Looks like coach Rhoades has hired a former teammate of his to the staff as well... I can't remember being this excited about Rice basketball for a long time...

Rice is right for Rhoades - Lebanon Daily News

http://www.ldnews.com/sports/ci_25497371...ht-rhoades Wrote:For help in following that dream, Rhoades was quick to add a friend and fellow fiery competitor to his staff in Pera, whom he struck up a friendship with when he was at LVC and Pera was just beginning his coaching career as an assistant at Palmyra and then as head coach at A-C, where he led the Little Dutchmen to the 1999 Class AA state championship. Rhoades' fellow former LVC point guard J.D. Byers, a 2005 grad who assisted him at Randolph-Macon for a time, also has joined the staff after stints as a D-1 assistant at St. Francis (Pa.) and Radford.

(04-05-2014 09:33 PM)I45owl Wrote:  Looks like coach Rhoades has hired a former teammate of his to the staff as well... I can't remember being this excited about Rice basketball for a long time...

Rice is right for Rhoades - Lebanon Daily News

http://www.ldnews.com/sports/ci_25497371...ht-rhoades Wrote:For help in following that dream, Rhoades was quick to add a friend and fellow fiery competitor to his staff in Pera, whom he struck up a friendship with when he was at LVC and Pera was just beginning his coaching career as an assistant at Palmyra and then as head coach at A-C, where he led the Little Dutchmen to the 1999 Class AA state championship. Rhoades' fellow former LVC point guard J.D. Byers, a 2005 grad who assisted him at Randolph-Macon for a time, also has joined the staff after stints as a D-1 assistant at St. Francis (Pa.) and Radford.

Great article. Deserves it's own thread.

Radford is where one of the other VCU hires (Mike Jones) went to head coach from Shaka Smart's staff. So Byers has been exposed to the same principles.

Interesting, so far he has hired two people with no visible contacts to Texas HS basketball. Unless his third staff hire has Texas ties, he may have to start out at ground zero establishing their credibility with Texas basketball coaches. Of course he still has the director of basketball operations to consider as well. I guess it is possible to enhance relationships with local/Texas programs (but not players) from that job if structured properly.

Byers seems like a good young hire with experience recruiting the east coast:

From Radford's website:

3rd Season
Lebanon Valley, 2005

For Byers, Radford marks his second stop as a Division I assistant
Before working in 2010-11 at St. Francis, Byers was part of a successful three-year run (2007-10) at Randolph-Macon where the Yellow Jackets won 60 games. In 2010, R-MC went 26-7 and advanced to the Division III Final Four.

Byers worked under current VCU assistant Mike Rhoades for two seasons, and under current R-MC head coach Nathan Davis for one year. Byers served as the team’s recruiting coordinator, overseeing East Coast recruiting. On the court, he managed individual workouts, handled practice planning, coordinated strength and conditioning, and was in charge of scouting.

While at R-MC, Byers coached an ODAC Freshman of the Year and Division III Freshman All-America pick, an ODAC Player of the Year, and several all-conference performers.

Early in his coaching career Byers spent a season on the staff at Lebanon Valley, his alma mater. Byers was the recruiting coordinator for the Dutchmen, landing a Middle Atlantic Conference Player of the Year and a third team All-American. He began his coaching career at the first of three D-III stops, FDU-Madison.

As a player at Lebanon Valley, Byers had a decorated career. In addition to earning NABC First Team All-America honors as a senior, he was the 2005 ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-America of the Year and the 2005 Jostens Award winner, given to the nation’s top Division III student-athlete.

Byers graduated Summa *** Laude from Lebanon Valley in 2005 with a degree in accounting and business administration, and earned his MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson in 2008.

http://www.ruhighlanders.com/coaches.asp...ath=mbball

As I've said before--academics and 94 foot basketball--my ideal coach.

(04-06-2014 11:42 AM)gsloth Wrote:  Mike Jones

281-330-8004

(04-06-2014 07:12 PM)Gravy Owl Wrote:  

(04-06-2014 11:42 AM)gsloth Wrote:  Mike Jones

281-330-8004

You mean this?

"Know What I'm Sayin'"

[Chorus]
Represent yo hood,
represent yo block,
represent yo spot.
"Know what I'm saying?"
represent ya ward,
represent ya town because its goin down.
"Know what I'm talkin bout?"

[Bun B]
When you seee me with my gun on,
its a be a one on,
you know what type of s*** Big Bun on.
Some of that six figure s***,
that live and die by the trigger s***,
that H-Town, P.A. Texas trill @ss n***a s***.
Wanna f*** with me get a bigger clique,
move yay get a bigger brick,
wanna f*** my gal get a bigger d***.
So do me a favor (favor),
recognize that you a hater,
that couldn't see me if i was ya neighbor.
Yeah Mike Jones and Swishahouse,
finna meet me at yo sista house,
tell het have that doja and them swishas out.
N***a we gon set up shop in here,
let bottles pop in here,
and watch these bad @ss b*****s bop in here.
S*** midddle fingaz up (and haters down),
we about that drama,
so if you dont want it b**** dont bring us up.
Man and we gonna be grindin,
n***a huggin this block,
till they free KS and let my brother off lock.

