This will be the third NIL "dry well" in three years - Skyy, Sencire, and now Ty. Perhaps some waste is already built into the system? Really, how different is it from providing NIL for someone who never sees the court (due to injury or lack of productivity)?
Ty Rodgers to take redshirt year
On the one hand, basketball is where there is a chance to win a NC, so it makes complete sense to make basketball the NIL focus and to build a strong and deep team there. On the other hand, it would have been nice if the Skyy/Harris/Ty NIL could have gone to Bret and the football team for players who would play instead of wasted on the basketball bench.
There's a prevailing thought in industry that just because you pay an employee that they should be 100% loyal and grateful to you, and will bend over backwards to you. And that makes some sense, you're giving them a job. But what happens when the policies you enforce are no longer good or healthy for the employee or simply not competitive to other companies in the field? What if you don't internally promote people or give people raises but instead pay competitively for new hires to fill those positions such that it'd actually be far more profitable for an employee to quit and be rehired in? Or you regularly are laying off full time employees but somehow seem to always be adding more outsourcing? You may desire 100% loyalty, but should you expect it?
And the donors may indeed feel as you say where they feel they're paying 12 guys handsomely so everyone should be 100% happy and loyal. But I think there needs to be an understanding that a player's situation can change after agreeing to said "contract" just based off how the transfer portal now works. Pre-portal it used to be you knew what recruits and new players were coming to your program prior to deciding whether you wanted to transfer. Now, the transfer portal is closed before you have any idea what your roster will look like. And that’s what happened in Ty's case. The donors wanted high end talent brought in and Brad did. There can be fallout from that. And it's a well known consequence. Yes, donors and employers can stick their heads in the sand and say "how dare our employees be disloyal!", but at the same time, should they be surprised that employees leave when the company devalue them?
Let's do a hypothetical example. Say you're a 5th year senior. You bleed orange and blue and played your heart out in the spot minutes you got the past 4 years. First to the gym, last to leave, always gave your all. Great locker room presence, amazing leader, and a skilled player who has improved each year but not as skilled as the older more experienced guys ahead of you. And here in your final season, those players graduated, it's finally your time to show off your skills, take the mantle. Be the guy, the captain, and play for a chance at a professional contract. And the coach tells you, you're going to be that guy and how important you are. And then just 1 month later, post transfer portal brings in 6 new guys and tells you he loves what you bring but you're going to only get clean up minutes. Should you be forced to stay? Never get a chance to start or show off your skills for a shot at a pro contract when many other teams would be giving you that opportunity? Do you not feel taken advantage of and strung along? Should anyone blame you for leaving?
The fact is this is just how the current system and portal operates. Donors can howl at the moon day and night about it, but the players can't be forced to abide by something that is absolutely not in their best interest. The donors believe in bringing in high end talent, and bringing in said talent is thus in their best interest, but it doesn't mean there aren't consequences.
Illinois gets to the national championship game.
Has a bunch of foul trouble and injuries. Ty burns his red shirt to hit a buzzer beater 3 to win the championship.
So first round on you?
RichardKeenesCousin
Richard Keene's Cousin
skyIdub
Winged Warrior
I question your fandom if you think that is the most "Illinois thing."
More likely we get to the national championship, have a big lead, but have a bunch of foul trouble and injuries and can't put a full team on the court because Ty redshirted and we have to forfeit.
Most Illinois thing would be Tim Anderson, pissed after feeling like he was passed over himself, felt this Ty being relegated to the bench and redshirting situation was the last straw and brings 1000pages of personal "notes" copied in triplicate to the University Chancellor, B10 commissioner, and NCAA president detailing multiple violations including an off book account for player and recruiting tampering related expenditures, payment to Texas Tech to nor allow TSJ to get his additional summer credits he needed for Michigan, documentation of the coaching staff bribing medical to clear a concussed Andre Curbelo, audio that Kasparas and Tomi were bought European supercars to attend here, and damning evidence that both Juwan Howard and Connor Stallions were actually university of Illinois paid plants in a convoluted murder for hire plot to destroy the crown jewel of the B10 and NCAA Michigan athletic program.
