Messages

 

[OL]

OL.   That is a very good addition.

Now if Fox can find a couple of "O" coaches to augment the (only) three that are listed on the website (missing at least are TEs and RBs at this point) we might be able to do better than predictable three and outs. 

Preston Ruedinger had quite the week for Green Bay and was named  HL POW. He scored 16 and 26 in the two HL games the past week shooting 48% from the floor including 57% from the arc.  Also averaged 4.5 RBs and 3 assists. Happy for him. 

https://greenbayphoenix.com/sports/mens-basketball

GB, who we beat earlier this season and won only three games last season, is three wins away from a 20 win turnaround season. They currently lead the HL with a 12-3 record. Oakland is second at 11-4.

You know GB is making some people take notice when the NY Times does a major writeup on GB's worst to first turnaround in year one of Wicks' tenure.

https://theathletic.com/5282297/2024/02/19/green-bay-basketball-sundance-wicks/

[Hope there is no paywall]. In case there is here are a couple things: GB won only 3 games last year.  They have gone form a NET of 361 last year to 187 this season.

There is a big caveat/qualifier to this story, however, when you compare GB's first year and Valpo's first year stories:  HL v. MVC.  Even so, ya gotta hand it to Wicks.

So is Jake.

The Valley now knows exactly what we can and can not do. With that knowledge all of our weaknesses are being exploited.  Very pain-full to watch!

Spot-on Ducky - again look at opponent FG% and points in the paInt.  This together with the growing mental fatigue associated with boys vs. men night after night has finally taken its toll.  Not a slam on our players. They play hard but are over matched at this point. No way we surprise anyone anymore. This is where Roger will earn his pay — keeping the kids' spirits up, together and focused for the rest of the season. It's also important that he maintains team discipline and does not permit individuals to go off on their own tangent. We saw what that did to previous teams.

16, as Paul expands TVB, he'll need your football "Insider" skills and perspective to increase TVB's platform.  Shoot him a copy of your resume.  He'll jump at the opportunity to have your talents on board. .........But for the time being don't quit your day job 

Seriously, many thanks for insights.

Ditto, 04.  Your involvement, careful maintenance and responsiveness to questions and requests makes this forum a pleasure to be a member compared to others I have joined or visited.

And Drake banks in a shot at the buzzer to beat Evansville.

The floor keeps getting lower for some of these players. It's possible we've seen their ceiling already, I mean for this season. I was holding out for a late season surge, but now I know those hopes were misplaced.

And yet I still believe that VU has a young core of 5-6 players who, if they can be persuaded to stay, will be among the centerpieces of a strong team within a year or two. Schwieger, Williamson, Edwards, Sepp, Weatherspoon, and Ajiboye have all had their very good moments (and then some). Add Scroggins and Manyang (both of whom, fingers crossed, are lifting weights like crazy), bring in some new talent, and it's possible that we've got at least a .500 basketball team next season.

Assuming our core stays, we're bound to have more talent next season.

Scroggins for Barrett should be an upgrade. McNair for Sciarroni should be an upgrade. Manyang for Palm is a wash at worst (assuming Manyang is healthy to play).

That leaves us at least 2 spots to fill with transfers or freshmen.

I'm hoping the players have bought into Powell's vision and will stick around.

Don't forget our gray beard -- Darius -- for next year as well. He can get even better with more experienced current talent around him as well as some new older/bigger talent xferring in.

