MTSU (1/8/22)

South Texas Green · January 9, 2022

Know it's early but was still nice to see this paired with our win tonight.

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untjim1995 · January 9, 2022

Nice win today—good to get back on track. I also wish we had any kind of support for this program and this coach. I’ve just come to believe it’s just not a sport that Denton cares about. I don’t know why and it is amazingly frustrating but you can’t make people like something they don’t care about. Coach McCasland will enjoy the fruits of his labor somewhere one day in front of big crowds. And he’s gonna deserve every second of that.

CMJ · January 9, 2022

11 minutes ago, untjim1995 said:

Nice win today—good to get back on track. I also wish we had any kind of support for this program and this coach. I’ve just come to believe it’s just not a sport that Denton cares about. I don’t know why and it is amazingly frustrating but you can’t make people like something they don’t care about. Coach McCasland will enjoy the fruits of his labor somewhere one day in front of big crowds. And he’s gonna deserve every second of that.

I'm not sure there's much of anything that all of Denton cares about, except maybe the Jazz festival every year. The high schools don't have much of a following, the town doesn't get behind NT athletics or really the music school performances either (usually a ton of seats are available).

untjim1995 · January 9, 2022

6 minutes ago, CMJ said:

I'm not sure there's much of anything that all of Denton cares about, except maybe the Jazz festival every year. The high schools don't have much of a following, the town doesn't get behind NT athletics or really the music school performances either (usually a ton of seats are available).

Yep—one thing for sure is that it doesn’t care about UNT sports

CMJ · January 9, 2022

5 minutes ago, untjim1995 said:

Yep—one thing for sure is that it doesn’t care about UNT sports

In a sense it's more surprising they don't really follow the high schools either. Ryan winning state titles in football barely moved the needle. In most towns they'd be paraded in town and immortalized on water towers.

greenminer · January 9, 2022

full game available on YT

greenminer · January 9, 2022

I need to pay more attention to posts about Wright. I forgot that he started all 4 years at WSU. Weird to not see much from him at this point.

Shark84 · January 9, 2022

15 hours ago, CMJ said:

In a sense it's more surprising they don't really follow the high schools either. Ryan winning state titles in football barely moved the needle. In most towns they'd be paraded in town and immortalized on water towers.

Denton has become Austin cool to support sports.

Andrew · January 9, 2022

16 hours ago, CMJ said:

I'm not sure there's much of anything that all of Denton cares about, except maybe the Jazz festival every year. The high schools don't have much of a following, the town doesn't get behind NT athletics or really the music school performances either (usually a ton of seats are available).

They did when Mario Edwards was at Ryan. They would tailgate all day for those games and they could get relatively packed. Worked at the stadium for a few years for a little extra cash. His dad feed everyone haha.

Edited January 9, 2022 by Andrew

Andrew · January 9, 2022

3 hours ago, greenminer said:

I need to pay more attention to posts about Wright. I forgot that he started all 4 years at WSU. Weird to not see much from him at this point.

Yeah I thought he was the leading shot blocker in school history there and tops in rebounds. He was a starter…. Yet he can’t touch the floor here 🤷🏼‍♂️

CMJ · January 9, 2022

12 minutes ago, Andrew said:

They did when Mario Edwards was at Ryan. They would tailgate all day for those games and they could get relatively packed. Worked at the stadium for a few years for a little extra cash. His dad feed everyone haha.

Still it was nothing like when Lewisville just up the road won the state title back in the 90's.

Denton isn't a sports town. But it isn't really an arts town either. I still love it...it's my hometown after all...but it doesn't get enthused about much of anything.

UNTLifer · January 9, 2022

12 minutes ago, CMJ said:

Still it was nothing like when Lewisville just up the road won the state title back in the 90's.

Denton isn't a sports town. But it isn't really an arts town either. I still love it...it's my hometown after all...but it doesn't get enthused about much of anything.

They supported Guyer and Ryan this year pretty well and supported North Texas basketball during the Blakely years. The department needs to market the program better.

untjim1995 · January 9, 2022

5 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

They supported Guyer and Ryan this year pretty well and supported North Texas basketball during the Blakely years. The department needs to market the program better.

I disagree on the last part. The 2 for 20.22 deal to get people out to watch a couple of conference games was a great idea…and about 25 people took them up on it.

Its just obvious that Denton just doesn’t care. They don’t like UNT Sports, nor do they want to watch it. We can’t get anywhere close to a third of the Super Pit to be full more than a couple games per year.

emmitt01 · January 9, 2022

If I were in charge of marketing, I would approach every student organization and the NT Alumni association and organize tailgates in the old Fouts parking lot. I’d even mark off (or rope off) a section and call it something…maybe even bring back the “Pit Crew” moniker. And I’d give local bands a chance to play this area for Saturday games.

Make basketball games an event that lasts longer than the length of the game itself like it is for football.

NorthTexasSportsNetwork · January 9, 2022

54 minutes ago, emmitt01 said:

If I were in charge of marketing, I would approach every student organization and the NT Alumni association and organize tailgates in the old Fouts parking lot. I’d even mark off (or rope off) a section and call it something…maybe even bring back the “Pit Crew” moniker. And I’d give local bands a chance to play this area for Saturday games.

Make basketball games an event that lasts longer than the length of the game itself like it is for football.

A lot of students, who I’ve recently interacted with on Twitter, are still blaming COVID and how it’s “too dangerous” and living in fear. Luckily they would never step foot into the Pit unless they are graduating because they hate sports, but it’s a general thought here.

That’s how bad they are, for the most part.

