Lady Raider Basketball

I have been a fan of Lady Raider Basketball http://www.texastech.com/sports/w-baskbl/text-w-baskbl-body.html since the late 1980's.  I listened to the games, or, rarely, watched them on TV, because they were rarely televised, but did not attend them.  I discussed the games with friends and colleagues. 

In 1993, when the Lady Raiders won the National Championship, I of course watched the game. There was a ceremony at Jones Stadium for them, when they returned to Lubbock, and I attended that. I continued to follow the Lady Raiders, and went to an occasional game.

In the spring of 2005, I started attending the games fairly regularly.  Marsha Sharp ended her coaching career the next year.  Kristy Curry took over as head coach of the Texas Tech Lady Raiders in March 2006. She continued as coach until the spring of 2013.  I was never a Kristy Curry fan.  There was something about her that made me not be a fan of her.  Her teams were inconsistent. They played well and then went cold, all in the same game.  The marketing for the games was geared to small children.  I just was not a fan.  But, I tried to continue to support the team.

In the spring of 2013, Candace Whitaker http://www.texastech.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/052013aac.html was selected as the head coach for the Lady Raiders Basketball team. She pledged that she was here to stay.  I do not think she understood just how decimated the Lady Raider Basketball program was.  There is little community support and less student support. I blame the lack of student support on a problem that occured with the Saddle Tramps that has never been resolved.   And, I blame the lack of community support on the exorbitantly high cost of season tickets, and the poor performance of the teams.  Candi Whitaker remembers the glory days of the Lady Raiders when there was mega-support. She willl not recoup that without a winning team, and a dedicated fan base. She is trying to recoup that. She has re-instituted the"Run and Gun Club" that provides interaction with the team after the game. 

I would have liked to stay for that tonight, but I had other obligations after the game.  And, I knew if I had stayed, my night would have been later than it already is. 

Maybe I can stay for the "Run and Gun Club" some other day.

Mostly what will build the fan base for the Lady Raiders is winning.  But the other thing that will build the fan base is outreach to the students, mending fences with the Saddle Tramps, and personal outreach to the community.