Colleague – and my boss – Kevin Denke mentioned yesterday morning that the CU athletic director wants to take a certain amount of ownership for the problems the CU basketball program is having. And Mike Bohn did so publicly.
Wow.
However, Bohn is facing the same problem as other basketball-playing schools along the Front Range – a lack of interest in the sport. CU is the longest-suffering example of what happens when the product doesn't draw many fans to the seats. DU, which entered NCAA Division I play a few years ago, plays in a conference (the Sun Belt) where the Pioneers are the western-most team in the league. That leaves few potential rivalries.
New facilities at CU will help. So will a product that gets people excited, a product that has to include some in-state recruits.
The last time anyone was excited about CU hoops was in the days of Chauncey Billups. Before that, it was Bill Blair. It would be great to have some local interest in the NCAAs come the middle of March. But it won't be for a few years yet.
1 comment:
Steve,
You neglected to mention my idea of a showdown between the CU and CSU basketball teams on the ice of Pepsi Center. I think this could build significant interest. I trust this was an honest omission and not an indictment of the idea being completely stupid.
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