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Current Recruiting Commentary
By:The Staff
November 12, 2003
Women's Basketball:
Jim Foster, Ohio State head women's basketball coach, announced
the 2004 recruiting class Wednesday. Alice Jamen, Marscilla Packer
and Tamarah Riley have signed to join the Buckeye basketball
program and will comprise the freshman class of 2004-05. Additionally,
sophomore transfer Tia Battle will be eligible to compete
next season after she sits out the 2003-04 year to satisfy NCAA
transfer requirements.
"A lot of recruiting is fulfilling needs," Foster said.
"With the senior class of LaToya Turner, Emily Haynam and
Tanya McClure, a combination post player in Tamara Riley, a solid
post player around the bucket in Alice Jamen and a very skilled
and talented guard in Marscilla Packer allows us to meet our needs."
"Coach Foster was able to accomplish his goal, which was to
replace the three seniors he will lose (Tanya McClure, Emily Haynam
and LaToya Turner) at their specific positions with quality players,"
Joe Smith, Director of Women's Basketball News Service, said.
"Marscilla Packer is no doubt the best player in Ohio and
Alice Jamen and Tamarah Riley will certainly solidify his lineup."
Jamen is a 6-3 forward from Wheeling, W.Va. A native of
Cameroon, Africa, and the 2003 Most Valuable Player at Mount de
Chantal Visitation Academy, Jamen averaged 14 points, 17 rebounds
and four blocked shots per game throughout her career entering her
senior season.
A member of the 2003 Cameroon National Team, Jamen boasts numerous
accomplishments outside of basketball. The Student Body Governess
at Mount de Chantal, Jamen owns a 4.1 GPA and is active in the computer
and glee clubs. The recipient of numerous honors and awards, Jamen
won the Herdon Scholarship, awarded for leadership, the Slater Mathematics
Medal, Sister Marie Jacqueline Antonelli Medal, given to a student
who demonstrates courage and adventure, and the Luisa Valencia Pangilinan
Scholarship for achievement in science. Jamen hopes to pursue a
degree in sports medicine at Ohio State.
Packer, a 5-9 guard from Pickerington, Ohio, is a 2002
and 2003 Nike All-American and a 2001 Adidas Top 10 All-American.
A 2001 and 2002 Street and Smith's Honorable Mention All-America
selection, Packer was named to the 2003 Street and Smith Fifth Team,
a member of the 2002 Ohio Girls' Basketball Magazine Dream Team,
earned the 2002 AP Division I Co-Player of the Year and the 2002
Metro (Columbus) Player of the Year and was ranked No. 18 as a junior
in the Blue Star Index.
Packer, a two-time first team Division I All-Ohio selection (2002,
'03), was named to the 2003 Dispatch-Agonis Club All-Star team as
a junior with current Buckeyes Jessica Davenport and Stephanie Blanton
and earned first team AP Division I all-state honors as a sophomore
and junior and third team accolades as a freshman. Packer averaged
21.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per outing as a junior.
A Columbus Dispatch Athlete of the Week, Packer was a member of
the north team at the 2003 USA Basketball Women's Youth Development
Festival, which featured 47 of the nation's top high school players
who entered their senior year in the fall of 2003. Packer, who was
a 2003 AAU 17-and-Under All-American, also was a member of the Dayton
Lady HoopStars AAU team with current Buckeyes Blanton and Brandie
Hoskins. Packer plans to study communications at Ohio State.
Riley, a 6-2 forward from Detroit St. Martin DePorres High
School in Detroit, Mich., is a three-time Adidas Top 10 All-American.
A finalist for the 2004 Miss Basketball Award by the Basketball
Coaches Association of Michigan and honored as a student-athlete
by The Detroit News, Riley was named to the 2003 All-Catholic League
and the 2003 All-Academic Teams by the Catholic League Coaches Association.
The 2003 Detroit Police Athletic League Youth Of the Year, Riley
led her squad to the 2002 all city, district and regional championships.
