So Who Is The First Portaler?

[Mr. M]

In my first year, I'd rather be 10-20 establishing my system with good kids, than 20-10 and not in the dance with the problem kids.

No way. Give me the wins. 10-20 might get ya fired or at least makes your vision a much harder sell to recruits, fans and AD

 

[Sbucketball]

No way. Give me the wins. 10-20 might get ya fired or at least makes it a harder sell to recruit, and make it easier to get fired later when looking at total record

Yeah that's a no brainer for me. This is high level sports. You take the wins. And it's not like these guys were murdering, raping and pillaging. They are 19 year olds with bad attitudes. Plenty of other high level players have bad attitudes too.

 

[swish7]

Some people just want to say "told you so" about the culture and the locker room, which is fine we get it.

To be fair, as fans, at the time, we knew nothing about the locker room and the culture. That is none of our business. But, now, it seems, unknown insiders are 'leaking' 'info' in the usual vague ways, and like always, they are probably 85% accurate.

So, as fans and trusting board members, we are responding to this new info.

For me at least, there is no 'I told you so' ego stuffing happening here.

I do wish we spent more time this season investing in the system and the future, but, people are bringing up interesting points here about the NIL.

All that said, I was a Benny fan til the bitter end, I was a Cope fan til the good version only appeared in like 2 games , and remain a Judah fan (He & Brown are the only players for whom we don't win 10 games without).

Am burned out a bit on the roster, especially if there are 'problems' and looking forward to changes.

 

[Sbucketball]

For those saying bench Judah, Q, etc., don't you think NIL donors would stop wasting their money if Red is playing Niko Ruffin and Chaz Owens over Judah and Q? Some donate no matter what, but most contribute in an effort to have a high-level winning program. Also I'm rooting for Red, and every single tally in the W column helps his argument that he's a capable hc - he can't throw away wins since he's under the microscope.

 

[DilemaCuse]

Just like pro sports. Tough decisions to bench high draft picks, big contracts etc.

 

[Red2003]

For those saying bench Judah, Q, etc., don't you think NIL donors would stop wasting their money if Red is playing Niko Ruffin and Chaz Owens over Judah and Q? Some donate no matter what, but most contribute in an effort to have a high-level winning program. Also I'm rooting for Red, and every single tally in the W column helps his argument that he's a capable hc - he can't throw away wins since he's under the microscope.

I always thought Nico could get on Chaz's shoulders and they could've played the 5 better than Carey, Hima, and McLeod in a few games.

 

[Dcuse]

In my first year, I'd rather be 10-20 establishing my system with good kids, than 20-10 and not in the dance with the problem kids.

I'm not sure there is a coach alive or dead that would agree with you on that one.

 

[Owens guy]

To be fair, as fans, at the time, we knew nothing about the locker room and the culture. That is none of our business. But, now, it seems, unknown insiders are 'leaking' 'info' in the usual vague ways, and like always, they are probably 85% accurate.

So, as fans and trusting board members, we are responding to this new info.

There were several hints, clues and straight out examples of bad attitudes throughout the season:

Benny being suspended in Maui.

Several really bad situations happened in & to locker rooms.

Several posters posted of Judah and Q complaining loudly & constantly to the referees and that the refs were saying they were sick of it. There were several player technical fouls this season.

I posted a referee told Red he needed to get control of his players (Judah & Q) in the Oregon game way back on 12/17. Red yelled at Judah to cut it out and Judah just laughed off his request.

Judah didn't start a game due to a violation of team rules.

Benny had several strange episodes on & behind the bench after being removed from games.

Benny was kicked off the team.

Cuffe didn't play several games in a row when a bench player desperately was needed.

Etc. I'm sure I missed some.

These are just examples I saw on my TV and learned from reading this message board. I'm sure it was really just the tip of the iceberg of what Red was dealing with behind the scenes.

 

[djcon57]

Heard Judah’s current plan is to go pro
View attachment 238907

Honestly if he ever wants to improve his shot, prob should.

 

[two3zone]

Lotta odd concern over Bell returning as a starter in my opinion. He’s clearly the 2nd most important player to get back as I see it. He has an Elite skill (3 point shooting), is sneaky athletic also, and most importantly a lot of the deficiencies he had this past season can be improved with simply increased effort (rebounding and defense etc). He has 8 months to work on his game too, look how many players we have seen in the past make monster leaps in just one off season.

The real problem is if the deficiencies don’t improve then the staff needs to be quick to not give token starting spots like we have seen in the past here.

You want to risk your job banking on Chris Bell getting better at defense and rebounding? There will be 200 better players than him in the portal, we just need to get one.

 

[swish7]

That assumes knowing ahead of time that things were going to be a problem.

I don't think anybody could have known that.

I'm sure Red knew after the first few practices. These are sophomores after all, and not the first time he's seeing the kids. He was also their recruiter.

 

[Orangezoo]

You want to risk your job banking on Chris Bell getting better at defense and rebounding? There will be 200 better players than him in the portal, we just need to get one.

If you bring him back it’s he has to improve and you bring in someone who is a wing that could earn the minutes over Bell if Bell doesn’t put in the work.

