The biggest root cause of this season's collapse is the second and third recruiting classes. These would have been the seniors and juniors on this year's team (juniors and sophomores with Covid bonus year) and what do we have to show for those two recruiting classes? Austin Rotroff.

Hughes, Weathers and TDM got the job done more or less, they made us competitive and respectable even if they didn't always have the right supporting cast around them, especially after the in-season departures last year. But they obviously weren't going to stay forever and there was no one left to take over when they left. My understanding is that Keith usually had capable players ready to take over and assume larger roles when good players graduated at Akron. For whatever reason that process was botched at Duquesne. Everyone else in those second and third recruiting classes (not including Baylee Steele) either wanted out or wasn't good enough to stay. The fourth recruiting class gave us a project with a lot of potential upside in Hima and three rotational/role-player types in Acuff, Bekelja and Okani. So the only way to save this season, realistically, was to nail the transfer portal. We were all pretty excited about getting a shot-blocking big from the MVC, a stretch four with 3-point range from the Big 12 and a versatile swingman from the Southern Conference who supposedly could play any position from the 1 to the 4 and had been the JUCO player of the year. Oh and we got two talented but overlooked prep school guards while everyone else was recruiting the portal? Sounds great on paper, right? Throw it altogether and we've got a team that's taken us back to the Nee Era. Chemistry issues were to be expected, but this has gone far beyond that I'm afraid.

I'm sorry to say that I'm in open-the-windows mode at this point. Coach's comments give me little confidence in his ability to right the ship, no matter how good a coach he's been throughout his career. But will things really be much better for the next coach? What if we're just stuck in this pattern where some kids will succeed at Duquesne but will simply use the program as a springboard to bigger and better things, while other kids aren't good enough to play at this level and will transfer out or never be more than role players? And even those role players might transfer out to become bigger stars on lesser teams, see Norman, Lamar. The new transfer rules have made this reality much easier to imagine. Building and maintaining a successful program at Duquesne is going to be a tall order for any coach, regardless of reputation or experience level.

Last edited by DennisC91 (2/22/2022 4:54 pm)

Dennis, it's hard to argue with anything in your post.  It appears that a very difficult road lies ahead for the program without some type of bold action on the part of the University; or a change in the landscape of college basketball.  I don't see the latter happening since the system is now rigged to aid the P-5 schools and the NCAA will do nothing to give the P-5 reason to dump the NCAA and keep all of the money for themselves.  
I think we have seen enough in the last 45 years to know not to expect any bold action by Duquesne that would radically change the course of the basketball program.  Most of their attempts at improvement could be classified as "too little too late" and have amounted to throwing good money after bad to try and patch a sinking ship.  There were plenty of opportunities over those 45 years where a bold investment in the program might have prevented the gradual deterioration while it was still salvageable; but I fear that it may be too late to save a once-proud and winning program.  

Levon you got it right , For Duquesne its too little too late,45years of blundering toward basketball and
this is the program you get for pissing around with little committment.Duquesne needs to own it and
realize going to a lesser conference might be good for everybody

A83 wrote:

stew wrote:

Levon you got it right , For Duquesne its too little too late,45years of blundering toward basketball and
this is the program you get for pissing around with little committment.Duquesne needs to own it and
realize going to a lesser conference might be good for everybody

As the late DU81 said, moving to a lower conference in no way guarantees success. And so then your stronger players aren’t poached by the P5. They are poached by the A10, MVC and Mountain West.

You want to see an empty arena have the big conference game be Canisius.

People will come to see a winning program. Knock off a few mid majors in OOC and people will come to see Canisius, especially when the Dukes are mentioned as a bubble team.
 

I agree A83, if they move down to a lower conference, I myself will quit following the Dukes.

kcc173 wrote:

Lower conference and I also am gone. No matter how low things seem to have gone this year, I do not go in reverse. Period. Nearly 50 years of waiting does not change that - I am a proud ‘71 graduate.

