Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
The final four and the coaching carousel
4 Plays11 days ago
Don and Russ talk the Final Four, Coaching Carousel, and the transfer portal.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to the NCAA Report
00:00:01
Speaker
This is the Fuel Sports Network. Ladies and gentlemen, I've got a couple questions for you. Do you love college sports as much as I do? Are you always wondering where you can find the latest NCAA reports?
00:00:14
Speaker
Will you come to the right place? Welcome, sports fans, to Fuel Sports Presents, the NCAA report with Don and Ryan. Gee, that sounds kind of interesting. Fuel Sports Network Ready to win the game.
00:00:43
Speaker
the end. It is up and it is good.
00:01:03
Speaker
Look at the air, look at the hang time, look at the flying motion. Look at his head above the rim.
00:01:45
Speaker
To infinity and beyond!
00:02:20
Speaker
Call on the field, Stan. Touchdown.
00:02:32
Speaker
You've got to get it done.
00:02:45
Speaker
Pay attention, son. This is for your own good. The moment you've all been waiting
Meet the Hosts: Don & Russ
00:02:50
Speaker
for. Here they are, your favorite hosts, Don Glenn and Russ Robinson.
00:02:58
Speaker
Okay, this is NCAA Report with Don and Russ. Thank you, Devin Tynan, for letting us letting everybody know who we are. And as always, I am Don Glenn, your host co-host for this program. And as always, right by my side is the man from Missouri himself with all the SEC knowledge I ever need to know, Russ Robinson.
00:03:23
Speaker
How are you doing, Yeah, I'm doing fine. Thanks, Don. Good, yeah. Well, like said, yeah we were talking earlier about the weather. Hopefully the weather doesn't blow you guys away. We had a little bit of rough go. I think we're due for some more here soon, but we'll see what happens with that.
00:03:38
Speaker
Again, your weather report brought to you by the NCW Report.
Review of NCAA Predictions
00:03:42
Speaker
there yeah But so anyway, well, as we last talked, we went through the first three or four rounds and came up with what we thought was an elite eight and what we thought would be in the final four. And you were a hell of a lot closer than I was, obviously. Yeah.
00:04:00
Speaker
I didn't give Auburn much of a chance making a final four. And I really did have my doubts. And I don't know why I did, but I really did have my doubts about ah Houston and Florida. Both of those teams have shown me my error the error in my ways.
00:04:15
Speaker
um Got to see that Duke game. toma And that was just, I mean... even that was That was a clinic. That was just a flat out. Oh, absolutely. no Yeah. um No doubt about that. I did not get to see the Auburn-Michigan State game.
00:04:31
Speaker
I did see a little bit of the Florida game. Florida looks good. I give them credit. they really look good. um So what's your take over what we saw in some of the so the near upsets, so though ah how the how everything folded out?
00:04:45
Speaker
McNeese State made a little bit of ah of ah of a run in there. As we thought, Purdue didn't, I mean, they they went a little further than we both thought. We never even thought either one of them was either one of us thought it was the six sweet 16, and, you know, they made it a little bit further than that.
00:05:00
Speaker
um Was there any early outages that surprised you in the tournament?
Early Tournament Upsets & Surprises
00:05:06
Speaker
Not particularly, course. I was disappointed Missouri was taken out by Drake.
00:05:11
Speaker
oh That was an early, but a lot of people were picking that game as an upset. And then Drake promptly got put away by Texas Tech pretty handedly. So it was kind of a disappointment. But, you know, I don't think there was any huge upsets in that early round. I guess Arkansas beating St. John's.
00:05:32
Speaker
That was a big upset. yeah Arkansas got in a roll at the end of the year and they beat St. John. So that might have been one of the biggest upsets I i saw. ah Arkansas also beat Kansas in that game before, which you could say was that that was Kansas was a seven. I think Arkansas i was always a 10. Yeah.
00:05:50
Speaker
Yeah. So that was a bit of an upset. But, you know, none of the one or two seeds, I don't think, got taken out early, as we saw. Right. so So, you know, this Final Four, Don, I understand this is the first time all four one seeds made it to the Final Four since 2005, I
Final Four & Transfer Portal Impact
00:06:12
Speaker
believe they said. I was trying to research that. Yeah, I knew it had been a long time since we'd seen all four number ones.
00:06:18
Speaker
Yeah. And that, you know, and it is, I mean, you know, and as much as we've been talking lately about transfer portal and how it's been equalizing sports and especially basketball, I guess you could say it's kind of refreshing to see, you know, if you're a purist in the sense of seeing the top teams be there. But, you know, I kind of also miss the, you know, that random five seed or that random seven seed, you showing up and at least making a legitimate run at somebody, you know. Yeah, yeah, that kind makes it fun. But, you know, when I went through my tournament picks and I had seen Florida play and I'd seen Auburn play and I'd seen Duke play, I had not seen Houston play.
00:07:05
Speaker
And it just seemed like that's way it fell. I just couldn't see Florida going down. I couldn't see Florida. I just couldn't see Auburn going down. And I just, Duke just impressed me so much whenever I saw them. I couldn't see them going down.
00:07:19
Speaker
So Houston, you know, ah Purdue almost took Houston now You know, was that ah that was a two point game, I think. So yeah that that ah be ah I think of the the elite eight games, that one actually did surprise me the most in that in that Purdue was able to pretty much hang with Houston for most of that game.
Spotlight on Duke's Performance
00:07:42
Speaker
um You know, a couple other things, like i said, i didn't get to see the the Michigan State-Auburn game, but, ah you know, and Auburn didn't get, ah yeah Michigan State didn't get blown off the court per se, but, you know, it was it was pretty clear who was the the team in charge in that game for sure. yeah And like I said, Duke, as we talked about, Duke just put on a clinic.
00:08:06
Speaker
Yeah, you know, flag and and I'll tell you what, through all the talk about that. And I'll butcher this, the young man's name if I tried to to explain it, but that big center they've got.
