3 elite 8's since 1989?

[CUSEBB1]

is that true? Jeesh. Good god it seems like more.

 

[TinyManInside]

Really? It doesn't to me. Seems like we get bounced in the Sweet 16 no matter who we play almost every time we make it there.

 

[CUSEBB1]

we talking 3 elite 8's in 22 yrs. ugh

 

[BlueCurtain]

we talking 3 elite 8's in 22 yrs. ugh

We might be recruiting on a level comparable to the elite (top 8) schools... but that's where the 'elite' comparisons should end. At the end of the day, the rhetoric with everyone's agenda stems down to what they consider to be an acceptable level of success.

 

[CUSEBB1]

I'm not bashing or nothing.I saw it on the Uconn board and it sounded off. But hey. it is what it is.

 

[rstone7727]

We are recruiting on an elite 8 level now but have not done so consistently in the past. Yes, there have been exceptions but generally JB has recruited the "diamond in the rough" type players that didn't
have offers from big name schools. Many years in the past we would land 2-3 three star players and would feel blessed if we got a four star. I think now he wants the lower rated five star players that may
stay 2-3-4 years. Of course if any Carmelos wander by we would happy to have them..

 

[El Jefe Syr]

we talking 3 elite 8's in 22 yrs. ugh

The flip side of that is is 2 final fours and 1 National Championship in that timeframe. I believe that our elite status can best be justified (if you care to) by the level consistency our program has achieved. We've been relevant/a dangerous team every year (even in our worst seasons) for the past 30-35 years. Name 10 teams who can say that - teams like UCLA, Duke, Louisville, Ohio St., Michigan, Indiana, Florida, UConn all drop out.

On the other hand if you're drawing strictly on achievement in "up" years, then we'd still only fall back to ~#8-12 team in the running.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

Sometimes when you cut to the heart of the matter...it hurts, doesn't it? I hope none of the analysts start throwing out stats like that on tv. I like to put that out of my mind and remind myself JB is a HOF coach and it could be worse. But, boy...looking at our post season losses...we have left a lot of money on the table.

 

[zls44]

Sometimes when you cut to the heart of the matter...it hurts, doesn't it? I hope none of the analysts start throwing out stats like that on tv. I like to put that out of my mind and remind myself JB is a HOF coach and it could be worse. But, boy...looking at our post season losses...we have left a lot of money on the table.

Six of one, half dozen of...I mean, Calhoun lost his first million Elite 8 games, many under pretty ridiculous road game situations.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

Six of one, half dozen of...I mean, Calhoun lost his first million Elite 8 games, many under pretty ridiculous road game situations.

Easier to swallow when you close the deal 3 times.

 

[HoustonCuse]

Bottom line is the biggest black mark on JB's resume is not his recent record against Pitino, it is his laughable record in the Sweet 16. I'm not advocating trading him out for another coach but the fact is, he makes a lot of Sweet 16s and he can't win those games unless he has enough talent to go all the way. It's the most bizarre factoid about his coaching record, imo.

 

[CUSEBB1]

Not arguing anything being said.I agree with it all.Just seemed odd seeing it written down.Can't go wrong with 35 out of 37 seasons with over 20 plus wins a year.I am quite happy.

 

[HoustonCuse]

Not arguing anything being said.I agree with it all.Just seemed odd seeing it written down.Can't go wrong with 35 out of 37 seasons with over 20 plus wins a year.I am quite happy.

You want to be more shocked, don't look at how many wins JB has in the Sweet 16 (ie made it to Elite 8), look at how many losses he has.

And remember one of the few wins was the result of several miracles against Georgia in 96.

This is why I will never predict SU getting past the round of 16. If they do - basically they make the championship game. So if you predict them getting to the Elite 8 this year, you are predicting at least a national runner-up season.

 

[raf4488]

All that matters is today, the program is elite and better than ever.
Let's revisit this thread in 5 years and see what everyone thinks.

 

[CUSEBB1]

Yup Yup.I am very happy as an orange fan. Always have been and will be no matter what.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

We have certainly lost to a lot more lower seeded teams in the tourny vs beating teams that were higher than us in seed. We have those 3 awesome years but too many "also ran" years that ended with a crushing loss to a worse seed.

 

[CUSEBB1]

This thread is such a downer,lol. Silly me.

 

[Orange87]

It's easy for the casual college bball fan to look at numbers and say '3 elite 8s in 22 years', but those of us who pay attention to specific programs know the actual story behind those numbers.

For example, 3 elite 8s may sound bad but SU is one Derrick Coleman foul shot in 1987 and one Lazarus Sims 2nd half injury in '96 from 3 national championships.

The Syracuse program is a perennial national championship contender. A down year for the school is 20-10. That ain't too shabby.

 

[AZOrange]

is that true? Jeesh. Good god it seems like more.

I wish someone could explain to me the magic in the Elite 8 number. We win 3 games in the tourney compared to 2? Anything short of a title is failure for elite teams every year and only 1 team wins.

 

[CUSEBB1]

No magic number. Was just wondering if that was correct.No harm meant.

 

[HoustonCuse]

I wish someone could explain to me the magic in the Elite 8 number. We win 3 games in the tourney compared to 2? Anything short of a title is failure for elite teams every year and only 1 team wins.

It's sort of like the magic in having $1,000 versus $100. As in: IT'S BETTER.

Complicated concept.

 

[DoctorBombay]

Not for nothing, & not directed at anyone in particular, but threads like this have never made much sense to me.

We've been an elite, yes..ELITE, program for damn near 40 years. UConn, GTown, SJU, Pitt, have at one time or another, all measured & claimed Syracuse as their rival. Think about that...they've gone up or down...but we've ALWAYS won, consistently, like clockwork. We've been the benchmark & measuring stick for most if not all CBB programs in this conference. But....
None of that means much because....wait for it...3 Elite8's in 22 yrs? Yup, we MUST suck!

OK, I'm obviously exaggerating, but seriously- at what point do some SU fans give up the ghost and look at the half-full vs the half-empty?
Personally, I stopped giving a about stats like that after the NC. Doesn't mean I don't care or that its not important, but we've scaled the mountaintop. We made it...we won. Why can't we pull a Vietnam, declare victory, & worry about something else...like winning another NC?
Now thats something I could really get into!

 

[HoustonCuse]

I'm not sure what you are arguing for. On the one hand you seem to be suggesting that since we won the NC, we should fold up the tent and end the program. On the other hand you are suggesting that we should all just grow up, stop worrying about getting to the Elite 8 and instead just focus on winning another NC. Maybe you know about a new structure for the NCAA tourney, but I'm not sure how these events can be exclusive.

 

[CUSEBB1]

Had a feeling i should have never started this thread.Nothing good can come from it.

 

[BlueCurtain]

It's the pink elephant. If we pretend it's not there...