As a college fan you support the PROGRAM

[sheepdogs]

If you take some of the negative opinions on this board and contrast them with Capel's, how do they end up being the same and how do they end up being different?

 

[okcsooner83]

I think some of the negative posts are because fans see the program going in the wrong direction and don't see any improvement.

 

[Tony]

There is nothing more boring than posts arguing about who has or has not shown sufficient fealty to a sports team. That counts this post I am writing right now, too.

 

[hoopsaustin]

I think what annoys me about your posts is it seems like every time I come on here you have a started a new thread which obviously has a certain point but for some reason you feel the need to "hide" what you are actually trying to say. For example, one of your many "compare OU's starting 5 to X team's starting 5" threads. The message you are obviously trying to send is that OU's starting 5 is worse than the 10th place team in the league. So why not save yourself the time and effort and just post "this team sucks and Capel should be fired". Then we can sticky it to the top and you won't have to continue to come up with creative ways to say with suck without actually saying it.

this... basically he is a tool

 

[coolm]

There is nothing more boring than posts arguing about who has or has not shown sufficient fealty to a sports team. That counts this post I am writing right now, too.

actually it has nothing to do with fealty. you can be a bandwagon hopper (or the reverse as the case may be) - it would just be nice if some could comprehend that their constant negative rhetoric sours the season for others...

 

[WaymanFan]

Now, it is true that I don't like where the program is right now. Outside of the one Blake Griffin year its been painful to watch.

So, the 2008 season was painful to watch? That means 1990-1998 were painful to watch, 2000-2001 were painful to watch, and 2004-2006 also had to be painful for you to watch. 1999, 2002, 2003 and 2010 were the only years since '90 which the team went further in March than the 2008 squad. That is a lot of suffering...my condolences.

Since 1990, I've suffered through three years as a fan - 1993, 2006 and 2010. That's about it for me...enjoyed the others. Those three years I felt the team badly underachieved based on their talent level. Otherwise, I couldn't be happier as a fan.

 

[Sawyer]

I think what annoys me about your posts is it seems like every time I come on here you have a started a new thread which obviously has a certain point but for some reason you feel the need to "hide" what you are actually trying to say. For example, one of your many "compare OU's starting 5 to X team's starting 5" threads. The message you are obviously trying to send is that OU's starting 5 is worse than the 10th place team in the league. So why not save yourself the time and effort and just post "this team sucks and Capel should be fired". Then we can sticky it to the top and you won't have to continue to come up with creative ways to say with suck without actually saying it.

Take out the responses from people who generally just don't like anything he posts and those threads are usually pretty interesting to read.

 

[seniorsooner]

Take out the responses from people who generally just don't like anything he posts and those threads are usually pretty interesting to read.

According to you, that is.

 

[qwertyqaz]

So, the 2008 season was painful to watch? That means 1990-1998 were painful to watch, 2000-2001 were painful to watch, and 2004-2006 also had to be painful for you to watch. 1999, 2002, 2003 and 2010 were the only years since '90 which the team went further in March than the 2008 squad. That is a lot of suffering...my condolences.

I have to chime in on this one. If anything outside of "the one Blake Griffin year" has been "painful" for you abd, I feel kinda bad. In full disclosure, I do sometimes cringe when I see some of your posts, but you do provide some interesting information at times and I appreciate reading those entries. But I do wonder if maybe your approach to OU Basketball is, maybe, a little unhealthy at times. What I mean is, I think sometimes (and not just you) people connect their enjoyment of a season or a team by how the team is doing in the W/L column...certainly it's usually never that simple, but I thought Capel's first three years were all great for me to watch--the development of the teams, the steady progression of the OU squads during those years, Capel growing into his role as a major D-1 Coach, I mean, I found that incredibly exciting. And lest anyone thinks that's because I just care that the team "plays hard" and "hustles," ask my girlfriend and she will tell you that I get EXTREMELY SOUR after a loss--I mean like I have to tell myself "it's only a freaking game" regularly. But you know what, outside of last year, I still enjoyed the hell out of our Basketball team and followed the program and was still super excited to see who we would play next.

I guess all I am trying to say is, at least for me (and I suspect for most others on this board), taking issue with those who post more negative toned posts is not a reflection of being satisfied with losing or lack of concern with win totals, but rather, more a reflection of the belief that being a supporter of a program really requires not walking around with a feeling of constant expectation and consequent disapproval when expectations are not fully met.

