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The vision we've all been waiting for...
- Thread starter Jason Svoboda
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The root of it all though is Indiana State Men’s basketball. Downtown Terre Haute isn’t buzzing “on a Saturday in February” without ISU MBB. Invest in this program and it will help lead a downtown resurgence.
Really hard for me to not make a long winded reply on this topic…
Had a guy I’ve done business with in the past at the game yesterday from out of town - first InState game ever. Big sports guy. Professional gambler. Anyway, he sent out a text this morning raving about how much fun he had pre game, game and post game activities. Too much fun right @Roaminowski
But, an outside perspective is fun and not just my typical biased bull shit.
Seeing the Mayor embrace InState so openly is pretty awesome! He’s not an alum - so I didn’t assume that he would just naturally lean into ISU like this… To have a Mayor saying he wants downtown business to be decked out in InState - is not only refreshing to hear it’s always been the most obvious move. Sometimes we struggle here in TH to even get the low hanging fruit things right.
The energy and noise around this program right now should give InState the green light it needs to hire and President and AD that can be aligned on the future of InState athletic. A future that likely doesn’t include football - that is the low hanging fruit for InState and the best move they can make for the future of our athletic programs. I don’t care if it’s JS that benefits or the next HC that deserves to be paid and his program fully funded - we have to make sure that we’ve cleared the way for that to happen. If you continue to wait on this and kick the can down the road - you find yourself in the position we are in today… Having to rely almost 100% on donors to not only fund your head coaching position but also fund our NIL.
Quick side note on that - I’d say 2 months ago Kent wouldn’t have commanded much NIL money. He’s played himself into a pretty nice payday I’d imagine - he deserves it. Problem with that is - it likely takes money away from Swope, Larry, Conwell. Be interesting to see how that all plays out - but we have plenty of time to talk about that this off-season.
I think the work @meistro and others are doing to make sure our local community is represented on the BOT could go a long way… Unfortunately, it seems like that person will be up against a lot of bull shit. But it’s a step in the right direction no doubt!
One or two downtown hotels would go a long way! The two we have are typically 70% capacity through the week I believe - meaning anything going on they fill up quickly. I think the casino presents both some opportunity and challenge for TH and this movement downtown. I feel like a lot of people are going to gravitate toward that casino and the east side once it opens in April. But it should create a little more downtown hotel availability which will be a good thing.
A lot of season left for this teams story to be written. Not to compare it to Bird - that wouldn’t be fair. But collectively we need to all do our part to make sure we capitalize on this teams success and this movement - let’s not let history repeat itself. The opportunity is now!
I can’t say I’ve never been more proud to be from Terre Haute and be an alum of Indiana State. Because I think we have a lot of things that we still need to clean up and improve upon. But I will say - this feels as close as we’ve ever been in my lifetime to really use the success of the hoops program to propel Terre Haute and InState forward.
I would love nothing more than the next ISU administration come in and hit the ground running - we’re going to get creative and increase enrollment, job number one. We’re going to work with the city and other local schools to make sure we retain talent in Terre Haute, job number two. And we’re going to fully fund our basketball programs and at the top of our priority list is to build a Men’s and Women’s practice facility with offices, weight room, dining area etc. That would be my vision and I’d look to accomplish this in the next 3-10 years.
Sorry for the lengthy post…
Had a guy I’ve done business with in the past at the game yesterday from out of town - first InState game ever. Big sports guy. Professional gambler. Anyway, he sent out a text this morning raving about how much fun he had pre game, game and post game activities. Too much fun right @Roaminowski
But, an outside perspective is fun and not just my typical biased bull shit.Seeing the Mayor embrace InState so openly is pretty awesome! He’s not an alum - so I didn’t assume that he would just naturally lean into ISU like this… To have a Mayor saying he wants downtown business to be decked out in InState - is not only refreshing to hear it’s always been the most obvious move. Sometimes we struggle here in TH to even get the low hanging fruit things right.
The energy and noise around this program right now should give InState the green light it needs to hire and President and AD that can be aligned on the future of InState athletic. A future that likely doesn’t include football - that is the low hanging fruit for InState and the best move they can make for the future of our athletic programs. I don’t care if it’s JS that benefits or the next HC that deserves to be paid and his program fully funded - we have to make sure that we’ve cleared the way for that to happen. If you continue to wait on this and kick the can down the road - you find yourself in the position we are in today… Having to rely almost 100% on donors to not only fund your head coaching position but also fund our NIL.
Quick side note on that - I’d say 2 months ago Kent wouldn’t have commanded much NIL money. He’s played himself into a pretty nice payday I’d imagine - he deserves it. Problem with that is - it likely takes money away from Swope, Larry, Conwell. Be interesting to see how that all plays out - but we have plenty of time to talk about that this off-season.
I think the work @meistro and others are doing to make sure our local community is represented on the BOT could go a long way… Unfortunately, it seems like that person will be up against a lot of bull shit. But it’s a step in the right direction no doubt!
