Final Community Night Stop Tonight in Washington

[Bobby Parker]

Here are the details for tonight's Bradley Braves Community Night stop at Five Points in Washington:

http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=205241617

Don't forget, Coach Ford also will be throwing out a first pitch prior to Friday night's CornBelters game at The Corn Crib in Normal.

I hope those that have attended either of the first two Community Nights events have enjoyed the experience. Feel free to visit us again tonight and be sure to sign up for another shot a one of the door prizes.

[Beninator]

Thanks for posting this. I plan to attend this event tonight, albeit I will get there a little late.


Geno throwing out the first pitch in enemy territory. Sounds interesting!!

[Beninator]

Just got back from the Five Points event. I got there a bit late but I am curious if there were any posters at this event or if I missed something...

My impressions:

The Good:

A nice turnout for the event.
I like the fact that BU is trying different events to reach out to the community. I hope that this is the start of things to follow.

There is no better emcee for an event like this than Dave Snell!

Nice to see DSE, WL, and DS tonight. Geno mentioned that DS has been working out a lot this summer and has lost 15 pounds.

Geno was asked a question about a possible red shirt for Nate Wells. Geno basically replied that with WE out with an injury, and the fact that we have 5 Freshman coming in this year, PT will be awarded to those deserving and that we need the Freshmen to step up. Mine and only my interpretation is that they will give Nate a chance, but would prefer to redshirt him. ((again I will admit that I can be completely wrong here)))

Dr Cross fielded a difficult question about moving the SEMO game to the RC very well. Whether a person agrees or disagrees with this subject, Dr Cross did IMO about the best a person could do with a difficult situation.

What IMO needs to improve:

As I stated earlier, I like the concept of this outreach event very much. What needs to be improved with this event IMO is the format. The format for the event was basically the same as the ITOO event. The event lacked creativity and I feel that this event missed the mark a little especially with this being Geno's first year. I think that a more interesting concept would have been to partition the room with the different sports and have the public walk up to the coaches and players and discuss matters with a place for drinks to be served in the area. I even think that the Athletic Department could have put together video of each respective sport for the public to view at each table. I feel that this format would be very beneficial to Geno, whom I feel is very comfortable talking to people/fans. I mention this only as a form of constructive criticism for ways to improve these types of events in the future.

[Da Coach]

I was there and it was nice to see and talk to the coaches and players. For the first hour or so the coaches and players mingled around the room and talked with as many people as they could. Maybe you got there too late and missed that part. I think that personal meet-and-greet/autograph part is the best part of these events, and the fans enjoyed it. The emceed speaking program was not as much value for the fans since most of what was said, we've heard before.
Also, the few questions that were asked were the same tired questions we have heard a thousand times ("Are you going to put a priority on winning home games?", "Is Nate Wells going to redshirt", "Why are we playing a game at the RC?". "I am a season-ticket holder, will I be able to get a ticket?", etc). 90% of the people in the room could have answered the questions as well as the coach and Dr. Cross did.
Personally, I think the program would have been better if there were more prepared comments by the coach about the team rather than the question-answer format.


BTW, the reason there were only 3 men's basketball players there (DSE, WL, and DS) was because most of the players have finished their tests and completed their summer semester and have gone home for a brief break before fall classes begin. Those 3 players were the only ones who still have classes tomorrow, or in the case of DSE and DS, they live locally.

[Beninator]

I was there and it was nice to see and talk to the coaches and players. For the first hour or so the coaches and players mingled around the room and talked with as many people as they could. Maybe you got there too late and missed that part. I think that personal meet-and-greet/autograph part is the best part of these events, and the fans enjoyed it.

Good point as I got there at 6 pm. I would prefer the informal format for the entire event as to a degree, I feel that Coach Derose was a little overshadowed by Geno and the Men's Basketball program. The community event is a good idea and I hope that they tweak some things to make it more interesting next year.

[thefish7]

I got there at about 6:20 PM. That means I missed Dr. Cross's remarks but managed to get there in time for Jim DeRose and Geno Ford. Dave Snell did a good job emceeing as always. DeRose did find and Coach Ford did a great job. He referred to Illinois State as that high school program we play down the road from time to time. He also fielded a question about what game is our most important at this point... UMKC because they're our first opponent. Point is Geno is dedicated to making us proud... Was a great speech and he answered questions in public forum or individually the same way. It's time to win and take advantage of the great fanbase we have and nothing else.

[Chico]

Good point as I got there at 6 pm. I would prefer the informal format for the entire event as to a degree, I feel that Coach Derose was a little overshadowed by Geno and the Men's Basketball program. The community event is a good idea and I hope that they tweak some things to make it more interesting next year.

Wish I could have been there. I bet the Mayor was there as he is a big Braves fan. As successful as Coach Derose has been I think he expects to be overshadowed by the Men's bball team and coach.

[it's boogie time]

I think it is great that the athletic department is trying something new in the surrounding communities. Hopefully, it will be an annual event.

With only having seen a few clips of Kent State basketball last season, it really was hard to come up with a good question for the new coach.

[Beninator]

With only having seen a few clips of Kent State basketball last season, it really was hard to come up with a good question for the new coach.

I very much agree. I almost asked Geno a question about the style of play that he prefers to coach, but in the end, I figured we will get an answer during the first exhibition game anyway.