A short while ago someone wondered what to expect in terms of what kind of physical changes to expect as players matured and wondered about Ben Krikke as an example. I  checked the rosters for the 4 seasons Ben was at Valpo, and here is the tale of the tape:

19-20 -- 6'9", 220#
20-21 -- 6'9", 230#
21-22 -- 6'9", 235#
22-23 -- 6'9", 235#
@ Iowa -- 6'9". 245#

And just for grins - Alec Peters
2013-14 -- 6'8", 225#
2014-15 -- 6'9", 225#
2015-16 -- 6'9", 230#
2016-17 -- 6'9", 235#
FYI - @ Olympiacos this season 6'9", 234#

Preston Ruedinger had quite the week for Green Bay and was named  HL POW. He scored 16 and 26 in the two HL games the past week shooting 48% from the floor including 57% from the arc.  Also averaged 4.5 RBs and 3 assists. Happy for him. 

https://greenbayphoenix.com/sports/mens-basketball

GB, who we beat earlier this season and won only three games last season, is three wins away from a 20 win turnaround season. They currently lead the HL with a 12-3 record. Oakland is second at 11-4.

It seems to me that our guys are just beat up and tired.  It has been a long season of playing skinny kids against five year men.  Coach Powell has made it known that if you don't play hard you won't be back.  Clearly Connor, Jerome and Anthony are gone so there's three openings if everyone else returns. Probably one other will see the handwriting on the wall and be gone.

Agree. So many of our players are in the year one transition from HS/Prep to DI college basketball where teenagers are playing against grown men game in and game out.  IMO, our kids have hit the proverbial wall. They've given all they have and have  just run our of energy reserves.  They've played 25 games and have 6 left before Arch Madness with no gas left in the tank. Simple as that.

Forget about the barn. We couldn't hit the entire farm. Why is that?

Worst conference (MCC, HL, MVC) loss in how many years?

This from Footballscoop:

Valparaiso University (FCS): Valparaiso University is seeking a game for the 2024 season, a home game preferred. This could have the potential for a home and home series. We have the following dates open, September 21, 28 or November 2. Please email at landon.fox@valpo.edu.

We play Morehead on 9/28, but 9/21 and 11/2 still open.

SG —> Soapyjeans?

Apparently, there is no St. Francis game THIS fall. Their schedule has Dayton for '24. No mention of Valpo. Hope we schedule a competitive, winable home game.

EDIT:  The just released schedule confirms no St. Francis in 2024.

[They need to replace the bleachers in that place -- now. It would improve attendance and in-game comfort for us old people who can't walk those "steps." The ARC is plenty useful as an arena if they do that, despite what I read from other fan boards. I can't speak to the facility as a whole. I don't have any need for that.]

Observations from a UE grad/fan.
Great enthusiasm by student body, which makes the ARC a tough place to play. A couple of other sideline notions, but those don't matter much.

They need to replace the bleachers in that place -- now. It would improve attendance and in-game comfort for us old people who can't walk those "steps." The ARC is plenty useful as an arena if they do that, despite what I read from other fan boards. I can't speak to the facility as a whole. I don't have any need for that.

The game itself was basketball as it should be played in an era of drive-to-contact. Nothing ruins a game like 64 free throws. That didn't happen and the players on the court weren't getting into foul trouble. The best can play the game.

I won't evaluate the Valpo team/roster. There are always good players at VU. This year, maybe not enough.

I have always wondered why only one side had retractable chairbacks. Johnu1 has an objective, neutral and valid observation.

By waiting so long last year, the school basically punted this season and we all gotta ride it out. Powell was put behind the 8 ball to get any real talent this year. Ive said it before, but field a somewhat competetive team and build fan/community interest this year. Anything else we can build on this year is strictly a positive.

Clicking on LIKE to your comment is not sufficient. Given the late start and the obstacles Roger confronted, this bunch of young kids he has recruited and is coaching are actually playing over their heads relative to the MVC teams they challenge every game. In today's BB world there'll never be another Fab Five unless the NIL is in the 7 figures —— and we start 3 or sometimes 4 freshmen.

I'm sure the staff already has a target list of possible upperclassmen xfers who can plug our talent holes as well as complement the talent we already have. And even if not all the holes get plugged by new players, the potential of the kids we already have might, after another off-season, be sufficient to bring the squad to .500 in the MVC in year two. 

This is not gonna be an immediate turn-around. We all knew that. Year one is just a peek into the future. Year two will give us solid perspective and set realistic expectations.

