49ers/Wake Article..

Saw this posted by HP on the other board and thought I'd post here:

49ers vs. Wake: Good deal

Teams, this region will benefit from both games

JENA JANOVY

So Bobby Lutz and his Charlotte 49ers men's basketball team finally get a regular-season game against an ACC school.

The 49ers will visit Wake Forest next February. We'll get specifics on the date and time when the teams make their schedules public late this summer.

All of this is good -- for Lutz, Charlotte, Wake Forest, the ACC and college basketball in this region.

And there's some even better news. The return game, set for the 2007-08 season, is targeted for Charlotte's new uptown arena, according to folks on the Charlotte campus.

Assuming that happens, it would be a big deal for all involved.

For Wake Forest, it would be a chance to showcase its program in front of a Charlotte audience and play in an NBA arena that seats about 18,500. Charlotte is a good game for Wake Forest. The 49ers are traditionally a solid RPI team and would be a tough matchup for the Deacons.

For Charlotte, it would be a chance to play a strong ACC opponent in front of its hometown crowd, gain regional and possibly national TV exposure and enhance its strength of schedule by playing a tough team from within the region.

And for the college basketball fan, you'd get to see a good regional game full of storylines, the biggest of which might be whether Lutz can win a coveted regular-season ACC matchup.

Sure, some 49ers fans will say hey, wait a minute. They'll say Charlotte has to play at Joel Coliseum, so Wake should have to play at Halton.

Wake Forest is tough at home. Its last regular-season nonconference home loss was Feb. 9, 2002, against Cincinnati, 103-94.

The 49ers are tough at home, too. They're 94-22 all-time at Halton Arena and have never played a home game away from Halton Arena since it opened in 1996.

Lutz said he hopes the Wake Forest game will open the door for Charlotte to play more ACC teams.

"We want to play the best schools we can," he said. "Fans would love to see that."

Charlotte's last game against an ACC opponent came during this past season's NCAA tournament. The 49ers lost to N.C. State, 75-63, in a first-round game in Worcester, Mass.

Charlotte's last regular-season game against an ACC team was Nov. 18, 2000, when it won 95-78 at N.C. State.

"Perhaps it took N.C. State beating us in the tournament to open it back up," Lutz said with a grin. "I always say every school has to do what they think is in their best interest in schedule. Wake Forest is willing to do this.

"I think it's a good game for them, too."

 

VA, are you and Mrs. VA gonna travel down for that one? Winston-Salem is a wee bit closer than Charlotte for you. :imagestor

 

If the stars align we'll be there. That's still a bit off to know for sure. I'll actually get to see more games now that we're in the A-10. Richmond, GWU are for sure. I'll hopefully get down to Halton for a game or two. The first game we'll be competitive and hopefully win, the second game if we don't reload will not be pretty.

 

This is the year, it wasn't last season, although I don't know who can come close to replacing Basden's leadership. I hope there are some that can come in and play right away as a team 2 years from now, we all know that if Beasley does come, he's not going to remain.

One of the things people do not understand is that the entire UNC system entrance requirements are tougher in general to get accepted. Their core requirements are more than most colleges have. You can't get a recruit in due to the selection of classes he's taken. That's one reason Bobby and company have gone the JUCO route. JUCO players can transfer in more easily than freshmen can gain entrance. Go figure....

2006 Class
Mitchell Baldwin, G, 6-2, 190, Rural Hall, NC (Reynolds)
Marcus Bennett, G, 6-3, 185, Detroit, MI (Schoolcraft J.C.)
Chris Nance, C/F, 6-8, 250, Ft Lauderdale, FL (Redlands C.C.)
E.J. Drayton, F, 6-8, 215, Charlotte, NC (Colby C.C.)
Curtis Withers, F, 6-8, 230, Charlotte, NC (West Charlotte)
*Tripp Miller, F, 6-6, 220, Denver, NC (East Lincoln)
2007 Class
De'Angelo Alexander, G, 6-4, 215, Midwest City, OK (Oklahoma)
Antwon Coleman, F, 6-7, 285, Great Falls, SC (Wabash Valley J.C.)
Jerrell Jamison, F, 6-5, 195, Cayce, SC (Wabash Valley J.C.)
Courtney Williams, F, 6-9, 235, Detroit, MI (Schoolcraft C.C.)
*Travis Gordon, G, 6-4, 190, Richfield, NC (North Stanly)
2008 Class
Leemire Goldwire, G, 6-1, 180, Palm Beach Gardens, FL (Dwyer)
**Carlos Williams, G, 6-1, 185, Louisville, KY (Wabash Valley J.C.)
2009 Class
Jerrell Lewis, G, 6-2, 195, Brooklyn, NY (New Hampton Prep)
Mitch Mullis, F, 6-7, 230, Thomasville, NC (Laurinburg Institute)
2010 Class
**Michael Beasley, 6-7, 210, Upper Marlboro, MD (Riverdale Baptist)

*walk-on player
**projected signee

 

Yea I agree with all that but we're losing a crap load next year. I just hope Bobby concentrates on reloading and not looking elsewhere.

 

I think crapload is all one word.

 

Maybe I should have used shitload. Thanks for the grammer lesson.