SBNation.com User Blog: Girardi Party

Idea to continue Big East rivalries

Girardi Party — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 14:17:26 -0000

As we got news about the St John's series continuing, and we await the fate of other series with Villanova, Georgetown, and UConn, I was pondering how best to continue these historic rivalries as we move on to the ACC and the others go kick rocks with former C-USA schools.

It's not feasible to play the Jonnies, Nova, UConn, and Georgetown every year. It's against Boeheim's scheduling style. I wouldn't be opposed to it because it would be an MSG game (St. John's) plus at least one good November/December home game a year. I just don't think it would happen, and I think we'd eventually stop playing some of these teams altogether.

So my idea is this: The pre-football* Big East schools hold an annual four-team preseason tournament in Madison Square Garden. Eight teams, single elimination tournament. Just three days. Maybe even play a third-place game. Seedings could be random, to get a variety of matchups, or based on previous year's results or something.

First of all: This would be awesome to watch. Great basketball, nice nostalgia for old-school Big East fans and still a nice tournament with a reliably solid lineup (at least at the top half) for people who don't care about the Big East. Also, it solves the clumsy "How do we keep all these rivalries going?" question for ALL of the schools involved. You'd see every team at least once every few years, and the games wouldn't be one-off home/away games with little at stake. Not that a preseason tournament means anything, but there would still be a trophy to play for.

Flaws with this proposal: What if there were a team that you WANTED to play every single year regardless (e.g., us with Georgetown, presumably)... would you schedule that series on the side and risk playing them twice? How would you deal with conflicts and schools wanting to play in other preseason tournaments? What if the Garden is booked and/or didn't want them? (I'd say Barclays Center, then, because it's still in NYC but only seven blocks from my apartment haha.) How would you handle seeding, and what if the Catholic schools do descend into total irrelevancy, as some of us have predicted here? (Don't see that happening to Villanova or Georgetown, but St. John's, Seton Hall and Providence? Maybe.)

Obviously this is just one guy's idea and would never happen... but I wanted to share because I've spent a couple days absent-mindedly daydreaming about how great this would be to look forward to every November/December/whenever.

* - schools I mean here are SU, UConn, Georgetown, Pitt, Villanova, St. John's, Providence, Seton Hall, and BC. That's nine teams but I assume that either a) one or more schools would decline to be associated with this or b) they could just rotate one team off on an annual basis, you'd miss it once every eight years or something.

Poll

So... if this were a thing, would you want Syracuse to participate?

Yeah! Keep these rivalries alive.

19 votes

Maybe, if the conditions were right.

10 votes

No way, screw those guys and schedule rivalry series independently.

3 votes

32 votes | Poll has closed

New "Vapor" gray lacrosse uniforms courtesy of our friends at Nike. Still hate the platinum gray,...

Girardi Party — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 13:29:50 -0000

New "Vapor" gray lacrosse uniforms courtesy of our friends at Nike. Still hate the platinum gray, still hate that the lacrosse unis get messed around with every year... but at least these don't look quite as bad as the basketball ones.

Let's hope these jerseys fare a little better in game action than that chartreuse crap they wore against Maryland in the tournament a few years ago.

Gotham Classic tickets?

Girardi Party — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 20:18:44 -0000

What's happening, Nunsers? Some friends and I were planning on attending the SU/Temple hoops game on December 22 at MSG (the Gotham Classic). I was wondering if anyone knew of any avenues to purchase tickets besides the usual Ticketmaster/StubHub route. In the past, Big Apple Orange has sometimes had special rates for members/alumni for MSG games. (2010 Michigan State game comes to mind.) The best price I've seen is $33 on StubHub for nosebleed 400-level seats on the end of the court. Both StubHub and Ticketmaster show about $60+ for 200-level seats.

If you know of anything, I (and others looking to attend/purchase tickets, I'm sure) would be very appreciative. And if you have tickets and are looking to sell, I'd potentially be interested. Just figured I'd ask because if there's a way, usually someone in this community knows what it is.

