Does anyone know the injury status for the team?

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my guess is yesterday the Spiders played the best offense in the CAA...the stats back it up in most categories...many said they brought the most balanced offense in the CAA to The Brick House...the Wildcats special teams were the best in the CAA...and Laube! what can you say about that guy?...I don't think we'll see anyone else like him in the CAA this season...

but you know what?...until less than :24 seconds remained in the first half the Wildcats didn't even have a first down!...that's pretty good defense!

I was just as anxious as any other Spiders fans after the "hail mary" to end the first half and the big plays they used to close to 37-34...with just over 11:00 minutes remaining

but you know what happened then, our defense stopped the Cats three times without points to secure the win...it was a big time, gut check comeback...I liked Coach Huesman's post game comment that "they gave it all they've got!"...they did and it was enough!

enjoy a glimpse of some of the finer moments...

Go Spiders!

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I guess when one of my favorite Spiders fans said we would do "just enough" to win, he wasn't kidding...

it sure happened in a way few of us might have imagined, but these were two teams that left everything they had on the field today...

I'm going to enjoy the "thrill of victory" and the extra hour of sleep...I'll worry about Delaware on Monday...

congratulations to the team and coaching staff for the biggest win in Coach Huesman's tenure...

Go Spiders!

Here we go again: the Big 12 has added Cincy, Houston, UCF and BYU. Temple now left in no-man's land. Would love to see them come back to the A10.

"What our players took throughout the course of that game from [UR] students was unlike I've ever seen before,"
-Thad Matta after Xaviers 67-64 win over UR in the Robbins Center.

If I recall correctly were you not the ring leader of what I like to call the "glory years" of the Richmond Rowdies when this occurred? What can the students of today take away from that era?

This post is a little off topic, but I found myself immediately remembering this game between UR and XU after watching what happened at the end of the Michigan-MSU game. If anyone saw JOC piece today in the RTD its a solid read.

That first season in the A10 was wild. 5 game losing streak in the non conference, overshot expectations in the first season by nearly winning the A10 tourney. Remember leading halfway through the second, then West and Co just hit another level and beat us. Crazy NIT run that culminated in a sellout against Syracuse where they thumped us. Remember the future being bright then a month after the season ended Beilien unexpectedly left after Dan Dakich accepted then pulled out of the WVU job. Remember Ray Tate breaking the news to me and he was crushed. Too bad JBs son wasn't a year older, we could of had JB for another few years before he would of eventually moved on to other pastures.

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ready for a big Homecoming celebration?...wouldn't it be something if this game kept alive the Spiders chances in the CAA?...it's possible a big celebration may be in order!

for years the Wildcats had an incredible CAA and FCS Playoff run...led by legendary coach Sean McDonnell New Hampshire made the FCS Playoffs 14 years in a row (2004-2017), but all good things ultimately come to an end...the string ended in 2018...

just like the Spiders, New Hampshire has not been a serious factor in the CAA Championship battle since 2018...they may have hit rock bottom last season going 3-8, 2-6 CAA...

Coach McDonnell is gone and former star Cats QB Rick Santos is heading up the rebuilding effort...the Wildcats were picked to finish 9th in the CAA preseason poll...that just looks kind of weird...

but this does seem like the perfect year to for a UR twofer...1) defeat New Hampshire in RVA for the first time since 2007 and 2) satisfy the Homecoming crowd with a win that keeps Spiders CAA hopes alive!

enjoy Episode Nine of the Countdown in full at the link...

Go Spiders!

Valuable experience for him to get feedback on where he needs to improve.

