Recruiting is fluid /sThought TSJ was a ?
Recruiting is fluid /sThought TSJ was a ?
I suppose like many others, I have been a daily Loyalty lurker, yet never posted over the years until today. I also happen to be a booster. I realize this topic has been discussed many times before but I have genuinely been torn and wanted to give these new NCAA rules some time. However, between NIL & this endless portal/recruiting chaos, I have decided I am done in regards to any future donations. This may not be the right thread, but I wonder how many others are feeling the same. If these kids no longer value an Illinois degree and no longer demonstrate LOYALTY to the program, coaches, fanbase, etc., why should we boosters continue to support this program? In my mind, Illinois was the role model, always leading the conference in terms of actual education of athletes. I know we are all desperate to win a title, but at what cost? Yes, I know the NCAA changed the rules & this is just the new normal that we can do nothing about. Yet, it seems we are now teaching greed and impatience as values to our student-athletes, most of whom will never play beyond the college level. I will always be a fan but can no longer donate to a program or system lacking integrity.
Thanks to all the boosters, past and present, for their generous donations that have positively affected all the Illini sports programs.
I disagree. They are still freshman and one is coming off an injury. The B10 and power 5 hoops isn't AAU or High School. Talented or not they will need to adjust and we need some experience that Underwood brings up all the time. I expect that we add an experienced lead guard. They clearly have been looking for oneWith Clark and Epps on the way, we don't need an "experienced" PG. We need help at the 4, and probably a decent backup center.
As much as I love Clark and Epps, we need a vet guardWith Clark and Epps on the way, we don't need an "experienced" PG. We need help at the 4, and probably a decent backup center.
Totally disagree. To win at a high level you need a solid PG play. Freshman take time. It’s like having a rookie catcher. You always sign a veteran just in case. I don’t wanna be playing 2 freshman in a backcourt.With Clark and Epps on the way, we don't need an "experienced" PG. We need help at the 4, and probably a decent backup center.
Has it gotten worse? I’d wager the answer would be yes, 10000 times worse.If only you guys knew how difficult some of these players and their "camps" are to deal with....this thread would be a much easier place.
Think of it this way - Players tell coaches what they want to hear and are apt to change their minds. Coaches are natural optimists and will convey that optimism to "insiders." Insiders may or may not be able to properly filter the information they receive. So depending on the insider, probably 25-50% of what they convey is real, at best. I'm glad they are on the board and avidly read their posts, but at the same time realize you can't take their comments at full face value.And I believe an insider laughed at an early comment about TSJ going to Michigan.
It's just different. It's essentially legal to play the game now...BU has always played it....Like you said you don't hire the guys he has hired and don't. Players and their families/team can just come out and say I want this money to play here....BU isn't like that...he wants guys who are here to play basketball first.Has it gotten worse? I’d wager the answer would be yes, 10000 times worse.
I think the answer to being a competitive P5/6 school has always been the same. You have to play the game and I’m not talking about the sport. It’s not an end all be all thing, but now that’s paying players is a much more NCAA-legal thing, you either swim with it or sink.
I think Underwood’s got about a perfect understanding of the situation. His hires since he got here show that he knows you need serious talent at almost any cost to win big. But there are lines you have to draw. Not concerned about Illinois falling behind NIL wise or the portal having a net negative effect on us under Brad. We won’t get a protected seed every year, but the talent will continue to flow through Champaign, as will booster money.
What we really need is someone who frequents these kinds of boards to make Khan level money. Illinois would be set for life, especially if recruits liked beach houses.
"A daily Loyalty lurker...over the years..." from an account created two weeks ago? Hmm.I suppose like many others, I have been a daily Loyalty lurker, yet never posted over the years until today. I also happen to be a booster. I realize this topic has been discussed many times before but I have genuinely been torn and wanted to give these new NCAA rules some time. However, between NIL & this endless portal/recruiting chaos, I have decided I am done in regards to any future donations. This may not be the right thread, but I wonder how many others are feeling the same. If these kids no longer value an Illinois degree and no longer demonstrate LOYALTY to the program, coaches, fanbase, etc., why should we boosters continue to support this program? In my mind, Illinois was the role model, always leading the conference in terms of actual education of athletes. I know we are all desperate to win a title, but at what cost? Yes, I know the NCAA changed the rules & this is just the new normal that we can do nothing about. Yet, it seems we are now teaching greed and impatience as values to our student athletes, most whom will never play beyond college level. I will always be a fan but can no longer donate to a program or system lacking integrity.
