do.

This can be a really fun rivalry, and it can start now. I don't see any reason why the U should run for cover when St Thomas comes knocking.
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The success of any program will not be coaches, arenas and geographical talent, but bags of NIL money. UST doesn't have any. UofM has very little by comparison to those that do. Thankfully, UofM will have revenue sharing to at least keep ahead of the mid-majors.
 

MissouriGopher said:
I think playing St. Thomas is equivalent to playing Omaha. I genuinely don't care. I'm on the side of it not mattering at all. Your assertion was silly. There's not a team in the country that will outdraw the gophers at the barn. It just doesn't happen to home teams almost everywhere.
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Eh, you never know. I was at a game at the barn a number of years ago for a game against a regional mid-major. I bought a ticket on the street, sat behind Sid. The place was absolutely empty. I don't know if break had started or what but no students showed. The opponent, who was not very competitive without a future NBAer who was injured, got blown out but I'd guess it was about 60/40 Gopher fans. Had future NBAer been healthy, a few more may have traveled.

Recall NDSU FB venturing to Minneapolis to take on hapless Gopher teams 20 years ago. Can it be said Maroon and Gold outnumbered shit green and gold? Those were awfully close.
 

Dave H said:
Doesn't Duluth come to the Barn a lot?

Do you really think the average fan who doesn't care about Gopher Athletics or St. Thomas Athletics is going to say "You know...let's go to Williams Arena Thursday the Tommies are playing the Gophers!"? That doesn't pass the smell test for me.

If you want to argue that over time that could happen I can get behind that thought. It will take many years but I could see it. But in the near term I highly doubt it even if the media pumps it up. They try that with hockey and honestly the only ones who care are the ones who already care.

The problem I have is I watch the hockey team do stuff like this and to me it makes the game stale. I am fine with replacing a mediocre opponent with a local mediocre opponent (mediocre it terms of metrics not a shot at St. Thomas) but the constant need to do it every year is boring. I would rather just get rid of the lower rung opponent and sharpen the team with steel. (this years hockey team could have used less St. Thomas and more upper echelon teams) But if we are intent on playing the Glen Mason preseason, I would be fine replacing Louisiana Monroe with St. Thomas.

Lets be realistic about this though...there isn't enough interest to make this a "must have" game...not yet.
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When did Duluth reclassify to DI and move to a campus a few miles from the U?

I think the crowds would initially be bigger and then taper off as the novelty wears off. If and when UST grew closer competitively, then I think the crowds would be bigger again.

I don't watch hockey, especially college hockey. Sid said its a cult and he's right.
 





everybody knows my name said:
St Thomas is not the Little Sisters of the Poor. They were equal to the Gophers this year - maybe better - and they're getting better every year. It's said that they have aspirations of moving up to the Big East, and with a great coach and a new arena, and being the #2 program in a talent-rich state, they're well positioned. They're going to be whatever they want to be.

The Gophers are also headed for good times. I believe Niko is going to have them riding high in 3-4 years. It'll be like the Clem Haskins years, minus Jan Ganglehoff. Remember that, all you old-timers? Remember when the morning after a Gophers game, everybody was talking about the big win and our great players? I do.

This can be a really fun rivalry, and it can start now. I don't see any reason why the U should run for cover when St Thomas comes knocking.
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I remember, and now I'm emotional. Sweet 16 in San Antonio. What a hell of a good time!
 





swede2 said:
The success of any program will not be coaches, arenas and geographical talent, but bags of NIL money. UST doesn't have any. UofM has very little by comparison to those that do. Thankfully, UofM will have revenue sharing to at least keep ahead of the mid-majors.
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Let's watch and see.

The things UST has already done are well nigh impossible.
 


Be like Iowa and have the MN legislature pass a law where Iowa plays Iowa State every year.

Wishful thinking on my part considering the nature of Minnesota politics and their Governor..
 




Bayfieldgopher said:
Be like Iowa and have the MN legislature pass a law where Iowa plays Iowa State every year.

Wishful thinking on my part considering the nature of Minnesota politics and their Governor..
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Our governor that loves the U of M?
 



Bayfieldgopher said:
Be like Iowa and have the MN legislature pass a law where Iowa plays Iowa State every year.

Wishful thinking on my part considering the nature of Minnesota politics and their Governor..
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The Iowa law only seems possible given that both Iowa/Iowa St are public institutions.

Seems a stretch for the Minnesota legislature to exert any influence whatsoever on a private school unless the State is also going to kick in for stuff like the new Tommie Arena.
 

Some guy said:
That too

I’m all in on that. After UNC had entire fake majors fake papers doesn’t seem so bad
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And yet there are still people here who sad face react to any notion of hanging the banners. Those same people haven't spoken up to engage a discussion around this idea. The closest I have heard is that it was decided and we shouldn't revisit it (bury heads in sand/move on).
 




Shama chimes in:

The Gopher basketball brand is so tarnished right now it would be foolish to play “Goliath” by giving the Tommies the opportunity to take down a team from the mighty Big Ten on its home floor. In that match up, Medved and company are in a no-win drama for them.

A blow-out Minnesota win? The public response is, “What do you expect from a Big Ten team playing at home?”

A close Gopher victory? The chorus says, “See the Tommies could have won. They’re just as good as Minnesota.”

A Tommies triumph? Critics crow: “The Gophers can’t even defeat a good mid-major program.”

The Tommies played road games last season at Oklahoma State and Arizona State, two teams from the Big 12 Conference. The scrappy Tommies lost both games by a combined 24 points.

Ask the marketers at those Power Four schools if the games against the Tommies did anything to boost their brand and credibility with fans, donors and potential recruits.

Avoiding the Tommies shouldn’t prompt a “game of chicken” mentality from fans who follow either program. It’s just savvy business for the Gophers to take awhile to build up their product and continue their tradition of cushy non-conference scheduling against the likes of “Hopscotch State” and “Gulf of America University.”


Go Gophers!!
 


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