 

[two3zone]

If you bring him back it’s he has to improve and you bring in someone who is a wing that could earn the minutes over Bell if Bell doesn’t put in the work.

Nobody is coming in better than him willing to take a seat waiting for him to fail.

 

[SUfanNC]

That assumes knowing ahead of time that things were going to be a problem.

I don't think anybody could have known that.

Exactly No way to know that.

Also as a head coach you are going to put the most talent on the floor. You hope that your discipline turns them around as the season goes on. It obviously it didn't go how Red wanted.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I'm sure Red knew after the first few practices. These are sophomores after all, and not the first time he's seeing the kids. He was also their recruiter.

Knowing a little into practice doesn't give any room for roster changes tho. Roster's set well before then.

 

[Orangezoo]

Nobody is coming in better than him willing to take a seat waiting for him to fail.

You either dump him or get creative with a player who has potential from a smaller school. I know dumping him is the preference for many but with 1600 players there has to be some options of guys who could be underrated. The NIL budget probably matters too.. if he stays does it help to get the other pieces or does it force you to spend too much on his replacement that it hurts you at the 5 and 1…

 

[two3zone]

You either dump him or get creative with a player who has potential from a smaller school. I know dumping him is the preference for many but with 1600 players there has to be some options of guys who could be underrated. The NIL budget probably matters too.. if he stays does it help to get the other pieces or does it force you to spend too much on his replacement that it hurts you at the 5 and 1…

If there are 1600 players available it shouldn’t be difficult with finding exactly what you want.

 

[swish7]

I'm not sure there is a coach alive or dead that would agree with you on that one.

I don't care actually.

I wouldn't play kids who didn't buy in to whatever system I am running.

Specifically, I'd play dudes like Cuffe more. Unless he's a problem too, as someone just now alluded to above.

But, I'm not a coach. I'm just an overweight former jock strap, like the lot of us.

If in 2 years time we are still having this conversation, then its not the kids, its the ...

 

[Orangezoo]

If there are 1600 players available it shouldn’t be difficult with finding exactly what you want.

What you want but for the price you want as well… I guess that’s the conundrum- can you get both? No clue on the answer.

And then if we overpay it better mean real results. Feels like that’s the real breaking point as a fan of the sport.. reach the point of spending lots and getting little and college sports just doesn’t do it for me anymore.

 

[Cusefan0307]

No way. Give me the wins. 10-20 might get ya fired or at least makes your vision a much harder sell to recruits, fans and AD

LOL Red has been criticized for winning 20 this year. Could you imagine this place if we cratered?

 

[two3zone]

What you want but for the price you want as well… I guess that’s the conundrum- can you get both? No clue on the answer.

And then if we overpay it better mean real results. Feels like that’s the real breaking point as a fan of the sport.. reach the point of spending lots and getting little and college sports just doesn’t do it for me anymore.

There will be a way to find out the answer. I know the answer of Bell and Starling playing together, add in another freshman (I think he’ll be fine but another risk). We know what we’re getting with them, banking on otherwise with this many players available would be malpractice.

We have a bunch of players leaving, unfortunately they seem to be the ones that played defense outside of brown. Not worried about replacing anyone but why those two?

 

[SWC75]

If there are 1600 players available it shouldn’t be difficult with finding exactly what you want.

1600 guys who didn't play or didn't like playing for someone else.

The thing that bothers me is that we've just won 20 regular season games for the first time in a decade against one of the toughest schedules in the country with a team full of sophomores and there's no sense of building from that base toward a higher goal. Instead it's about cobbling together another team for next year.

 

[two3zone]

1600 guys who didn't play or didn't like playing for someone else.

The thing that bothers me is that we've just won 20 regular season games for the first time in a decade against one of the toughest schedules in the country with a team full of sophomores and there's no sense of building from that base toward a higher goal. Instead it's about cobbling together another team for next year.

I’m not sure this is about not wanting to play somewhere else, it’s year to year free agency.

 

[007]

I don't care actually.

I wouldn't play kids who didn't buy in to whatever system I am running.

Specifically, I'd play dudes like Cuffe more. Unless he's a problem too, as someone just now alluded to above.

But, I'm not a coach. I'm just an overweight former jock strap, like the lot of us.

If in 2 years time we are still having this conversation, then its not the kids, its the ...

This season was a MAJOR transition in HC styles, personalties, and systems. And Red is a 1st time HC. To think that there would not be a significant learning curve for the both the players AND the staff was unrealistic.

To be clear, I'm not suggesting that you necessarily thought this way. I am suggesting that the belief that Red simply shouldn't play kids who weren't buying in might look obvious in hindsight, but this was an evolution over the course of the entire season. When do you stop playing talented players? When do you give up on kids? When do you know that you've done enough to try to change the culture before essentially giving up on the season?

If significant changes have to be made, NOW is the time for those changes. This is what we are seeing play out. This off season was always going to be one of the defining moments in Red's HC journey. Let's judge him on that.

 

[690West]

Heard Judah’s current plan is to go pro
View attachment 238907

If there’s a new pro team called the Hoyas, then you heard right