Yes, it's Greg's oldest.

As you already know from our offline chats, 16, my vent wasn't that the kids didn't get offers.  It is that at no cost to the coaches, except for a little time sending an form email invite to an evaluation camp which the kids would have paid for) or just an invitation to visit campus, these kids might have had a shot to impress (beyond Hudl clips, which, in their case, were graphically of poor quality and got posted late in the recruiting cycle). Why ignore a QB who was ranked in the top 5 in the state of WI regardless of HS size classification?  Or a  6', 200# RB that has rushed for over 5,000 yards? Both, BTW, are high 3.0 students. Shoot, at least say, hi, is what I'm sayin.

First half - down by 11
Second half - even

We know our obvious  deficiencies in the paint, but we played in the house of one of the two MVC elite teams. Dismissing long runs and big gaps along the way, -11 and even say something positive about our young players.

I missed the game, dammit. Lost by 11. Covered the spread easily.

Checked the stats and Isaiah crushed it - 32 points and great %. Coop and Spoon big foul trouble. Once again we just don't have anyone to lock down the paint.

Hey, this is just a vent, so please give me some slack.

I live in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, near Green Bay. Over the last three seasons TRHS (state playoff semi finalist the last two years) has has had two gems:

A QB/S who has thrown for over 28+ TDs each season at a 68%+ rate. 6'2", 185#, wrestles at the state level, and plays baseball. He is very accurate deep and throws crisp, tight ropes. I know. I've seen him live.

A RB/LB , 6'0", 200# who, as a soph, rushed for 2000 yards, and has run for well over 3000 yards as a junior and senior (as the QB developed). He also averages 100 tackles a season.  Minnesota invited him to camp as a junior.

I have sent, as a FB alum, numerous updates and links to their stats and game performances - that are very impressive. Hardly any acknowledgement or a thank you - and that took pestering.

Apparently, this is how Fox recruits. His staff pulls in kids from FL and OH  who have numerous DIII offers, but these TR kids never, to my knowledge, even got a text or an invite to a camp before their senior year. As an aside, the passing record holder for Valpo is Greg Hoffman - from Manitowoc, the city right next to to TR. 

Right now, the QB committed to UW-Whitewater (DIII and holder of a couple of national championships and plays in a 12,000 seat on-campus stadium). They recruited him hard.

The RB has an offer from Mercer  (FCS)  but it is in wrestling (he's a state finalist).  Ah, he'll be there mainly for FB.

It just pisses me off that all it would have taken was a little interest to just have these kids come visit, pay to come to an evaluation camp.  Maybe no offers would have come, but, dammit, when you recruit you use a net not a hook.

FYI

Just an aside to how this string has recently skewed:  UWGB MBB, a team our youngsters beat earlier in the season, is now on top in the Horizon after beating Oakland. And, of course, the Lady Phoenix are also leading the league.

FWI, on MVCFans some posters are diminishing Coop's creds because he plays for a crappy team and that means he gets more minutes , opportunities, chances, whatever, than freshmen who are on better teams but don't see as much playing time.

I say tough s+!+.  The kid ranks among the best MVC gray beards in many categories. 

Simplistically:  Seniors, etc.  vs. Freshmen. Game to the seniors.  Good for them -  -  - but not by that much. And MVC, you better look over your shoulder next season.

Whether it be a Ual and/or Lucas plus maybe an xfer big, next year, it will be even more fun. These kids are so much fun to watch.  Their exuberance on the floor gets you psyched.

But I wish we had Darius for an additional year.  He is just beginning to reach his potential. He plays within the game. He penetrates. He hits FTs. He  can drain a three at times which no PG in the last few years could do. He is confident and assertive. Big point: He smiles while on the court during the game. This kid loves what he is doing. His dad, former HC at McGill, raised a real player.

I predict that Darius will be the 2024-25 version of Xavier Johnson.