Sleeping with the Enemy: The 49ers of Charlotte

Hoya Saxa! Everything is awesome! Your Fighting Hoyas of Georgetown look to salvage the final game before Big East play begins with a Tuesday evening tilt with the Charlotte 49ers and as usual we here at THE GLOBAL PHENOMENON are bringing you everything there is to know about Georgetown's next opponent.  Here with us again is our best blog buddy Mid-Major Madness, the premier source for all things mid-major on the internet. Let's do this!

Tell me (and every other Georgetown fan) that everything is going to be OK.

Where can I buy my "Where Mid-Major Legends Are Born" t-shirt?  I don't get what the deal is. Georgetown really had no business losing to UNC Asheville and you'd really think the Hoyas would have their stuff together after getting throttled by Monmouth.  I was talking to another college AD about the impossible situation brewing at Georgetown and it could get pretty nasty very quick.

(Casual Note: Color me intrigued by that last little nugget.)

Who are some of the guys on the 49ers that the Hoyas need to watch out for on Tuesday night?

Andrien White is a guy to really keep an eye. White is a really talented freshman who is getting more time than a normal freshman at the mid-major level. White is averaging 9.1 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, while also being a defensive threat with 1.5 steals per game.  He's still pretty raw but he's being coached up and should be a very credible threat in Conference USA as he matures.

Which school is getting the auto-bid from the Conference USA this season?  Where does Charlotte stack up in the conference? Has the conference lost a lot of its luster in the post realignment era?

The answer to the auto-bid question before the season was Old Dominion and UAB, now it's completely up in the air. ODU has been bitten by the injury bug but will get better. UAB has been decent but hasn't really beaten any solid teams. Louisiana Tech has been the most solid team this season after their coach bolted for Florida. The Bulldogs have been a mainstay in our Mid-Major Power 15.  I'd say La Tech is the frontrunner with a  group of challengers behind them in ODU, UAB, Western Kentucky, Middle Tennessee, and UTEP. 

In terms of Charlotte the 49ers are a definition of a rebuilding team and should be a punching bag in CUSA this year. I don't know if Charlotte has come out as a realignment loser or if they just really regret getting rid of Bobby Lutz. It seems like Charlotte hasn't fit wherever they are at since the implosion of the old Metro Conference. The move back to CUSA was a football move and the 49ers never seemed like a great fit in the Atlantic 10, it would have been interesting now though because Davidson moved into the A10 and Charlotte would have a rival right down the street.

Head Coach Mark Price! Wow! I know it's only been a few games, but have you seen him make an impression on the program just yet?

I really don't know, he's working with such a bare cupboard. I think you see the biggest impact from Price in the maturation of his young players as a lot of freshmen are getting a baptism by fire. Hiring Price was interesting and it received both positive and negative praise around the country.  It's a decent name in the Charlotte area but he also came with very limited experience among the coaching ranks.

What would you do if you were Miss Colombia and Steve Harvey told you that you were Miss Universe but you really weren't?

Steve Harvey has made Family Feud viable again, can anyone ever really be mad at him? I think I'd give him a good tongue lashing backstage and ask for five straight appearances on FF to make up for it.

You've already told us about your ideal X-Mas day, and since we may not get to hang out again as Big East play begins soon, talk to us about your ideal New Year's Eve and New year's Day.

My ideal consists of driving to Farmville to watch Longwood beat UNC Asheville and then go on your site to brag about how Longwood is better than Georgetown.  After that I'd like to sleep.  I'm not a big fan of New Year, there is way too much pressure to have fun and I feel like you're getting ripped off. A word of advice to the Casual Nation don't drink peach Andre and Goldschlager at midnight or you'll end up in the trunk of your Ford Explorer wondering what happened.

Anything else you'd like to discuss?

No not really, we appreciate our partnership with Casual Hoya and look forward to previewing the Georgetown at Arkansas-Little Rock NIT opening round match up with you in March. 

Actually I lied. I need to know where everyone is at on moon landing? Real or not?

Final score prediction?

I'm going to try help you guys out here and say Charlotte 100-37, hopefully this acts like a reverse jinx for you.