From "The Mob" to the "Rhody Ruckus" - A Progression of URI Basketball's Stu

It is not every day that you go from an ugly basketball court with an ugly name for the student fan base to a much-improved basketball court and an impressive name for the student fan base. For a long duration of time, the student basketball fans at the University of Rhode Island were known as "The Mob". Their pitch to the world was, "Welcome to The Mob! We are the biggest and the best student-fan organization at URI. We are composed of the craziest, loudest and most dedicated fans on campus. We primarily focus on men’s basketball and football, but we always have members at other sporting events." In the past few years of Rhode Island MBB, the transition has been made to a more organized and electric group, known as the "Rhody Ruckus".

The "Rhody Ruckus" is the new official student fan club of Rhode Island Athletics. Most notably, this group made their impact felt when they helped URI's men basketball team upset #21 Nebraska at home in the 2014 season. In order to join the "Rhody Ruckus" in the 2016-2017 basketball season, students paid $10 and received a Rhody Ruckus t-shirt to represent the brand. In this resurrection of an active student fan base for Rhode Island basketball, the money was put towards special events and giveaways just for members. For example, Rhode Island apparel was available after gaining Ruckus reward points from attending URI sporting events and using those points toward each prize. The most important perk, in my opinion, is the fact that Ruckus members were allowed to enter into the Ryan Center in a separate Rhody Ruckus line and they were able to get in 15 minutes before any other student.

Providence head coach and in-state rival, Ed Cooley, knows the profound impact that can be felt in the Ryan Center by the home crowd, particularly by the "Rhody Ruckus". In a segment on Dan Yorke's "State of Mind", Cooley said (in regards to the December 2016 game at the Ryan Center), "It is THE toughest environment. I would put that up there with Creighton on Senior Night for [Doug] McDermott. I would put it on par with the environment when we played at Duke, when I was at Boston College." When Yorke asked about how hard the Ryan Center would be if the crowd was always sold out, PC's head coach proclaimed, "If you want to have a home-court advantage, then every seat should be filled. If you don't use your ticket, give it to someone [else]."

First of all, comparing the "Rhody Ruckus" with the Cameron Crazies at Duke's home court is an honor. Next, the Providence native said it himself - the Rhode Island crowd can make a world of impact. The most integral part of home court wins at the Ryan Center is the student crowd, just like student crowds at any college basketball home arena. Therefore, the "Rhody Ruckus" needs to show out in numbers on a consistent basis and be as wild as they have been in big games against PC, Dayton, and VCU in recent seasons.

Needless to say, "The Mob" is no more and the "Rhody Ruckus" is here to stay.

The Mob