00:08:18
Speaker
um Flag? No, the bit the center. um Oh. My old cop, I can't remember. It starts with an M, is all I know. Oh, okay.
00:08:29
Speaker
But that dude, you know, all the reports about him being possibly injured and not being 100%. He didn't look injured to me in that entire game.
00:08:41
Speaker
are you Are you talking about the Duke? I'm sorry, Don. You're talking about the Duke or the Auburn game? The Duke Center. The Duke Center. Duke Center. The Duke Center. Okay. I can't remember. Yeah. If I try to pronounce his name, I'll butcher it. So I'm going to do the young man justice and not do that. Okay.
00:08:54
Speaker
ah Yeah. but But, yeah, I mean, he was – you talk about a guy that just – between him, just literally running roughshod in the middle.
00:09:07
Speaker
And in Flagg doing what Flagg does all the time, yeah, I... wow That was all I could say about that game was just, wow. Yeah. You know, yeah I've seen Duke before. I've seen him. i so I saw him when they played Illinois and they waxed Illinois by 40 points.
00:09:23
Speaker
You know, I saw him. I've seen him a couple of different times, beat people handily. um You know, but it's just, I just kept thinking, okay, well, that's just regular season. When we get into when counts, we're going to, you know, ah boy, I'll tell you what, I'm,
00:09:39
Speaker
yeah I don't want to reveal my number one, my winner too early, but going to be hard fresh for you to convince me that Duke's not going not going to take this tournament the way they're going. Yeah, I mean, you you could go either way. I went with ah Florida in this thing against Duke in the final game, but it it was a close call for me.
00:10:00
Speaker
a I'm not sure. You know, I'm not sure which team will win that game, ah and the more I see Duke play, the more impressed I am. ah We saw – Florida played Texas Tech in the lead eight, I think. was Right. And Texas Tech had the lead, had control of the game for most of that game.
00:10:20
Speaker
And then they started missing free throws. yeah And all of a sudden, Florida started hitting their threes. They had not hit their threes very consistently the whole game. They came alive at the right time.
00:10:31
Speaker
But Texas Tech can finish that game off. So, once again, I was impressed with how Florida pulled that thing out. Texas Tech could have very well – could have been in that final four. yeah they that I mean, Texas Tech did have the lead at one point, right?
00:10:46
Speaker
by They were late. late They were ahead most of that game. They say they had the lead in the majority of that game, I thought. Yeah. Yeah. Because I remember what i kept I was kind of doing something else and i wasn't able to concentrate on it, but I caught a game. I caught a little bit of here and now there. think I caught the last few minutes of it and you're right there. Florida just, you know, they would not be denied their final four shot. I mean, that's just the way it was.
00:11:10
Speaker
Right, right. You know, the like you said, how they did it was just was mind-boggling. is Yeah, yeah. you know And the and the the Houston game, um you know, I really thought Tennessee would give them a better ah better struggle.
00:11:26
Speaker
I did, too. I did, too. I really think I'm disappointed in Tennessee. Yeah, one of the reasons I didn't pick Tennessee Over Houston is what I was just so – I never really saw Houston play and I'd seen Tennessee play.
00:11:41
Speaker
And I was just so impressed with what the analysts were saying about Houston. And Tennessee, I had seen them. Sometimes they play like the best team in the country. Sometimes they don't.
00:11:52
Speaker
Right. so And that same way with Alabama. So those two teams – so that's why I didn't pick those two teams in the lead eight. But I was surprised they both got taken out of about 20 points or however long it was. It was – both teams got handled pretty well, I think, in their game. So, you know, it was – I was surprised about that. I wasn't surprised by the outcome, you know.
00:12:15
Speaker
Yeah, I mean – and I'll tell you what, you know, going forward now, now you've got a situation of, ah you know, we've got the Final Four coming up, and it's Duke – and Houston?
Game Predictions & Strategies
00:12:31
Speaker
Have I got that one right? yeah yeah yeah Duke and Houston and then Auburn and Florida.
00:12:36
Speaker
and I'll tell you what, like said, really they haven't seen a whole lot of Houston or or any of Auburn. um and Like I said, I've seen ah Duke and like said they they I said, I'm just so impressed with Cooper Flagg. I just can't believe they can still You know without having the coach, you know, um the the success they've had ah back in, like, say, the 90s and 80s, that they can still recruit like that.
00:13:09
Speaker
and Oh, yeah. Get that outstanding, you know, player that at 19 years old is going to be drafted number one in the nc in the and NBA draft.
00:13:21
Speaker
ah just Exactly. Having my head wrap around that. And and they've done it before. i mean, we this is nothing new for Duke. um but But, yeah, i I really, if Duke can play the way of they're playing, I don't see Houston beating them. Yeah.
00:13:46
Speaker
i mean, obviously things can happen and things can change. and And if they can get there that big guy in foul trouble, you know, then, you know, all bets are off. Right.
00:13:57
Speaker
But, yeah, I just don't – I mean, do you see – what chance do you give Houston coming out of that game, I guess is the best question. Well, I'd just be ballparking it, but I'd give it a – you know, I'd give it a 40%, 45% chance. It's what – because what I've seen Duke play – ah you know, flag and that team, they just, they just can turn it on. So I'm really, impressed I just was really impressed with that. So Houston's got a good team and and the, and they got a really good coach.
00:14:27
Speaker
So, I mean, he's been there before. He's been to the Final Four before, so he's experienced. And this is, I believe this Duke coach, this is his first Final Four, if I'm if i'm correct on this. This is his second year?
00:14:40
Speaker
and second year and it third or Third year. Third year. Third year. Third year. First Final Four.
00:14:47
Speaker
Yeah, he getting flagged. That really made that team for him. So, but yeah i yeah, I'd give i give Duke a 55 to 60% chance of winning that game. And I'm just giving Houston that much credit because I just, I think they're just a flat out good team, you know, so it could turn, you know, you never know, but.