To date, Riley's teams have lost only three times during her tenure
and have racked up three City Class titles (Martin Luther King High
School), one Catholic League championship (the first for St. Martin
DePorre since 1990) and have made appearances in every final four,
finishing as runners-up twice.
The Detroit News named Riley to the 2002 Second Team All State
Class A, the 2002 All-Area Detroit and the 2002 All Metro Honorable
Mention teams. Riley, who owned nearly a 50 percent career average
from the field after her junior year, was a Channel 7 (Mich.) McDonald's
High School Scholar Athlete of the Week. A member of the AAU Motor
City Crusaders, Riley was named the 2003 Most Valuable Player and
her squad won the Deep South Tournament. Ranked No. 8 among The
Detroit Free Press' Top 100 Players, Riley is an honor roll student
with a 3.8 GPA and plans to major in engineering at Ohio State.
November 12, 2003
Men's Basketball:
Two high school seniors and one prep school student-athlete signed
NCAA National Letters of Intent to play basketball at Ohio State,
Jim O'Brien, Buckeyes' head men's coach, announced Wednesday.
All three will be freshmen at Ohio State in 2004-05.
Jamar Butler, a 6-2, 190-pound guard from Shawnee High School
in Lima, Ohio, Matt Terwilliger, a 6-9, 215-pound forward
from Troy High School in Troy, Ohio, and Jermyl (JUR-mel) Jackson-Wilson,
a 6-7, 220-pound forward from Rufus King High School in Milwaukee,
Wis., all joined the Ohio State program Wednesday.
Butler averaged 30 points and eight assists a game as a
junior at Shawnee. He is rated among the Top 40-60 players nationally
by various recruiting services and as the No. 1 player in Ohio by
PrepSpotlight.com. He will be in contention for Ohio's Mr. Basketball
award in 2003-04.
A starter since his freshman season, Butler has been named first
team all-state, All-District 8 and All-Western Buckeye League. He
was the WBL player of the year as a junior. Entering his senior
season, Butler has scored 1,740 points for an average of 26.8 ppg.
He has 378 career assists (5.8 apg.). His teams have compiled a
47-18 record the last three years.
Terwilliger, who played alongside Butler on the Cleveland
Basketball AAU Club, rates as one of the Top 50-75 high school players
nationally by recruiting services, and is rated the No. 1 power
forward in Ohio by PrepSpotlight.com. He averaged 17 points and
nine rebounds as a junior at Troy. He also will be in the running
for Mr. Basketball in Ohio this year.
A first team Greater Western Ohio Conference member, Terwilliger
also was a District 9 first teamer as a junior. A varsity starter
since his freshman campaign, Ohio State coaches feel he is an athletic
big man with the ability to run the floor and score both inside
and out.
Jackson-Wilson, rated by Hoop Scoop Online as the No. 46
prep player nationally, is playing at Fork Union Military Academy
this season after graduating from Rufus King in the spring of 2003.
He averaged 10 points and 12 rebounds a game as a senior at Rufus
King. His high school team won the Wisconsin state title with a
26-0 record as a senior. He was an all-city and all-area selection
for the No. 1-rated team in Wisconsin and the No. 17-rated team
nationally in the USA Today Poll in 2003.
O'Brien said the three newest Buckeyes will easily blend with the
current roster of players.
"We are very happy to have Jamar, Matt and Jermyl part of
our program," O'Brien said. "Jamar is a terrific point
guard who can score. Matt has a versatile game as he can play both
close and away from the basket, and Jermyl is an exceptional athlete
who can guard every position. All three are good players and great
kids who will fit in with us very nicely."
December 26, 2001
 The
USA Today High School All American team was announced today.
OSU verbal commitment Maurice Clarett (from Warren Harding
High School was tabbed as the offensive player of the year.
Photo: Maurice Clarett at OSU senior camp last summer.
