Interesting GF Comment Re 2013-14 Recruiting

[tornado]

But Cedar Falls and Terre Haute are recruiting paradises? And why now is it "time will tell" but previous players were touted as the next best thing before even stepping foot on campus?

who was touted??
The only "touted" kids I have seen recently have been the transfers who haven't played a single minute were called "difference-makers"...

and a recruiting class of previously unheard-of kids has been labelled as "STELLAR" and ranking with the best 2 recruiting classes we've had Bradley since the Hersey Hawkins days...

talk about touting....I cannot recall anyone touting any BU recruit more than our media and some fans have hyped recently...
do you recall the things said about Hodges & Crawford??



and as for UNI & InSU - you obviously missed my other comment about how Geno has been doing things DIAMETRICALLY the opposite of the guys at UNI & InSU.
No it is not easy to recruit there - but they go about it vastly differently - they get the kids before they blow up and develop them.....
They have largely built their teams by recruiting solid high schoolers like Justin Gant, Carl Richard, Marc Sonnen, Eglseder, O'Rear...
then developing them & keeping them for four years...

As I pointed out - only one kids thus far of the 15 Geno has gotten commitments from were orthodox high schoolers (not prep kids) who have stayed, developed, and played at all & contributed (Bell)
I'm not saying they can't be good, but we will have to wait to find out...most schools that bring a ton of newcomers all at once - do poorly with them...
remember our media's columns ripping the coach when we brought in too many jucos & too many D-I "virgins"??
Now suddenly they have changed their tune and touting the same tactic...


oh - and one more simple question - why do you mention UNI & Indiana State - are those programs who have tons more 1st place finishes, MVC Tourney titles, NCAA wins, Sweet Sixteen appearances, and players sent to the NBA as Bradley does? Are you saying you are jealous of their success? LOL.

[jrish12]

I mentioned them because they have consistently finished above us in the Valley standings lately, so yes I am a little jealous of their recent success, not historical, but recent success. Since you brought up the MVC tourney titles, since the tournament moved to St. Louis those 2 schools that I mentioned have 5 titles combined to Bradley's 0. Since 1990 Northern Iowa does have more NCAA tournament victories than Bradley, 3-2. Northern Iowa also has more appearances in the dance than Bradley since then also, 6-2. Indiana State does not have more wins in the NCAA tournament than Bradley, but they have been there more often than Bradley since 1990, 3-2. Northern Iowa also has 1 Sweet 16 appearance to match Bradley's 1. So I think my statements have validity that those places are not easy to recruit to but have much more success than Bradley has lately.

[Old Coach]

I mentioned them because they have consistently finished above us in the Valley standings lately, so yes I am a little jealous of their recent success, not historical, but recent success. Since you brought up the MVC tourney titles, since the tournament moved to St. Louis those 2 schools that I mentioned have 5 titles combined to Bradley's 0. Since 1990 Northern Iowa does have more NCAA tournament victories than Bradley, 3-2. Northern Iowa also has more appearances in the dance than Bradley since then also, 6-2. Indiana State does not have more wins in the NCAA tournament than Bradley, but they have been there more often than Bradley since 1990, 3-2. Northern Iowa also has 1 Sweet 16 appearance to match Bradley's 1. So I think my statements have validity that those places are not easy to recruit to but have much more success than Bradley has lately.

None of the cities in the MVC were exactly destination locations prior to Loyola bringing Chicago into the mix.

[jrish12]

None of the cities in the MVC were exactly destination locations prior to Loyola bringing Chicago into the mix.

What college towns are destination locations in any conference?!?! Outside of schools in the south where its warm 10 months out of the year? I mean Lawerence, KS isnt all that great and if KU wasnt there nobody would know it existed. Look at the big 10 outside of Northwestern and Minnesota: Champaign, IL; Ann Arbor, MI; West Lafayette, IN; Bloomington, IN; Columbus, OH; Iowa City, IA; East Lansing, MI; State college, PA; Lincoln, NE; Madison, WI. Those cities, outside of Madison and Columbus which are state capitals, none of those scream "WOW!!! I want to live in that city!" All of those towns pretty much exist because of the schools.

[Chico]

What college towns are destination locations in any conference?!?! Outside of schools in the south where its warm 10 months out of the year? I mean Lawerence, KS isnt all that great and if KU wasnt there nobody would know it existed. Look at the big 10 outside of Northwestern and Minnesota: Champaign, IL; Ann Arbor, MI; West Lafayette, IN; Bloomington, IN; Columbus, OH; Iowa City, IA; East Lansing, MI; State college, PA; Lincoln, NE; Madison, WI. Those cities, outside of Madison and Columbus which are state capitals, none of those scream "WOW!!! I want to live in that city!" All of those towns pretty much exist because of the schools.

IMO, the kids don't go to schools because of where they are located, they go to play for a basketball program which is highly successful.

[Future Walk-On]

IMO, the kids don't go to schools because of where they are located, they go to play for a basketball program which is highly successful.

see Lawrence, KS

[jrish12]

IMO, the kids don't go to schools because of where they are located, they go to play for a basketball program which is highly successful.