00:15:09
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, you look at, and you look at this and I just was just pulled something up and I just happened to see this. And it's just like um this Duke team.
00:15:20
Speaker
And we talk about Cooper flag. But their top three players are freshmen. who When you look at Flagg, and then there is um the the other kid, Kanupal,
00:15:42
Speaker
ah who's had it who in in that Elite Eight win, had had led the team in 21 points over Alabama. ah He's only the fourth freshman to ever have at least 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists in an Elite Eight game in the history of the NCAA.
00:16:00
Speaker
Then you've got that, and I'm going to actually attempt it because I can see it in front of me now, Malakoc, or Malakoc, the center, um who's shooting for the tournament.
00:16:17
Speaker
will wow How do you shoot 87% in the NCAA tournament? I don't know, but I guess you know if you're under the basket, you're that dominant. you can yeah You can do anything you want, I guess, man. yeah But yeah, so for I mean, and and ah you know...
00:16:35
Speaker
and it looks like, and you know, I, I don't know what's going to happen after the season. I can, you know, but we are also, we're in that ah gray area now where you're also seeing a bunch of kids jump ship from different programs.
00:16:48
Speaker
Uh, flag obviously is going to be going to the NCAA is already like said listed as the number one, uh, choice, um, as far as, uh, most analysts are concerned, uh, can nipple, um,
00:17:02
Speaker
You know, if he can play like that, I can see maybe a team taking a shot at him. Although, you know, because because, you know, he's he's a 6'5 shooting guard and he can play forward. He can play that wing. He can shoot from outside. He can run inside, you know, and that big seven-footer.
00:17:18
Speaker
um You know, Duke could be looking to replace a whole, almost a whole team before
Coaching Styles: Pearl vs. Goldman
00:17:24
Speaker
it's all set. Yeah, yeah. i this I mean, it could be. I mean, these talented teams.
00:17:29
Speaker
You know, John Calipari showed it could be done back when he was at Kentucky, when he recruited one and done. That's basically what he did. And he recruited, he'd bring in the next group, and he was winning for a long time there with doing that strategy. So, I mean, it can be done, yeah.
00:17:44
Speaker
Right. yeah So now Auburn, Florida, um again, like said, and as we've talked about the prece in the in the pre-show, you know ah my my problem is with Auburn, I can never pick Auburn as long as Bruce Pearl is a coach.
00:18:00
Speaker
you know Dating back to his tet on tet when he was an assistant coach under Tom Davis at Iowa and used some chicanery which he is finally he finally, after about 30 years, admitted to it that he used some chicanery to get Illinois in recruiting and NCAA trouble and took one of their top coaches, Jimmy Collins, off the road for almost two years.
00:18:29
Speaker
um But, you know, that's neither here nor there. then The fact is, he is a very good X and O coach. I mean, there's no doubt about that. And you look at you go back and look at his record at Wisconsin-Milwaukee and And was an Indiana state. You said he played coached at Southern Indiana, the other neighborhood Southern Indiana, Tennessee.
00:18:51
Speaker
Um, you know, yeah, he's, he's had some, he's had some skeletons in his closet and, but, you know, go back and look into the nineties and two thousands and find me a coach. It doesn't, hasn't had a skeleton or two show up.
00:19:06
Speaker
Well, yeah. I mean, they've had, I mean, um, um, a lot of them had, ah I don't know that I'm thinking of this Final Four group. Todd Goldman's just too young to have much come up on him, although he hadn he had a little run in it. Florida did ah an investigation on before the season started.
00:19:28
Speaker
I know. ah You know, help me out, Don, the head coach at Houston. He's been in and out of trouble with the NCAA tournament because when Missouri was in the Big 12, he was at Oklahoma.
00:19:43
Speaker
Then he went to Indiana for a while. and then And he got in trouble with Oklahoma. He got in trouble with Indiana. then you Oh, yeah. um um um we tried Illinois tried to take him when he went when he ended up at at Oklahoma, I think.
00:20:02
Speaker
I hate that I knew his name. You used to know his name. When you said it, I was like, okay. Kelvin Sampson. No.
00:20:13
Speaker
No, Kelvin. Yeah. kvin stamps Yeah. Yeah. Samson was, yeah, he got in trouble with Oklahoma. He got in trouble in Indiana. That's why he lost his job in Indiana. And then he's ended up in Houston doing a really good job. I just think the difference is he's got skeletons in his closet, but the difference is that stuff he did at Oklahoma and and Indiana is legal now.
00:20:35
Speaker
I don't think they get them in trouble. Well, I guess you could put it that way. Yeah. I don't think they get them in trouble for that anymore. Um, You know, Bruce Pearl has done a tremendous job at Auburn. I mean, they just were not a basketball school.
00:20:51
Speaker
Right. He got there. ah They've and he's put them, you know, look at where he's got them now. And he recruits. He's a good X and O coach, as you say.
00:21:01
Speaker
And so, you know, he's but he's got skeletons in his closet. There's no doubt about that. ah But and the the guy Duke is just too young to have any. And Todd Goldman is just is a little too young to have too many. Right. Exactly.
00:21:16
Speaker
And, you know and I tell you what, this is actually the the the I think of the two matches um when you're talking the head coach ah realm of it. I will be more interested probably in the Auburn, Florida. um You know, because i think...
00:21:38
Speaker
And... and i and you know I said don't have a whole lot to go on this, but I think that Florida... and What's the name Florida coach? Which one is the Florida coach? Todd Goldman.
00:21:49
Speaker
yeah Yeah. I think he's got a a kind of different mindset on how on on on how to coach that I'm not sure Pearl has run into yet. So this is going to be interesting how the old school guy takes on the young school guy.
