The Sock 'Em, Bust 'Em Board Because that's our custom

On Product Rodriguez

July 1, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Apologies for not having the five depositions released after 4:30 p.m. yesterday posted online, but we honestly couldn’t find someone who knew how to do it. Bad timing. It happens. Of the five — President Mike Garrison, Chief of Staff Craig Walker, Deputy Director of Athletics Mike Parsons and Board of Governors members Steve Farmer and Parry Petroplus — Garrison’s was by far the most in-depth and most interesting.

Clearly, the greatest tidbit was learning about the first meeting between Garrison and Rich Rodriguez’s agent, Mike Brown. Seems Brown referred to his client as Product Rodriguez and made it quite clear he had every intention to shop his product around because it was too good to remain on WVU’s shelves.

Product Rodriguez. He’ll never be the same after this. Nor should he.

Feel free to search for and share opinions on this matter. They’re all over the place and mostly the same, though I contend a story with jokes about Mike Brown’s I.P.O. and Rodriuguez’s Dec. 1 dividend would be pretty entertaining.

There was much more, especially with Garrison’s deposition, and a few things that stand out or need to be highlighted — namely Dusty Rutledge.

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Kige Ramsey approves

June 30, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Believe me, I’m trying to flush the NBA Draft from my system — and really, it became easier when my the Knicks took Gallinari at No. 6 — but every time I get away, something pulls me back. You can and, let’s be honest here, you should thank Kige Ramsey for allowing us to revisit the draft today.

In short, he expects Joe Alexander will turn out nicely for Milwaukee and doesn’t mince words when describing why.

“He is a nice fit for that team. They needed players who can play and who can score.”

A closer look

by Mike Casazza

You’ll remember last week we discussed the resignation of Craig Walker and how this might affect the search for a new Director of Athletics. A few suggestions and some intelligent discourse followed and as we sifted through the names and the nobodies, we came across a very solid candidate.

You hear some names as this process unfolds — Oliver Luck and Whit Babcock immediately come to mind; I’m sorry, I just can’t see West doing it — and there isn’t much more to be learned about the people because we know so much already. Schaus, though, is a little different in that he hasn’t been around lately … and that may be a good thing.

It might be impossible for WVU to reconcile its desire to take one of its own, but it might be best if WVU found someone who hadn’t been around for or associated with any of the craziness of the past (insert your time frame here).

That could be Schaus, who in two years might be ready and willing, to say nothing of giddy about embracing the homecoming. More importantly, I gather he’s obsessed with making things happen at and not letting anything get in the way of progress.

His name generated a lot of feedback, including one e-mail from a … well, let’s call this person a qualified source.

Mike,

This Schaus thing is real……..you just need to figure out who his “champion” is or is going to be in the WVU administration, assuming he is as politically neutral as I think. He did serve 3-4 seasons as associate AD in Clifton with Huggy Bear in the Fortson years.
 
If he shows up in MGT, he’s going to be Vytorin for that sclerotic mess of a department. In a month or so at Ohio, he’s hired four head coaches and dumped a radio PBP guy. Jim Schaus doesn’t believe in committees; he believes in Jim Schaus………kind of like Chuck Norris.

Best regards,
(Qualified source)

Talking points

by Mike Casazza

…from the weekend that was. For your use in elevator rides, trips to the water cooler and other awkward moments on a Monday.

> I can’t begin to tell you how happy it made me to see that the Montreal Alouettes pummeled the Hamilton Tiger-Cats Friday. Yes, yes, Avon Cobourne had a nice game, and, yes, yes, darn-near WVU offensive coordinator Charlie Taaffe coached the Tiger-Cats to a 30-10 loss. Good for Avon and, honestly, I couldn’t care less about what happens with Taaffe. He’s his own man and free to make his own decisions about his career. That he isn’t on Bill Stewart’s staff is no issue to me. No, I’m just glad the Tiger-Cats president, who in January said someone in the West Virginia media called and apologized for botching the Taaffe story, which is a lie, had to suffer through the evening.

> This all seems so sudden that it’s hard to completely grasp, but WVU has another lottery-pick type player on the basketball team and it would seem we have two years tops to enjoy Devin Ebanks. 

> Joe Alexander isn’t so sure Kevin Jones won’t be joining him one day. 

> Gov. Joe Manchin made a nice addition to the Board of Governors. Call it Luck.

> The football team added an offensive lineman. Rejected lead: “There’s not much you can say about Pat Eger.”

> We soared past 100,000 page views. It caught me a little off guard and nearly ruined my big plans. Fortunately, we’re just 14 posts from 500 so I don’t have to call to cancel the magician.

Friday Feedback

June 27, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Welcome to a concerned edition of the Friday Feedback in which I worry bosses might want me to call local sports shops to check on the sales of Milwaukee Bucks apparel even though the real story is the rise in Milwaukee’s Best sales. And, wait a second, did Joe Alexander just find a nickname?

In the end, it was a wonderful, though needlessly stressful day for the Alexanders, who were at least rattled by an afternoon trade the Bucks made with the New Jersey Nets and had Alexander worrying he might not end up where he wanted to go.

