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Message: [QUOTE="wfschrec, post: 740592, member: 361"] Go back and look at our 09 schedule ... PSU, NW, Minn, Maine and BE ... we go 4-8 ... we get enough talent in the next season to go to the Pinstripe and win a bowl game going 8-5. We do not go 8-5 if we don't expose this team to how the big boys go ... pounding on the Wagners and Norfolk States of the world not only give us a false idea of how good SU is but still won't put fannies in the seats because no one ... and I mean no one wants to watch us play Wagner, sorry its the truth. Not playing the big boys and not making the schedule tough is the reason some of these teams crumble when the going gets tough and they play in a game when something meaningful is on the line. Look at the most successful teams in the BE the last few years ... WVU would play anyone ... heck even UConn put Michigan, Vandy and others on their slate ... ND ... all those guys. SU was able to get back into the bowl picture by lining the kids up in front of some of the higher level schools and giving them a taste of what big time ball is. I don't buy into the schedule like a chickensh!t philosophy because then you end up like RU where you have an opportunity to walk into a big game like against LVille last year with a chance to win your conference outright only to choke because you just haven't been battle tested ... you want to run with the big dogs run with them. Don't forget we climbed out of the doldrums playing some B1G and SEC schools .. yeah we would lump in a Wagner type or Tulane just like this season but when we line up against Wagner this year we will smack them in the mouth because we have had our bar elevated and we know what its like to play with some of the heavies and be battle tested and there is nothing wrong with it. The other thing to keep in mind is that these games were scheduled when we were still in that other pathetic excuse for a conference so in some ways we had to make up for a poor in conference slate ... in future seasons that won't be nearly as necessary as it was yesterday. Playing better opponents in the end makes you better and if we have a better idea of who we are and what we do moving to conference play I'm ok with it ... frankly I think this team will be better because we played two good B1G teams ... if we play 4 pasties and go 4-0 then we get a false idea of what we are and don't know what it takes to truly compete with some of the big boys on our slate ... like it or not we have to play them in conference. I would prefer that they mix the schedule a bit ... start with Wagner ... get some game time under their belts ... then play PSU ... then Tulane then follow with NW ... build confidence, attitude and expectations incrementally. [/QUOTE]

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