- however, and this is a big however, Rutgers has never captured the imagination of the region. There are so many other sports interests in the area, and it isn't like Rutgers is everyone's college. UConn in Storrs, Iowa in Iowa City, and Notre Dame in South Bend, they are the supreme and somewhat only "act" in town.
I get all of that but, IMO, those things don't matter as much as they may have in years past. Things are quickly shifting in women's sports. The participation has blown up over the past few decades and the coverage is now catching up.
As you may have seen in my prior posts, my vision references the tri-state(NY-NJ-PA/Del Val area). This region is rich in girls basketball and basketball, period. There are enough fans and elite talent that could support a strong, successful college program with marketable players. The Caitlin Clark phenomenon just goes to show that the area consists of the necessary fan base interest. Also, take a look at the crowds that pack the Hoop Group facilities in the area.
It just takes the right coach who can bring the culture, players, and winning success to make it a reality. Is Coquese that coach?,.... only time will tell. She's off to a slow, but positive start. Hopefully she continues to get more of the local elite talent. Just look at what our area talent is doing at these other places.
We've seen that the local media loves any program that achieves on a national stage, whether it be Fairleigh D, Princeton, St Peters. Don't think these are everyone's colleges either.
And UConn, although they are all over SNY, IMO, they do not appear to be embraced by the people of the region I mentioned as their representative school.
The success of Vivian's and Theresa's best teams is an enviable goal, but it will be very difficult to achieve. In today's game, especially. These are different times.
Agree. What I'm talking about is, getting the team back to the national stage, with deep runs in the Tourney. If they can sniff a Final Four or Championship game, that would be great too(although of course, Nat'l Chip is ultimately the goal).
We've already seen the men's program make the most of the RAC "atmosphere advantage" to become an ESPN regular(now BTN), dating back to G.Waters/Douby days.
If the women can get to a point of playing at the level that Iowa, UCLA, USC, and any other top-tier teams that visit the RAC, we can really have some new memorable moments.
It's not as improbable as many on this board think. Over the time Kiyomi is here on the Banks, (depending on recruiting picking up), we could be going toe-to-toe with Dawn Staley's S Car squad, right here at the RAC(JMA).
rutgers.rivals.com
