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BASKETBALL Fagan, Buffen ask for release; Carlos Curry still undecided

I don't understand all this to be honest. Either you want to come to MT or not. This whole idea of saying we are still in it is ridiculous. I think we have to tell them we have to recruit and there may not be a slot for you. As good as this class seems to be at the end of the day we are not talking 4 or 5 star players, all of them can be replaced.
 
That is exactly how I feel and well said.

I don't understand all this to be honest. Either you want to come to MT or not. This whole idea of saying we are still in it is ridiculous. I think we have to tell them we have to recruit and there may not be a slot for you. As good as this class seems to be at the end of the day we are not talking 4 or 5 star players, all of them can be replaced.
 
The head coach and staff accounts for a minimum of 50% of a recruit's decision. Not surprised to see them ask for release. I expect Curry to ask for release as well.

Coach McDevitt can still salvage recruiting class with 5th year transfer(s) or JUCOs. It will give him time to establish himself recruits.

Disappointing but only short-term.
 
The head coach and staff accounts for a minimum of 50% of a recruit's decision. Not surprised to see them ask for release. I expect Curry to ask for release as well.

Coach McDevitt can still salvage recruiting class with 5th year transfer(s) or JUCOs. It will give him time to establish himself recruits.

Disappointing but only short-term.
And guys from High School. - there are other kids like our 3 out there as well as late qualifiers. I don't want us to sign 3 grad tranfers/JC guys. Honestly, unless a grad transfer can start for us, I say don't sign them.
 
There may be "other kids like our 3 out there" but I seriously doubt if MT can get "in on" them. Any replacements we get at this stage will be of the 2 star variety which will test McDevitt's hyped ability to spot under-recruited talent.
Here's to hoping he succeeds and I agree that I don't want a class full of transfers/JUCO players - Not with us losing the nucleus of (or perhaps all) the best 3 player high school class ever.
 
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Seriously. “Remains top of the list”

If I’m nick I get replacements ready to go and you’ve lost your spot.

I understand everyone’s frustrations but look no further than CKD.
 
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Dang guys let the kids be at peace and let them make their decisions. I actually think we may still get these kids. I’m pretty sure I would want to reopen my recruitment for a short period just to make sure I’m heading in the right direction.

I do very much agree that Kermit left us in a bad spot. Starting to hope he flops at Ole Miss
 
'building the brand' wasn't about MT

Agreed, the fault here lies at the feet of CKD. It was sales BS...the more I think about the last 16 years the more I get angry - he should have been fired after year 9 or 10. We gave him EVERY chance to be successful. And, we were willing to make him a Millionaire with $1.3M contract and he could have easily coached here another 10 years. The minute we begin to get over the hump he leaves and goes home to Ole Miss (another BS line, he graduated from Miss State).

I am in full support of McDevitt, he WANTS to be here. Lets support him with all we have.
 
Yeah, there are a lot of places I'd love to be for 750k per year
 
Not worried about this class. They are just 3 stars, granted this would have been the best class we ever had, but it's not like they were 4 and 5 stars. I think we are in good hands with McDevitt Kermit was not really a good recruiter he got a few good transfers the last couple of years but was never really able to get the really good guys that some other coaches could. Kermit, however, was able to coach the players up he did have a make a good team out of them. If ULL and Murray State can get players that go on and play in the NBA why can't we? I think Nick we be able to get us some big time players once he has a full year to recruit. Hopefully, he will be able to piece this class together so we don't have a huge drop off next season. I think he needs to get us some bigs that can contribute immediately. We are fine at the guard position.

Regarding are recruits that asked for a release, I would tell them that we won't recruiting them anymore and we are trying to fill their spots as quickly as possible. I don't have a problem with them asking for a release with a coaching change. I just don't like this nonsense of saying that we are still on "their list" and want to be continually recruited.
 
I don't understand all this to be honest. Either you want to come to MT or not. This whole idea of saying we are still in it is ridiculous. I think we have to tell them we have to recruit and there may not be a slot for you. As good as this class seems to be at the end of the day we are not talking 4 or 5 star players, all of them can be replaced.

Their intentions are pretty obvious in my eyes. They want to follow Davis to Ole Miss. If they can't, they'll prob try to come back here, and if they can't, they know they have opportunities elsewhere.

They don't see MT as anything special without Davis here and view it as nothing but a back up plan at this point.
 