Clarett is the first OSU recruit to be named as an USA Today
player of the year since former OSU linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer
was named as the defensive player of the year coming out of high
school. Clarett was listed at 6-0, 224 by USA today. He was 6-0,
230 last summer at the OSU senior camp where he ran a 4.48. We should
note that the seniors were timed in a "fourth quarter"
40 by the OSU staff. They were required to do extensive drills and
tests before being timed in the 40 yard dash. Most of the seniors
did not turn in their best times under those conditions, but Clarett
still ran an extremely impressive sub-4.5 40. In his three-year
high school career, Clarett amassed 5,310 total yards, 4,119 of
them rushing while scoring 52 touchdowns. He missed an extensive
portion of his junior season due to an injury, but showed no linger
effects his senior season.
Other OSU recruits who made the list include offensive lineman
Derek Morris from Huntersville, N. C. At 6-6, 348, Morris
has plenty of size to be a Big Ten offensive lineman. Morris is
looking at OSU as well as Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina State,
and Florida.
On defense, linebacker Mike D'Andrea, 6-3, 242 from Avon
Lake, Ohio was named as one of three linebackers to make the first
team. He has narrowed his choices to OSU and Nebraska. D'Andrea
is incredibly strong and squats 720 pounds. Had 132 tackles, two
interceptions, three
sacks and caused three fumbles as a senior.
Also making the first team was OSU recruit Buster Davis.
Davis is listed by most as a linebacking prospect, but made the
USA Today team as a defensive back. Davis, from Daytona Beach, Florida,
was listed at 5-11, 230 pounds by USA Today. Davis could
play linebacker in college, but could also be a dominant strong
safety in the mold of current OSU safety Mike Doss. Davis has reportedly
run a sub-4.5 40 and had four interceptions last year to go with
176 tackles, 92 of which were solos. Like D'Andrea, Davis seems
to be leaning to either Nebraska or Ohio State.
The only other member of the team that has committed to a Big Ten
school is linebacker David Richard, 6-3, 225, from Hazelwood East,
Mo. Richard says he will attend Michigan State.
August 18, 2001
Buckeyes Add Hart
By Jim Pickins
Jaquan Hart, a 6-6 WF from Flint Northern HS in Michigan
will be a Buckeye. Hart originally committed to coach Brian Ellerbe
and Michigan last fall. Hart was one point shy of being a full qualifier
and thus was not admitted to the University of Michigan. Hart decided
to choose another school where he would be given an opportunity
to practice with the team and keep his four years of eligibility
as opposed to going to a prep school and trying later to gain entrance
into Michigan. Hart has a solid GPA and will join the Buckeyes as
a partial qualifier. Only Michigan and Northwestern do not accept
partial qualifiers in the Big Ten. Hart will have to sit out the
2001-2002 season. Hart has said that he will use the 2001-2002 season
to get acclimated to school and get stronger. He chose OSU over
Michigan State, Cincinnati, Oklahoma State and Iowa. Hart finished
2nd to Kelvin Torbert in the Michigan Mr. Basketball voting for
2001. Torbert is headed to MSU and is widely considered the top
high-school prospect that did not declare for the NBA draft out
of the 2001 class.
At one point last summer, the Buckeyes appeared to be running even
with Michigan for Hart's services. After the early commitments by
Fuss-Cheatham and Sylvester, OSU dropped out of the running and
Michigan was a clear winner. Hart can penetrate and is extremely
athletic. He reportedly has the skills to play point guard but will
undoubtedly be used as a wing forward in OBrien's three guard attack.
During his senior season, Hart averaged 19.1 PPG, 4 RPG, and 2.5
APG.
Hart is consistently rated a top 40 player nationally. In fact,
I have never seen him rated lower than 43rd but he has been on a
top 25 list. He will be the highest ranked recruit on the team.
Prior to his commitment, Brandon Fuss-Cheatham had nudged out Brent
Darby for that honor. Both Fuss-Cheatham and Darby were considered
top 50 players nationally. Fuss-Cheatham's highest ranking was 32nd
while his lowest ranking was 59th. Darby's highest ranking was 35th
while his lowest ranking was 84th. OSU currently has two consensus
top 100 players, Brian Brown and Darby. The 2001 class will add
three more, Hart, Fuss-Cheatham and Matt Sylvester. The only current
commitment for 2002, Ricardo Billings, is also a consensus top 100
player. In summary 4 of OSU's 6 consensus top 100 players will be
in either the 2001 or 2002 class.