Worst case: See you at the Blarney Rock before/after/during the game.

I saw this picture of Dion on Syracuse.com and thought that it was begging to be Photoshopped onto...

Girardi Party — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 00:56:10 -0000

I saw this picture of Dion on Syracuse.com and thought that it was begging to be Photoshopped onto the Sistine Chapel ceiling. Not long after I mused as much on Twitter, a friend of mine put it together! Just wanted to share. Go Orange!

Random $44 Final Jeopardy wager

Girardi Party — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:06:12 -0000

Random $44 Final Jeopardy wager

Anyone else watch Jeopardy last night and see the guy in the middle - way, way out of the game - bid $44 on Final Jeopardy and look pretty pleased with himself? He is apparently "Sean Norris, a hockey arena announcer from Portland, Oregon."

J! Archive will post more info about last night's show, including the wager, soon... just thought that was curious. Nice shout-out for the Cuse if indeed it was one.

Syracuse Basketball Parking?

Girardi Party — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 21:21:12 -0000

I'm a first-time season-ticket holder for Syracuse basketball so I thought I'd turn to the knowledgeable folks here at Nunes Nation to see if anyone had any sage advice for me. Specifically, I am not really sure what to do about the one facet of life that is almost guaranteed to be an expensive pain in the ass (especially in and around college campuses): parking.

What do you season-ticket holders usually do for game-day parking? Shelling out per-game for Manley or West lots doesn't seem economically sound -- especially considering that my seatmate buddy and I might not always be able to carpool to games -- and street parking is dodgy and doesn't seem like it'd be too appealing when it's 2º outside with a foot of snow on the ground in the middle of January. (Tried getting away with street parking only during my last semester at Syracuse, and about a week in, I accidentally parked in front of an unplowed driveway after a blizzard and got towed... and then sucked it up and bought a West-campus pass. Hurrah for sunk costs.)

Any information would be much appreciated, and I might as well go ahead and add that if you're reading this and happen to be a student/permanent resident living reasonably close to the Dome and want to rent out driveway space or something, I'd be up for discussing that with you.

Looking forward to tomorrow and the start of the season—I'll be screaming from Section 309.

¿Jim Brown on the radio today?

Girardi Party — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 14:53:26 -0000

¿Jim Brown on the radio today?

Jim Rome tweeted that he had a surprise guest that he didn't even want to mention in fear of jinxing it, then retweeted this guess from @Toure, which would make me think this guy has the right idea.

Dan Patrick is similarly touting a surprise guest coming up at 11:00 ET.

Just a heads up for any other sports radio junkies.

Horrible farewells

Girardi Party — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 05:17:47 -0000

What a tough way for Rick Jackson to go out: A very solid, hard-working four-year player plays arguably the worst game of his senior season in an early NCAA tournament loss. Marquette was playing tough defense against him and he never seemed like he was in the flow of the game... Really a shame, because you'd like to see him go out strong.

We have a pretty strong recent history of miserable sendoffs for four-year(-plus) players, though...

Hakim Warrick and the 2005 Orange lose to Vermont in one of the ugliest Syracuse games ever played after Gerry McNamara dribbled off his leg. We also get the bonus of making a star out of Tom Brennan and his tendency to start every sentence with "When we beat Syracuse..." for the next three years on ESPN (and still today on Westwood One).

McNamara, not to be outdone, leads Syracuse on a magical run through the Big East Tournament, taking down number-one UConn and hated rival Georgetown on the way, only to get blown out by (an admittedly underseeded) Texas A&M in the first round of the NCAAs.

Arinze Onuaku sadly busts his knee in a mostly meaningless game against Georgetown in the BET, and then gets to watch helplessly from the bench as fellow five-year player Andy Rautins and company sleepwalk through the first fifteen minutes of the Butler game and drop a weird one in the Sweet 16 after maybe the best regular season in school history.

And don't forget Lawrence Moten, of course, who will probably—hopefully—never be topped.