00:22:04
Speaker
Yeah, and I think Goldman is a might have been an assistant for... um Might have been an assistant for Pearl at some time in the past. I'm to pull it up here real quick.
00:22:19
Speaker
Okay. See if I can find him. Todd. Jesus, what's gold? I hate Goldman. Is it Goldman?
00:22:31
Speaker
um Hang on.
00:22:41
Speaker
Ah, damn it.
00:22:49
Speaker
Todd Golden. I'm sorry, Todd. There it is. You're good. And I'm going to pull up his history. And I think he, if I understood right, he was an assistant. Yeah, he was an Auburn assistant from 2014 to 2016. Yeah.
00:23:04
Speaker
yeah So he he, and then he went to San Francisco, then to Florida. right So they have some, connection they know each other. They have some connection and they probably... So, yeah, so that's gonna be be that that'll be an interesting mentor versus student game. Right.
Final Tournament Predictions
00:23:24
Speaker
Yeah.
00:23:26
Speaker
yeah know So I guess I guess I said I see I'm like you. I give you ah Duke the 65 percent chance out of that game. So this game, boy, i wish i wish i could I wish I had seen a lot more of each team to be really...
00:23:44
Speaker
ah knowledgeable on this pick, but, and I'm going to try and not let my bias get in the way. um I, I think we're going to see a good game between those two.
00:23:56
Speaker
I don't think this is going to be a 20 point run out by either team. so I don't think, I don't think so, but I I'm going to say probably the way that Florida has played, I'm going to, I'm going to give it to Florida, not by a whole lot, but I'm going to give that game to Florida.
00:24:15
Speaker
Well, Auburn has this player who impressed me, Don, as I was watching the games. Their best player is a guy named Johanny Broom.
00:24:29
Speaker
ah He's a 6'10", 240-pound. He does a little bit of everything. He's kind of like Cooper Flagg for Duke. I mean, this kid is something else to watch.
00:24:44
Speaker
And I just, if you're watching that game, keep your eye on that kid. And I think as goes, Auburn goes, as goes, Broom goes Auburn. So, I mean, if he takes, if he has a really good game, who knows? I mean, it's just, I think, it like you said, it's going to be a close game.
00:25:00
Speaker
I picked Florida in this game myself. So. Yeah, i right I'm just looking up Broom's numbers. This past season, he was, I don't know, that's 23-24, excuse me.
00:25:13
Speaker
ah Last season, he played 35 games, started 34. Let's um
00:25:23
Speaker
see here, it doesn't show, oh, there it is. Averaged a little over 16 points, 16 and a half points a game, eight and a half rebounds a game. Yeah, I'll put that guy on my roster.
00:25:39
Speaker
Well, he's a graduate. This is his first year with Auburn. And kind of interesting, before he played at Auburn, he played at Morehead State. So, I mean, you know. he actually played at in 2022. He started the 2022-23 season.
00:25:52
Speaker
he started in the twenty two twenty three season And came back. No, he's been there. He was a more. e something scream ah According to this, what I'm seeing there is this more head state between you played more in state between 2020 and 2022. Then he transferred to Auburn in 2022.
00:26:11
Speaker
And he's been there for the last two years. Okay, okay. All right. It's been about the same numbers, though, just a little bit less on the scoring his first year. This year he picked the picked the scoring up a little bit.
00:26:22
Speaker
Like I said, it looks like he's averaging a couple blocks a game. Yeah, that's the kind of guy you want in the middle. Yeah. Or else on the court, for that matter of fact. Yeah. And he shoots 35% from the line.
00:26:37
Speaker
I'm going to try. Yeah. For a 6'10 guy, that's, that's not a bad, uh, bad little, bad little deal there for sure. go no Yeah. I don't know. Like said, I'll, I'll still kind of stick with it with Florida.
00:26:49
Speaker
Um, Like I said, just because I don't know heck of a lie about either the team, and I did get to see Florida play a little bit, and you know they did kind of impress me somewhat because I really didn't give them much of a chance. I thought maybe they were overrated as ah as a one seed, but watching a couple games that they've had in the tournament, that's that's kind of changed my mind on that. I think they did deserve the one seed, so we'll see how that plays out.
00:27:17
Speaker
um Like I said, and I don't care. i Like I said, I kind of hinted hinted at it earlier. I think you do see Duke as the as the eventual winner of the Final Four.
00:27:31
Speaker
and Okay, okay. Well, I'll head Florida, so we'll see which one of us is right. You're going to take Florida? Okay. Yeah, I'm still to because he's saying they're in all my brackets. It's the number one, so I'll hang with them.
00:27:43
Speaker
But that sounds good to me. Sounds like a plan. So, okay, well, I'll tell you what, we're going to take a little break. And then after the break, we're going to go over um maybe a couple of coaching changes here. The coaching carousel has been in full swing since the start of the has since the first couple games got played.
00:28:03
Speaker
ah ah lot And what's really surprising me is this trend of a lot of coaches that are in the tournament already opting for other jobs. so Yeah, that was... We'll get to that on the other side of the break. This is the NCAA Report. We'll be right back after this.
Hydration & Liquid IV Promo
00:28:25
Speaker
I would like to talk to you about hydration, Herm. dehydration both did you know that our bodies are made up of fifty to seventy percent water the average loss of water due to dehydration is about three to five percent per day now obviously the higher the activity level the higher the level of dehydration If dehydration levels get around 8% to 9%, it starts to affect your body. you feel thirsty. you feel tired.
00:28:48
Speaker
These symptoms increase as your dehydration increases. If you lose 15% of your body's water, that's enough to put you in the hospital. And I've been there. That's not a really fun way to do it.
00:28:59
Speaker
So hydration is a serious issue and water alone sometimes just isn't enough. And coupled that with the fact that most people only drink 50% of the recommended amount of water they need per day for proper hydration and good health.