Bob Gibbons has three OSU recruits in his final top 50 rankings
for the 2001 class. Hart being the top rated at 32nd, Fuss-Cheatham
at 39th and Sylvester at 41st. Only Florida and North Carolina have
three recruits rated higher by Gibbons for the 2001 class. This
will be OSU's best incoming class in terms of rankings since the
days of Macon, Simpson, Anderson, Wilbourne and Eaker.
The Buckeyes could now be forced to decide between Clark Williams
and Robert Hite for the final backcourt scholarship for 2002. Williams
was unable to become a partial qualifier after committing to the
Buckeyes over the summer. Williams will be forced to attend a prep
school during the 2001-2002 season. Hite, the top rated player in
the state of Ohio, was believed to be looking at Cincinnati or Xavier
as his leaders. Cincinnati recently signed Chadd Moore to their
backcourt and Xavier has already doled out three scholarships for
the 2002 class. It is unlikely that the Buckeyes will take both
Williams and Hite but it would not be out of the question. The Buckeyes
were expected to recruit someone to play PG or at least be a combination
PG/SG in the 2002 class. PG Chris Quinn of Dublin chose to attend
Notre Dame instead of accepting OSU's offer to redshirt his freshman
season. Neither Williams nor Hite fit the PG/SG role. Reportedly
both Hart and Ricardo Billings who verballed earlier this summer
could play the combination guard role.
The Buckeyes were planning on adding two big men in the 2002 class.
In the 2003 class, OSU will be replacing Sean Connolly and Darby.
If OSU is confident that the 2003 class will land the big men needed,
then taking a top 100 player like Hite may still make sense. I look
for OSU to be very selective in choosing a big man for the 2002
class and it may be the spring signing period before OSU lands a
big man. OSU will continue to court 6-9 Ivan Harris out of Springfield
and hope that he can fill the void down low by signing up for the
2003 class.
Here are some updates on recruits that OSU was considering at one
time. 6-3 Logan White of Cleveland now appears headed to Clemson.
6-3 Wayne Arnold, high-school teammate of Clark Williams, of Georgia
now appears headed to Georgia. 6-7 Delco Rowley of Indiana committed
to Michigan State, 6-9 James Augustine decided to stay home and
committed to Illinois.
OSU continues to monitor several big men but the most intriguing
is 6-8 Sean May of Indiana. May is considered by most a lock for
Indiana University where his father starred in the mid-seventies.
Two different publications now are questioning whether he will end
up at Indiana. OSU, Notre Dame, Louisville and North Carolina are
the other schools still courting May. Don't expect a decision anytime
soon though as May continues to evaluate his options.
August 11, 2001
With football season upon us there will be less time to think about
recruiting and more time devoted to following the current crop of
Buckeyes. With those time constraints looming, it's probably a good
time right now to take stock of the state of the OSU football recruiting
effort this year.
As the current commitment list indicates,
the Buckeyes have an extraordinary number of commitments for this
time of the year. With the recent commitment of LeAndre Boone, the
Buckeyes have 14 verbals that include one running back, one quarterback,
one tight end, three defensive ends, one linebacker, three defensive
backs, and four offensive linemen.
The question that seems to be on everyone's mind now is just how
many commitments OSU will take this year. We've seen a variety of
estimates, most of which range from 24 to as many as 27. OSU can
take more than the NCAA annual maximum of 25 since LeAndre Boone
will enroll this year and count on last year's class as will Maurice
Claret who will enroll at OSU this January.
So far, there's no new news here, so here's where it gets interesting.
We don't agree with those who think OSU will take the full compliment
of 25 to 27 players this year, and here's why.
Take a look at the current
OSU roster. At the bottom you will find a breakdown of the
roster by class eligibility. You will see that by our unofficial
count, the Buckeyes currently have only 76 players on scholarship.