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though I didn't see last week's game in person, or on TV/Computer, I read enough and heard enough to believe the Spiders played well in many areas versus the Cavs...who would have guessed we'd have no offensive turnovers, or penalties?...that's usually a sign of a well coached football team ready to win...I thought it was an encouraging start to the season!

but it won't mean anything unless we use this game to keep improving...

last I read we were a 17+ point favorite over the Red Flash...Coach Huesman and the players made it pretty clear during the week what the team needed to improve coming off the UVA loss...more explosive offensive plays...better tackling...and defending the rushing lanes...if this team wants to break through in the CAA this is a game in which the foundation to do that gets stronger...we cannot take a step backwards versus the hardnosed and feisty Red Flash...

effort, execution and improvement are in order Saturday...a convincing win would be good medicine for the players, coaches, students and fans!... I'm hopeful we'll walk out of The Brick House satisfied with our improvement and progress!

enjoy the entire Prologue episode at the link...

Go Spiders!

Well done by our social media folks ... seems like a pretty reasonable ranking to me of the Top 10. Others?

I see a tweet saying we've offered this guy, but don't see one directly from him about it even though he's tweeted other offers (including VCU an hour ago).

Out of Lebanon, TN, he's listed as a PF in some places and a wing other places. 6'7" or 6'8" but only 190.


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before the season began optimistic and hopeful Spiders fans were hoping we'd go into game eight with a chance to play for a CAA Championship and FCS Playoff bid in November...here we are October 27 and the team has earned that chance!...but now the toughest work begins

standing between the Spiders and Championship November are the Maine Black Bears...they've played us tough in Orono and at The Brick House over the years, but it's been a good while since we faced them in a game this important...no matter how you look at this one on paper the Spiders appear to deserve the double digit favorite's role again this week...

there was no letdown in the focus and execution last week in a similar spot versus Hampton...it's hard for me to imagine the team will jeopardize the hard work it took to get to this spot with a slip up...the weather report looks perfect for football...a win Saturday qualifies us for the November CAA Championship battle!

I hope you enjoy this week's Prologue...

bring the Championship battle back to The Brick House!

Go Spiders!

Saturday, October 29, 2022 Football
UNH bye(has 2 weeks to prepare for 11/5 UR game)

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the trip to Orono kicks off the second half of the CAA schedule...for those of us feeling optimistic it should be a very important game...one that the Spiders need to find a way to win if we expect to battle to the finish for the Championship and Playoff consideration...

the Black Bears have a new head coach, Jordan Stevens...they lost a lot of talent from last season's 6-5, 4-4 CAA squad...but star QB Joe Fagnano returns on the offense and the infamous "Black Hole Defense" is being rebuilt by a new defensive coordinator after losing its growl last season...

it's never easy on the road in the CAA, but Maine, a team picked to finish 8th in the CAA preseason poll, seems like a game we must win...

enjoy Countdown Episode Eight...picking up speed towards September 3...Yeah!

Go Spiders!

Below are the number of three pointers made last season by each of our five likely starters for this season.

2
25
57
16
0

So a total of 100. Last year our five starters shot 23 + 0 + 57 + 16 + 94 for a total of 190.

We were not a good 3 point shooting team last year, and we need to find an additional 90 (more if you count whoever started before Gustavson) just to match what we did last year.

Given the importance of 3 point shooting in today's game, this seems very problematic to me. How are we going to either solve or overcome this?

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if you're tired of "must win" football games the CAA is not the place for you...last week's "must win" Villanova game just allowed us to hold our ground with the six other squads with one, or fewer, CAA losses...

but you know what?...we play four of these six squads between now and November 19...the Spiders can pretty much control their own destiny...they just have to keep winning!

that should start this weekend at Hampton...as a heavy favorite it's a "must win" CAA road game...the Pirates have little to lose and I expect we'll take their best shot on Homecoming, but it won't matter if the Spiders take to Hampton the game we've seen since the CAA schedule began...

after all the rushing yards against Villanova I'm looking forward to seeing what the Hampton defense is willing to give us Saturday...it'll be Cosh v. Cosh...and it could be another big test for our hard nosed defense...Coach Huesman talked a lot earlier in the week about the Pirates strong group of WRs and their strong armed QB who likes to sling it long...