00:29:14
Speaker
Now one solution is hydration multiplication. Now you get that from a product called Liquid IV. Liquid IV is one of the most popular sports drinks in America. It delivers two times faster hydration in water alone.
00:29:26
Speaker
And it has three times the electrolytes of traditional sports drinks. It uses a process that's called cellular transport technology, which acts as a hydration multiplier designed to deliver more rapid absorption of water into the body.
00:29:41
Speaker
It also delivers key vitamins like B3, B5, B6, B12, and even vitamin C. It's non-GMO, doesn't contain any soy or dairy, and gluten-free. Good for everybody.
00:29:53
Speaker
I use liquid out of being myself. I like the electrolyte formula for when I'm out working in the yard or just... you know out doing a daily routine. I've used the energy hydration formula, those times when they'll quick pick me up and don't want to drink coffee.
00:30:07
Speaker
There's also an immune boosting formula that's packed with vitamin C. They have a kombucha blend for better dietary health. They even have a formula for better sleep. Their hydration contains melatonin.
00:30:20
Speaker
They have flavors that are very light, very tasty. I'm partial to golden cherry, Azu pineapple, strawberry lemonade. They also have flavors like lemon lime and green grape and white peach, and piña colada.
00:30:32
Speaker
No alcohol, though. It also comes in sugar-free that uses an amino acid blend instead of artificial sweeteners. There's even hydration flowing for kids in flavors they like. Concord grape, crisp apple, tropical punch, banana, and cotton candy.
00:30:46
Speaker
Now, Liquid IV is packaged in individual little pouches or sticks. You can really take them anywhere. The beach, the gym, the office, the school, even on an airplane. Did you know the humidity in airplane is five to twelve percent less than the Sahara Desert?
00:31:00
Speaker
So long flights get you dehydrated. That's what causes jet lag. Coffee and tea don't help. Alcohol doesn't help. Just ask for a bottle of water, drop in a stick of liquid IV, shake it up and you've got instant hydration and fighting the jet lag.
00:31:15
Speaker
Liquid IV also cares about the world we live in, so they resource with sustainable materials from family farms. They use 100% recycled materials in all their packaging. And they've provided grants to help expand access to clean and abundant water in other countries. They've provided help during the recent fires, disasters.
00:31:35
Speaker
They care. So right now, go to liquidiv.com, use the promo code GCS at checkout, and get 20% off. You can also shop better hydration using my link, zen.ai slash talking sports on the bleachers and get 20% off anything you buy.
00:31:52
Speaker
Check out hydration multiplication. Try Liquid IV. Go to liquidiv.com. Use the promo code GCS at checkout. All right, we
Coaching Changes in College Basketball
00:32:02
Speaker
are back. This the NCAA report with Don and Russ and my partner, Russ Robinson. We got done talking the tournament. and I think we're we're both were're or both in non-agreement.
00:32:15
Speaker
which is great. Yeah. Russ is taking Florida for the overall. I'm going to go ahead and take Duke for the overall. So we'll see how that pans out. Let's see. The first group of games is Saturday. And then the final game is Monday. So Monday night, yeah monday night so.
00:32:34
Speaker
Be ready for that, folks. Tune in in your favorites on your favorite station. All right. So there have been a number of coaching changes already.
00:32:44
Speaker
um you know and And a number them we knew were going to happen. Indiana. um Virginia, they were already predetermined if those guys were going to leave. Woodson already said he was leaving at the end of the season.
00:32:58
Speaker
Same with Tony Bennett. um Actually, Tony Bennett left in midseason, if it if i remember if I recall correctly. That's correct, yeah. But there's been a couple others. But a couple the guys that are changing now, I mean, and as as you and I talked at the break, Russ, you know, back in the day,
00:33:18
Speaker
when a coach, if they would even if he was in the tournament and coaching the team, and he decided to go somewhere else, we talked about the Michigan situation years ago, where the coach decided he was going to go to someplace else, and the AD said, fine, and you're no longer the coach the team and promoted the assistant coach to head coach for the tournament.
00:33:37
Speaker
you know We're seeing a lot more, though, now of these guys going in and they get to tournament. They bring a ah good resume to, And before the tournament's even started, um they're already headed somewhere else.
00:33:53
Speaker
Or just right after they lose and they are are knocked out. and And just recently, that happened just recently ah with Maryland and Kevin Willard.
00:34:07
Speaker
Right after they lost, it wasn't like two or three days and he accepted a job at Villanova. Yeah, yeah. i mean, yeah. And you got Ben McCollum. I think he was the coach at what was he? Drake.
00:34:20
Speaker
Drake. drake yeah He's now the moving up to take Fran McCaffrey's place. um And rich Richard Patino, not Rick, Richard, is taking the job at Xavier because the Xavier coach is now the head coach at where he he went to Texas.
00:34:41
Speaker
Texas, okay. You know, so
00:34:47
Speaker
what do you make of all the, first we'll go with with with the first question. What do you make of of all these coaches leaving like this in the middle of a tournament or at the start of a tournament?
00:34:58
Speaker
um because Because I guess the the Texas job but with McCollum, he knew he was going there before the tournament even started. They just couldn't announce it yet, I guess, or something like that.
00:35:10
Speaker
um You know, is that doing a disservice to your university if you're doing that to me? ah Well, probably is, but um I guess we're in the area where they don't care. They got agents on the phone talking to these other schools, talking to the ADs to the at these other schools.
00:35:29
Speaker
Imagine, Don, the agents is handling the most of the bulk of this, the back and forth on that. They probably talk to the coaches. Coach said, yeah, I'd be interested in that job or I'd be interested. I'm i'm ready to leave where I'm at.
00:35:40
Speaker
Right. Kevin Willard's situation in Maryland, he apparently was very unhappy. yeah. And I think he went out swinging and he took the Villanova. And then I guess there are different reasons. Again, I don't know if you heard this today, but Buzz Williams at Texas A&M is taking the Maryland job.