Always remember, we're just fans of the program...we're not the ones pounding the floor every night.

 

[skyvue]

The problem in Capel's first year was the total collapse of the team, just when they'd shown signs of coming together. And though people continue to post about that team's total dearth of talent, I've never bought that argument, and I still don't. It's not about comparing coaches, but I will simply state that Capel's immediate predecessors would have gotten a better result out of that team than 16-15 and leave it at that.

The problem with Capel's second season wasn't the win-loss totals, but that too often, when we lost, we got blown out of the arena. We weren't even competitive. Losses like that haven't been acceptable for the past quarter-century at OU, as Capel's immediate predecessors rarely got blown out of the gym.

Blake's sophomore season? Great fun, no complaints.

Last year? A complete and utter nightmare, start to finish, and Coach Capel let it get away from him early when he started players whom he has since openly admitted had bad attitudes and were undisciplined from the day they arrived in Norman.

So I don't know what to expect from this team. My faith in Coach Capel is on hold--I've not given up on him, but I'm not convinced he can get it done, either. I'm withholding judgement.

And while I have no problem with people expressing disappointment after the exhibition game, "Wow--that wasn't a great performance; we've got a lot of work to do" is a very different sentiment than "This team has no talent whatsoever and there's no way it'll win ten games."

The one is a fair-minded critique that recognizes the team's issues but leaves open the possibility of the team improving and progressing; the other rushes to sum up the entire season and dismiss the team after just two weeks of practice and one exhibition game.

I've seen the same kind of posts on the football boards season after season, when we don't play a perfect game in the opener. "We'll never win the Big 12 if we play like that the rest of the season." True enough, Einstein--but guess what, the chances are really, really slim that we'll play like that for the rest of the season. Progress will be made, and players will get better. And even if progress isn't made and the players don't get better, there's still no prize awarded for being the first fan to write off the team, so what's your rush?

 

[Mr.B!!!]

And while I have no problem with people expressing disappointment after the exhibition game, "Wow--that wasn't a great performance; we've got a lot of work to do" is a very different sentiment than "This team has no talent whatsoever and there's no way it'll win ten games."

The one is a fair-minded critique that recognizes the team's issues but leaves open the possibility of the team improving and progressing; the other rushes to sum up the entire season and dismiss the team after just two weeks of practice and one exhibition game.

Excellent observation.

 

[waynepayne]

Wow its like not time has passed at all....

SSDD.

 

[Sawyer]

According to you, that is.

Obviously. I assume the several other people who actually discuss the topics of those threads instead of just whining about how much abd hates Oklahoma find them interesting, as well.

It's easy to just not read things that don't interest you.

 

[Mr.B!!!]

Obviously. I assume the several other people who actually discuss the topics of those threads instead of just whining about how much abd hates Oklahoma find them interesting, as well.

It's easy to just not read things that don't interest you.

That isn't surprising coming from a fan of another program. There are obviously more than a few OU fans on here that can appreciate a different opinion on things basketball related based on the number of fans from other schools that post on here. What bothers many "OU fans" is that there is "one of us" who tries to sneak in anti-OU statements constantly and consistently. Like every day.

 

[seniorsooner]

Obviously. I assume the several other people who actually discuss the topics of those threads instead of just whining about how much abd hates Oklahoma find them interesting, as well.

It's easy to just not read things that don't interest you.

Glad you and your crew of "several" eat up ABD's posts. If you don't like my criticism of said posts then feel free to not read my posts on the matter. It's easy, after all.

 

[skyvue]

What bothers many "OU fans" is that there is "one of us" who tries to sneak in anti-OU statements constantly and consistently. Like every day.

I'll take abd's analytical, if sometimes gloomy, posts over the "we suck and we won't win 10 games this year" content-free rants any day of the week.

 

[colston15]

How quickly some here forget where more talent took us last year. I'll gladly take less talent and more work-ethic and team chemistry.

Not to mention that several of our guys played their first minutes of D-1 hoops the other night. Like, Calvin Newell, Nick Thompson, Cam Clark, Abdi Ahmed, and Tyler Neal. Plus C.J and T.J. didn't suit up.

I think there's enough talent with the improved intangibles to have a nice season. Now, do we have the pieces to make the NCAA's? No. But I think we'll make the NIT and next year will be in good position to be back in the field of 64, 68, or whatever.