Ding ding ding!!! Finally someone gets it! If Bradley had been winning championships and getting into the NCAA tourney regularly it wouldn't matter how dumpy Peoria is, kids would want to come here for the winning program.

[Chico]

Ding ding ding!!! Finally someone gets it! If Bradley had been winning championships and getting into the NCAA tourney regularly it wouldn't matter how dumpy Peoria is, kids would want to come here for the winning program.

And in the 80's Bradley was on the verge of doing just that.

[tornado]

So...

- you have to have a winning program to get the talented kids...

and

- you have to have the talented kids to produce a consistently winning program...


Catch 22...and I have been following Bradley basketball for nearly 50 years - and one observation is hard to deny - except for a fine, winning year here & there - usually coinciding with a talented group of seniors who were brought in as freshmen and developed (1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1996, 2006) Bradley hasn't produced consistent winning seasons since the early 1960's...
I guess it could just pop out of the blue next year...maybe, but I wouldn't bank on it...

So you're just kinda hoping we just gonna up and do something we haven't done in 1/2 a century, huh???
I actually think a school can recruit kids capable of winning championships with the right coaching even without doing it because of a string of "winning seasons" - in fact we'd better find a way of doing it because we can't rely on drawing blue chippers due to winning seasons

Molinari did it back in the early 90's - almost all of whom were talented kids out of high school that fit his system and stayed 4 years.
He was on the verge of doing it again in 2001-2002 when he was run off with a stable of extremely talented kids - many of whom were lost because of the ill-advised coaching change that many have now come to regret.
But such a plan always means once in a while - a down year when the seniors leave and we have to reload.
Thus getting impatient like little babies about one down year then running off the head coach and starting over - is enormously self-destructive for a school in Bradley's position where we have to re-stock, re-load, and develop them.
..and I have other thoughts on how we might have possibly been close at other times, too...

[Chico]

As I said earlier, Bradley was on the verge of becoming a consistent winning program when they ran off a 32-3 coach, who had almost his entire team returning. Lucky for the program the returning players decided to stay, but it took a season to get used to the new coach's system and the next season they were back in the Big Dance with the previous coach's players.

[Buesch N Chips]

except for a fine, winning year here & there - usually coinciding with a talented group of seniors who were brought in as freshmen and developed (1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1996, 2006) Bradley hasn't produced consistent winning seasons since the early 1960's...

I've been saying this for years.

All of our recent successful seasons revolved around a kid who overachieved (JJ, Hersey, AP, POB). Take those four guys out of the equation, or just turn them into average contributors, and our ceiling is has been consistently pretty low in the modern era.

[amckillip]

As I said earlier, Bradley was on the verge of becoming a consistent winning program when they ran off a 32-3 coach, who had almost his entire team returning. Lucky for the program the returning players decided to stay, but it took a season to get used to the new coach's system and the next season they were back in the Big Dance with the previous coach's players.

BU didn't run him off. He committed NCAA violations. Big difference. All the BU kool-aid in the world doesn't change that. He brought us some great players, but an objective party would put Versace in a league with Sampson or Pearl.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1986-03-11/sports/8601180557_1_ncaa-inquiry-anthony-webster-dick-versace

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1986-07-15/sports/8602200331_1_infractions-hearing-anthony-webster-dick-versace

[Chico]

BU didn't run him off. He committed NCAA violations. Big difference. All the BU kool-aid in the world doesn't change that. He brought us some great players, but an objective party would put Versace in a league with Sampson or Pearl.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1986-03-11/sports/8601180557_1_ncaa-inquiry-anthony-webster-dick-versace

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1...r-dick-versace

That's a matter of opinion. What DV supposedly did was minor compared to what other coaches have been accused of, or IMO we would have heard more about what all be was accused of. When he told the truth after the 1982 selection Sunday, also IMO and many others, the NCAA was looking for an excuse. Worst thing he could have done was go 32-3. Too bad BU's administration didn't have the guts to fight it.

[tornado]

ha - the worst allegation was that they didn't think he was being upfront with the NCAA investigators...that and he told them to kiss his whatever -- plus an alleged taxi ride for Webster's father which maybe never happened given the only source was the disgruntled Webster and his dad who probably didn't get the taxi ride --
the whole thing was a phony NCAA attack drummed up because of someone's dislike for Versace & Bradley crashing the party with talented kids in the 80's
Versace was a lily white saint compared to Sampson, Pearl, and plenty of others nowadays..

[Chico]

ha - the worst allegation was that they didn't think he was being upfront with the NCAA investigators...that and he told them to kiss his whatever -- plus an alleged taxi ride for Webster's father which maybe never happened given the only source was the disgruntled Webster and his dad who probably didn't get the taxi ride --
the whole thing was a phony NCAA attack drummed up because of someone's dislike for Versace & Bradley crashing the party with talented kids in the 80's
Versace was a lily white saint compared to Sampson, Pearl, and plenty of others nowadays..

I know fans? who wouldn't have given Versace credit if he went undefeated. They never got over the fact that he replaced the previous coach. Only allegation I ever heard was the Webster allegation.