PSAC 2023 (Week 1) Non-Conference Games

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Illinois has put an astounding number of basketball players into the NBA over the years, many more than the average fan is aware of. Yet the University of Illinois has never won a national championship, and the state as a whole only has one national championship — Chicago Loyola in 1963. I've lost count of the number of Illinois players over the years that I've seen help win championships at Kansa, Duke, Connecticut, the D1 Indiana, etc. It's a problem when you don't keep people at home. The Illini should have won in 1989, when they clearly had the best talent, but they bumbled away a semifinal game to eventual champion Michigan, whom they had pounded twice during the Big 10 season.

The old 'third time' jinx. Amazing how often that happens.

IUP was on the opposite side of it one year in men's hoops. Some 25 years or so ago Cal was very powerful and swept IUP in the regular season. Sure enough IUP went down to a sold out Hamer Hall in the PSAC Tournament and beat them fairly handily.

One team is pumped up and the other is already looking to the next round.

[Ship69]

I still can't comprehend Maryland in the BIG. I get the money thing, which obviously drives the bus. The Terps just had so much history in the ACC.

Why Maryland can't be better in football is astounding in itself. If they could pull a Miami (80s) and 'build a wall' around their backyard, they'd be swimming in 4- and 5-star recruits. Instead they just get picked clean year after year.

Illinois has put an astounding number of basketball players into the NBA over the years, many more than the average fan is aware of. Yet the University of Illinois has never won a national championship, and the state as a whole only has one national championship — Chicago Loyola in 1963. I've lost count of the number of Illinois players over the years that I've seen help win championships at Kansa, Duke, Connecticut, the D1 Indiana, etc. It's a problem when you don't keep people at home. The Illini should have won in 1989, when they clearly had the best talent, but they bumbled away a semifinal game to eventual champion Michigan, whom they had pounded twice during the Big 10 season.

[Fightingscot82]

We have to remember that the Big Ten sees itself as the mostly public flagship version of the Ivy League. They are more than just an athletic conference. Many, many departments on campus have function-specific annual gatherings of Big Ten schools. It's the first line of benchmarking internally. Adding Maryland, Rutgers, Nebraska, plus now UCLA, and USC only underscores that. When ESPN writes about it, they're only going to see it for the athletic part. But maybe as much as half of this expansion considered academics and research. Northwestern has been pushing for another private university for decades but there weren't many good fits; Vanderbilt and Duke weren't going to leave the SEC and ACC.

[iupgroundhog]

Yeah, I recall a quote from Boomer Esiason some years back about the perceived Penn State-Maryland rivalry after one of many Terps losses. It was something along the lines of, "It isn't a rivalry until you win a few times."

PSU is 42-3-1 against Maryland.

[IUPNation]

I still can't comprehend Maryland in the BIG. I get the money thing, which obviously drives the bus. The Terps just had so much history in the ACC.

Why Maryland can't be better in football is astounding in itself. If they could pull a Miami (80s) and 'build a wall' around their backyard, they'd be swimming in 4- and 5-star recruits. Instead they just get picked clean year after year.

Less travel being in the BIG East. The State University of New Jersey and the Centre County Community College are closer. The Overrated State University isn’t that bad either.

However those Minnesota-Maryland barn burners can’t be missed!!

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Yeah, I recall a quote from Boomer Esiason some years back about the perceived Penn State-Maryland rivalry after one of many Terps losses. It was something along the lines of, "It isn't a rivalry until you win a few times."

I still can't comprehend Maryland in the BIG. I get the money thing, which obviously drives the bus. The Terps just had so much history in the ACC.

Why Maryland can't be better in football is astounding in itself. If they could pull a Miami (80s) and 'build a wall' around their backyard, they'd be swimming in 4- and 5-star recruits. Instead they just get picked clean year after year.

[Ship69]

We have a lot of those in basketball. Every team IUP plays in the West calls IUP their 'rival'.

It's not a rivalry when you've lost 30 in a row.

Yeah, I recall a quote from Boomer Esiason some years back about the perceived Penn State-Maryland rivalry after one of many Terps losses. It was something along the lines of, "It isn't a rivalry until you win a few times."

[Ram040506]

I imagine it’s the same in foosball in the West and one school in the East not located within Pennsylvania

It may develop over time, but no IUP and Shepherd are not rivals yet. It's kind of a funny dynamic amongst Rams fans as the old guard of the 80's/90's/early00's IUP was the shiny program that we hoped to be mentioned with eventually. Guys that came in post that era, don't have the same feeling. Just 2 programs that think they should win the region every year and if they keep meeting as they did last year a few times at the end of every year, they'll most certainly be trending towards rivalry status and I'd think it wouldn't be just one side thinking that either.

[IUPNation]

We have a lot of those in basketball. Every team IUP plays in the West calls IUP their 'rival'.

It's not a rivalry when you've lost 30 in a row.

I imagine it’s the same in foosball in the West and one school in the East not located within Pennsylvania

[IUPbigINDIANS]

It’s apparently a one way, one man rivalry.

We have a lot of those in basketball. Every team IUP plays in the West calls IUP their 'rival'.

It's not a rivalry when you've lost 30 in a row.

[IUPNation]

"Perceived rivalry?" Nah, given the records of recent years IUP would have to be giving points in this one.

It’s apparently a one way, one man rivalry.

[Ship69]

Yeah screw that. No points. Straight up.

This is a perceived rivalry. You win or lose.

"Perceived rivalry?" Nah, given the records of recent years IUP would have to be giving points in this one.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

As a neutral party, I’d say you should be giving at least 7.5 pts for this bet. ESU on the road against a team that is going to be a consensus favorite to everyone? Come on make it somewhat fair.

Yeah screw that. No points. Straight up.

This is a perceived rivalry. You win or lose.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

As a neutral party, I’d say you should be giving at least 7.5 pts for this bet. ESU on the road against a team that is going to be a consensus favorite to everyone? Come on make it somewhat fair.

Consensus favorite according to 5 dorks on a message board.

[Ram040506]

I suggested the bet so I'll take the bet.

No points, straight winner. Warrior Voice, what say you?

Loser goes with the winners' school avatar for one year on this site.

As a neutral party, I’d say you should be giving at least 7.5 pts for this bet. ESU on the road against a team that is going to be a consensus favorite to everyone? Come on make it somewhat fair.