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Another interesting dynamic....

Is it 100% guaranteed that CNM will grant all 3 releases?
 
Not mad at CKD it’s just an unfortunate situation on the recruiting side. I don’t blame the kids. It’s like agreeing to start a new job and when you get there the comany is sold and the person who hired you is gone.
 
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Don’t be surprised if Buffen doesn’t end up anywhere

He's the best in the class. If we could just salvage Buffen, and maybe Curry, this would be a huge win. I know buffen has grade issues, as does Curry. Hopefully that plays into our hand.

I'd like to have Fagan, but I don't view him in the same tier as Buffen & Curry. Fagan has a very weird shooting motion that I just don't see translating well and he got so many of his points at the rim in high school and that typically doesn't translate into college very well.
 
Surprised at the hostility towards CKD. No way he could turn down the deal he got from Ole Piss.

No way, really? We offered him $1.3M reasons why per year and basically a lifetime contract. We gave him 10 years to get his act together. He was settled with realistic expectations. In turn, I think we were finally starting to turn the corner in recruiting and attendance. I am not hostile but very disappointed and the whole CKD lovefest after he left turned my stomach. He left for the money, period. He was different (or so we thought). Again, if it was Miss State I would understand, but not Ole Miss. Actually, I may be a bit hostile
 
No way, really? We offered him $1.3M reasons why per year and basically a lifetime contract. We gave him 10 years to get his act together. He was settled with realistic expectations. In turn, I think we were finally starting to turn the corner in recruiting and attendance. I am not hostile but very disappointed and the whole CKD lovefest after he left turned my stomach. He left for the money, period. He was different (or so we thought). Again, if it was Miss State I would understand, but not Ole Miss. Actually, I may be a bit hostile
I feel the exact same way, but it is not like he left for $100,000 more dollars. The difference in the dollar amounts was a life changing amount. More than double our best offer, per year. It sucks, but part of it is we have not had to go through a successful coach being poached when things are going well. We usually get rid of under performing coaches and hire a replacement. The timing stinks, losing the signees stinks, but there is not anyone on this board who would have turned down the offer CKD took. That is all I am saying.
 
Coaches leave for many reasons. Mostly $$$$. Heck, I'm expecting Nick to apply for the ut-k job whenever Barnes is gone.
 
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I feel the exact same way, but it is not like he left for $100,000 more dollars. The difference in the dollar amounts was a life changing amount. More than double our best offer, per year. It sucks, but part of it is we have not had to go through a successful coach being poached when things are going well. We usually get rid of under performing coaches and hire a replacement. The timing stinks, losing the signees stinks, but there is not anyone on this board who would have turned down the offer CKD took. That is all I am saying.

All of these coaches are in it for their careers. I appreciate what Kermit did for our program. I don't wish him any ill will going forward at Ole Miss (except when we play them). I'm sure he will do well there. We have our new guy now and I'm in his corner 100 percent because he's our guy. I hope there comes a day when McDevitt either leaves for another job (which means he will have done well here) or retires as the greatest coach in the history of Middle Tennessee basketball.

The transition we are going through with recruiting was virtually inevitable. The decisions of these three signees doesn't have any consequence whatsoever to how CNM will be ultimately judged as a recruiter. I hope he can piece together a solid class for 2018, and then pound the pavement for the next "best class ever" at MT in 2019.
 
I value loyalty more than many do as evidenced by various personality tests I've taken over the years.
That said, I tend to wish that Davis should have been more loyal to the school which gave him almost a decade to "find his way" and also I would have less of a problem with Davis returning to Mississippi if it were Miss. St. (his family school - there's that loyalty thing again) rather than Ole Miss.
Apparently neither Miss. St. or LSU were interested in Davis when they had recent openings although he had connections to each. It appears that the Ole Miss opening was the first where Davis was a serious candidate for a higher-profile (and financially rewarding) job and he jumped at the chance. The fact that it was closer to "home" was a bonus even though the school is the biggest rival of his alma mater.
Once again, I thank Davis for making MT men's BkB relevant again and wish him well (except against MT, of course) and understand his reason(s) for making the move even if his decision is one I like to think I would not have made. But, if Davis signs even one of our signees my good feelings toward Davis will fly out the window and he can . . . .
 