Hakim Warrick and the 2005 Orange lose to Vermont in one of the ugliest Syracuse games ever played after Gerry McNamara dribbled off his leg. We also get the bonus of making a star out of Tom Brennan and his tendency to start every sentence with "When we beat Syracuse..." for the next three years on ESPN (and still today on Westwood One).
McNamara, not to be outdone, leads Syracuse on a magical run through the Big East Tournament, taking down number-one UConn and hated rival Georgetown on the way, only to get blown out by (an admittedly underseeded) Texas A&M in the first round of the NCAAs.
Arinze Onuaku sadly busts his knee in a mostly meaningless game against Georgetown in the BET, and then gets to watch helplessly from the bench as fellow five-year player Andy Rautins and company sleepwalk through the first fifteen minutes of the Butler game and drop a weird one in the Sweet 16 after maybe the best regular season in school history.

And don't forget Lawrence Moten, of course, who will probably—hopefully—never be topped.

Let's play "Find the Missing Asterisk!"

Girardi Party — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:25:13 -0000

Let's play "Find the Missing Asterisk!"

Jimmy V Tickets?

Girardi Party — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 17:19:33 -0000

A friend and I are making plans to take the trip from Syracuse to New York on December 7th to see Syracuse play Michigan State in the Jimmy V Classic at the Garden. I haven't heard this event talked about much yet—it is still early—but I figured before I bought nosebleed tickets on Stubhub, I'd ask around these parts to see if anyone had any sage advice regarding tickets for this event.

Like, is Syracuse selling any tickets itself, or is it all MSG/Ticketmaster? Does anyone know of any alumni groups buying ticket packages for the game? (I am an alum if that makes any difference.) Has this been easy to scalp for in the past? (I remember Syracuse has played in the Jimmy V a number of times.) Or, of course, is anyone here selling tickets to it?

It would be fun for Nunesians going to the game to have some kind of official meetup beforehand but seeing as it's a month out, that's a discussion probably best left for later. Thanks in advance for any input.

Coach P Head Man in Dallas?

Girardi Party — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 02:17:31 -0000

Interesting comment by Chris Mortensen during halftime of Monday Night Football, saying he thinks Paul Pasqualoni, now Dallas's defensive line coach, could be the interim head coach for the Cowboys if when Wade Phillips is sacked by Jerry Jones. Honestly don't even know what to say about this except good for him, a hard-working guy who's put in his time in the NFL and might get a shot. He's been by all accounts grateful for his time at Syracuse and gracious to alums, so he'd be a good ambassador for the University before Bill Cowher replaces him after the lockout or something.

Thoughts, NunesNation?

Man vs. Food: Syracuse

Girardi Party — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 02:12:15 -0000

This was a pretty run-of-the-mill episode... not terrible, not great. I thought they did the Dinosaur justice (though I wish they'd have mentioned the Today show thing that ranked it #1), and Heid's with Jim Boeheim was, of course, fantastic even knowing it was coming. I've never been to Mother's Cupboard so I don't want to comment on that... what'd the Nuneseratti think?

Minor Gripes:

Have you SEEN Onondaga Lake, Adam? Not exactly pristine, and calling Syracuse a "lakefront" town is generous as I think most Syracusans prefer to pretend Onondaga Lake doesn't exist and only acknowledge it by rolling up their windows and going to Lights on the Lake.
Also, it's not a Finger Lake and it's not pronounced OWN-ondaga.
What was the lacrosse thing all about, besides being a blatant filler and shameless plug for SU? (In the next episode it showed a picture of him playing lacrosse as a kid but they made no reference to that in the Syracuse show)
Would have loved to have seen a trip to the Hill—where would he have gone? I'd vote Acropolis, I guess.

Syracuse bar in Baltimore?

Girardi Party — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 03:33:28 -0000

I'm moving to the Baltimore area this weekend and I was wondering if anyone else in Nunes Nation* lives in the area and could tell me if there are any Syracuse stronghold bars, or at least good places to catch an SU game (or any game) with some fellow fans/alums.

