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Around SBN: The 2009-2010 Card Chronicle Big East basketball preview

Things are getting increasingly eerie in Morgantown

We've touched briefly on the similarities between the Louisville football program's late 2006-2007 and the West Virginia football program's late 2007 up to the present, but given the events in Greenville last weekend, I think it's high time we take a look at the full checklist.

--Losing a shot at the national championship in an especially cruel and depressing fashion? Check.

--Still managing to win a Big East championship? Check.

--Victory in a BCS game? Check

--One of the most successful coaches in program history bolting for a more high-profile job? Yup.

--The manner in which the breakup occurs results in an extremely upset fan base? Oh yeah.

--A replacement is found almost disturbingly quickly? Check.

--Said replacement is a humble, soft-spoken guy who has undoubtedly referred to rap music as "crap" on multiple occasions? Uh-huh.

--Said replacement says all the right things during the offseason, and earns the adoration of the fan base by appearing like the perfect contrast to the former guy who's now perceived as untenably weasely? Check.

--The return of several starters, including a Heisman Trophy front-runner at quarterback, leads to a consensus top ten ranking and widespread talk of a national title? Check.

--The team is less than impressive in its season-opening throttling of an overmatched FCS squad, but the staggering final score overwhelms any and all of the concerns brought up in the ensuing days? I remember that.

--A horrendous performance in week two that leads to widespread panic among the fan base? Oh yeah.

--Positive chatter about the potential for Big East titles and BCS victories sprouting mid-week? Those were the days.

Now I know you're first instinct at the moment is to count down the days until the next game so you can get this bad taste out of your mouth, but I think the bes---look at me. LOOK AT ME! The best thing for you to do right now is enjoy every second of this bye week.

Spend as much time as you can talking about how you're still one of, if not the, favorite to win a second straight Big East title. Hell, if the mood strikes you, talk about how the presence of Auburn on the schedule still leaves you with an outside shot at playing for a national championship.

Do all this while you know you still can, because in a couple of weeks you might be just starting to recover from a 48 hour bender after an embarrassing loss on your home field, and then before you know it, this is happening.

Things don't exactly get rosier during the offseason.

The best piece of advice I can offer up is live while you still can. Live for those of us who have already forgotten what it feels like. Live before Pat White is photographed shaking hands with Greg Robinson looking like he'd rather be vacationing in Yemen.

Live, damnit.

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Things are getting increasingly eerie in Morgantown

One item you left off:

As the football team nosedives, fan attention shifts prematurely to baskeball season which is still two months away because of high expectations and preseason buzz.

by CardinalPoint on Sep 10, 2008 9:37 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

See, this is where we Orange fans have you beat....

… fan attention never left basketball season (and hasn’t since McNabb graduated), except for a brief look up when we noticed SU was winning a national championship in lacrosse like usual.

by drothgery on Sep 10, 2008 1:00 PM EDT up reply actions   0 recs

Yikes

It is really weird how it is happening again, almost in slow motion this time because it is playing out before our own eyes.

You also left out the inevitable “you have no idea how bad things really were under RichRod” and quotes about “bad apples” and “his own players”

Tough break, ’neers. We feel for you.

Although I wonder how much they would appreciate us going to their board and saying, “don’t worry, RichRod was 3-9 in his first year” like they did all last year for us.

by CardsFan922 on Sep 10, 2008 10:11 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

Yeah I wasn’t too sold on that guy last year. Honestly it probbaly would have been best had WVU lost the bowl game last year and then done an actual coaching search. I didn’t think White could be held to less than 100 yards in a 1 on 11 drill, much less with an O-Line in front of him.

I can understand WVU resentment towards Rod though, he’s a WVU alumn, and not only does he bolt, he does it before the bowl game and then has the gall to sue the university? Even Petrino knew better than that.

by dlpfis79 on Sep 10, 2008 12:09 PM EDT reply actions   0 recs

I thought the same thing after the ECU game

These arrogant rednecks are due to get knocked off their high horse. The deserve it so much more than we ever did.

The one difference is that last year no less than three big east teams had their best season ever (USF, UConn, Cincy).

This season, not so much.

The ’neers may have picked just the right season to lay an egg and not have it served to them.

by drhustle on Sep 10, 2008 12:13 PM EDT reply actions   0 recs

Maybe if the memories weren't so fresh, I'd laugh at WVU

Instead, I kinda pity them. I agree with dlpfis79: Petrino’s deparure was the picture of class compared to how Rich Rod left WVU. Even John L. Smith left with more decorum than Rodriguez—and that’s sayin’ something. Because of his history with WVU and how it all went down, I am sure that WVU fans felt a sense of personal betrayal that was mostly absent with Card fans when Petrino and Smith walked away.

I can’t snicker at their misfortune, though. I’m still reminded of what the Cards and their fans endured last year. The pain from last year is simply too fresh for me to enjoy WVU’s current situation. Indeed, I am having a hard time focusing for any length of time on our football team this season. I know that’s a shitty thing to say, and the likes of Eric Wood deserve better, but I just don’t want to get so emotionally invested so soon again. Right now, I haven’t got time for the pain.

Since we’re all taking a trip down memory lane with Mike’s post, I was wondering when you folks realized that our football program was in serious trouble. For me, the Syracuse game sealed the deal. Apparently, my mind did not fully grasp what I witnessed during the UofL/UK game, and I remained foolishly optimistic. I was even able to construct a scenario in which we could still win the Big East and go back to the Orange Bowl. But boy howdy, after we lost to the ’Cuse in football, I knew we were full-on fucked for the rest of the year-though I loyally tuned in to the games and took the pain. Of course, it still took awhile for me to completely absorb the enormity of what had befallen my beloved Cards. Just depressing.

Wow, I guess it’s not true that what’s too painful to remember, we simply choose to forget.

by louisville lisa on Sep 10, 2008 11:32 PM EDT reply actions   0 recs

What an interesting parallel

2006: Louisville is a play away from the show
2007: WVU is a play away from the show

Two nicey nice coaches later, and both are very far away from the show.

No Heisman for Pat White, which I really hate, because he is awesome.

by BR7 on Sep 11, 2008 8:01 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

This is a great parallel

Hoping the Buffs can continue the downward spiral

The Ralphie Report - Shoulder to Shoulder...All Colorado Buffaloes on SBNation - http://www.ralphiereport.com/

by irish1611 on Sep 12, 2008 11:46 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

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