No, we don’t yet know much about Uriah Grant — seriously, check out the WVU profile and the Wake Forest profile — except that he’s pretty strong and should be a nice addition to the defensive like that needs nice additions. Nobody, though, mentioned his dad was a boxer.
From the category of “Things I never want to write about again” is news that Bill Stewart’s contract, yet unsigned, will be finalized soon.
“It’s in the hands of the attorneys reviewing the drafts as we speak,” WVU Deputy Director of Athletics Mike Parsons said. “We fully expect something here to be completed certainly within the next month.”
I suppose that’s good news, though was anyone really worried? I mean, this time last year P-Rod hadn’t signed his and we just knewsomething was up. Even when it was signed and he said he was just tinkering with the retirement funds, you knew that was bull. This time, it just seems the lawsuit and the scandal and transition at Stewart Hall was a tad more important and that Stewart wasn’t a top priority. That’s not mean to be offensive, but to say no one is worried he’ll cause a problem.
So the chances are WVU will have a football coach with a signed contract here shortly, which should pretty much punctuate the last page in the regrettable saga of the past seven months. We can then focus on the season, which is something I’d like to see.
This is the only post of the day and it occurs to me we talk an awful lot about what’s happened and what’s happening and spend far too little time on what might happen. So the question is posed to you today, “What do you want to see happen this year?”
I’ll start. Lobster in the press box.
(Apologies for the hassle today. Unexplained technical problems kept the site offline all afternoon. It’s kind of hard to type when you’re throwing your hands in the air. Things just started humming again. Also, this glitch has nothing to do with me being gone tomorrow, either. Back Wednesday. Handle your business in the post that greets you tomorrow morning.)
Joe Alexander sort of knew he was going to be drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks last month, which is why I suspect he was so pro-Milwaukee well before the actual draft. To his credit, though, he kept it going after the pick was made.
“That’s why I came back. In the draft process, just like teams elminiate players they don’t want, players can eliminate teams they don’t want. You certainly don’t go back and visit a team again if you don’t want.â€
All of this must have alarmed one Gilbert Arenas, who might not beat Jeffrey Dahmer in a popularity contest in Wisconsin.
Richard Jeffersongoing to Milwaukee …. HAHAHA! Oh man, now that is funny. When I heard that, I started laughing. Oh man, did I start laughing. You know why? Because every player hates Milwaukee. Nobody wants to live in Milwaukee. I’m sorry, Milwaukee, to come down hard on you, but no one in the NBA wants to play in Milwaukee. From him going from New Jersey, actually from New York (because he lives in New York), from New York to Milwaukee is like going … let’s just say it’s not going to sit well with you. That was a funny one when I heard that one. I know Yi is happy though.
I was talking with a friend Saturday night who said Jerrah Young, of all people, had texted him out of the blue to say hello. Young, who lasted but a season at WVU, transferred to Toledo and had an OK career — actually, that’s a nice senior season — that could now be extended with an opportunity to play overseas.
The true surprise, though, was that fellow expatriate Tyler Relph is headed across the ocean and that, he, too, was killing it as a senior at St. Bonvaenture.
Relph ended his three-year stint as a Bonnie by averaging 16 points per game over the final 14 contests, highlighted by four 20-point outings and 12 games in double figures. For the season, the 6-foot-3 shooter ranked third on the club in scoring (11.9) while leading the team with 112 assists. Relph ranked sixth among the Atlantic 10 leaders in both three-point percentage (.423) and assists per game (3.9).
Oddly enough, Relph concluded his collegiate career at Rose Hill Gym with his third consecutive 20-point outing. While scoring his 20 points, Relph went a perfect 6-for-6 at the charity stripe, boosting his season average to 93.8 percent (75-80) and giving the NCAA minimum requirement of 2.5 made free throws per game. Combined with making his last 48 free throws, Relph finished the season as the NCAA leader in free throw percentage and set a St. Bonaventure single-season best.
Relph concluded his three-year stint in the Brown and White with 910 points, placing him 46th on the all-time scoring list. Nearly two-thirds of those points came via 187 three-pointers, a mark that sits fourth all-time in Bona history. Relph connected on 153-of-170 career free throw attempts, good for an even 90 percent clip, and dished out 234 assists.
…from the weekend that was. For your use in elevator rides, trips to the water cooler and other awkward moments on a Monday.
> OK, I’m really trying to move on and get beyond P-Rod, but sometimes some things are too good to be true.
> This might be going out on a limb, and I’m fine with that because, honestly, who’s reading? That said, there’s a strong, strong feeling WVU could be a Final Four type of contender in 2009. Assuming no one goes pro early, you have Mazzulla, Bryant, Smith, Butler, Flowers, Ebanks, Jones, Proby and now Dalton Pepper and Dan Jennings. That’s deep.
> Joe Alexander finished the summer league in some sort of style.
> The odds of Tevita Finau and/or Roscoe Davis qualifying look slim — no link, but not good news, either.
> Lance Frazier’s team played Avon Cobourne’s in the CFL Saturday. Frazier’s squad was victorious over Cobourne’s suddenly fledgling team.
> Bonus: Take one last last chance to vote in our Big East poll … or tell everyone you know to do so.