I know there's a Baltimore Area Alumni Club but it seems silly to pay $10 to probably just get the name of a bar where the local SU fans hang out, so I thought I'd ask here first.

* - Is there any sort of catchy name for followers of this site besides "The Commenters of Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician"? If not, should there be? I actually kind of hate the "X-Nation" thing.

I know there's a Baltimore Area Alumni Club but it seems silly to pay $10 to probably just get the name of a bar where the local SU fans hang out, so I thought I'd ask here first.

* - Is there any sort of catchy name for followers of this site besides "The Commenters of Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician"? If not, should there be? I actually kind of hate the "X-Nation" thing.

If Syracuse were in the Big 10...

Girardi Party — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 14:56:37 -0000

The talk of Big 10 expansion is at the forefront yet again and it looks like it's on a shorter timetable than expected a few months ago. There will be plenty of discussion to come about whether or not Syracuse would/should go to the Big 10 if offered, and what will be done if the Big 10 pillages the Big East and Syracuse is left behind, but I want to discuss one thing: What would life as a Syracuse sports fan be like if Syracuse were in the Big 10? In what ways would things be better or worse in the Big 10? Let's break it down sport-by-sport and discuss...

Football - I think the pluses are pretty obvious here. The Big East is a weak football conference that doesn't command much national respect, while the Big 10 is tradition-rich. Syracuse would be playing big-name teams like Ohio State and Michigan every year, as well as an annual rivalry game with Penn State reignited. Even though the competition would be much tougher than it is now, potentially stunting the HCDM Syracuse Football Comeback Tour, I think the increased exposure and attendance at the Dome -- even if it is largely from out of town fans -- would be good for the team and the community. Recruiting would almost certainly improve, as well. There isn't really one entrenched football rivalry Syracuse would lose by leaving... Perhaps Rutgers or West Virigina, and SU could schedule them OOC.

Lacrosse - I think that joining the Big 10 really has no downside here. There is no Big 10 lacrosse league (although they may seek to start one... Michigan has been dominating on the Club circuit and they have a number of D1 programs already). This means that Syracuse could go back to freely scheduling as an independent superpower. Not much else to say here. Net gain, albeit an insignificant one.

Basketball - Really the most intriguing argument. I've heard a number of people saying that it would be a shame for Syracuse to go to the Big 10 because the basketball program would suffer. While it would be a shame to lose scheduled rivalry games (and potentially cut ties permanently because of bad blood) with UConn, Georgetown, and Villanova, I don't know that the basketball program really takes that big a hit in the Big 10. The Big East has obviously been at or near the top of the college hoops world since its expansion -- above the Big 10, certainly -- but the Big 10 isn't exactly Conference USA, and Syracuse's presence would strengthen the reputation of the conference nationally. I think recruiting and attendance would stay near constant, but playing in a somewhat weaker conference could also potentially mean that, if nothing else, Syracuse may have a better chance of finishing at or very near the top more consistently. You want to beat the best, but with the net gains in other sports, it might not be the worst thing to feast on a slightly easier conference schedule and pad those win totals (see also: Memphis, University of).
(And if any angry Big 10 fans want to rip me for this: I'm saying the effect is slight. Ranking conferences is overrated. But it's hard to deny that playing Iowa and Northwestern and Penn State once or twice a year each is a wee bit easier than playing everyone in the Big East once and a few tough teams twice.)

Non-Revenue Sports - I've heard issues raised that other teams may have trouble competing, or even raising the money to get to opponents' sites in far away places like Minnesota and Iowa, but 1) SU will have much more Athletics revenue to go around in a 12-team Big 10 and 2) Tampa and Milwaukee aren't exactly close, either. I think this is a wash, at worst.

I realize there are various factors in play here and this is FAR from a done deal, but I'm not talking about whether or not it could happen, just about what SU Athletics would be like if it DID happen. What do you think?

