@vu72 Can’t argue with your assessment of Roger. I love the guy too. And he is a helluva coach.
He made a commitment to Valpo two years ago. But like everything today, change accelerates at an exponential rate. That includes the evolution (explosion) of the NIL monster in just two years. The truth is little Valpo, my beloved alma mater and the source off one of the best 4 years of my life, is freakin in over its head without a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of.
Cooper, some knowledgeable experts/pundits have stated, will be in the $700K-$900K bidding bracket. Even as a freshman, Wright, All-Arch Madness, is right up there as well. He’s gone too next year or sooner.
Valpo is now, in just these two years, already relegated to the MVC bottom three in perpetuity. Based on past performance by Valpo supporters, all of the 10 larger schools will find ways to raise more NIL $$$ than Valpo can even imagine.
And Roger getting excited at becoming a feeder to the big boys keeps us in the basement and doesn’t quite fit into the motto: Champions in competition, the community and the classroom.
If we were to downgrade to D-II and Roger stayed around for a few years, I believe Valpo will quickly return to impressive winning and he would eventually be in the same position McCallum was in when Drake hired him. All this NIL crap will sort itself out in the sort run and Roger would be looking at a new DI possessing an incredible winning record and tons of offers vs. a losing record in the the same time frame if we stubbornly stay in the MVC.
Not certain how this is going to play out for me but this might be my last rodeo. I don't like our position or options for the future and I refuse to be fan of a mercenary system of constantly changing new faces. So personally, I am leaning toward ending my life long love affair with college basketball and taking the total cold turkey approach. To make this work I am now considering choosing a new comcast package which excludes all college basketball, dropping ESPN+, never going to the ARC except for volleyball, and sorry Paul but maybe dropping my Victory Bell subscription as well. I know this sounds extreme but in the bizarre and alien world in which I have just landed it might be my best path for shaking a serious addiction.
@vu72 Can’t argue with your assessment of Roger. I love the guy too. And he is a helluva coach.
He made a commitment to Valpo two years ago. But like everything today, change accelerates at an exponential rate. That includes the evolution (explosion) of the NIL monster in just two years. The truth is little Valpo, my beloved alma mater and the source off one of the best 4 years of my life, is freakin in over its head without a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of.
Cooper, some knowledgeable experts/pundits have stated, will be in the $700K-$900K bidding bracket. Even as a freshman, Wright, All-Arch Madness, is right up there as well. He’s gone too next year or sooner.
Valpo is now, in just these two years, already relegated to the MVC bottom three in perpetuity. Based on past performance by Valpo supporters, all of the 10 larger schools will find ways to raise more NIL $$$ than Valpo can even imagine.
And Roger getting excited at becoming a feeder to the big boys keeps us in the basement and doesn’t quite fit into the motto: Champions in competition, the community and the classroom.
If we were to downgrade to D-II and Roger stayed around for a few years, I believe Valpo will quickly return to impressive winning and he would eventually be in the same position McCallum was in when Drake hired him. All this NIL crap will sort itself out in the sort run and Roger would be looking at a new DI possessing an incredible winning record and tons of offers vs. a losing record in the the same time frame if we stubbornly stay in the MVC.
Powell's 90 sec social media post was an ad to high school and prep school seniors that Valpo will build their resume so they can earn future dollars. As a fan of the program he's telling me that this season may be the best it gets. The chances of a high rate of success with a roster full of freshman and sophomore's is pretty low. Frankly, if that's the plan....and I absolutely don't know if it is or is just advertising....then Powell should be jettisoned tomorrow as he has next to no chance to field a competitive team. Bring in someone who'll attempt to compete in the MVC in a more diverse manner.
As to dropping divisions....I don't see the program doing it and I don't see Powell having any part of it if by some bizarre happenstance it were to occur.
According to All Wrights Twitter he had multiple offers. Also, NIL deals cannot be over 1 year. I believe they are on an annual basis. A buyout really wouldn’t work unless there were updates to the NCAAs rules who generally move slow.
I also noticed that Powells message got a good response from the new recruits parents.
It looks like Valpo has been mentioned a few times for transfers receiving interest. Glad to see that theyre active already.
I hope that Tyler stays, with his 6th year of eligibility. The guy proved that he can be a great 3rd option for around half a season, and knows what he needs to do with his body in the offseason, to last a full D-1 season at that level. If Stafford stays, I am less worried about Wright potentially following Cooper. It'd be great to pair Stafford and Wright together, throw in Tyler, Pettigrew, and Jeff/Sepp. We don't have to replace Cooper's production at his exact position, if our guards are all ballers.
