So CAA Teams Don't Care about Championships....

[Lehigh Football Nation]

http://www.championshipsubdivisionnews.com/?title=spiders-title-rings-glitter&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1


Athletes say it all the time: “I want a ring.”

They speak of a championship ring. Depending on the level of competition and budgets, championship rings widely vary.

Rings awarded by the University of Richmond to members of the 2007 Spiders football team this spring for winning the 2007 Colonial Athletic Association title include a few distinguishing characteristics influenced by the suggestions of senior captains Tim Hightower and Stephen Howell.

I wonder how UMass fans feel about this... as well as folks who keep talking about how unimportant it is for the CAA to have a "true champion".

xrolleyesx xrolleyesx xrolleyesx

[AppAlum2003]

Nice drop... I had to click on the article to read what the ring actually reads.

What's next? Second place studded earings?

[JMU2K_DukeDawg]

I think UR makes themselves rings every year. Weren't they the self-proclaimed Virginia football champions or something a couple years ago (they played JMU, Hampton, Liberty, VMI or some similar schedule...)? xrolleyesx

[BlueHen86]

http://www.championshipsubdivisionnews.com/?title=spiders-title-rings-glitter&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1



I wonder how UMass fans feel about this... as well as folks who keep talking about how unimportant it is for the CAA to have a "true champion".

xrolleyesx xrolleyesx xrolleyesx
Way to over generalize. The article is about specifically about Richmond, but you expand that in the thread title to mean the whole CAA. Richmond isn't the whole CAA, it's just one school.

Using your logic, nobody in the Patriot league cares about football at all because American doesn't have a team.xrolleyesx

[bluehenbillk]

sounds like someone has a case of CAA envy.

[UMass922]

I wonder how UMass fans feel about this...

It doesn't bother me. I don't really care. Richmond had a great season (better than ours) . . . if they want to acknowledge it with a ring, that's fine.

[Spider]

I think UR makes themselves rings every year. Weren't they the self-proclaimed Virginia football champions or something a couple years ago (they played JMU, Hampton, Liberty, VMI or some similar schedule...)? xrolleyesx

sounds like more than CAA envy.....

[paward]

I am not sure if I understand the point in the original thread? But then again not sure if I understand much at all, this getting old is an awful thing!

[KAUMASS]

We were co-champs in 1988, and my ring has my name and number on one side with "Attitude" under my number. The other side says NCAA Football playoffs. We designed our own rings as well. We all wanted to win the conference every year, as it meant an auto to the playoffs. However, if we didn't, we knew we had a shot at an at large if we were 8-3 because of the strength of our conference.

Delaware did not win or share the conference this year but there were in the National Title game. Who had the last laugh this year in the CAA? Delaware.

I would trade a conference ring anytime for a shot at the National Title Game. This however does not make my conference championship meaningless.

[jmuroller]

I don't see whats wrong with it? Why wouldn't you get a ring if you win the conference?

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

Way to over generalize. The article is about specifically about Richmond, but you expand that in the thread title to mean the whole CAA. Richmond isn't the whole CAA, it's just one school.


No kidding! And if you read the article, all the inscriptions they put on the ring were about getting better each week, winning eleven games and making it to the national semi-final game. Not much mention of a CAA Championship. I sure got the impression that those achievements were more important!

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

sounds like someone has a case of CAA envy.

I know. I'm guessing that LFN just can't stand it that Villanova, Richmond and William & Mary would prefer to be in the CAA than the Patriot. Villanova particularly because of their location and because some of their posters have stated that a Patriot schedule would increase their fan support, would create a Big East rivalry game with Georgetown, would decrease travel, etc. Yet, Nova would still prefer to play in the league with the higher level of play.

[GannonFan]

Tsk Tsk Tsk - CAA envy (and a precipitous drop in fortunes of the Patriot League since that decimation in 2003) is just a tough thing to deal with. xlolx xlolx xlolx

[Tribe4SF]

LFN's reputation takes a hit on this one. Petty, at best.

