Loren Tate Mentions Bradley

[BradleyBrave]

I would think Howard could, at minimum, keep more Peoria talent in Peoria. That would be a good start.

Probably. But Jim Les has done a fantastic job of doing that too - better than anyone I can recall in recent memory. But there's more to the job than just keeping Peoria talent in Peoria.

[Murph]

I would think Howard could, at minimum, keep more Peoria talent in Peoria. That would be a good start.

I could care less where the recruits come from as long as they're good people and able to play at this level.

[BradleyBrave]

I could care less where the recruits come from as long as they're good people and able to play at this level.

Agreed.

I'm guessing the poster was probably referring to one local product in particular that's slated to attend BU next year.

[Da Coach]

I would think Howard could, at minimum, keep more Peoria talent in Peoria. That would be a good start.

Just wondering....what Peoria talent could Jerrance Howard or anyone have kept in Peoria over the past 5 or 6 years?

We have discussed this a couple times before, and other than Bill Cole, Jim Les has landed just about every possible Peoria area kid at Bradley in the last half-dozen years. And frankly, neither Jerrance Howard, nor any other coach is going to take recruits away from Illinois , Big Ten schools, or national caliber programs.

Bradley fans have been fortunate to be able to watch Danny Adams, Jeremy Crouch, Marcellus Sommerville, Dyricus Simms-Edwards, Jordan Prosser, Dodie Dunson, and soon Donivine Stewart. Can anyone name any other successful D1 kids from the Peoria area that "got away" from Jim Les?

[amckillip]

Just wondering....what Peoria talent could Jerrance Howard or anyone have kept in Peoria over the past 5 or 6 years?

We have discussed this a couple times before, and other than Bill Cole, Jim Les has landed just about every possible Peoria area kid at Bradley in the last half-dozen years. And frankly, neither Jerrance Howard, nor any other coach is going to take recruits away from Illinois , Big Ten schools, or national caliber programs.

Bradley fans have been fortunate to be able to watch Danny Adams, Jeremy Crouch, Marcellus Sommerville, Dyricus Simms-Edwards, Jordan Prosser, Dodie Dunson, and soon Donivine Stewart. Can anyone name any other successful D1 kids from the Peoria area that "got away" from Jim Les?

Agreed completely. And to be honest, JH isn't valuable to U of I because he delivers Peoria, he's valuable because he delivers Chicago...

[canadian]

Just wondering....what Peoria talent could Jerrance Howard or anyone have kept in Peoria over the past 5 or 6 years?

We have discussed this a couple times before, and other than Bill Cole, Jim Les has landed just about every possible Peoria area kid at Bradley in the last half-dozen years. And frankly, neither Jerrance Howard, nor any other coach is going to take recruits away from Illinois , Big Ten schools, or national caliber programs.

Bradley fans have been fortunate to be able to watch Danny Adams, Jeremy Crouch, Marcellus Sommerville, Dyricus Simms-Edwards, Jordan Prosser, Dodie Dunson, and soon Donivine Stewart. Can anyone name any other successful D1 kids from the Peoria area that "got away" from Jim Les?

Agreed.

Jim Les has done very well getting "local" kids. I don't expect him to get guys that go to sign at BCS schools. That's unfair. It's unfair for any Bradley coach to expect them to get kids with BCS offers. 95% of the time kids end up going to the highest level they are recruited too.

If Bradley were losing good "local" kids to other MVC schools or mid-majors then that is the problem. Guys like Carlton Fay and Rayvonte Rice. But you don't get every kid. Sometimes you miss out.

[BradleyBrave]

Just wondering....what Peoria talent could Jerrance Howard or anyone have kept in Peoria over the past 5 or 6 years?

We have discussed this a couple times before, and other than Bill Cole, Jim Les has landed just about every possible Peoria area kid at Bradley in the last half-dozen years. And frankly, neither Jerrance Howard, nor any other coach is going to take recruits away from Illinois , Big Ten schools, or national caliber programs.

Bradley fans have been fortunate to be able to watch Danny Adams, Jeremy Crouch, Marcellus Sommerville, Dyricus Simms-Edwards, Jordan Prosser, Dodie Dunson, and soon Donivine Stewart. Can anyone name any other successful D1 kids from the Peoria area that "got away" from Jim Les?

Agree 100%.

[Da Coach]

You mentioned Fay and Rice, and I have seen other people use those examples to take shots at Jim Les as "local kids" that JL didn't recruit .
However, they are mistaken, as usual. Bradley recruited Carlton Fay very hard, liked him, and wanted him. It came down to SIU vs. Bradley. At that time, Fay was very close to his AAU coach Mike Mullins of the Illinois Wolves, and Mullins' son, Brian, who was a close friend of Fay's was the point guard at SIU. That was just enough of an advantage to sway Fay to SIU over Bradley. Bradley did everything they could do in that case. Sometimes factors outside your control make the difference. Fay has been a very nice player for SIU, but IMO, not a major difference-maker. He hasn't helped SIU much, as they have not made the NCAA in his 4 years, and they have had a losing record for the last 3 seasons.

I have also seen it stated by uninformed people that Bradley did not recruit Rayvonte Rice. Not true. Bradley coaches followed him, and really liked him. I can't say why he ended up at Drake, but there are 13 D1 schools in Illinois, and none of them landed Rice. Bradley was probably the D1 in Illinois that followed and was closest to him and recruited him the hardest, FWIH, but it just didn't happen.

[canadian]

You mentioned Fay and Rice, and I have seen other people use those examples to take shots at Jim Les as "local kids" that JL didn't recruit .
However, they are mistaken, as usual. Bradley recruited Carlton Fay very hard, liked him, and wanted him. It came down to SIU vs. Bradley. At that time, Fay was very close to his AAU coach Mike Mullins of the Illinois Wolves, and Mullins' son, Brian, who was a close friend of Fay's was the point guard at SIU. That was just enough of an advantage to sway Fay to SIU over Bradley. Bradley did everything they could do in that case. Sometimes factors outside your control make the difference. Fay has been a very nice player for SIU, but IMO, not a major difference-maker. He hasn't helped SIU much, as they have not made the NCAA in his 4 years, and they have had a losing record for the last 3 seasons.

I have also seen it stated by uninformed people that Bradley did not recruit Rayvonte Rice. Not true. Bradley coaches followed him, and really liked him. I can't say why he ended up at Drake, but there are 13 D1 schools in Illinois, and none of them landed Rice. Bradley was probably the D1 in Illinois that followed and was closest to him and recruited him the hardest, FWIH, but it just didn't happen.

For the record Da Coach---I did not mention Fay and Rice to "take a shot" at Jim Les. I said you don't always get every kid. I understand that.