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IMHO, Even if true this is a bit of an overreaction. Muhlenburg would represent 1 game in a 16/17 game OOC schedule. I’m sure there has been similar groans from Duke fans in the past when they were kind enough to put us on their schedule. I even heard the reverse argument on the football board when they wanted to know why we can’t schedule Penn State or Pitt. It gives the team a break from constant pressure cookers, allows guys lower on the bench to see meaningful minutes and gives Muhlenburg something to look forward to.
Secondly, people don’t quite understand how difficult it is to put a schedule together. First, you need to find teams that are willing to play us. I’ve been told by several sources now that it is much harder this year in particular. Then the dates have to match and there must be the right balance of home and away games. For a number of reasons, virtually no quality opponent wants to play us here. Our 3 biggest road opponents last year were St. John’s, Iowa State and Michigan State. In all 3, we had a real chance to win. Imagine for a moment if those games were played at Stabler. I’m sure opposing ADs are.
Thirdly, how do you convince a team to risk a loss for a gate of 2,000-3,000 fans?
We found ourselves a quality pre-season tournament. I’m fairly certain that we will play at least 2, possibly 3 real quality road opponents but don’t be surprised or disappointed if the home portion of the OOC schedule is not sprinkled with big name schools. Let’s wait until the entire schedule is put together to assess the damage.