Well, I am pretty much already gone. Already contacted ticket office that I won't be renewing my season tickets. Not going to continue beating my head against a wall after 50 years, trying to win in what (thanks to the new transfer rules) is now pretty much a rigged game. Drop to a conference more compatible to a private Catholic school without a tradition of winning and without the deep pockets of the pubic schools and I may hang around.
 

Pretty much what remains of the fan base is quitting.    Hey AD and staff members that lurk here,  are you reading this?   I actually respect people for walking away.

Hey new guy here. I am a Niagara University grad and a soon to be proud Duquesne parent as my daughter is deposited for the fall of 22. I will tell you this you do not want to move down to the MAAC level where my alma mater is. The conference is about to be blown up which the shifting going on. NU would kill to be Duquesne and the alums all dream of ways of getting to the A10.I look at your league and almost all schools are like Duquesne minus a few UMass/URI/GMU. You have resources and a great city. Things will turn for DU.The revenue and exposure are so valuable that the A10 brings. I look forwrd to being a Dukes fan going forward even if I am a Niagara alum !! Go Dukes !!..... by the way what about Wojo as replacement for KD ? Maybe the Marquette gig was expectations just a bit unrealistic ?

I just wish somebody leading Duquesne realizes whatever upgrades Dambrot got its not enough and if you
want to challenge Dayton and VCU and St.Louis then you gotta spend lots more money for good coaches
more money to recruit around the world and keep improving facilities and improving the fans experience.That means a more efficient athletic department with folks who are passionate and not passing time.A purge is needed to upgrade basketball at Duquesne.

A83 wrote:

stew wrote:

I just wish somebody leading Duquesne realizes whatever upgrades Dambrot got its not enough and if you
want to challenge Dayton and VCU and St.Louis then you gotta spend lots more money for good coaches
more money to recruit around the world and keep improving facilities and improving the fans experience.That means a more efficient athletic department with folks who are passionate and not passing time.A purge is needed to upgrade basketball at Duquesne.

This I agree with. Someone should hire the entire RMU staff. They do so much more with so much less.

I don't know much about the athletic department staff but agree that if there are people just punching in and out they need to be gone! Period!! Nothing is more destructive to any enterprise than people who just put in time and have no commitment to their jobs!!  

stew wrote:

I dont know the first thing about marketing or sales but putting boots on the ground and going door to door
to talk to Duquesne alumni face to face.Sell your passion,know your product and work your tail off this summer.
I dont think stuff like that gets done.I think its sitting in a office,making some calls to basketball supporters
and watching the clock and punching out and b.s.ing your boss with a story. Sell the program,work passionately!!

Go to local high schools, visit with office staff prior to an assembly that has a motivational speech tone.  I got Dambrot to my high school when he was first hired.  Many on the staff follow the Dukes just because he came and they enjoyed his visit.
 

A83 wrote:

stew wrote:

Levon you got it right , For Duquesne its too little too late,45years of blundering toward basketball and
this is the program you get for pissing around with little committment.Duquesne needs to own it and
realize going to a lesser conference might be good for everybody

As the late DU81 said, moving to a lower conference in no way guarantees success. And so then your stronger players aren’t poached by the P5. They are poached by the A10, MVC and Mountain West.

You want to see an empty arena have the big conference game be Canisius.

Didn't we try that back in '93?  Maybe what became the Horizon Conference would take us back?  Right now we could be fighting it out with IUPUI (which with their conference record of 1-14 would allow us to be competitive).  

Change conferences... no thank you.

Last edited by indygjm (2/22/2022 11:33 pm)

Tejas_Duke wrote:

People will come to see a winning program. Knock off a few mid majors in OOC and people will come to see Canisius, especially when the Dukes are mentioned as a bubble team.
 

Oh my, Tejas, if that isn't channeling Brian Colleary in 1992, I don't know what is. How did that work out again?