The Worst Case, Moving Forward

Girardi Party — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:13:14 -0000

I am NOT one of the nutjobs that thinks that 4 minutes a game in the Big East season would have helped DaShonte Riley "develop"—that's what practice is for. (Yes, we're talkin' 'bout practice.) If he were good enough, he'd have been out there, that simple.

That said, IF Onuaku can't go in the NCAA Tournament, I think Riley should get some time. Not a lot... maybe 5 to 7 minutes a game tops. Just enough time to give Jackson a breather. My thinking if they did that would be that he's only their seventh most-important player if he's getting that time. They're not winning or losing on his back; he's just spelling Rick for a minute and taking up space. So you send him in there, tell him "you've got five fouls—don't let them get easy buckets," and let him go to town. Don't use him as a Chaney-like goon, don't have him play dirty. Just have him realize that he'd basically be in as a placeholder and he should be super-aggressive. If he fouls out, eh, whatever.

I say this just as a worst-case. No matter how good the top six are, if AO can't go, Rick WILL need some time on the bench (due to fatigue or fouls), and they will run into teams where "going small" (especially when nobody can foul in a six-man rotation) won't be the answer.

I know he's extremely raw and I know Boeheim knows best; if he thinks Riley would be a liability he won't play him—he's miserable on offense. It's just a thought. Hopefully it's not an issue.

Thoughts? Am I completely freaking nuts? Is Riley even athletic enough to pull this off?

The Worst No-Name Syracuse Killers

Girardi Party — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 21:52:30 -0000

In light of Louisville's answer to Rudy, Kyle Kuric, destroying Syracuse in the second half of today's game, I am compelled to finally address the issue of how many no-name, quirky players have career days against Syracuse. It seems like every single game, some guy on the other team has a career high and plays out of his mind—or at least very unexpectedly well. I want to see how many of these dudes we can come up with. They aren't the great players who have torched the 'Cuse—you expect Scottie Reynolds to score 90 points. We're looking for the weirdest and most embarrassing guys who have gone bonkers against Syracuse. (Doesn't necessarily have to be in a loss but that's usually how these things go.)

Consider this an open thread to brainstorm these players. I'll start off with a few I can remember from this year and the past off the top of my head. Stats are optional; if the game was significant we'll all remember the name.

Kyle Kuric, Louisville - 22 points in the second half, averages 3!
Mike Marra (aka Devendorf South), the first 2010 Louisville game - 12—all threes, natch
Mouphtaou Yarou, 2010 Villanova - 13 points, career high (though we'll probably see more of him)
Chris Hill, Michigan State, 2002-03 - 10 threes, but the 2003 team handled it
Brendan Plavich, Charlotte, 2003-04 - 10 threes at the Dome, and the 2004 team did not handle it
Quincy Douby, Rutgers - that crazy overtime game where Terrence Roberts hit the game-winning three; Douby had about 41 points?
Kevin Bettencourt, Bucknell
Germain Mopa-Nigila (whatever), Vermont, 2005 - duh

There are TONS more and I am blanking right now... how many can you remember?

Kyle Kuric, Louisville - 22 points in the second half, averages 3!
Mike Marra (aka Devendorf South), the first 2010 Louisville game - 12—all threes, natch
Mouphtaou Yarou, 2010 Villanova - 13 points, career high (though we'll probably see more of him)
Chris Hill, Michigan State, 2002-03 - 10 threes, but the 2003 team handled it
Brendan Plavich, Charlotte, 2003-04 - 10 threes at the Dome, and the 2004 team did not handle it
Quincy Douby, Rutgers - that crazy overtime game where Terrence Roberts hit the game-winning three; Douby had about 41 points?
Kevin Bettencourt, Bucknell
Germain Mopa-Nigila (whatever), Vermont, 2005 - duh

There are TONS more and I am blanking right now... how many can you remember?

One of these things is not like the other. Typical. (Lundardi also voted SU #2.)

Girardi Party — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:14:07 -0000

One of these things is not like the other. Typical. (Lundardi also voted SU #2.)