"State" of Illinois

[SubGod22]

Nice piece Joe. I look forward to more of them

[RoyalShock]

http://www.salukitalk.net/st/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=34804

[SubGod22]

http://www.salukitalk.net/st/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=34804

I love it!

I enjoy reading thru the Saluki threads. Some of those posters crack me up.

[InWuWeTrust]

gotta say:

1) the picture is hilarious!

2) lowery would look good in a winnie the pooh outfit.

[wusphlash]

Those that watched the game on the deuce, did they give Les a pass because of the injuries or put him on the endangered list?

[calfan]

He got a BIG PASS.

Nice to see Bardo do the game.

[shox1989]

I think they basically gave him a pass. They talked a lot about the injuries, some about Bradley's (and Wichita State's) basketball tradition and no mention of Les being in any kind of trouble.

Based on the injuries, Les's past success and the fact that he is a Brave, I think if I were the Bradley AD I would probably give him another year.

Also BU probably doesn't have the money to buy him out.

[electricmayhem]

It will be interesting to see how this shakes out. The fan base is clearly frustrated, but the Braves truly have been snakebitten the last few years. It happens to everyone - I'm not making excuses - but it seems like it's worse in Peoria than other places lately.

If he keeps the team playing hard, he stays next year, regardless of the record. It isn't like he's been at the bottom of the Valley every year now...

[Shocker3435]

It will be interesting to see how this shakes out. The fan base is clearly frustrated, but the Braves truly have been snakebitten the last few years. It happens to everyone - I'm not making excuses - but it seems like it's worse in Peoria than other places lately.

If he keeps the team playing hard, he stays next year, regardless of the record. It isn't like he's been at the bottom of the Valley every year now...

em,

I was discussing this very point with a friend even before the game. Healthy, BU should have been as big a factor in the race as anyone this year.

Nobody should expect to overcome these kinds of losses, and you are right..if anyone has been snakebit recently, it's been BU.

That being said, this team should not be 0-11. There is talent there, good talent. Lot's of youth, not much depth, but there is talent and as tough as the grind in the MVC can be, there is no excuse to be 0-11.

Is it a matter of not being willing to adjust to the circumstances they face (certainly Jim Les wouldn't be the first coach like that) or am I just waaaaaay off base on what the Braves actually have to work with this year?

[calfan]

How many wins did HCGM have his first year? More than zero.

I know he had less talent that year than Bradley has this year.

[electricmayhem]

It will be interesting to see how this shakes out. The fan base is clearly frustrated, but the Braves truly have been snakebitten the last few years. It happens to everyone - I'm not making excuses - but it seems like it's worse in Peoria than other places lately.

If he keeps the team playing hard, he stays next year, regardless of the record. It isn't like he's been at the bottom of the Valley every year now...

em,

I was discussing this very point with a friend even before the game. Healthy, BU should have been as big a factor in the race as anyone this year.

Nobody should expect to overcome these kinds of losses, and you are right..if anyone has been snakebit recently, it's been BU.

That being said, this team should not be 0-11. There is talent there, good talent. Lot's of youth, not much depth, but there is talent and as tough as the grind in the MVC can be, there is no excuse to be 0-11.

Is it a matter of not being willing to adjust to the circumstances they face (certainly Jim Les wouldn't be the first coach like that) or am I just waaaaaay off base on what the Braves actually have to work with this year?

Bradley really has Warren and a bunch of role players. I don't think anyone in Bradley Nation will argue that. Dunson is a nice player, and Egolf has improved offensively, but it's tough right now. I like the lineup a lot better with Maniscalco and Brown there... that's 25 points per game that BU had to replace.

A lineup of Maniscalco, Dunson, Warren, Brown and Egolf - with a bench of Lemon, Simms-Edwards, Prosser and Eastman would have probably been the best nine-man rotation that Les has had.

They do have youth -- only Warren and Dunson graduate this year -- so there is hope for next season... but it's been eight of the nine Les years where "there is hope for next season" went up in flames.

[wusphlash]

Calling electricmayhem. What's the word on Taylor Brown in Peoria. Any closer to figuring out if he will be able to return.

[electricmayhem]

Calling electricmayhem. What's the word on Taylor Brown in Peoria. Any closer to figuring out if he will be able to return.

I saw the bat signal in the sky...

Taylor is out for the season. It was announced a few days ago that he will not play this year. It remains to be seen what happens for next season.

He was released to begin lifting weights a few weeks ago, but hasn't done much. My sources tell me that it was primarily Jim Les' call to shut him down. It doesn't make much sense to bring him back this year for BU.

Jim basically said it would take him some time to get back into game shape, and he didn't think there was a benefit.

Taylor hasn't let his condition keep him from his Twitter account -- He's at twitter.com/taylor3brown -- already talking about how he's behind in classes and calling out the fans for leaving the ISU game early and not supporting the team.

I wish he'd shut up and play ball...

[wusphlash]

Calling electricmayhem. What's the word on Taylor Brown in Peoria. Any closer to figuring out if he will be able to return.

I saw the bat signal in the sky...

Taylor is out for the season. It was announced a few days ago that he will not play this year. It remains to be seen what happens for next season.

He was released to begin lifting weights a few weeks ago, but hasn't done much. My sources tell me that it was primarily Jim Les' call to shut him down. It doesn't make much sense to bring him back this year for BU.

Jim basically said it would take him some time to get back into game shape, and he didn't think there was a benefit.

Taylor hasn't let his condition keep him from his Twitter account -- He's at twitter.com/taylor3brown -- already talking about how he's behind in classes and calling out the fans for leaving the ISU game early and not supporting the team.

I wish he'd shut up and play ball...

Thanks for the update. Good for him that he's been released to begin some physical activities. Heart problems are always scary. Maybe the Twitter is just a sign of boredom.

[wusphlash]

2011-2012 going to be a repeat of 2010-2011. Maybe worse. The Valley needs the Illinois schools to succeed for visibility purposes. The only coach that had a somewhat legitimate excuse last year was Jim Les and he is the only one that got fired. There will be two more firings at the end of this year in the State of Illinois.