[Chorus]

[Mike Jones]
I sip on purple barre,
ride around town in my candy car,
diamonds shine like a star.
I love to grip that wood grain,
love to talk that texas slang,
I spend change like it ain't no thang n***a.
Because down south we be tippin on fo's,
in the parking lot pimpin these hoes,
its M.O.B. on every hoe n***a.
Down in H-Town we grippin on grain,
flippin on swangs sippin that drank,
causin pain in the turnin lane n***a.
(Holla at me) 281-330-8004
Hit Mike Jones up on the low (Yeah)
I said 281-330-8004
Hit Mike Jones up on the low (Yeah)

[Chorus]

[Lil Keke]
They betta stop playin,
because we might slain,
somebody start prayin man.
I'm bout to get it hot,
before i blow the spot,
give me some henn and rocks fool.
I'm bout to let it go,
I'm talkin killa blow,
you watch yo chick you check ya b****.
You n***as know its on,
we pushin plenty chrome,
this the Don me and Bun.
I f*** with Mike Jones,
broke n***as stay at home,
we off the hook like Cokka Book.
Big Texas where its at,
Ya'll betta holla back,
we packin gats and smokin sacks.
Pimpin these young hoes,
and my bank roll sits swoll,
got me tippin on fo fo's n***a.
I'm bout to smash up,
Ya'll n***as given up,
You roll a square and po a cup.

[Chorus]

If I was going to quote lyrics on this board, I would have chosen a different song.

Aw come on - - that's hilarious!

I totally agree. He has to find an assistant who knows Texas basketball. He should find a great high school couch from Texas as an assistant to help recruit in Texas.

Nice story about the recent developments in Rice basketball.

http://www.midmajormadness.com/2014/4/6/...ds-at-rice

What the hey is "mid-major" with respect to basketball?

I hate that label!

(04-06-2014 09:23 PM)OldOwl Wrote:  I totally agree. He has to find an assistant who knows Texas basketball. He should find a great high school couch from Texas as an assistant to help recruit in Texas.

That would certainly help with those living room visits.

By the way:



Adidas made the lettering on our home uniforms gray. That looks really sharp, and it should stay. Adidas hasn't done so well with our baseball and football uniforms, so I'm a little surprised that they got basketball right. Well, except for the black alts. Those need to go yesterday.

Quote:What the hey is "mid-major" with respect to basketball?

I think it should be used mostly for teams from conferences in the middle third of power ranking. However the term is often used for any non-power conference team that has a good season, even if they are clearly a "low-major" school.

"What the hey is "mid-major" with respect to basketball?"

it is the level we will rise to, if we have about 3 good seasons (.500 and above).

I always thought that the mid-major terminology came out of basketball and generally referred to the strong hoops conferences that didn't have D1-A football. From there it was expanded to encompass the non-power football conferences as well. But perhaps my knowledge/memory is completely wrong.

(04-07-2014 02:40 PM)texd Wrote:  I always thought that the mid-major terminology came out of basketball and generally referred to the strong hoops conferences that didn't have D1-A football. From there it was expanded to encompass the non-power football conferences as well. But perhaps my knowledge/memory is completely wrong.

Here's how the term "mid-major" was born:

Quote:The term was born in 1977, when Jack Kvancz - then the coach of Catholic University - was asked about a nip-and-tuck game against Howard University, and he summarized it thusly: ''For a game between two mid-majors, or whatever you'd call us, it had anything you could ask for.''

It was a throwaway comment, but one that took hold, becoming part of the college basketball lexicon as the NCAA tournament exploded in the 1980s into a high-profile event. Suddenly, any program with a small budget or little name recognition was saddled with the description of ''mid-major,'' back then an endearing term for the scrappy underdogs.

But as the rest of that Associated Press article says, the term now has a derisive connotation (I had no idea!) ... and all involved would like to dump it.

Quote:RIP, ''mid-major.'' It was a good run.

The term that for years has derisively referred to programs residing somewhere outside the major conferences of college basketball has died. It was 37 years old.

BTW, "mid-major" has no standing in the NCAA structure. But since being initiated in 2002 by Clark Campbell, "CollegeSwimming.com has produced an objective ranking system for Mid-Major, Division I swimming programs. ... (I)nstitutions eligible for the CollegeSwimming.com poll are those ... that a) are not members of a BCS conference, Mountain West Conference, or Western Athletic Conference; or b) provide fewer than one-half of the allowable scholarships under the NCAA rules."

I have heard it used primarily to distinguish non-BCS FBS schools from BCS FBS schools. Extension of the "mid-major" label to other sports is even more demeaning.

Sorry for taking this thread off-topic! I was just vexed to see the reviled label in one of the linked articles.