4-star PG Corey Sanders

[footnfan1]

We will see if they all stick. Time will tell.

[Capone24]

Hey Vega,

 

I was wondering what your thoughts are in regards to how well our B-ball program(coaches, facilities, current/future talent and the promise of a new and exciting style of play)stacks up compared to UCF's currently? Do we have any distinct advantages that differentiate us from the others(UM/UCF), that could be used to entice the local talent to stay home and be Bulls? From what it sounds like it seems like Orlando is the recruiting hotbed in terms of Florida's elite basketball players, so is it possible we could benefit from some of our former players turned coaches in that area?

 

Also I remember UCF's coach having some problems with recruiting violations in the past and was curious if you think he might be up to no good again after these current verbal commits?

 

Sorry for so many questions but I know you know the in's and out's of college basketball and was wondering if recruiting violations are even more rampant and widespread than in football?

 

I appreciate any insight as I'm really looking forward to this season with hopes of seeing another magical run like we had 2 years ago.  

[Vega]

Hey Vega,

 

I was wondering what your thoughts are in regards to how well our B-ball program(coaches, facilities, current/future talent and the promise of a new and exciting style of play)stacks up compared to UCF's currently? Do we have any distinct advantages that differentiate us from the others(UM/UCF), that could be used to entice the local talent to stay home and be Bulls? From what it sounds like it seems like Orlando is the recruiting hotbed in terms of Florida's elite basketball players, so is it possible we could benefit from some of our former players turned coaches in that area?

 

Also I remember UCF's coach having some problems with recruiting violations in the past and was curious if you think he might be up to no good again after these current verbal commits?

 

Sorry for so many questions but I know you know the in's and out's of college basketball and was wondering if recruiting violations are even more rampant and widespread than in football?

 

I appreciate any insight as I'm really looking forward to this season with hopes of seeing another magical run like we had 2 years ago.  

 

It's been what I have hoped would happen after last season's pathetic showing by the basketball team. Heath promised(yes he done that before) that changes would be made to push the program forward. Bringing in Veteran Coaches Mike Wells and Donnie Marsh has gotten me excited because I wasn't at first. I thought that Heath should have brought in a Bulldog recruiter that had ties in the state of Florida. He tried and fail, so I was concerned. However Heath said after the hiring of Mike Wells that he was going to do more recruiting and Coach Wells was going to be over player skill development and install his offense. Once again I have a trust factor with Stan, but up until this point he has told the truth. Heath is now USF's lead recruiter and is doing a pretty good job and by all accounts Wells is doing what Heath said he would do. The current players like him and the future recruits that have seen USF workout and talked to Wells really get excited. Time will tell if Heath lets Coach Wells run his system and not be tempted to start coaching the offense again. If USF runs Wells offense we are post season bound, if Heath takes over then the struggle to .500 is on.

 

Going from the Big East to the AAC hurts USF some because that was a major selling point to recruits. Meanwhile joining this league really helps UCF and I think we see that with their recruiting. The AAC is a step up from CUSA where UCF was just out of the limelight and maybe Donnie Jones took some chances recruiting because he felt he had to. Maybe the guy is just a sleaze bag, but he has a great personality and a fun style of play that recruits like. It's also a great time for UCF that the talent in their backyard is as good as anywhere in the nation right now. He's a great salesman and without CUSA holding him back, he's been able to dominate the recruiting between UCF and USF so far. UCF also has much better fan support then USF which is another selling point to their advantage between the two schools now that they are both in the same league.

As far as the former players helping USF in recruiting? Don't bank on it. They haven't helped their former school land one player and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Dre Clayton played at a school coached by Chucky Atkins but he's a Bulls player thanks to his relationship with Chris Perry and Josh Heath. What's going to help us in recruiting the most is winning and doing it with an NBA style of offense. Trust me if USF looks impressive this season then expect a monstrous 2015 and 2016 class.

 

 

Back to Jones as a recruiter. He's actually very good and no I don't really think he's cheating because of UCF's recent success recruiting. The world of recruiting is competitive and corrupt in all scholarship sports, so anything is possible but I think these Orlando kids all got together and decided to stay home and build the hometown college up into a Champion. Remember what Troy Holston said on why he committed to USF? Holston said,“I choose South Florida because it is my hometown school and I wanted to stay here in the state of Florida, Also why would I need to go out state for something I have right here in the backyard. The campus is great, the conference is tremendous and I can come in and make an impact as a freshman.†We hear something similar for the recruits UCF has gotten a verbal from recently.

Edited October 4, 2013 by Vega

[footnfan1]

2:46 AM? No way I could write a decent post at 2:46 AM, no way! Much respect!

[Apis Bull]

2:46 AM? No way I could write a decent post at 2:46 AM, no way! Much respect!

 

Must...re...sist...to...eas...y

[Capone24]

Thanks Vega, I appreciate your very thorough breakdown in regards to my questions. 

[Vega]

Alex Kline â€@TheRecruitScoop

2015 UCF commit Corey Sanders of IMG Academy (FL) has re-opened his recruitment.

[footnfan1]

Why would any commit make a verbal 2 years before he graduates? Heck, take some trips, keep your mouth shut, enjoy he process.

 

Who advises these young men? Verbals are just  a waste this early....in my opinion. I could be wrong....but no one was surprised by his change of heart. I say good for him, make some trips.

[Vega]

Why would any commit make a verbal 2 years before he graduates? Heck, take some trips, keep your mouth shut, enjoy he process.

 

Who advises these young men? Verbals are just  a waste this early....in my opinion. I could be wrong....but no one was surprised by his change of heart. I say good for him, make some trips.

Well UCF got another verbal, this time from St Pete's 2015 SF Anthony Lawrence. Again what ever Jones is saying to these guys on their unofficial visits my be like hypnosis. I mean every single guy that comes there has committed. Of course like Sanders I do eventually expect to see Owens and Lawrence/Brown to decommit as well. Teams are not going to stop recruiting these guys and the fact that they didn't go check out other schools is usually a strong indicator of a possible decommitment ahead when it's this much time before they can sign. Lawrence and Brown haven't had a chance to really explode on the AAU circuit yet where more coaches get to see them and they up and commit to UCF. I'll be shocked to see these guys keep their verbal to UCF for that long.

 

Edited October 24, 2013 by Vega

[Reliable Source]

 

Why would any commit make a verbal 2 years before he graduates? Heck, take some trips, keep your mouth shut, enjoy he process.

 

Who advises these young men? Verbals are just  a waste this early....in my opinion. I could be wrong....but no one was surprised by his change of heart. I say good for him, make some trips.

Well UCF got another verbal, this time from St Pete's 2015 SF Anthony Lawrence. Again what ever Jones is saying to these guys on their unofficial visits my be like hypnosis. I mean every single guy that comes there has committed. Of course like Sanders I do eventually expect to see Owens and Lawrence/Brown to decommit as well. Teams are not going to stop recruiting these guys and the fact that they didn't go check out other schools is usually a strong indicator of a possible decommitment ahead when it's this much time before they can sign. Lawrence and Brown haven't had a chance to really explode on the AAU circuit yet where more coaches get to see them and they up and commit to UCF. I'll be shocked to see these guys keep their verbal to UCF for that long.

 

Depends on whether they cash the check when they get home.