 

[WaymanFan]

The problem in Capel's first year was the total collapse of the team, just when they'd shown signs of coming together. And though people continue to post about that team's total dearth of talent, I've never bought that argument, and I still don't. It's not about comparing coaches, but I will simply state that Capel's immediate predecessors would have gotten a better result out of that team than 16-15 and leave it at that.

The problem with Capel's second season wasn't the win-loss totals, but that too often, when we lost, we got blown out of the arena. We weren't even competitive. Losses like that haven't been acceptable for the past quarter-century at OU, as Capel's immediate predecessors rarely got blown out of the gym.

Skyvue, as someone who I've met personally, I respect you as both a person and a poster. However, your opinion of Jeff's first two years here seems a bit shortsighted. I can look back at every OU team and find as many faults as one would want me to come up with. Let's take the '98 - '99 season. We have the best set of post players (Najera and Humphrey) since King and Grant, but lose at home to Murray State, on the road to a horrible aTm team, and find ourselves on the NCAA bubble. With Najera and Humphrey alone, OU should have been better than a #13 seed.

So, do we focus on a humiliating loss to Murray State or the fact the team made a nice Sweet 16 run in March and was within one point at halftime of #1 seed MSU? Same as 2007-2008. Do we focus on the blowout losses or the fact we won a thrilling OT victory at WVU? How about going into Stillwater without Blake Griffin and beating a fierce rival? Finally, how about FINALLY winning a tossup game in March. The previous 4 games OU was seeded 6 thru 11, OU lost. In 2008, we broke through and won. Again, it's all about perspective and what one chooses to focus on.

As for Coach Capel's first year, no one liked the way the team stumbled down the stretch. Also, it's understandable that Billy or Kelvin would have squeezed a few extra wins out of that same exact talent and gotten us in the NIT. Since no one is using the "Capel is young" excuses any more, it's no crime that he couldn't squeeze every last drop of the minimal talent out of that roster. Our fan base should be able to understand that.

Again, it really comes down to perspective and focus.

 

[luckyc1423]

How quickly some here forget where more talent took us last year. I'll gladly take less talent and more work-ethic and team chemistry.

Not to mention that several of our guys played their first minutes of D-1 hoops the other night. Like, Calvin Newell, Nick Thompson, Cam Clark, Abdi Ahmed, and Tyler Neal. Plus C.J and T.J. didn't suit up.

I think there's enough talent with the improved intangibles to have a nice season. Now, do we have the pieces to make the NCAA's? No. But I think we'll make the NIT and next year will be in good position to be back in the field of 64, 68, or whatever.

Ill take more talent & team chemistry

Its not like OU has a terrible basketball history....we should have decent teams...when we dont it gets blamed on the coach thats just the fact of life....If capel brings in talent he needs to figure out how to keep them him and how to make them play well together....

I have said it a thousand times and I will say it again, anyone can coach guys that are easily coachable....and I feel that we have a bunch of those on this team...so just because capel can bring a group of coachable guys together and make them hustle doesnt mean capel can do the same thing to guys with a bunch of talent that are use to being the studs on every team they have played on

I dont give capel a buy either on the talent level....he did a great job bringing in guard talent but a terrible job bringing in post players....The entire last season we knew we had only a chance of bringing back two post players that would contribute (fitz, gallon). I think everyone can agree fitz is more of a guy that should be coming off the bench on a decent team....so he had all of last year to find a starting center and was unable to do so....it was unfortunate that gallon left early but capel knew all along he needed a center

Now I feel like he wasted atleast one scholly on one of the late signees in the fall....and potentially two...I am still grasping at the hope that washington will come in and play really well

 

[colston15]

Ill take more talent & team chemistry

I dont give capel a buy either on the talent level....he did a great job bringing in guard talent but a terrible job bringing in post players....The entire last season we knew we had only a chance of bringing back two post players that would contribute (fitz, gallon). I think everyone can agree fitz is more of a guy that should be coming off the bench on a decent team....so he had all of last year to find a starting center and was unable to do so....it was unfortunate that gallon left early but capel knew all along he needed a center

Now I feel like he wasted atleast one scholly on one of the late signees in the fall....and potentially two...I am still grasping at the hope that washington will come in and play really well

I think you're right on about the post recruiting. To me, one legit post scorer/defender makes us a solid team.