A few notes about this and that before we delve into the Friday Feedback:
> I’m sure we can blame this on P-Rod in some way, shape or form: Willie Williams is headed to Glenville State. Funy/revealing story: Two years ago, Yahoo! reported that after he was dismissed by Miami he was very interested in WVU and that the feeling might be mutual. Local reporters tried to reach P-Rod for comment and he couldn’t be found. The stories ran citing the report and P-Rod was flat-out furious that one paper in particular that I know quite well didn’t seek his side of the story. So he preached about how he’s always available. Then he starts flirting with Alabama and you could not get the man on the phone.
> After numerous close calls, I finally caught up with Devin Ebanks Wednesday at the Pittsburgh Basketball Club’s Summer Pro-Am League. This is good because we were about three days away from me sitting outside Applebee’s waiting for him to leave so that I might “accidentally” run into him. I honestly called his coaches or advisors about 10 times before he signed and always “just missed him.” I was interviewing Wellington Smith once over the phone and he said Ebanks was at Smith’s apartment, but I “just missed him.” I found out late one day that some players were doing a clinic in Fairmont and I was actually in the area, so I went and “just missed him.” I went to the PBC two weeks ago and WVU’s players didn’t attend. Monday and Tuesday this week, I saw Ebanks a bunch of times at the rec center for the Jam Fest, but because of a stupid NCAA rule, I’m not allowed to interview him on campus until the fall semester. When I got to Pittsburgh Wednesday, Ebanks didn’t show up with the first wave of WVU players and I’m pretty sure I invented some profanity.
> Finally, I’m hearing Tevita Finau and Roscoe Davis aren’t going to make it. For Finau, it’s not a matter of grades, but of getting the work done before time expires, which is soon. Davis is having a tough time with his test scores. Also, and this is bizarre, but prompted by several e-mails I this week. I’m not going anywhere.
Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, use discretion in how you leave your mark.
Mack said:
From ESPN.COM: “Mike Casazza of the Charleston (W. Va.) Daily Mail reports that Mountaineer recruit Terence Kerns received a qualifying ACT score and has apparently qualified academically.â€
Pretty cool.
Yeah, there was a short fist-pump over that. Of course, I didn’t break the news, but then again, who really bothers with proper attribution these days. Kudos to ESPN.Â
Continue reading…
Wow, preseason football practice is just 16 days away, which means we’re a week or so away from the third-and-long blitz of preseason predictions and discussions. Most likely the greatest topic emanating from WVU is quarterback Patrick White and his bid for the Heisman Trophy.
While White doesn’t need to throw and run for 50 touchdowns–which Tebow had to do to overcome the bias against sophomores–he does need to be able to raise a few eyebrows with his stats. Totaling at least 40 touchdowns running and throwing should get the job done. He also has to show some real improvement as a passer. While the raw yardage numbers don’t need to be there–and likely won’t due to the system he is in–it is definitely within his abilities to challenge for the nation’s passing efficiency crown. He’s got to keep the interceptions below double digits and his touchdown passes above 20. Also, I think he’ll need to throw for minimum 2,000 yards and rush for minimum 1,000.
Oh, well, nothing to it: 40 total touchdowns, at least 20 passing touchdowns, fewer than 10 interceptions, Â 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards. Pardon? There’s more? Sheesh…
Continue reading…
OK, more debate about statistics and the ones we should value. We learned last month WVU had its “finest athletic year” in terms of on-the-playing-surface success and finished 30th in the Directors’ Cup.
What, you missed the ticker-tape parade?
Anyhow, Sports Illustrated ranked the 330 college sports programs and did so by saying it was going to do it differently than the Directors’ Cup.
For nearly two decades, the Collegiate Directors of Athletics have done so, using components like a “64-team non-bracket point system” to determine the Directors’ Cup winner. (Stanford finished on top in ’07-08 for the 14th consecutive year). But critics argue that its formula is extremely complicated. Moreover, Stanford will likely continue to dominate for years to come.
In an effort to be a little less complicated, we came up with a different scoring system, a three-pronged formula that puts the emphasis on national titles, top 30 finishes and conference championships.
A detailed four-paragraph explanation follows and it seems to make enough sense without all the complexities. WVU finished tied for No. 33 and in the midst of some pretty good company. Quick show of hands: Who expected that school to be No. 1?
Just a question.
I concede to the points made in the previous post: There is stopwatch fast and there is football fast and, as far as I’m concerned, football fast is what matters most. The point, as you might imagine, was to show that while that it is universally accepted that White is fast, there are teammates who are faster on a stopwatch. I’d take White to win a race into the end zone, though.
So, yes, many of these statistics and superlatives we sometimes concern ourselves with are overrated. The question now, though, is what do we think of the news recruit Tajh Boyd made the Elite 11 quarterback camp?Â
“I really don’t feel I have that much to prove anymore,” said Boyd, who is one of 12 quarterbacks chosen to compete. “But I feel I’m one of the top players in the nation, and I want to prove that. I want to use the whole week out there to show I belong.”
In its 10th year, the Elite 11 bills itself as the nation’s premier quarterback camp. Participants are chosen based on an evaluation process that includes film research and interviews, both in-person and by telephone. Past quarterbacks selected include Vince Young, Matt Leinart, Kyle Orton and John David Booty.