00:35:57
Speaker
Yes, I just now saw that. um yeah Buzz you know is leaving Texas A&M to take the Maryland job. kind like Go ahead. That's an interesting one because you're walking into a school that Kevin Willard was really unhappy with.
00:36:11
Speaker
Right. And Buzz Williams seemed to be doing relatively well at Texas A&M, so you wonder what that's all about. you don't know Exactly. so And you look at, you know, and I tell you what, the the guy and I looked at, I wrote a recent article on these coaching changes. And then the three guys that I kind of looked at, Ben ben McCollum really hit my my radar in a lot of respects of what he's doing or what he did, i should say, at um where was he at?
00:36:40
Speaker
Was he at Xavier? No. um No, he he was at Drake. Or Drake, that's right, Drake. um right what he was what he did at drake and before he got there uh and you know i i tell you what if the big 10 big 10 schools need to be put on alert because i think iowa um i they didn't make this choice half-heartedly you look at what's going on the last few years with with mccaffrey and
00:37:13
Speaker
And, you know, they missed the tournament or they're out the first weekend. The last two years, they've missed the tournament completely, um barely making it into Big Ten tournament.
00:37:28
Speaker
and know but When they have been used to at least being in, you know, it was almost a guarantee they were in the big dance. It was just what position they were going to be dancing in.
00:37:39
Speaker
bro Um, and I think with, uh, with McCollum, you know, he's bringing, I think he, he gets the one guy looking at what they've brought in. he could bring that back.
00:37:53
Speaker
Um, because yeah if you if you look at what he's done and I'm trying to find my, my researcher, um, you look at what he's done at Drake, or just what he's done the last few years. Um,
00:38:05
Speaker
I think this is his only year at Drake, if I remember. Yeah, the last few years, I was going say, he he's done the most of his work in Division II.
00:38:16
Speaker
Yes. With Northwest Missouri State. he yeah he was His record at Northwest Missouri State was Yeah, yeah. mean, quite yeah yeah i mean quite Yeah.
00:38:30
Speaker
I mean, it's just, ah and you know and not only did he take down Missouri, he took down Ole Miss, too, in the tournament. Yeah. Drake beat two, three damn good teams, power five teams.
00:38:41
Speaker
you know So you know he's going from the MVC to the Big Ten. ah You look at ah one that really kind of, I don't know why it caught my eye, but Will Wade going from McNeese State to NC State.
00:38:57
Speaker
Mm-hmm. he And and i looked at Wade's record. He's never had a losing season as long as he's been in Division one Well, he's one of those guys.
00:39:08
Speaker
Yeah, he he won at LSU. He was at LSU, and he got run off because of NCAA issues. Right. think that he wouldn't get in trouble for it now. oh Yeah, probably not. Went to the East State and did a good job. And so I think he was a hot commodity. And yeah i didn't know I knew he'd end up somewhere.
00:39:25
Speaker
He would improve himself somewhere. I didn't know it would be NC State. It would be interesting to see, follow him there, because I think he's another good coach that can win wherever he goes. Yeah.
00:39:36
Speaker
Well, and and you look at NC State, I mean, they're thirsty for a coach that can do that. Because, you know, they had it, you know, um for many years, ah you know, when ah going back to Everett Chase, who amassed a.377 and.131 record at at and North Carolina, never won a national championship.
00:39:59
Speaker
They did win two under Norm Sloan and Jim Valvano. And those guys combined went 475 to 241 in terms of wins. You know, I think they were looking for somebody that could do
Transfer Portal's Impact on Teams
00:40:13
Speaker
that. And I i tell you what, I think Wade is the guy.
00:40:17
Speaker
he might be. Yeah. You know, because right now he's got a division one college record of 206 and 80. Yeah. yeah Three different schools. So that tells right there, I think, that what's they what they were looking for.
00:40:29
Speaker
The third one that... I don't know why. Again, this is another one. that looked at me. I looked at him like, what? Why is he going there? And it was Sean Miller going to Texas.
00:40:42
Speaker
And he was he was at Xavier? He was Xavier. He was a Xavier head coach. Yeah. and But he's been all right. He's been at NC State. He's been at Pittsburgh and in Miami as an assistant.
00:40:55
Speaker
He's been at Xavier actually twice and in Arizona once. ah Oh, yeah. He did a really good job at Arizona. Then he got in trouble. this one Then he got in a little trouble. but But you know his record in CW now is Go ahead. Yeah, Texas but yeah texas is a big stage, and they got a lot of money, a lot of NIL money there. Oh, yeah. And I think he sees a huge opportunity is what he sees, even though he's got to share –
00:41:27
Speaker
oh He's got to share the spotlight with the football program. There's a lot of money there. That's true. you know And that that is true. i mean But you know Texas basketball has not been slouch since 1939. I looked this up. Since 1939, Texas has had 39 NCAA appearances, including eight in the last 10 years.
00:41:52
Speaker
yeah In the last five years in a row. So yeah he's jumping into a program that has is seeing a lot of success and wants that to continue.
00:42:05
Speaker
um So that's what, that again, that's why that one it kind of it intrigued me. you know Because you know Xavier, they're not, I mean, Xavier's not a slouch program, but he's stretching the But you know it's not what you would consider a huge power five draw.
00:42:24
Speaker
I mean, they've had good basketball teams, but that's all they do is basketball. So, like I said, it's going to interesting him going to a basketball football school. who and's That's ah what I did find a little intriguing is he he's upping his game, so to speak, and where he's headed. Yeah.
00:42:40
Speaker
um couple other ah we was the one I talked about just a little bit ago was the ah Rick Pitino, Richard Pitino. Excuse me. He's taking over that that Syracuse, that Xavier program.