[Longhorn]

I'm trying to get my head around a $25 championship watch mentioned in the article. xrotatehx $25??? xeyebrowx My, that must be a real work of art. ;) Why not simply present all team members with a gift certificate to the International House of Pancakes? xlolx

[813Jag]

I'm trying to get my head around a $25 championship watch mentioned in the article. xrotatehx $25??? xeyebrowx My, that must be a real work of art. ;) Why not simply present all team members with a gift certificate to the International House of Pancakes? xlolx
I'd take that. xthumbsupx xlolx

Teams have the right to do whatever they want, one year Alabama State got rings for winning the SWAC East, they had been down a few years.

[Longhorn]

I'd take that. xthumbsupx xlolx

Teams have the right to do whatever they want, one year Alabama State got rings for winning the SWAC East, they had been down a few years.

I agree with you that all teams should honor their players (and do so in any way they think most appropriate under NCAA rules)...but a $25 watch seems, well, kinda cheap. Perhaps at $40 grand a year in tutition UR's admin decided that's all they could afford! xthumbsupx

[paward]

The watch is from the confererence, I think. The school provided the rings.

[spdram]

"UR purchased 109 rings, at $159 per ring, for players, coaches and staff. “Our athletic department policy is to provide rings for teams [that] win conference championships,” Richmond Athletic Director Jim Miller said.

The NCAA prohibits championship gifts from the school and its conference together exceeding $325 per student-athlete. The CAA awarded each Spider a championship watch, at a cost of about $25 per timepiece, according to Daniel McCarthy, UR’s assistant athletic director/compliance"

Paward is correct, the conference gave the watches, the school gave the rings. FWIW the University has a policy any conference champions get a ring. (I'm sure that is subject to NCAA compliance).

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I don't see whats wrong with it? Why wouldn't you get a ring if you win the conference?

Because, technically, they lost the CAA conference 'championship' (i.e., the conference autobid) on a coin flip. Plus, they never played the 'true' champion, UMass, on the field.

Yet they put 'CAA Champions' on their ring.

See, there is no CAA champion. Apparently, it is the way that CAA fans on here want it: there are only bids into the playoffs, and to them a CAA conference title is meaningless.

But that's not everyone's opinion - apparently not the position of Richmond's athletic department, which is making rings claiming they are CAA "champions", and some former players on here.

[bluehenbillk]

Because, technically, they lost the CAA conference 'championship' (i.e., the conference autobid) on a coin flip. Plus, they never played the 'true' champion, UMass, on the field.

Yet they put 'CAA Champions' on their ring.

See, there is no CAA champion. Apparently, it is the way that CAA fans on here want it: there are only bids into the playoffs, and to them a CAA conference title is meaningless.

But that's not everyone's opinion - apparently not the position of Richmond's athletic department, which is making rings claiming they are CAA "champions", and some former players on here.


To be fair, yes every CAA team would have the CAA crown as a preseason goal but also winning the NC too. That's the difference between a CAA & Patriot League team, each team in the Patriot League would probably have a goal of winning the league first & maybe winning a 1st round playoff game 2nd. The NC isn't part of that equation....

[andy7171]

When I played at Towson (State) we were an independant. So to me, there is only one real championship ring to be won. And I think when it comes down to it, all the CAA schools are playing for it, over the consolation prize of getting a CAA one.

[Dukie95]

IIRC, the coin flip wasn't to determine the CAA championship, rather who got the auto-bid.

UMass and UR were co-champions.

[yorkcountyUNHfan]

Because, technically, they lost the CAA conference 'championship' (i.e., the conference autobid) on a coin flip. Plus, they never played the 'true' champion, UMass, on the field.

Yet they put 'CAA Champions' on their ring.

See, there is no CAA champion. Apparently, it is the way that CAA fans on here want it: there are only bids into the playoffs, and to them a CAA conference title is meaningless.

But that's not everyone's opinion - apparently not the position of Richmond's athletic department, which is making rings claiming they are CAA "champions", and some former players on here.


IIRC, the coin flip wasn't to determine the CAA championship, rather who got the auto-bid.

UMass and UR were co-champions.



UNH had "A-10 Co-Champion" rings made a couple years back.

[Eight Legger]

No one is stopping Lehigh from producing "Co-Fourth Place Patriot League Team" rings at the end of this season, and in fact I will gladly come back and admire those works of art when they are awarded....

[paward]

No one is stopping Lehigh from producing "Co-Fourth Place Patriot League Team" rings at the end of this season, and in fact I will gladly come back and admire those works of art when they are awarded....

Stop it Eightlegger, you're killing me!xlolx