That was the largest we’ve had in the bleachers this year and we had a great amount in the stands too
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I think this is absolutely right. As frustrated as I am, good to keep the bigger picture in mind. Thanks @YellowNumber5
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The lack of toughness that was on display by Miami these last 2 home games was alarming. I am not certain that this bodes well in terms of rating this coaching staff. This is about as close as it gets to being exposed as soft and quitting on the mission the coach is trying to lead.
Do we need another good influx of talent next year? - yes, of course. But my main hope is to see our young talent develop some mental toughness - very little to be found at this stage.
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My wife has some interesting observations as she watches most of the games including today 5 rows off the floor.
Watching OU’s ball movement in person was quite impressive. Boals has done a very nice job coaching that team.
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This week is why I think freshmen are freshmen until the season’s over and the wall is a real thing. We didn’t come into either game with the appropriate intensity. We didn’t match Toledo’s MAC championship-driven intensity on Tuesday. Tonight, we overcompensated and then some, coming in way too fired up for a bounce back game that was also a rivalry game. Our 27-14 lead should’ve been 40-14 but we were out of control offensively. When OU made their run, we lost our composure and without experienced guards to rely on and settle the game down, things only snowballed.
Credit to OU for getting through that tough stretch and eventually playing the way they wanted to. It seems that OU and Toledo are playing the best of anyone right now.
On our side, I’d be really disappointed with our lack of response to their run. But again, that can happen when you have an inexperienced team, especially an inexperienced team. There were a lot of bad decisions, especially at the end of the 1st half when it was up and down and no one did anything.
One thing we definitely need to emphasize in the offseason is being tougher with the ball. We throw too many 1 handed passes, we try to run out with defensive rebounds too often, making ourselves prone to steals, and everything about our high post entry to initiate the offense, passer and receiver, has worsened as the year’s progressed.
But now, it’s a new season. Just win Thursday and keep the hotel key for another night. Let’s hope we can find the right intensity.
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It’s gonna take better recruiting. It’s gonna take better consistency in keeping players around from year to year. It’s gonna take Wooooo actual support from the AD and the administration of Miami. It’s gonna take flyin’ in jet planes for all road trips. It’s gonna take better investments for real NIL money.
And right now, I’m having a hard time holding these alligators down!
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(Sorry to always redirect back to the student section) but damn, every time I think we are making some progress in changing the culture of a program I hear something like this and realize how far we still have to go.
Shake it off, onto Cleveland!
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If we win 3 games in a row (and we have this year so we can do it again) you will have more students than you can imagine lining up for the student section next year. Them’s facts.
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Those three games will likely be Akron, Ohio, and Toledo. I’m sure I can think of something more unlikely than beating all three if you give me a few minutes.
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I dont think it is the freshman playing bad. I thought Cooper was the best and Elmer was solid. It is the seniors that have let us down and Dean has had a rough week
Really bad response to adversity today
I would play Morris more and Anderson and Bultman less
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Excellent point and this plays off of Coach Steele’s comments after the game. He really stressed the lack of leadership and said that there might be hope next year in a couple of the younger guys stepping up.
For instance, during the beginning of the meltdown in the late 1st half, Andy made a couple of awful decisions with the ball - just really soft handling the ball and throwing it right to the defender. He also lost his composure - toughness means getting mad, but channeling that energy to lift the team - he melted down for a couple minutes in the beginning of OU’s run.
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It would be a long shot that would draw the respect and ire of any grade school janitor.
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Adam were you wearing a cape, no shirt and body paint recruiting students to come sit in the student section? If so, you were right in front of us right behind Bake recruiting 4 girls.
Mabry’s body language on the bench is horrible. Not cheering, just pouting. At timeouts he barely joined the huddle. I won’t be surprised if he doesn’t return.
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Yep, that’s him
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Do not disagree on Blues observation of Mabry. We have not gotten enough out of him. He has a somewhat limited skill set that hasn’t hit on all cylinders. If he leaves it could open a spot for a better fit.
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“IF” he leaves? I think that ship has sailed. What port it travels to as yet unknown.
Embarrassing.
I traveled up to the game with my wife (we’re a merger) and our 2 kids (9 and 14). Thought we’d make a fun night of it. Stayed at Marcum (nice as always) and take in our “rivalry” game on “Senior” night.
Observations: inflatables in Millett. Stop already. It screams “we are desperate to draw any warm blooded human to the game since we are so desperate.” It is even worse when there are like 2-3 kids populating the 8 or 9 inflatable stations in total.
Pregame: I like Coach Coles and his legacy. I had a chance to meet him years ago. Good man. Why is it, though, that every time I venture to a game we are honoring someone from our past for the umpteenth time? We’ve done that. Said our peace. Enough. I’m tired of celebrating the same fumes from the past.
Team effort. Flashes of ok, but utterly lacking in mental toughness, resilience, and leadership. For end of Coach’s 2nd season, I did not see enough to feel confident that anything is being done meaningfully to truly advance the program.
Student section behind the north basket/baseline: absolutely embarrassing. An amalgam of students who frankly provided evidence that we are now accepting about 90% of our applicants. Some strange/odd students in the front row slamming pool noodles into the floor and dangling them from their bodies in an odd simulation of shaking your penis after taking a leak. Disturbing and embarrassing. Frankly lowered Miami. Very sad. Act like you actually have a clue about how to act in public. OU fans sitting right above that area likely wondering if Appalachia had expanded its geographic boundaries to include Oxford.
Millett…tired.
My 9th grade daughter is near or at the very top of her class at Indian Hill HS and has been around Miami athletics for her whole life. Football games, some basketball games, a sports camp attendee at MU, etc. I could physically see her ‘take it or leave it’ response to what she saw all around her. Honestly, no chance she’ll want to enroll at MU given many other options that also include solid academics, a winning culture, a student body that is not apathetic, and frankly administrations that have done the things that support and reinforce the “front porch” that is athletics.
I used to feel that I was so lucky to have had the Miami experience. Perhaps it is just that - a good memory of a place that had the right combinations of attributes that made it good for the time.
Harsh post. True, though.
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You’re entitled to your opinion but the idea that this staff is somehow failing is comical. Have you ever been around a rebuilding company? I’m betting you have. It never happens as fast as anyone wants it to. People leave pissed off because they got let go or were not promoted by the new regime. Everyone has an opinion on how to do things and why what senior management is doing isn’t good enough. Anyhow, we are absolutely better than we were a year ago as a team so you are wrong about that. Millett is a dump though and you are correct in that regard. Use your Indian Hill connections to get us the hundy we need to build it back.
Also, we could get shelled next week. We all know that could happen. But if the wheels spin us a miracle and we shock the world, I hope you will change your tune. We are not that far away from improving IMO.
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