00:42:59
Speaker
Yeah. Well, Richard has done a good job at New Mexico State. He struggled at Minnesota, although he didn't do terrible, but he was it's tough to win at Minnesota. Oh, yeah. And he eventually got fired there, went to New Mexico and built a decent – has done a decent job there. So he's like his dad. He's going to go up the ladder as far as he can.
00:43:24
Speaker
So Xavier's a nice next step for him. Yeah. Yeah, no doubt about that. No doubt about that. Uh, all right. Well, um, a couple other things I want to hit a little bit on the, on the transfer portal.
00:43:36
Speaker
I don't know what's happening down in Missouri, but right now people in, in Champaign are about to jump off cliffs and I'm trying to figure out what their problem is. If they haven't figured this out, this is, this is what you're going to see for a few years until they figured this whole transfer portal NIL thing out.
00:43:53
Speaker
Um, we've lost three players to the transfer portal. Um, and, um, One them to me was shocking um was more as Johnson, Jr., our freshman center, who really started picking up his playing time, broke his hand, came back, was a a really big part of our.
00:44:15
Speaker
oh If you want to call it defense and and offense during the tournament, he was. really playing very well. um Supposedly there was some issue with how he was being used and he didn't want to be just an inside guy. Well, I'm sorry, it's six, nine and, and 240 pounds.
00:44:37
Speaker
And you don't have a mid range shot per se. You're an inside guy. I don't care what you're saying. You're an inside guy. um And they lost a cup they lost lost one bench player and they lost ah Trey White also to the transfer portal.
00:44:53
Speaker
like so I don't know, what has Missouri lost anybody yet? or Yeah, they lost a
00:45:02
Speaker
they lost a forward that's been with the program since Andy and Shaw. He's been with the program since Gates got there. He's brought in by Gates. He's a real talented guy, but his playing time went down this year.
00:45:16
Speaker
So he didn't play much. and That's not a big thing. That's the only portal loss they've had. They picked up a forward from... the la la la Lola Merrimont named Javon Porter, whose sisters and brothers all played for Mizzou.
00:45:32
Speaker
6'10 kids. So that's really the only news. is in Nothing major has really happened yet. I guess i want yeah as far as ah all around, as far as i what I've heard, and I haven't looked at the portal, because I guess like 1,200 kids applied the first day of the portal.
00:45:49
Speaker
Oh, yeah. Which is just that, like said, they're going to get that under control at some point. um know There's a couple of Big Ten names. Dix from Iowa is entered the portal.
00:46:02
Speaker
And was a big interest right in right now to Illinois fans is their center, Tomislav Isevich. His brother, who is... Let's see. Tomislav is 7'1". His brother is seven two He currently plays for Arkansas, and he has entered the transfer portal.
00:46:26
Speaker
So there's a lot of, I won't say a lot of, but there's been this swelling underground fervor of, okay, can we get both the Ivisich brothers at Illinois?
00:46:37
Speaker
Right. Which, you know, because they're going to need some inside help. Because right now, the only other guy inside for Illinois is a 6'10 redshirt freshman. who came in at 198 pounds at six ten They have managed to put weight in. He's up to 230 now. But, you know...
00:46:58
Speaker
but you know You just don't know how good he's going to be as a redshirt freshman. He's obviously in in high school, you know even at 198, he was probably dominating other kids.
00:47:12
Speaker
um you know But this is the big leagues now. You're playing where the where those six ten guys are Um, you know, so we'll see how that plays out. So, you Brad grabbing somebody like, um, Isavich's brother, there's also international other international names are looking at.
00:47:31
Speaker
Um, but, uh, you know the transfer portal is going to play out as it goes, but, um, do you see, I, I, this is a really broad question and I, I'm sorry, I'm asking it, but it just hit my head.
00:47:48
Speaker
do you see the, is this the finally, what's going to end up?
Future of the Transfer Portal
00:47:55
Speaker
I mean, we've had now we've figured it was because all of COVID and all that other stuff.
00:47:59
Speaker
Well, COVID, the COVID years are gone. yeah rock Kids are not getting any extra years for COVID. Well, I take it back. there But now we have the junior college extra year, I guess, that's getting involved. And I, that's a whole mess. I don't want to get into yet, but yeah,
00:48:16
Speaker
I'm shocked that we still see that many kids jumping into the portal. um Is this going to be the straw that finally gets the NCAA getting their act together on that portal? Or are they going to sit there and just let it ride?
00:48:32
Speaker
Well, I guess I have to, Don. And my understanding is this is a court case. that Brent Kavanaugh, the Supreme Court justice came to him and he opened up the whole thing.
00:48:45
Speaker
And i don't think they can do a lot about it now. um I think they're kind of stuck with what they got unless, as we've talked about before, unless there's a federal law or something that that gets involved, Congress gets involved.
00:48:57
Speaker
I think this is the way it's going to be. The counter ah football coaches and the basketball coaches both say it's a Wild West out there with these portals. They would probably like to see something to some way get a grip on it.
00:49:10
Speaker
But, i you know, I don't know. i haven't heard anyone that has an answer to it. It might be these meetings that the SEC and the Big Ten are having.
00:49:21
Speaker
Mm-hmm. the two commissioners and then they might be trying to address this in some way, but I haven't heard anything that says that this thing is they've got, they've got some direction on this.
00:49:35
Speaker
It just looks like that's the only thing I've heard in the last couple of months was that there was something and and it's already been instituted. I guess it goes into effect this next season is they no longer will be issuing letters of intent. Yeah.
00:49:52
Speaker
you know, typically when you sign a high school kid, he signs a letter of intent to go to this school. Now it's going to be a letter of financial aid. Uh-huh.
00:50:02
Speaker
Uh-huh. the way I understand it, and i again, I could be wrong because I i haven't read everything about it yet. um And actually, what I'd like to see, too, is have some kind of contract limit. if you're Because what this is about now is actually, it's almost like a financial services contract, the way I understand it.
00:50:25
Speaker
And... the universities would be allowed if they wanted to by business law to assign um a length of service.