Ty files for a special waiver for immediately eligible transfer which the NCAA surprisingly immediately allows. He enrolls at MSU who just so happens to be our next opponent and Izzo starts him against us. Ty plays like a man possessed, physically abusing KJ and Will turning them over at will, no fouls called. We somehow claw our way back but with 5 seconds to go up 3, Ty jumps over Tre White for the offensive rebound, takes it straight into Ivisic for the and 1, buries the free throw, then steals the inbound pass, takes the buzzer beater 3 and buries it. We proceed to lose to MSU 3 additional times that year, once more in the regular season, once in the BTT where Ty gets a quadruple double, and the finally in the NCAAT in the 2nd Round where Ty goes for 40pts. MSU goes on to win the national championship with Ty named MVP
In the offseason, due to review of the violations, the NCAA rules that there is an extreme lack of institutional control and as such they invoke a new NCAA Illinois rule death penalty in which all school athletic programs are stripped from the university never to return. Due to the lack of funding and lack of state and government support, U of I closes its doors and Northwestern becomes the flagship state university, and all degrees earned at Illinois become worthless. That about cover it?
I'll finish this one. Ty hits a 3 to win the championship...NCAA later rules Ty was ineligible and the championship is removed and awarded to Kansas and Bill Self...just because it's so Illinois.
It's disappointing, but I don't think there's anything nefarious going on here.
I suspect coach told Ty at the end of last year he needed to work on his offensive game and that he was going to bring in talent to compete for spots. I bet he even told Ty how awesome of a dude he was and that he'd have every chance to earn a rotation/starting spot.
Coach brings in Booth, Humrichous, White and Riley to effectively play the same minutes Ty was competing for. Offensive game just isn't there in the offseason. Preseason rolls around and Ty isn't a starter and gets back-end of the rotation minutes against Ole Miss and doesn't do much of anything. Meets with coach before the season and discusses his role. Told that he'd be a 7-10 minutes per game guy off the bench, Ty instead chooses to redshirt and spend the season working on his offensive game and practicing with the team while preserving a year of eligibility at a program that can better use his talents.
I suspect coach told Ty at the end of last year he needed to work on his offensive game and that he was going to bring in talent to compete for spots. I bet he even told Ty how awesome of a dude he was and that he'd have every chance to earn a rotation/starting spot.
Coach brings in Booth, Humrichous, White and Riley to effectively play the same minutes Ty was competing for. Offensive game just isn't there in the offseason. Preseason rolls around and Ty isn't a starter and gets back-end of the rotation minutes against Ole Miss and doesn't do much of anything. Meets with coach before the season and discusses his role. Told that he'd be a 7-10 minutes per game guy off the bench, Ty instead chooses to redshirt and spend the season working on his offensive game and practicing with the team while preserving a year of eligibility at a program that can better use his talents.
Sorry but Alabama is not a blue blood in basketball.....but valid point regardless!
GrayGhost77
- Centennial, CO
RichardKeenesCousin
Richard Keene's Cousin
Seems like a perfect description of what happened. Nothing nefarious on either Brad or Ty's part. This situation will likely happen regularly when you are able to bring in better talent (which every coach tries to do). I can understand big donors being peeved, but this is virtually unavoidable with the rules as they are now.
Illinois getting to the national championship is the event with the second-longest odds in this post.
Honestly though, the most Illinois thing to happen with Ty is he transfers and puts up underwhelming numbers. That's just what the vast majority of players who have transferred out under Brad has done, and Ty is a specialty player where fit is going to be really important and I'm just not sure how many schools that are out there that can truly utilize his skillset. Put him on a team that can spread you out and have multiple players who can slash to the rim with him being the support offball rebounder and I think he could thrive. And I do think in the right situation he could be a near double double player. That said, the odds he gets in that situation aren't high.
Of course it's far more eh-ehm "fun" to talk of the downfall of Illinois sports, than what is more probable, but as a lifelong Illini fans, I think we all know that when someone says, "what's the worst that can happen", it's reflex just to get in the fetal position.
Of course it's far more eh-ehm "fun" to talk of the downfall of Illinois sports, than what is more probable, but as a lifelong Illini fans, I think we all know that when someone says, "what's the worst that can happen", it's reflex just to get in the fetal position.
With accompanying protection of course. It's been dinged up over the years but still works.
No..no...no....Ty transfers immediately to another school, becomes eligible 2nd semester at that school.....Illinois and Ty's new team meet in the Final 4 semi-final game...Ty is fouled with 1.2 sec left in the game...calmly makes 2 Ft's to defeat the Illini by 1.
It's not too early b/c the proof is in the pudding. We've had a 2 yr sample size. one player impacts winning and one player impacts losing or at the very least, doesn't impact winning. So, stop saying that Ty isn't as valuable. That's straight nonsense