Additionally, two more players, Fred Stirrup and Curtis Crosby,
face stiff academic challenges to retain their eligibility. If Crosby
and Stirrup fail to make it, the Buckeyes will have only 74 on scholarship,
meaning that they will be 11 under the scholarship limit of 85.
The problem the OSU coaching staff faces, however, is the small
size of both the senior and junior classes. There are only 10 seniors
and 13 juniors on scholarship.
What does it mean? It means the Buckeyes cannot really afford to
take a huge class this year. To do so would leave them in a serious
scholarship bind for the next class (2003), a class that in Ohio
has some very good talent in it, including a couple of very fine
quarterbacks. Even if there is an attrition of two or three players
between now and the end of the 2002 season (a reasonable number),
the class of 2003 would be limited to just 13 (the number of juniors)
plus the number of attritions.
With 14 verbals in hand, we look for OSU to add no more than eight
more players to this class, perhaps nine, bringing the total to
22, no more than 23. Which eight or nine players will they be? Who
knows, but the Buckeyes are in on the following ten players that
might look real good in Scarlet and Gray. Here they are, in no particular
order.
1. RB Deshawn Wynn
2. DL Kwakou Robinson
3. TE George Cooper Jr.
4. LB Stan White Jr.
5. LB Mike D'Andrea
6. WR Roy Hall
7. WR Richard Washington
8. OL Derrick Morris
9. DL Quinn Pitcock
10. LB Robby Carpenter
The Buckeyes would probably find a way to take eight, maybe nine,
players off that list, but after that, they will probably get pretty
picky. If they were to land eight of 10 (making this a class of
22) they would head into the next recruiting season with 86 players
on scholarship, 64 returners and 22 in this class and thereby needing
at least one player to drop out of the program for one reason or
another such as injury, academics, or transfer. That means that
the class signed in February of 2003 would be just 13 players, plus
the number of players leaving the program during the course of the
next year. Our guess would be that that class would be in the range
of 16 or 17 playes.
Just our opinion.
June 23, 2001
Football season is still months away,
but the interest in recruiting and the recruiting process is going
strong. One of the hottest areas of debate currently surrounding
OSU recruiting is how much emphasis should be put on recruiting
offensive linemen this year, and for that matter, in subsequent
years.
The current lack of depth on the offensive
line has led some folks to argue that as many as eight O-Linemen
should be taken this year and five every year thereafter. That's
a bit of over-reaction, but it does point out the need to "budget"
scholarships by position.
Coaches used to have a formula, a simple
one, for keeping the talent on their teams balanced. In the old
days, coaches talked about having "a pair and a spare"
at every position. Amazingly, this seemingly lost pearl of wisdom
looks like it would work very well today in the world of 85 scholarships.
When applied to the various positions
on a football team, the "pair and a spare" concept yields
this breakdown of scholarships.
Offensive linemen:
13 ( 2 left guards, 2 right guards, one spare, 2 left tackles, 2
right tackles, one spare, 3 centers)
Tight ends: 3
Flankers: 3
Wide receivers: 3
Tailbacks: 3
Fullbacks: 3
Quarterbacks: 3
31 total offensive players
Defensive ends: 5
Defensive tackles: 5
Inside linebackers: 3
Outside linebackers: 5
Cornerbacks: 5
Safeties: 5
28 defensive players
Specialists: 7 (2
punters, 2 place kickers, 2 long snappers, one spare kicker)
Total specialists 7
Grand total 66
Amazing, isn't it? Today's NCAA regulations
allow for 65 players to travel with the team. By applying the "pair
and a spare" rule, you have 66 players on scholarship at various
positions, meaning that all of them except one get to travel. That
can't be bad for team morale and gives a coach some depth at every
position, even on the road.
The "pair and a spare" concept
accounts for 66 of the 85 total scholarships a school is allowed.
What about the remaining 19? Simple. Those are the guys who are
redshirting.
The breakdown by position of the redshirt
group ought to approximate the breakdown by position of the graduating
seniors. That continues the "pair and a spare" ratio the
following season. The redshirt group is also the "reserve talent"
that fills in on the depth chart should there be injuries or players
lost for other reasons during the season.
