BU recruiting Will Franklin, Kilgore College

[Majik45]

Saw this over in a recruiting thread on Valleytalk. LincolnJay posted it, and he has accounts on a bunch of recruiting sites so I know it's a legit article:

April 5, 2005
Visits Scheduled for Franklin
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The Kilgore College Runnin' Rangers only had two sophomores on their roster this past season, but they were both good ones. Star forward Cedric McGowan took care of his future by signing with Cincinnati in the fall. Now, combo guard Will Franklin is hoping to join his teammate in the Division I ranks. The 6-foot, 180-pound Franklin, who played his high school ball at Alief Hastings HS, has two official visits scheduled and more trips could be on the way.


Kilgore College
"We finished up 20-10 and Will played very good for us," said Kilgore head coach Scott Schumacher. "Right now, he's going to be visiting Stephen F. Austin and Campbell University. We've also gotten a lot of phone calls, from schools like Bradley and TCU. Bradley is going to be coming in to watch him."

Franklin is scheduled to visit Stephen F. Austin this weekend (April 8-10), and Campbell next weekend (April 15-17). Don't necessarily look for him to make any hasty decisions though, as things are just getting heated up with his recruitment. "Will is a very independent guy and a good student," Schumacher said. "I think he's just looking for the best opportunity to play."

Franklin finished the season averaging nine points and a team-leading 4.4 assists.

Texas Hoops Analysis: Will is a steady floor leader who makes good decisions with the ball. He can create and get teammates easy buckets, is quick with the ball, has a nice 16-18 foot stroke and is a pesky and quick defender on the ball.

[Da Coach]

There are rumors of on-campus visits by a couple recruits soon. Maybe we will hear something about a signing soon?

[Big Mike]

Seems one of the last rides will not go to either Will Franklin or Keoni Watson? Franklin was not made an offer after his visit this weekend according to his Kilgore coach Scott Schumacher!

And Watson has chosen IDAHO over BU?
The player the Braves hope to add is also a JUCO guard and have until May 18 to sign!

[tornado]

Idaho has a "300" RPI, was 7-21, and return 10 players.
They have Jerod Haynes (from Chicago Hales Franciscan, who helped win the 2003 IHSA title) and they are not lacking in point guard depth.

http://highschoolelite.com/2004/haynes.html

By the way......there is a little bit of a public outcry (as much of an outcry as you would expect in Idaho) as to the University of Idaho's team nickname. No, it's not an Indian name or racist, but the nickname is "Vandals". This nickname was adopted nearly 100 years ago after a newpaper writer described their style of play as ferocious & intense, and that they "vandalized" their opponents.
Well, in this day & age when the Baltimlore Bullets change their name, and the "Raiders" are becomeing politically incorrect, the Vandals have come under some fire.

Here is a funny article on people who want colleges to change their names:

http://www.115sports.com/102601.htm

[it's boogie time]

It does make me nervous that BU hasn't signed anyone and the potential signees aren't prospectives anymore.

http://www.pjstar.com/stories/050305/BRA_B6ABQDQ0.071.shtml

[mike radigan]

By the way......there is a little bit of a public outcry (as much of an outcry as you would expect in Idaho) as to the University of Idaho's team nickname. No, it's not an Indian name or racist, but the nickname is "Vandals". This nickname was adopted nearly 100 years ago after a newpaper writer described their style of play as ferocious & intense, and that they "vandalized" their opponents.
Well, in this day & age when the Baltimlore Bullets change their name, and the "Raiders" are becomeing politically incorrect, the Vandals have come under some fire.

BTW, Vandals origin is from the ancient Germanic tribe of the 5th century that did its share of terrorizing:

http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/history/A0850419.html

[bradley fan]

Keoni Watson wanted to play more than Bradley was willing to give him. He may have the chance to become a starter at Idaho, but he would have been a backup for 2 years if he came to Bradley.

Here is some recruiting news concerning Illinois juniors--

http://ilprepbullseye.com/page33.html

Sounds like Will Walker has risen above the mid-major level.

[tornado]

Keoni Watson wanted to play more than Bradley was willing to give him. He may have the chance to become a starter at Idaho, but he would have been a backup for 2 years if he came to Bradley.

Idaho has several good returning guards.
6 of the returning players are guards, and two of them (Bowden & Haynes) are the talented PG's from Chicago talked about below who will be only sophomores next year!

Here is a story about Idaho and their style of play.
In this article they describe the style of play at Idaho as:
"The fans were introduced to a new style of play for the Vandals, which will look to focus on running the court and pushing the ball at their opponents." "A continuous barrage of substitutions tested multiple combinations of Vandal players on the floor and also allowed for 13 Idaho players to see time on the court."

And the article also extols the newfound depth they have at point guard, albeit in a bit of a tongue-in-cheek way:
"???‚¬?“We finally have two point guards who can dribble from one side of the court to the other.."

If Watson goes to Idaho, it looks like he will at best be sharing the PG playing time in short stints with other players.

http://www.uiathletics.com/pages/sport.asp?Action=DrawNewsArticle&SportID=2&NewsID=2471&PageID=13

[Big Mike]

boogie.........do not fret, a couple years ago everyone thought the Braves were recruiting Rodney Hannah and they came away with Lawrence Wright instead and his name was never brought up! Bradley brave reminded me of this fact and while the names in the pjs are no longer viable the one they haven't released might be worth waiting for!

[it's boogie time]

I get nervous every year when we have scholarships unused or spots to fill on the schedule. I don't want another late signee like Stemler last year. You knew from the beginning that he wouldn't contribute much.

[bradley fan]

boogie.........do not fret, a couple years ago everyone thought the Braves were recruiting Rodney Hannah and they came away with Lawrence Wright instead and his name was never brought up! Bradley brave reminded me of this fact and while the names in the pjs are no longer viable the one they haven't released might be worth waiting for!

Good point. Hannah went to a poor Houston team where maybe he thought he would get more playing time. Instead, he averaged only 11.6 min per game, 1.8 points per game, and 2.5 reb per game. And he isn't likely to get much more playing time since Houston only loses 1 scholarship player from last year's team (a guard), and Tom Penders has signed 5 new players this spring that he calls --"the best overall class of recruits that I have ever signed in my career as a head coach". Houston also has 2 other recruits from last fall. It will be tough for Rodney to find minutes.

http://uhcougars.collegesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/042605aaa.html

Here is what the Houston web site says about Hannah--
"Tremendous athlete who has a 36" vertical jump and can outrun most guards on any team...has a great attitude and work ethic."

http://uhcougars.collegesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2004-2005/teamcume.html

http://uhcougars.collegesports.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/hannah_rodney00.html

[tornado]

Sounds like Rodney selected unwisely