I've not posted with regard to this for a few days. Letting my immediate emotions calm down. They've ranged from "who do these guys think they are. They signed with MT" to "their coach is gone, let them go" to "!($(%#% CKD".

I've now figured it out.
CKD left. I have no ill will. He honestly to me set a good example of how a coach should leave. Now. He used the whole going home thing which is partly true. But I guarantee he views it as this. "I can coach Ole Miss for a few years. Even if I get canned, with what they are paying me I can then go coach for some small school in Miss till I retire to my home state and be set for life, way ahead of what I would have had at MT, even with leaving a lasting legacy".

These three guys are thinking now, "I maybe wasn't a P5 player, but now the coach that signed me is a P5 coach. So maybe other coaches will see that and take a new look at me as P5 talent. If not, I can fall back to MT."

I know this is part of a new coach, but if they don't want to be here, then don't let them. I cherish MT itself too much. I want someone to play for us who wants to be TrueBlue. Do it just like WVU did with the DL they just released. No B12 school and no school on the schedule in the next four years. Tell them those are the terms, take it or leave.
 
The Kermit move is the nature of the business. I wish him well. I really don't see much to complain about. We all know about the unprecedented success, etc etc. He also frequently said that he was going to stay until MT made it onto the national stage. I'd argue he pretty much did that in his final year. It seems the opening at Ole Miss made that departure immediate vs maybe a couple of years later.

I'm of the mind that a job near home in his home state was a big factor. It may not have been Miss St, but it's still in the $EC and just down the road from Miss St. Plus, it's not like location is something college coaches can pick just any old time they want. Then throw in the money to go with not having to do much worrying about selection Sunday in the $EC. It's hard to blame Kermit for making the move in light of those circumstances. For what it's worth, I gather that Kermit had plenty of interest from many schools in each of the last few years during which he stuck with MT.

The great recruiting class was a casualty. More of a unintended consequence it would seem. That sort of thing happens, what can you do? Hopefully the new MT coach can find some quality frontcourt guys in the late recruiting period who can make MT competitive in the conference race. The backcourt looks pretty good returning for next season. There's enough forwards on the roster to provide some quality depth. Will players like Gamble and Hawthorne be able to step up beyond providing depth and filling in as role players? As was already stated in this thread, hopefully this recruiting class cave in will turn out just to be a bump in the road when we look back in a year or two.
 
Anyone blaming Kermit for leaving or McDevitt for not keeping this recruiting class just plain & simple does not understand how college basketball works. This happens ALL THE TIME. These players were recruited by Kermit and his staff for his style of basketball and how they would fit in to it and have success. Well, he is gone, that staff is gone, his "style" is gone, so as much as they were looking forward to playing for MTSU, it was way more playing for Kermit and his system. Well, he left (for $2.5 million +++ a year, but apparently after 16 years some of you think he should have just stayed here for life), so naturally these guys want to look around and see what system would fit them better, since they do not know Coach McDevitt or are familiar with his system.

Sorry, I know I am preaching to the choir to 98% of you all on here, but getting mad at Kermit, these recruits, Coach McDevitt is misguided IMO.
This happens to programs ALL THE TIME with a coaching change.
 
Curry will go Power 5 unless his grades are just atrocious - He's too good of a player with too much potential. It's very hard to find guys his size with his skill set around the rim. He could have been a special player here at MT. That's too bad.

Fagan will probably end up at Ole Miss. I see Ronnie "The Weasel" Hamilton already snaking all over his twitter liking all of his tweets. I'm sure they're already setting up a visit of some sorts. Guarantee Hamilton is recruiting him hard to Ole Miss, which just seems so unbelievably shady to me considering he spent 2+ years selling him on Middle Tennessee. What a snake. Looks like Auburn is getting into the picture as well. Fagan almost certainly will be at Ole Miss, or at the very least an SEC school. Auburn or Georgia being the other options. I can't believe Massaro is allowing him to go to a future opponent....what an idiot.

I do think we will end up with Buffen, if McDevitt wants him. Hopefully CNM does want him, as I think Buffen will be a big time player for us. He wasn't FIRST TEAM All-State in Georgia for no reason. That's a HUGE accomplishment considering how many great players came out of that state this year. Buffen has serious grade issues though, very serious. His only option might actually be JUCO ball. I'd still offer him and see if he can get eligible with summer classes. He's too talented to let slip away. If I could pick only 1 of the 3, it'd be him in a heart beat.
 
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