There are many ways to support a program. Going to games, donating, cheering, watching games on TV, participating in forums, etc. Living in Florida I don't get to physically be there and buy tickets so I appreciate everyone on this forum who goes to the games whether it's season tickets or not. Since we are on a fan forum website the point of this thread is simply to dicuss how best to support the program (voice your opinions) in a way that doesn't end up potentially hurting the program we are all here to support.
First off...I don't think being critical of a coach or player is wrong. HOW you do this is THE most important thing. If you feel the best thing for the program is a new coach...that IS being a Fan of the Program 100%...and so is thinking your current coach is the best thing for our future. So far so good.
However, being overly critical, as we have seen with other fan forum sites can and sometimes does affect recruiting which in turn can affect fan turnout when we don't get those recruits and have better seasons and that can lead to a domino affect. It may be a small impact but since we are all here to support the program we need to do our part in being tactful in how we voice our opinions (especially the critical ones).
There is a tactful way to say a player sucks without completely humiliating their name or their past accomplishments. Instead of saying so and so is barely capable of chewing gum and dribbling at the same time...we can simply say they aren't producing at a good enough level to see minutes on the court right now. When discussing a coaches worth...instead of saying he is barely capable of coaching a girls HS BB team...we can be critical in a different way. When being critical we can list what he does well and what he doesn't do so well and then simply weigh the pros and cons and tactfully reach your conclusion something like this. "He is obviously a very good coach or he wouldn't be here but now that we have seen 8 years I personally don't think he is right for our program or where we want it to go". If you really feel strongly about it the best way to make an impact is probably not here but at a UCATS meeting or letters to the AD or some other type of forum.
Fans of the Program should do things differently than trolls or those who don't give two shakes about what affect their comments may have. If you are a FOP then your comments (and mine) on this site or any site should demonstrate it. If you are humiliating our players or coaches in this forum I question if you are a true Fan of the Program. I have probably said some things about players in the past that I would like to take back. I only recently learned that the university contacted BCN about how these sites can affect recruiting. Now that I know...it's my job to make sure I keep that in mind when posting as a FOP.
First off...I don't think being critical of a coach or player is wrong. HOW you do this is THE most important thing. If you feel the best thing for the program is a new coach...that IS being a Fan of the Program 100%...and so is thinking your current coach is the best thing for our future. So far so good.
However, being overly critical, as we have seen with other fan forum sites can and sometimes does affect recruiting which in turn can affect fan turnout when we don't get those recruits and have better seasons and that can lead to a domino affect. It may be a small impact but since we are all here to support the program we need to do our part in being tactful in how we voice our opinions (especially the critical ones).
There is a tactful way to say a player sucks without completely humiliating their name or their past accomplishments. Instead of saying so and so is barely capable of chewing gum and dribbling at the same time...we can simply say they aren't producing at a good enough level to see minutes on the court right now. When discussing a coaches worth...instead of saying he is barely capable of coaching a girls HS BB team...we can be critical in a different way. When being critical we can list what he does well and what he doesn't do so well and then simply weigh the pros and cons and tactfully reach your conclusion something like this. "He is obviously a very good coach or he wouldn't be here but now that we have seen 8 years I personally don't think he is right for our program or where we want it to go". If you really feel strongly about it the best way to make an impact is probably not here but at a UCATS meeting or letters to the AD or some other type of forum.
Fans of the Program should do things differently than trolls or those who don't give two shakes about what affect their comments may have. If you are a FOP then your comments (and mine) on this site or any site should demonstrate it. If you are humiliating our players or coaches in this forum I question if you are a true Fan of the Program. I have probably said some things about players in the past that I would like to take back. I only recently learned that the university contacted BCN about how these sites can affect recruiting. Now that I know...it's my job to make sure I keep that in mind when posting as a FOP.