2025-26 Opponent Tracking

bighornn said:
Let's cut to the chase .... why is NC State agreeing to a home game at VCU?

It certainly wouldn't happen if I were in charge in Raleigh.

And please, don't suggest games with VCU is what two-time NCAA champion and 2024 Final Four qualifier needs to boost its resume. Duke and UNC and others will do that.

This is the fifth hardest to figure scheduling in Rams' favor I can recollect ....

first- home game with Minnesota in '71
second - Michigan State agreeing to two game tournament at Coliseum
third - Georgia Tech? Huh?
fourth - UVa four-game if you can believe it series? Bennett on crack?
and now - NC State ... why, why, why?

If I'm a rival coach, especially with bad blood involved, I'd rather schedule at game at Boston against the Celtics, than come to Richmond for a near-certain ambush of unimaginable agony ... why? Did Willfredo, in a weak moment, sign something under influence of Cinco de Mayo?
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I can't speak to the Minnesota or Michigan State games.

Regarding Georgia Tech, one has to remember the landscape back then. Will got the home & home scheduled in his first season at VCU. The prior year, Georgia Tech had been at the bottom of the ACC and were something like 8-9 games under .500 overall. We were a top 40 school at that point. So, Will was able to get a bottom power league team to play home and home. That's like us scheduling Vandy or Penn State when Mike was head coach at VCU.

Regarding UVA, Bennett was clear in that he liked playing state schools. William & Mary played at UVA a couple of times. Bennett also scheduled a home & home with JMU, too. The first home and home with VCU was when we were the higher rated team, so again that factors into it.

As for NC State, I don't know. Perhaps Will believes we will be a top 50 team, and with the ACC apparently going to 18 conference games from 20, it's a good game for NC State. I haven't asked anyone at VCU, and I haven't reached out to Will, so I can't say for certain.
 
SteveMM said:
Oh I am absolutely embracing the opportunity. I'm thrilled to death about it in fact, and I'm thankful that Willie was willing to play the game. However, he's not doing us a favor. This has as much to do about the ACC backing down from 20 to 18 conference games as it does anything else. He's using his contacts to schedule a quality game that will help his team. Last season VCU had a better NET ranking than all but four ACC teams. There's no way of knowing right now whether than will be the case next season, but he's betting on it being a Q1/Q2 game, and I'd be willing to bet it will be early in the OOC schedule.
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Taking Will Wade out of the equation, what other P4/Big East school is offering VCU a H&H that isn’t a coaching contract fulfillment? Until one does, then what NC State is doing is to a degree a favor. And dropping 2 conference games is not why VCU is getting a H&H. I doubt any other P4/Big East school is even contemplating a road game at VCU.
 
HBK said:
I can't speak to the Minnesota or Michigan State games.

Regarding Georgia Tech, one has to remember the landscape back then. Will got the home & home scheduled in his first season at VCU. The prior year, Georgia Tech had been at the bottom of the ACC and were something like 8-9 games under .500 overall. We were a top 40 school at that point. So, Will was able to get a bottom power league team to play home and home. That's like us scheduling Vandy or Penn State when Mike was head coach at VCU.

Regarding UVA, Bennett was clear in that he liked playing state schools. William & Mary played at UVA a couple of times. Bennett also scheduled a home & home with JMU, too. The first home and home with VCU was when we were the higher rated team, so again that factors into it.

As for NC State, I don't know. Perhaps Will believes we will be a top 50 team, and with the ACC apparently going to 18 conference games from 20, it's a good game for NC State. I haven't asked anyone at VCU, and I haven't reached out to Will, so I can't say for certain.
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Minnesota thought they were playing UVA vs. VCU. Big time scheduling snafoo on their part back in the early 70’s.
 
Wolfpack Ram said:
Minnesota thought they were playing UVA vs. VCU. Big time scheduling snafoo on their part back in the early 70’s.
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This is an urban legend. I've talked to multiple people involved, including Benny Dees, who actually scheduled the game prior to his departure, as well as members of that Minnesota team, and they all dispute this.
 
Wolfpack Ram said:
Taking Will Wade out of the equation, what other P4/Big East school is offering VCU a H&H that isn’t a coaching contract fulfillment? Until one does, then what NC State is doing is to a degree a favor. And dropping 2 conference games is not why VCU is getting a H&H. I doubt any other P4/Big East school is even contemplating a road game at VCU.
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If these other power conferences (including the Big East) start only sending four teams to the dance AND decide they're only going to have 18 conference games per season AND only have five teams below 50 in the NET, then you may see more games scheduled against teams like VCU. The fact is that the ACC right now can't count on conference games to float them into the NCAA tournament like other power conferences can. The Big East isn't in any better shape, but it's still clinging to the 20-game conference schedule. The ACC needs to be thinking of their non-conference a lot more than previously. For NC State, we're basically filling a hole that a top-five ACC team would have taken up.

Truly, I appreciate Will Wade being willing to schedule us. But, if it didn't benefit him he wouldn't be doing it. Thus, it's hard to call it a favor.
 
SteveMM said:
If these other power conferences (including the Big East) start only sending four teams to the dance AND decide they're only going to have 18 conference games per season AND only have five teams below 50 in the NET, then you may see more games scheduled against teams like VCU. The fact is that the ACC right now can't count on conference games to float them into the NCAA tournament like other power conferences can. The Big East isn't in any better shape, but it's still clinging to the 20-game conference schedule. The ACC needs to be thinking of their non-conference a lot more than previously. For NC State, we're basically filling a hole that a top-five ACC team would have taken up.

Truly, I appreciate Will Wade being willing to schedule us. But, if it didn't benefit him he wouldn't be doing it. Thus, it's hard to call it a favor.
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You're missing my point. NC State gave VCU a H&H. Do you honestly think P4/Big East schools are going to give high mid-major schools a return game at their place? Absolutely not. They are going to take those two extra games and use them for either high mid-major home buy games or H&H's with other P4/Big East schools. I'll guarantee you P4/Big East schools scheduling return games with high mid-major schools are going to be almost non-existent.
 
Wolfpack Ram said:
You're missing my point. NC State gave VCU a H&H. Do you honestly think P4/Big East schools are going to give high mid-major schools a return game at their place? Absolutely not. They are going to take those two extra games and use them for either high mid-major home buy games or H&H's with other P4/Big East schools. I'll guarantee you P4/Big East schools scheduling return games with high mid-major schools are going to be almost non-existent.
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I'd say "we'll see" but the ACC is the only league that's reduced the number of conference games, so it's not exactly a wide testing pool. The Big East really ought to do it, but they haven't. You might be right about everything you say, but even if you are it doesn't really prove that Wade is doing VCU a favor. To me, a favor is something that someone does for another without any benefit to them other than perhaps making themselves feel good. Wade wouldn't be doing this if it didn't help him and his team as well. The fact that it's VCU likely has more to do with us being a quality opponent that isn't far away, and one where he has connections that make scheduling negotiations easy to complete.
 
Wolfpack Ram said:
Pretty sure @bighornn started the myth years ago. ;) :lol:
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Never believed that and it never came up at the time ... the only way it made any sense was that the Gophers were looking for another game on a holiday trip .... that was not the case - they flew straight to Richmond and flew straight back home ...
 
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