One or two downtown hotels would go a long way! The two we have are typically 70% capacity through the week I believe - meaning anything going on they fill up quickly. I think the casino presents both some opportunity and challenge for TH and this movement downtown. I feel like a lot of people are going to gravitate toward that casino and the east side once it opens in April. But it should create a little more downtown hotel availability which will be a good thing.
A lot of season left for this teams story to be written. Not to compare it to Bird - that wouldn’t be fair. But collectively we need to all do our part to make sure we capitalize on this teams success and this movement - let’s not let history repeat itself. The opportunity is now!
I can’t say I’ve never been more proud to be from Terre Haute and be an alum of Indiana State. Because I think we have a lot of things that we still need to clean up and improve upon. But I will say - this feels as close as we’ve ever been in my lifetime to really use the success of the hoops program to propel Terre Haute and InState forward.
I would love nothing more than the next ISU administration come in and hit the ground running - we’re going to get creative and increase enrollment, job number one. We’re going to work with the city and other local schools to make sure we retain talent in Terre Haute, job number two. And we’re going to fully fund our basketball programs and at the top of our priority list is to build a Men’s and Women’s practice facility with offices, weight room, dining area etc. That would be my vision and I’d look to accomplish this in the next 3-10 years.
Sorry for the lengthy post…
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Bingo! It's like a fire. Yeah, you can build a fire and it may burn for a bit but when happens when you introduce an accelerant into the mix? Our basketball program is like pouring gasoline onto that sumbitch right now.
bent20
The Odum Level
I think that was clearly what the mayor was indicating.
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“Clearly”? He barely mentioned ISU in those 3 posts.
Anyway, I wasn’t saying anything to dismiss his vision…was just highlighting ISU MBB was the reason for the downtown business boost and the time is now to invest in this program…no shots taken at your party.
I've always thought that because ISU and Hulman center were essentially connecting the downtown area that is just gobs of potential there. A ton of schools don't have that. Look at Worthen arena in Muncie, it is off on it's own little island and it's like parking lot desert getting too it, not to mention Ball State's campus is nowhere near down town. I don't think there is another set up in the state where you can book a downtown hotel room, walk to a few bars and restaurants, walk around campus, then head over to the arena all without needed any kind of transportation. There is sssoooo much potential with a true collaboration between the city and university.
From the MVC board. But this is what a drake fan had to say about his weekend in the haute. This is exactly what I was talking about with my previous post about how ideal the logistics are with the downtown. Makes for an incredible experience that not a lot of schools/arenas could replicate.
so, although I am still recovering today from the weekend in Terra Haute, I wanted to just drop a quick recap of the trip, in case anyone else would consider a Valley away day in TH.
We got into town around 11 am (spent the first night in Indianapolis and watched the Pacers get pounded by Sacramento). We were the second and third people into Show Me's on Saturday morning for lunch and beers. Bartender was super kind and got the rugby six nations game on for us. We hung out there for a few hours and chatted with people at the bar. Really good vibes and it filled up quite a bit while we were there (Hoosiers were on as well).
Checked out the record store Headstone Friends (buddy I went with is a big vinyl guy and this place was recommended). Cool shop and nice to do something that wasn't centered around sports and drinking (needed at least a 30 minute break!), but not really my thing. But if you are into that stuff, definitely worth checking out. Checked into the Garden Inn (highly recommend - clean, wonderful location). Ran into a couple Drake players and staffers when we got there.
Went over and checked out the Indiana State tailgate party. What a great idea and great vibe. Only two lines for beer slowed some things down, but it was an awesome event. Got to talk to a lot of people and everyone was very friendly. Got interviewed for the news but the music was so loud I doubt they could use anything I said in that tent. Also chatted with the mayor for a bit. Bounced over to the Copper Bar for a drink and same thing - everyone was awesome to us.
Stadium was incredible. So loud. Great atmosphere for a college basketball game. After a few initial playful exchanges with the student section before the game, we settled in for the basketball and as I have said and will continue to say, people around us were really good. There was some playful jeering, especially around some foul calls, but all in all, Drake made a great game of it and I found Indiana State to be as impressive live as they appear on TV.
After the game we stumbled across the parking lot and some fans steered us into Bally Hoo, and let me tell you, after about 15 Miller Lites and having no voice left, it's a wonder we were able to make it back to the hotel. Got to talk to some great alumni and people who couldn't believe we made the trip from Pittsburgh to see the game, but everyone was just awesome. People buying each other drinks. At one point, after a conversation with a current junior, I bought him a beer and when I handed it to him, a college student yelled "F*CK DRAKE" and then about five kids turned around and started screaming at him "NO! These guys are cool and we don't act that way!" And that's when I knew we made it. lol As I made my way back to the hotel, I walked right past the Larry Bird statue and it was like a religious experience, like he was pointing me home in that moment lol
All in all, I can't say enough awesome things about the weekend. Of course I wanted Drake to win, but the overall experience was top notch, and something we will definitely be doing again. Indiana State fans were awesome the whole weekend, and deserve a ton of credit. I only hope you get the same hospitality from other fans as well. The blue sequin blazers will be back again at some point, I promise that.
