UTEP Gets 2008 National Top 100

[Terry Webster]

Excuse my ignorance about rating services, but how does a kid who averages only 11 points and 8 rebounds a game end up getting a top 100 ranking? I realize that the rankings are very subjective, but how do they rate him so high?

[mathman]

Excuse my ignorance about rating services, but how does a kid who averages only 11 points and 8 rebounds a game end up getting a top 100 ranking? I realize that the rankings are very subjective, but how do they rate him so high?

Maybe Stallion has the answer for you. I have quit trying to figure out how Rivals rates players or teams.

[Stampede]

I guess a person can look at a poster's "handle" and presume a bias of "sunshine or darkness" However, no sunshine intended....only facts about how SMU's recruiting board is shaping up.

Will we sign better players? Probably. But only time will tell. Will 3-star, 4-star or 5-star players develop into the players coaches project them to be? Only time will tell.

Coach Doherty is recruiting and recruiting well. Imagine that....with a whole year to recruit instead of a couple of months to recruit (last year). Come on. This is not cheerleading...simply fact.

I admit there is a lot of time between now and signing date and the minds of both coaches and players will change many times between now and then. But for now, Coach Dohertyand staff are getting great interest from players from around the country.

[PonyDoh]

Ouch, that sort of verbal/no verbal hurts Barbee in that recruitment. In other news, the best player to come out of El Paso since Kenny Thomas, Cliff Tucker, is set to announce this week. Word has it that he'll dagger Barbee and sign w/Maryland

[PonyDoh]

also, stars aren't what makes up a class, other offers are the judge of talent level. Stars in hoops, to often are the result of the summer circuit. What if a kid is injured or isn't committed to a national traveling team w/shoe affiliation etc? No offense to stallion, as he's a beacon of truth when it comes to football recruiting, but he's not a hoop evaluator, its pretty obvious.

Kids like Harp, Dia & Rhodes had major offers on the table, unlike most of our recruits the past 10 or so years. It may not be a Top 25 class, but its an excellent building block

[friarwolf]

Excuse my ignorance about rating services, but how does a kid who averages only 11 points and 8 rebounds a game end up getting a top 100 ranking? I realize that the rankings are very subjective, but how do they rate him so high?

6'8" does a lot for a kid, so does playing in visible tournaments in the summer, transferring to a well regarded high school with a history of winning, and best of all - transferring to a school with a well regarded coach who has personal connections with Kunstadt all add up to a very nice ranking.

[Stallion]

Scouts project players to the next level. High school stats are next to worthless unless a recruit's size, quickness, height, jumping ability and other intangibles project to the next level. SMU's alleged top national recruiting class has a lot of players who probably didn't score 10 ppg as a Junior. What did Dia average? I only saw one tournament where he appeared to show a strong offensive game. I saw more where he was held under 10 points or didn't even show up in the leading scorers-for whatever reason. Mike Walker doesn't appear in any of the leading scorers briefs I've seen- I not sure he got off the bench. I think Nykundi averaged less than 10 ppg as a Junior. Alex Malone averaged I believe in the 12-14 ppg as a Junior but isn't close to the inside presence of a Brown. Bamba Fall has absolutely no offensive game even as Sophmore in College except for dunks. Rhodes I've been lead to believe is more of a scorer-I think he averaged about 15 ppg on a good prep school team. Harp is the only recruit that I've personally been able to verify has put up big numbers going back to his Junior year. Now Malone and Nykundi did show a lot of scoring improvement as Seniors averaging 23 ppg and about 17-18 ppg respectively. But its a lot harder to get season stats on the others. Maybe Pony Pride can give us Spring Signing Date Report that includes this info.

[Stallion]

according to SMUMUSTANGS.com our early signees averaged to following in the year preceding last year:

Dia 7.8
Nykundi 8.4
Walker 5.2
Malone 14
Harp 22.5

Of course, this was prior to this season and prior to the commitments of Rhodes and "Special K"

[ponydawg]

according to SMUMUSTANGS.com our early signees averaged to following in the year preceding last year:

Dia 7.8
Nykundi 8.4
Walker 5.2
Malone 14
Harp 22.5

Of course, this was prior to this season and prior to the commitments of Rhodes and "Special K"

So if that was their Junior year, anyone know about their senior year?

[PonyTales]

Scouts project players to the next level....

Yup - always looking for the next Harold Minor and Mike Mamula!
Woohoo! Go rivals! Go scout!
Useless - give me the analysis of people who actually watch players, rather than just measuring their broad jump.

[Alaric]

Scouts project players to the next level....

Yup - always looking for the next Harold Minor and Mike Mamula!
Woohoo! Go rivals! Go scout!
Useless - give me the analysis of people who actually watch players, rather than just measuring their broad jump.

Post of the month

[Argyle Pony]

I am happy with this years' recruits. We have size, speed and good shooters per coach. I think this is an excellent group considering our record. Three things will give us an edge for the higher profile player...1. Better Record, Better Attendance, and the new Practice facility. The only one of those that we know will be with us is the new facility. I think attendance will be better in the start because of our awareness of the new recruits, but we will have to wait and see about the record. We all have opinions, but regardless, I am excited!!! Go Mustangs!!!

[Argyle Pony]

It Should have read...1. Better Attendance, 2. Better Record, and 3. New Practice facility...thanks