00:50:38
Speaker
So in other words, you sign this this ah finance or service services contract, it's for X number of years. So theoretically, a university could say, okay, if you sign with this personal services contract,
00:50:57
Speaker
you will sign for minimum two years, meaning they have to stay at least until after their sophomore year. um They could do that. they could you know Now, is that going to be how that would hold up? and That'll hold up until the first court challenge.
00:51:15
Speaker
Right. that's thats that That's how that's going to work. It'll hold until the first court challenge and then it's all bets are off at that point. yeah But, you know, I think because I've been listening to a lot of the Illini boards with this with all the transfer, with the three transfers we've got, you know, cause they've also got at least one guy, maybe three that could go NBA as well.
00:51:41
Speaker
um You know, so, and they've got some incoming freshmen, but you know, again, he's Underwood, like a lot of coaches and he's not the only one. A lot of coaches are going to have to go after that portal ah to supplement the roster to try and get them back to where they were.
00:51:57
Speaker
ah So a lot of people have crying and complaining and, um you know the nil money that gets involved and you know it it leads me to believe and because somebody brought up the point you know when we talked about coaches earlier somebody brought the point well you know how do you expect players to stick around if coaches are just going to go willy-nilly in the middle of a tournament Right.
00:52:28
Speaker
Yeah. You know, yeah I mean, and he's right. ah If you're coaching and you're coaching Maryland, like Kevin Willard, and, you know, all of a sudden you get beaten, so, okay, I can't compete.
00:52:43
Speaker
being in the Big Ten as opposed to Villanova, who can out outrun you. Well, Villanova doesn't play football, number one. um You know, and maybe that's part of it.
00:52:53
Speaker
Maybe the the major programs that are having a football and a basketball program and...
00:53:03
Speaker
You know, with football, as we all know, takes a bigger chunk of the pie. That sure does. And then basketball does. um You know, maybe that's part of the problem. You know, maybe we need to have a better equal, um what they call it, a revenue sharing idea when it comes to that, that, you know, programs are funded on an equal basis because, you know, that a and you and I talked about this on chat a while back.
00:53:33
Speaker
is you know the teams and the programs that are getting hurt by this are your mid-majors, your low-level mid-majors. And even in some cases, your high levels, like a Drake, um yeah, they made the tournament. McNeese State, they made the tournament.
00:53:49
Speaker
But their limit of success, I think, can be directly related to the fact that they're losing players to the Michigans, the Illinois, the Missouris, the Tennessees.
00:54:01
Speaker
Sure, sure. Yeah. ah Yeah, you know, when they go, the the coaches go ah looking at the transfer portal, we've seen a lot of good players come away from these mid-majors going to one of the power four schools, power five schools, whatever.
00:54:17
Speaker
It is now. I mean, and we've seen them pick them pick them up there. And even the strike coach, Ben McCullough, he brought in Division II players from Northwest Missouri State. you know So they they identify talent. They go after it and they bring them in, and they develop them.
00:54:31
Speaker
Yeah, it's it's ah it's a wild west. but and just You saw it with Indiana, too, with Sinjinetti in the football program, you know bringing in 13 players from James Madison.
00:54:44
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. you know Yeah. So, so it's a wild West out there and the coaches know they would, they'd like them to get some sort of control over this, but I sure haven't heard any any way that they're going to do it. It doesn seems like everyone's lost, you know, on this. it looks I agree. I agree. Well, I'll tell you what, Russ, we'll call it a night for now. And when we get back, we'll discuss the final four and,
00:55:10
Speaker
and Maybe try and look at some other sports and since we're going to be in a in a yeah bit of a dead period between now and when.
Show Conclusion & Social Media Plugs
00:55:18
Speaker
We can talk spring football, I guess.
00:55:21
Speaker
um But anyway, so let us know, as always, where we can find you, my friend. Well, I'm Uncle Frank, FR Robinson1957 on Twitter.
00:55:35
Speaker
I'm Russ at Blue Sky. and i'm And so that's that's the two-play. And like I told you before, I float around some of the Mizzou Facebook groups. Okay.
00:55:47
Speaker
Well, and, you know, you can always find me at the Facebook page of Talking Sports on the Bleachers. And Just a hint of note, there might be a change coming to that. And my other program, Talking Sports on the Bleachers podcast, that might be under some construction, too. We'll have to see.
00:56:06
Speaker
um But you can find me those two places. you can find me at Gateway Sports, which I did forget to mention. We are a proud part of the Gateway Sports Network. And I'll get to them in a second here. You can also find me at the on X at TSOTBGCS.
00:56:26
Speaker
And I also have a Blue Sky account, and I can never remember it, so I've got to look it up. Sorry about that. at And I have been posting the podcast and writing that stuff that that I do write to Blue Sky. So you can find all our podcasts there. You can find our podcasts on so Spotify. um And, you know, let's ah let us know how we're doing. I mean, we really would like to hear from you guys and what we do.
00:56:56
Speaker
And let's see. There's my Blue Sky account. So what the heck is my name on this Blue Sky account here? Hmm.
00:57:04
Speaker
profile. That's what I'll look at. Okay, my my handle on Blue Sky is dglynn3461 at blues or a dot bluesky dot social. So, I almost forgot. Don't forget to check out Gateway Sports.
00:57:21
Speaker
You can find a lot of your favorite podcasts there from the Fuel Sports Network. And in terms of the team of rivals, which I'll be joining those guys in about an hour tonight.
00:57:32
Speaker
um The two for three with Moose Michaels, the Derrick King Sports Show, and a host of others. So check it out at gatewaysports.net.
00:57:44
Speaker
net So for my partner, Russ Robinson, this is Don Glenn wishing you to have fun, stay safe. We'll talk to you next time on the NCAA report with Don and Russ.
00:57:56
Speaker
Good night, everybody.