Go Drake -
bilyb60046
so, although I am still recovering today from the weekend in Terra Haute, I wanted to just drop a quick recap of the trip, in case anyone else would consider a Valley away day in TH.
We got into town around 11 am (spent the first night in Indianapolis and watched the Pacers get pounded by Sacramento). We were the second and third people into Show Me's on Saturday morning for lunch and beers. Bartender was super kind and got the rugby six nations game on for us. We hung out there for a few hours and chatted with people at the bar. Really good vibes and it filled up quite a bit while we were there (Hoosiers were on as well).
Checked out the record store Headstone Friends (buddy I went with is a big vinyl guy and this place was recommended). Cool shop and nice to do something that wasn't centered around sports and drinking (needed at least a 30 minute break!), but not really my thing. But if you are into that stuff, definitely worth checking out. Checked into the Garden Inn (highly recommend - clean, wonderful location). Ran into a couple Drake players and staffers when we got there.
Went over and checked out the Indiana State tailgate party. What a great idea and great vibe. Only two lines for beer slowed some things down, but it was an awesome event. Got to talk to a lot of people and everyone was very friendly. Got interviewed for the news but the music was so loud I doubt they could use anything I said in that tent. Also chatted with the mayor for a bit. Bounced over to the Copper Bar for a drink and same thing - everyone was awesome to us.
Stadium was incredible. So loud. Great atmosphere for a college basketball game. After a few initial playful exchanges with the student section before the game, we settled in for the basketball and as I have said and will continue to say, people around us were really good. There was some playful jeering, especially around some foul calls, but all in all, Drake made a great game of it and I found Indiana State to be as impressive live as they appear on TV.
After the game we stumbled across the parking lot and some fans steered us into Bally Hoo, and let me tell you, after about 15 Miller Lites and having no voice left, it's a wonder we were able to make it back to the hotel. Got to talk to some great alumni and people who couldn't believe we made the trip from Pittsburgh to see the game, but everyone was just awesome. People buying each other drinks. At one point, after a conversation with a current junior, I bought him a beer and when I handed it to him, a college student yelled "F*CK DRAKE" and then about five kids turned around and started screaming at him "NO! These guys are cool and we don't act that way!" And that's when I knew we made it. lol As I made my way back to the hotel, I walked right past the Larry Bird statue and it was like a religious experience, like he was pointing me home in that moment lol
All in all, I can't say enough awesome things about the weekend. Of course I wanted Drake to win, but the overall experience was top notch, and something we will definitely be doing again. Indiana State fans were awesome the whole weekend, and deserve a ton of credit. I only hope you get the same hospitality from other fans as well. The blue sequin blazers will be back again at some point, I promise that.
Go Drake -
bilyb60046
Those guys sat behind us at the game. Super cool people! They wore sparkly blue jackets and Drake hats that blended in very easily... Everyone around us treated them very well - and they were respectful as well. I can only hope that when we go on the road, that we act as well as they did! They wanted some friendly banter (and most obliged) - but there was NOTHING over-the-top from them. I'm glad they had such a good time in Terre Haute - and doubly glad that they made a post about it on MVC board!
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Just the opportunity that location density provides. Much like the campus functions as it's own little city, you can build an entire experience around that.
When all of the A's to Vegas stuff was being thrown about, there was a statistic that 90% of the discretionary spending of an event attendee occurs within 1 miles of the venue. That's why you see all of these pro sports team attempt to create entertainment districts to make it as easy as possible to get their consumer to open their wallets.
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I talked to these guy's at the Bally. They were the only two Drake guy's in the place. They were good sports. One asked me why everyone was so nice. I remember saying well we did win, and tomorrow we go back to being mom and dads.
Love being able to walk
I was looking forward to his post. Glad he had a great time. I am assuming he and his buddy were the ones in the picture with the Mayor in the blue blazers. Had some students today tell me they were going back and forth with those guys in the stands. Just really proud of our presentation to this poster. Maybe we get a chance to change the minds of those who haven't been here in 20 years.
Yeah - I just wish you could SEE the Hulman Center from the downtown venues.... instead of the parking garage...
Been waiting for 50 years for the city and ISU to act like they know each other. Lots of opportunity for both sides to benefit. There's nothing wrong with being a college town. After all we have three of them. Both sides have been guilty over the years I'm sure but now seems like a great chance to work together.
Couldn't agree more. At least a once a month 30 min meeting with the ISU president and TH mayor should be our next Presidents goal. Weather it be lunch or a walk downtown to keep communication open. Even if and especially if they don't like each other. This weekend proved what can be done when everyone rows in the same direction. One thing I have learned in my years -- common sense is elusive when it comes to higher education and politics. (No offence M , keep doing the voodoo, you do, so well !)
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