As it turns out, Milwaukee was just making room for WVU’s first first-round pick since 1968.

Onto the Feedback. And in honor of Alexander … as always, comments appear as posterized… I mean as posted. There is, indeed, joy in Morgantown, Mr. Raftery.

Sam said:

Forget Armand Basset…

Xavier just landed Charles Bronson! How can anybody compete with that?!?!

It appears WVU has passed on Arman Bassett and that Bronson passed on Xavier … but, hey, it gives us a reason to cheer for Pikeville!

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Update (Update: Updates)

June 26, 2008 by Mike Casazza

(Update: I don’t know what this means exactly, but there are two ways to look at it. Either the Bucks found a way to free up a spot in the frontcourt/rotation for whoever they pick at No. 8 and the Nets subsequently realized one target wasn’t going to be there at N0. 10 or the Bucks realized a player they wanted wasn’t going to be there at No. 8 and traded for a forward. The fact the Bucks bailed on the Yi-Alexander combo is intriguing.)

If you’re up at midnight, be one of the first to check out Pat White’s promotional Web site. WVU announced the site launches tomorrow and a tip says they literally mean tomorrow.

(Another update: White’s site is actually up now. Shhhhh!)

Looks like we missed the boat

by Mike Casazza

All the odes to Joe Alexander have been written and just about every angle has been explored. All that’s left, as the saying goes, is the crying — but in a good way. Yet in one last perusal of the Internet, something caught my attention like a … well, like a nunchuk upside the head.

Turns out our draft pick had different dreams.

If you think I’m a little upset we missed out on this or, more likely, that it was hidden from us, you’re absolutely right. That would have been an immense assist in our quest to find a nickname — and, jeez, read those comments and ask yourself what you were thinking!

Rita right on schedule

by Mike Casazza

I’ll be honest: I never really had much time for Rita Rodriguez when she was with her husband at WVU. She was around a lot and one time we even crossed paths and she was complimentary of something I wrote about someone or something, but I was more concerned with covering the team than the coach’s wife.

Granted, I couldn’t hide from what everyone was saying about seemingly everything. I filtered through rumors and stories I’d hear about one thing or another and found them to be largely … well, not irrelevant, but not exactly pertinent, either. I mean, I knew Rich or she or both wanted this and that for her, but really, who cares?

Then we learned it was a sore spot for Rich and a source of his frustrations. It is said — not here, mind you — that she’ll have a hard time acquiescing at Michigan, that she’s no longer home and can’t expect the same privileges, that if she thought criticism was rough here, she has no idea what’s coming at UM.

Perhaps it’s all true. Perhaps it’s not. As it is, she was front and center at the UM women’s football academy this week and representing herself quite well. As for her geography? Not so much:

There was even a pleasant surprise in the move for Rita: She originally thought Ann Arbor was located in northern Michigan, which would have turned what is a six-hour drive from West Virginia into what she imagined was at least 12.

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Breaking: Alexander future on hold

June 25, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Honestly, the plan was to take a break from Joe Alexander and it seemed entirely possible. Sometimes there’s such a thing as too much.

Then again, WVU hasn’t had an NBA first-round pick since 1968, a draft pick since 1997 and a player since … jeez, Lowes Moore in 1983?

Yeah, this is a big deal.

In addition, there isn’t a whole lot else going on and, to be quite honest, Alexander gives us way to much material. Take his typically entertaining chat at ESPN.com yesterday as an example.

Dave (Morgantown):What number do you plan on wearing in the NBA? Is there a reason you chose #11 at WVU? 

Joe Alexander: I chose 11 because it was a number I wore in middle school. I’m going to wear 11 if I can. If not, I have some serious thinking to do about whether I really want to play in this league.

Well, Joe might have a problem.

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A scratch if you’ve got the itch

by Mike Casazza

I’d seen very little of Joe Mazzulla before last sumer. He played sparingly as a freshman and you could never get a really good idea of who he was and how he was meant to play within the parameters of John Beilein’s offense. Well, Mazzulla loosened up quite a bit in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club’s Summer Pro-Am League.

I witnessed a point guard with an edge who suddenly gained confidence in the league. It was as if you literally sat there and watched him drive past college players and realize, ‘Wow, I forgot how easy that could be.’ Mazzulla was unstoppable at times and earned the league’s MVP honors. It was a major, major turning point for him.

It was also the debut of John Flowers, who looked like a long player who liked to post guys up and play some defense, and Cam Thoroughman, who seemed as if he’d never let you down in the effort category. You could see Johnnie West needed another year to add to his frame and that Da’Sean Butler hadn’t dropped off after his strong freshman season.

For a team that needed a direction after a coaching change, the Pro-Am League was it. The players bonded and were reminded of how good they were and could be after they felt they were deserted by a coach.

Well, it’s back and the Mountaineers will be deeply involved once again. What will we see from Devin Ebanks, Darryl Bryant and Kevin Jones. Has Wellington Smith already flipped the switch? How is Will Thomas’ leg?

We shall see. Games start today.