I expect Richmond will find a way to win another very important CAA "must win!"...

enjoy this week's Prologue...

long time Spiders fans should remember this....a legendary Spiders fan told me last weekend that the UR cheer most closely associated with the 2008 National Championship and many of the other great seasons between between 2005 and the present originated at Armstrong Stadium at Hampton...MOO DA CHAINS!!!...apparently the Hampton PA announcer used it after every Pirate 1st down during our FCS Playoff game there in 2005...thank you Pirates...

Go Spiders!

The University has completely given in to the cancel culture. This article questions the character of those running the school. It was prominently displayed on the front page of realclearpolitics.com.

Here is a classic line.
"I will remind you that just like Stalin had Trotsky killed, the Left always eats its own. They will never be satisfied. They are coming after you. Their mission is always to destroy."

OPEC, the Saudis and Russia have cut oil production by 2 million barrels per day.

Rather incriminating.Anybody home?

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Two fundamental mistakes:

The word ‘Undoubtedly‘ should have been used rather than the word ‘undoubtably’

Athlete is erroneously misspelled as Ahtlete.

Sat, Oct 22, 2022 Football

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by far the Spiders biggest FCS test of the season...Richmond has not defeated Elon since 2016...the foes stats season-to-date in many prominent offensive and defensive categories look very similar...

the former Fighting Christians have to come into this one feeling awful good about themselves after coming from 18 down to defeat the Indians in Williamsburg...their defense stuffed the red hot Tribe in the second half...a road win against a presumed CAA Championship contender can be pretty important when the dust settles in November...

but the Spiders are getting better every week...Coach Huesman finally exorcised the Stony Brook demon last week...maybe the Phoenix will be this week?...a Spiders win over Elon would be a lot like Elon's over W&M last week...

it looks like sloppy weather is likely on the grass turf at Rhodes Stadium...I have no idea whether, the wet/windy conditions give the offense, or defense an advantage...I think the team whose interior lines control the line of scrimmage has the advantage...

I like the improving Spiders to do just enough to win this one...after all, we're getting better every week!...

enjoy the Prologue...

Go Spiders!

How many days left?

I'm itching for the season to start and we can get a look at all the guys in new roles, and hopefully many of them step into them successfully from the jump.

In particular, I want to see our PG play, want to see how Bigelow and Roche are utilized, and would love to see some more full and 3/4 court pressure from Moon, to utilize this team's depth and athleticism.

Hopefully the school can follow up a nice NCAA season and draw in new fans and keep hardcore fans energized.

What else?

The Commerce Department has approved the sale of sensitive technology to the Chinese government. Bush started this. Nice.

"The U.S. continues to send to China an array of semiconductors, aerospace components, artificial-intelligence technology and other items that could be used to advance Beijing’s military interests."

I'll take this down tomorrow but given this board gets the most traffic and know we have some old PIKEs on this board...

Found this paddle for sale. Should be owned by a UR person. I'm not in any way affiliated with the auction but thought it was a cool UR piece.

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the Pirates move into the CAA from the Big South Conference where they played after leaving the MEAC after the 2017 season...CAA preseason pollsters don't give HU much respect voting them to finish in last place in the preseason poll...

Coach Robert Prunty praises the CAA in his Media Day remarks and doesn't expect his squad to be intimidated...he has some talent returning on both sides of the ball, but will likely not know his QB until the week of his first game...there'll be a three way battle for the key position.

Prunty states that Hampton's defense needed to improve this year...he went out and hired a new defensive coordinator named Cosh...it's Chris Cosh, Spiders offensive coordinator Billy Cosh's brother...how's that for irony and intrigue...let's hope Chris can't slow down Billy's Air Raid scheme too much!

there's not much history between these two programs, but the 2015 FCS Playoff Spiders did squeak out a very tough 31-28 win at Hampton early in the season...this year's game is also the Pirates Homecoming game...I expect we will get their very best effort...but if the Spiders are going to make a run at the CAA Championship battle this is a road game that is an absolute must win...

enjoy Episode Seven of the Countdown...

Go Spiders!