DePaul Attendance Hits 37 Year Low

[Bill Marsh]

Explain to me how DePaul, at present, is any different from Temple Football from 1991-2004 in the Big East?

Because DePaul is a charter member of the reconfigured conference and competes in more than just one sport.

To elaborate on your point, Temple was never a full member of the Big East. Legally and officially they were an "associate member", no different than current associate members like Denver for LAX, or Liberty, Old Dominion, and Qunnipiac for field hockey.

There is no conference in the country - including the Big East - that has provisions for expelling a full member for not winning enough games. It simply can't be done. Membership comes with rights and privileges.

[EMT]

DePaul is not being kicked out. They dumped a ton of money on Purnell, but he was a terrible coach. They've made a big commitment with their new arena. The AD has to go of course.... once that happens then they'll be much closer to turning the corner than Boston College or Washington State or the dregs in other conferences.

Was Purnell a terrible coach or is DePaul a terrible situation? Do Chicago kids even want to stay in Chicago with all the gang and gun violence in that city?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/co ... story.html

[MUBoxer]

DePaul is not being kicked out. They dumped a ton of money on Purnell, but he was a terrible coach. They've made a big commitment with their new arena. The AD has to go of course.... once that happens then they'll be much closer to turning the corner than Boston College or Washington State or the dregs in other conferences.

Was Purnell a terrible coach or is DePaul a terrible situation? Do Chicago kids even want to stay in Chicago with all the gang and gun violence in that city?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/co ... story.html

It says a few key things, first that Chicago isn't even top 25 in violence per capita and second that Depaul (and Loyola) are not in unsafe neighborhoods. Don't be one of those people who think that Chicago is some constant warzone in every neighborhood. Yes you can find a kid who is so traumatized he can't fathom that the city is different on the northside than the west or south sides and can easily write a whole article on it but doesn't mean thats actually the main issue.

[GoldenWarrior11]

If DePaul was committed to winning, they would have replaced JLP and all the other lifers in the athletic department long ago, as well as not going back to a retread head coach in Leitao.

DePaul will continue to be bad for the foreseeable future. We will all just have to endure their non-competitive program.

[EMT]

DePaul is not being kicked out. They dumped a ton of money on Purnell, but he was a terrible coach. They've made a big commitment with their new arena. The AD has to go of course.... once that happens then they'll be much closer to turning the corner than Boston College or Washington State or the dregs in other conferences.

Was Purnell a terrible coach or is DePaul a terrible situation? Do Chicago kids even want to stay in Chicago with all the gang and gun violence in that city?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/co ... story.html

It says a few key things, first that Chicago isn't even top 25 in violence per capita and second that Depaul (and Loyola) are not in unsafe neighborhoods. Don't be one of those people who think that Chicago is some constant warzone in every neighborhood. Yes you can find a kid who is so traumatized he can't fathom that the city is different on the northside than the west or south sides and can easily write a whole article on it but doesn't mean thats actually the main issue.

I know that and love Chicago. However, if you are a kid from that side of the city, you may want to get out of the entire area. It certainly doesn't help the issue.

[Doge McDermott]

DePaul is not being kicked out. They dumped a ton of money on Purnell, but he was a terrible coach. They've made a big commitment with their new arena. The AD has to go of course.... once that happens then they'll be much closer to turning the corner than Boston College or Washington State or the dregs in other conferences.

Was Purnell a terrible coach or is DePaul a terrible situation? Do Chicago kids even want to stay in Chicago with all the gang and gun violence in that city?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/co ... story.html

I'm sitting in an office in Chicago right now, struggling to do any work because I'm dodging so many bullets. Also, the violence is not limited to a few poverty-striken neighborhoods, but a homogeneous blanket across the entire city. 'Tis truly an awful place that no one should visit, ever. /s

With the exception of maybe Chicago State (who has way bigger problems to handle right now), none of these schools are in bad neighborhoods.

The reason no kid wants to play basketball in Chicago is because all of the teams suck. Northwestern is poised to make their first NCAA tournament ever. U of Illinois needs a miracle to make the tournament or their coach is fired. Loyola just made the jump into the MVC. UIC and Chicago State are both cupcakes you schedule at the beginning of the year. If you're a kid given the choice to play at any of these schools, or Duke or Michigan State, which one are you going to pick?

[trephin]

IMHO I don't think Purnell overall was a bad coach; I think he was bad for DePaul. It certainly appeared from a distance that at that stage of his career he was merely cashing checks for retirement.

Due to the potential, I don't think DePaul can be called a terrible situation. I wouldn't think it's any less appealing to a coach then any other bottom of a conference team. And it has certain advantages compared to similar situations.

I agree with those who think they need a new AD and men's head coach. However, I'm sure the decision to keep or fire JLP has much more moving parts then the Men's Basketball Win-Loss record. What was the feeling from our DePaul brethen about the previous president? Was there indifference or negativity towards athletics?

Incompetence does not equal not being committed or not wanting to win. It's just trolling to insist otherwise.