The "pair and a spare" concept
gives a coaching staff a lot of flexibility. For one thing, it allows
a staff to juggle personnel a little if injuries occur, thus perhaps
saving a redshirt year for a young player.
If, for instance, an offensive lineman
gets hurt, the "pair and a spare" concept gives a coaching
staff the flexibility of perhaps moving a center to guard, a guard
to tackle, or a "spare" to center, while not completely
decimating the depth at the position from which they are "borrowing."
Outside linebackers can move inside and vice versa. Flankers fill
in for injured wide receivers. Lose a tight end? No problem, play
more three wide receiver sets. Lose a tailback? Play more one back
sets. With "a pair and a spare" most personnel needs are
met. And if you have a season with a high attrition rate, call on
the "reserve talent pool", the redshirts, to fill in where
help is needed.
"A pair and a spare" is a
great general blueprint that can be tailored each season. If a team
has a place kicker that can punt, it needs one less punter. If the
regular center can make the long snap, it needs one less snapper.
Flexibility is there with "a pair and a spare."
"A pair and a spare," an
old idea that still works.
April 30, 2001
Buckeyes Land Athletic Wing Player
By Jim Pickens
Clark Williams, a 6-6 wing guard from Lilton,
Georgia who has family connections to Columbus is making it official.
He will become a Buckeye. Williams was one of the more promising
recruits in the country going into the summer camps of 2000. After
a poor showing at Nike, Williams was dropped by most of the major
schools that were pursuing him. Williams was close to committing
to St. Bonaventure in the early signing period but decided to wait
until after his senior season to see if he could land an offer from
a school in a major conference. Williams chose OSU over Rhode Island,
Boston College and Wisconsin.
Remember the last time that OSU stumbled on a 6-6
player after signing a very good class in the early signing period?
It was when Derek Anderson signed with the Buckeyes after having
a strong senior season. Anderson signed after Charles Macon, Gerald
Eaker, Nate Wilbourne and Greg Simpson were already inked. Like
Anderson, Williams also used his senior season to catapult him into
contention for a scholarship from the Buckeyes. Williams led his
team to the large school state championship in Georgia by averaging
over 20 points per game. He has tremendous range and should be an
immediate deep threat for the Buckeyes. He will, however, find a
crowded backcourt when arriving at OSU next fall.
Williams will join freshman Brandon Fuss-Cheatham,
Terence Dials and Matt Sylvester making this OSU class the strongest
that OSU has brought in under Jim OBrien.
The Buckeyes will still have four scholarships available
for next season and the recruiting attention will now go to filling
those slots. With three perimeter players graduating next year,
it appears that the Buckeyes will be courting two perimeter players
and two post players for those four slots. Several highly regarded
recruits have mentioned OSU and the expectations continue to rise
as the basketball program appears to have regained the recruiting
momentum that it enjoyed during Randy Ayers early years.
Next year's recruiting class has tremendous potential.
ESPN.com released their Best of 2002 listing and
some of the Buckeyes top targets appear on the list. At the shooting
guard position, two players that OSU are courting are Ricardo
Billings, 6-4 player from Detroit, and Robert Hite, a
6-2 player from Cincinnati. Both are among the top 20 shooting guards
in the country. Billings has top 25 overall potential and is said
to be favoring the Buckeyes. Hite is one of three players in Ohio
that continue to draw the most recruiting coverage. Chris Quinn
and Alex Carmona are the other two. They are listing Notre
Dame and Cincinnati respectively, as their leaders. Hite is the
only one of the three to appear on the ESPN.com listing and
has been described as a very good defender and tremendous athlete.
Two small forwards that are listing OSU as possible
choices are 6-7 Curtis Sumpter out of Brooklyn, New York
and 6-7 Matt Trannon out of Flint Michigan. Sumpter plays
for Bishop Loughlin high school and may join Will Dudley and Brian
Brown as players from that school who have played for OSU. Sumpter
lists eight schools but OSU is reported to be one of his leaders.