Edited January 9, 2022 by NorthTexasSportsNetwork

untjim1995 · January 9, 2022

1 hour ago, emmitt01 said:

If I were in charge of marketing, I would approach every student organization and the NT Alumni association and organize tailgates in the old Fouts parking lot. I’d even mark off (or rope off) a section and call it something…maybe even bring back the “Pit Crew” moniker. And I’d give local bands a chance to play this area for Saturday games.

Make basketball games an event that lasts longer than the length of the game itself like it is for football.

I like this alot—of course, in the winter, you never know about weather and it’s easier to do that on Saturday than a weeknight. And I know it’s hard when the students are gone to even get 2000 there. But the thing that jumps out to me is why not get the Chamber of Commerce to sponsor a night, then get the social clubs (Kiwanis, Rotary, and Lions) to sponsor a night, and then get the DISD to sponsor a game? Maybe they won’t??

Andrew · January 9, 2022

1 hour ago, untjim1995 said:

I like this alot—of course, in the winter, you never know about weather and it’s easier to do that on Saturday than a weeknight. And I know it’s hard when the students are gone to even get 2000 there. But the thing that jumps out to me is why not get the Chamber of Commerce to sponsor a night, then get the social clubs (Kiwanis, Rotary, and Lions) to sponsor a night, and then get the DISD to sponsor a game? Maybe they won’t??

Never know. Pretty sure the superintendent was there on Thursday and or also Saturday. Never know. Reaching out to local districts would be great. 5th graders are always rowdy at the girls game they get to go to. Of course I guess it helps to have the game during a school day where the option is that instead of learning haha.

greenminer · January 10, 2022

Total speculation, but I think our program needs 5+ years of uninterrupted, high-level success if we want to see a dent in the Denton culture.

I do think Wren is doing the right thing and we are on the right path in MBB. Football is a different story: I've talked to too many alumni friends who are tired of getting talked into attending a big game, an attempt to pull them in, only to watch us have our rears handed to us....sometimes on national TV.

UNTLifer · January 10, 2022

7 hours ago, untjim1995 said:

I disagree on the last part. The 2 for 20.22 deal to get people out to watch a couple of conference games was a great idea…and about 25 people took them up on it.

Its just obvious that Denton just doesn’t care. They don’t like UNT Sports, nor do they want to watch it. We can’t get anywhere close to a third of the Super Pit to be full more than a couple games per year.

Really? Who did they advertise this to at the last minute? Their most ardent fans. What are they doing to attract the community. They should have the foresight to advertise this all fall. Newspaper, advertisements around Denton, schools, etc. It was a great idea but the delivery was lacking.

Edited January 10, 2022 by UNTLifer

Green Otaku · January 10, 2022

I always wondered if the lack of support from Denton had anything to do with UNT branding itself as DFWs team? I know they want to reach the largest audience/alumni possible, but is not pushing yourself as Denton's team leaving untapped fans? If the university doesn't proudly tout your town, why would you go out of your way to support it?

BillySee58 · January 10, 2022

1 hour ago, Green Otaku said:

I always wondered if the lack of support from Denton had anything to do with UNT branding itself as DFWs team? I know they want to reach the largest audience/alumni possible, but is not pushing yourself as Denton's team leaving untapped fans? If the university doesn't proudly tout your town, why would you go out of your way to support it?

Can’t imagine it’s that deep. There’s not enough attention being paid to even look that deeply into things or feel slighted.

UNTLifer · January 10, 2022

5 hours ago, NorthTexasSportsNetwork said:

A lot of students, who I’ve recently interacted with on Twitter, are still blaming COVID and how it’s “too dangerous” and living in fear. Luckily they would never step foot into the Pit unless they are graduating because they hate sports, but it’s a general thought here.

That’s how bad they are, for the most part.

Yep, one young lady called attending a game risking death, then further down her Twitter feed she retweeted a flier for a "Prettiest Butthole" contest and wondered if this could be hosted on Fry Street. Something tells me covid is a convenient excuse.

untjim1995 · January 10, 2022

3 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

Yep, one young lady called attending a game risking death, then further down her Twitter feed she retweeted a flier for a "Prettiest Butthole" contest and wondered if this could be hosted on Fry Street. Something tells me covid is a convenient excuse.

This is Denton, perfectly noted. It’s just a town that likes its arts and funky vibes. I used to think we didn’t do enough—I now realize that they can’t do anything that will make Dentonites care about UNT sports enough to want to attend.

chrisfisher · January 10, 2022

Greenminer has a good point. I attended UNT from 2005 to 2010, and I was part of the original Pit Crew. When I first attended games, the attendance was pretty sparse. However, as JJ developed the program, brought in quality recruits, and started winning games along with multiple NCAA tourney appearances, I watched attendance significantly improve over time. It wasn't unusual for a weekend game to have 4000 to 5000+ in attendance. And I recall the Pit nearly full on several occasions when we brought a name opponent. The last I recall (that's not a given) was either Texas Tech or Oklahoma State I believe...It was packed and raucous, and we won the game. Then Benford came in and destroyed everything over five years of his "coaching" ... Benford was a total disaster for our program and set us back five to 10 years....Will probably take another five to 10 years more to rebuild...We also didn't have a pandemic going on in those years. With continued success, I do think we could get back to the peak of JJ years or better.

Edited January 10, 2022 by chrisfisher

NorthTexasSportsNetwork · January 10, 2022

13 hours ago, UNTLifer said:

Yep, one young lady called attending a game risking death, then further down her Twitter feed she retweeted a flier for a "Prettiest Butthole" contest and wondered if this could be hosted on Fry Street. Something tells me covid is a convenient excuse.

Oh for sure. That was hilarious