Maybe he just found out he can avoid ads by being logged into an account."A daily Loyalty lurker...over the years..." from an account created two weeks ago? Hmm.
Not according to Dishwhite, who was run off the board for “being negative,” or @IllinoisReg. Both told us this in late March.Thought TSJ was a ?
Loyalty is a two way street.
Fair point, but I am always skeptical of hot takes from new accounts.Maybe he just found out he can avoid ads by being logged into an account.
I'm also a longtime lurker and have never posted until today. I am also a long time booster (graduated in the 80's). The second I found about the Illini Guardians, I donated and will continue to do so. We agree in one sense-I don't like all the change that's happened to college basketball either, but that's the new landscape. I still love March Madness. I still love going to games in Champaign. I still love following recruiting on this site. I still love the team and I still bleed orange & blue. You asked why boosters should continue to support the program? The answer is still the same for me. I want to see them win a national championship-whether it's with a four year player, a one and done, or a transfer. Now, your donations can be pooled with others to create NIL contracts with the student athletes. Your impact can be immediate and direct. You've made your choice and I've made mine. I will continue to support, even more so than I have in the past.I suppose like many others, I have been a daily Loyalty lurker, yet never posted over the years until today. I also happen to be a booster. I realize this topic has been discussed many times before but I have genuinely been torn and wanted to give these new NCAA rules some time. However, between NIL & this endless portal/recruiting chaos, I have decided I am done in regards to any future donations. This may not be the right thread, but I wonder how many others are feeling the same. If these kids no longer value an Illinois degree and no longer demonstrate LOYALTY to the program, coaches, fanbase, etc., why should we boosters continue to support this program? In my mind, Illinois was the role model, always leading the conference in terms of actual education of athletes. I know we are all desperate to win a title, but at what cost? Yes, I know the NCAA changed the rules & this is just the new normal that we can do nothing about. Yet, it seems we are now teaching greed and impatience as values to our student athletes, most whom will never play beyond college level. I will always be a fan but can no longer donate to a program or system lacking integrity.
Would you call Michigan a blue blood though? For basketball?Not according to Dishwhite, who was run off the board for “being negative,” or @IllinoisReg. Both told us this in late March.
Requiring loyalty, without providing it in return, by giving the institution rights that the players didn’t have, as the old systems did, was grossly hypocritical and at its worst abusive.I suppose like many others, I have been a daily Loyalty lurker, yet never posted over the years until today. I also happen to be a booster. I realize this topic has been discussed many times before but I have genuinely been torn and wanted to give these new NCAA rules some time. However, between NIL & this endless portal/recruiting chaos, I have decided I am done in regards to any future donations. This may not be the right thread, but I wonder how many others are feeling the same. If these kids no longer value an Illinois degree and no longer demonstrate LOYALTY to the program, coaches, fanbase, etc., why should we boosters continue to support this program? In my mind, Illinois was the role model, always leading the conference in terms of actual education of athletes. I know we are all desperate to win a title, but at what cost? Yes, I know the NCAA changed the rules & this is just the new normal that we can do nothing about. Yet, it seems we are now teaching greed and impatience as values to our student athletes, most whom will never play beyond college level. I will always be a fan but can no longer donate to a program or system lacking integrity.
Not according to Dishwhite, who was run off the board for “being negative,” or @IllinoisReg. Both told us this in late March.
I think there exists and will exist enough basketball first guys that it’s not crazy to think BU will continue to have enough success here to have a chance at winning it all.It's just different. It's essentially legal to play the game now...BU has always played it....Like you said you don't hire the guys he has hired and don't. Players and their families/team can just come out and say I want this money to play here....BU isn't like that...he wants guys who are here to play basketball first.
I'd like to know that too.Is there any real indication Nance could be a thing? He’s not in the portal yet, but obviously he’s a player we could use. Have his people reached out to us?
15 elite eights, 8 final fours, 6 runner ups and a national title. Along with 35 AA’s. Every recruiting class since 2018 with the expectation of one (Franz Wagner was in that class) has been a top 15 class. Including multiple top 10 classes. They are a borderline blue blood but they have cache. So I’d consider them one.Would you call Michigan a blue blood though? For basketball?
Wow, talk about picking nits. But ok, I’ll tell you this, if they aren’t a blue blood, they’re alot closer to being one than the beloved. You do realize they have been in the championship game twice in the last decade (and 5 times since 1989) while also making the E8 twice and the S16 three times?Would you call Michigan a blue blood though? For basketball?