Trannon is listing five schools including Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan,
Michigan State and the Buckeyes. He played very well during his
junior season and shot up the rankings as a result. Both Trannon
and Sumpter are top 15 small forwards nationally.
6-8 Sean May from the state of Indiana continues
to be ranked among the top 15 power forwards in the country and
repeatedly lists OSU with Indiana, Duke, Iowa, Notre Dame, and North
Carolina. Another highly regarded player the Buckeyes are pursuing
at the power forward position is Mario Boggans, 6-6 300 pounds,
from Oakhill Academy. Boggans did not make the ESPN.com listing
but has been placed just behind May on some power forward listings.
Boggans two early favorites are OSU and Missouri.
OSU is also looking at other Michigan players in
addition to Ricardo Billings. Chris Grimm, a 6-10 center,
from Brighton High School lists OSU and Michigan State as his early
favorites. OSU is also tracking Maurice Ager, a 6-3 guard
from Crockett High School. All three of the Michigan players mentioned
are considered top 10 in the state.
Other prospects closer to home include wing players
6-5 DeForrest Riley from Cincinnati and 6-4 Doug Scott
of Reynoldsburg. The Buckeyes are also showing interest in Rian
Powell, a 6-3 shooting guard, and Logan White, a 6-3
point guard. Both of these players are from Cleveland.
March 18, 2001 8:20 PM
We've seen some fairly spirited
debate several places on the internet regarding the state of the
OSU basketball program. One of the issues that seems to be a hot
topic is whether or not Jim O'Brien is a good recruiter. This week,
we saw the following argument made on FOSML (Friends of Ohio State
Mailing List) and thought O-Zone readers who are not FOSML subscribers
might enjoy it. With the permission of the author, it is reproduced
below.
It has been alleged by some
shallow half-wit on FOSML that Obie has not recruited at all well.
I am here to explain just why that has been.
A presumption is that for a
coach to recruit a big time prospect, he has to get in with him
at least a year before the kid commits. Call that the One Year Rule.
Sherman may have been the person who first mentioned this rule.
1. Oh How the Mighty
Have Fallen. Ohio State after three straight NCAA appearances
and two #1 seeds (I think), the BB program fell so deeply into the
crapper that it came out the other end. Kids were afraid to come
here because they had to fear that they might end up in jail.
2. Jim Who?
When Obie was hired, virtually no one on FOSML had ever heard of
him. Maybe a few Ohio high school coaches had but I suspect that
not a single Ohio high school basketball player had heard of him.
This presented enormous problems recruiting in Ohio. Big time Ohio
kids were not about to come here.
3. Whither Goest Thou?
When Obie moved out here, he left his prime recruiting area -- NYC
and New England -- behind. Most of the kids out there probably had
no idea where Columbus is and were surely afraid that all of us
out here had dung on our feet from working with our livestock. Big
time eastern recruits were not about to come here.
I. Year 1 recruiting was not
strong because of 1-3 and the One Year Rule.
4. Obie inherited a
horrible BB team, won just one game in the B10, finishing last,
and were one and out in the B10 tourney.
II. Because of the horrible
results his first year, which were by no means his fault, few doors
of big time prospects were open to him either in Ohio or the East.
Ergo, Year 1 recruiting was not strong. Facts 1-3 and the One Year
Rule prohibited it.
5. Obie takes the BB
team to the Final Four.
III. Now the doors are beginning
to open for Obie in Ohio and the East. Items 1 and 2 are no longer
in force. Item 3 is still a problem though the success of Sconnie
and Brian Brown work for him. However, item 3 is. Moreover, the
One Year Rule is still working against Obie since he would still
not have had a full year to recruit big time prospects before the
November signing period. Ergo, recruiting was not strong.
6. Obie wins the B10
Championship.
IV. The doors are open to Obie.
He has had a full year to work with some big time prospects. He
brings in three fine prospects including one from the Near East.
7. Obie finishes 3rd
in the conference, gets a bid to the NCAAs, and wins Coach of the
Year in the B10.
V. Who knows what will happen.
I am betting he will recruit well. The doors are fully open and
the One Year Rule no longer applies.
Buckgeis
3/06/01
OSU Basketball Future (Part 2 of 2)
The Backcourt
By Jim Pickens
The Buckeye backcourt will be very deep next year
and very talented. As we mentioned previously, there are a couple
of players that will compete for playing time in the backcourt that
may also be able to chisel some playing time out of the PF position.
Those players, Cobe Ocokoljic and Matt Sylvester were discussed
last time. Both will be competing with the six players listed below
for playing time in Jim OBrien’s three-guard lineup.
Boban Savovic – Savovic is
experienced and will be one of the leaders on the team next season.
He has played at the PG, SG, SF and PF positions at one time or
another during this basketball season. He should take up where he
left off last year as the starting SF in 2001-2002. He will have
plenty of competition pushing him for playing time.
Stat Sheet Stuff – During the Big 10 season
(2000-2001) - Boban Savovic 8th in assists, 12th
in steals, 15th in assist/turnover ratio.
Sean Connolly – Connolly has
established himself as a very good three-point shooter and a terrific
free throw shooter in his first year with the Buckeyes. Sean will
continue to push Boban for playing time next year. After a one-year
layoff, Sean seemed to improve over the latter half of the Big 10
season and will be counted on to contribute valuable minutes next
season.
Stat Sheet Stuff – During the Big 10 season
(2000-2001) - Sean Connolly 11th in 3-point field goal
%.
Brent Darby – Darby has been
very valuable coming off the bench this season. His offense will
be needed during the 2001-2002 season. Darby can play the point
but also will get some time at the SG position. Brandon Fuss-Cheathum
and Doylan Robinson will push Brent for playing time next season.
Stat Sheet Stuff – During the Big 10 season
(2000-2001) - Brent Darby 26th in scoring, 14th
in 3-point field goals made per game.
Doylan Robinson- Robinson has been
the forgotten man for the Buckeyes. Few remember that it was Robinson
who was the highest regarded recruit in his class. A majority of
recruiters had him ranked ahead of Brian Brown. After an injury
filled campaign this season, and a proposition 48 season his first
year, Doylan is sometimes overlooked. It was Robinson who hit three
three’s consecutively in a scrimmage earlier this year. It
was Robinson who OBrien considered his defensive stopper last season.
It was Robinson who was expected to provide relief with his ability
to play the point during this season. His return will be a big boost
to the competitiveness of the backcourt and the entire team will
improve because of it.
Brian Brown – Brown is the
unquestioned leader of the team. He remains option A in a close
ball game and is looked up to as a leader by his teammates. His
experience will be crucial to the development of the new backcourt
next season. The backcourt will not lose anyone but will be gaining
Fuss-Cheathum, Sylvester, if he doesn’t end up playing PF,
and will also have Robinson returning. Recently earned mention on
the All Big Ten team.
Stat Sheet Stuff – During the Big 10 season
(2000-2001) - Brian Brown 9th in scoring, 20th
in rebounding, 13th in field goal %, 5th in
assists, 13th in 3-point field goal %, 12th
in assist/turnover ratio.
Brandon Fuss-Cheathum – Fuss-Cheathum
is expected to make an immediate impact next season. If he can come
in and allow Brown to turn over the PG duties to Darby and himself,
the team will be much improved. Fuss-Cheathum is a natural point
guard who is refuted to have great penetration and ball handling
skills.
The Buckeye basketball program is at a crossroads
with seemingly three options to consider over the next couple of
years. The program could continue to be one of the strongest in
the Big 10 and look to continue to the solid upper level play that
has marked the last three seasons. The program could have trouble
remaining at this level and take a step backward similar to what
happened after the Jackson era. The final possibility would be to
increase the effectiveness of recruiting and make a bid to become
one of the elite teams in the country on the level of Michigan State,
North Carolina, Duke and Kansas. Those are the possibilities and
the recruiting over the next eight months will go a long way towards
giving us the answer.
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