Big 4 Hoops Blogger

Just mentioned this in the QB1 thread but Ogbonna looked solid on Saturday. He was whipping the ball around and connected on multiple deep balls to Taji Johnson for 50+ yard touchdowns. He also threw a TD to Victor Snow. It's clear they're testing his arm out during the spring.

I've been to two spring practices so far. It appears that CJ Ogbonna has a solid lead over Gunnar Gray. Ogbonna had three touchdown passes during their scrimmage on Saturday including two BOMBS to Taji Johnson who had himself a day! Gray really hasn't really stood out too much. Can't wait for the Spring Game to see how they play in front of a crowd!

I've been to two spring practices and can already see a huge difference between how things are run under Lembo compared to Mo. Practices have been upbeat and he enjoys being a teacher and letting his coaches coach. He's going to get UB football back on track. Btw, CJ Ogbonna looked really good during their scrimmage on Saturday and appears to be leading the QB battle.

Right now, Canisius is in the beginning stages of their NIL. They're not really sure what to expect but their number one goal is aimed at player retention. Niagara also has an NIL collective launching as well. Stay tuned regarding UB!

I was at the Jim Christian press conference today and spoke with him afterwards. I'm going to increase my college basketball coverage next season. With me being back with Trainwreck Sports, I will be credentialed with UB, Canisius and Niagara so I look forward to providing additional content in the future.

Nate Oats ends the speculation by tweeting that he's staying at Alabama. Good for him!

Calipari is heading to an Arkansas program that's giving him a $5 million/year NIL budget and leaving Kentucky where he was feeling the heat. He was also looking into the Ohio State vacancy a little while back according to reports. The Blue Blood jobs are still alluring but you're right that some coaches don't want the added pressure at those type of schools.

Your top point is significant. The question is whether or not Oats truly cares about that. We know he says he does but he also discussed turning UB into the Gonzaga of the east and that was all talk. Oats is good enough to win a title at Alabama which would make him a God down there. At Kentucky, they'd get upset if he didn't eventually win one. The difference is that it's fairly easy to have UK in contention every year. It's not that simple to do that at Bama even though he's had them in the NCAA Tournament four consecutive years. He could absolutely stay at Alabama and would continue to succeed. Will be interesting how everything plays out.

Kentucky basketball is the equivalent of Alabama football. We're talking about a school that's potentially willing to pay an $18 million buyout and possibly give Oats a substantial raise over what's already an incredible contract. Oats is an amazing coach and recruiter at a school like Bama. Imagine would he could do at a Blue Blood. I'm not exaggerating when I say this... He could be one of the best head coaches of this generation if he takes the Kentucky job. I'm talking about someone that could win multiple National Championships and be remembered as an all-time great among the likes of Roy Williams, Coach K and Rick Pitino. There isn't even a comparison between Kentucky and Alabama outside of resources. The question is whether Oats wants to stay with the project he built or be the star coach at probably the top job in the nation. Kentucky vs. Alabama: 17 Final Fours to 1 8 National Championships to none Blue Blood vs. solid SEC program

Those are the two big questions right now. I think Oats could become one of the best coaches of this generation if he goes to Kentucky. Knowing how much he cares about winning, it's hard for me to see him turning down that type of opportunity.

If Kentucky is willing to pay his MASSIVE buyout, I think Oats would bolt to Kentucky in a second. It's a true blue blood with unlimited resources and a ton of history. Perfect timing coming off a Final Four appearance. Could get interesting soon.

Looking back, it's clear that Adam Cohen and Ben McCollum were really good candidates. Calhoun... Who knows the real story with him... My UB sources now seem to indicate he wasn't really part of the discussion despite a few Twitter accounts throwing his name out last year. What I can say is that I'm of the belief Buffalo thought they had a really good chance to land Cohen when they originally let go of Jim Whitesell and that something happened that they either didn't anticipate or he changed course after gathering more information.

Tahj Staveskie averaged 10.5 ppg, 4.5 assists and 4 rebounds per game as a freshman at Canisius and was a big reason the Griffs were picked to finish 3rd in the MAAC preseason poll. He only played in two games last year due to an injury. The rumor is that he either didn't rehab it properly or something happened that prevented him from returning. The injury was not supposed to be season ending so it either worsened or he chose to sit out games as some Canisius fans speculate. On the surface, he would be a quality transfer for UB and would probably instantly slot in as their starting point guard. Zxavier Long is more of a hustle guy. 7 ppg and 6 rebounds as a sophomore but missed all of last year. Would be a decent add if healthy. These aren't the type of guys UB would've targeted in the past with Oats but wouldn't be bad pickups considering where the program currently is. It's hard to get experienced transfers right now with our NIL situation. Gotta take what you can get! (Don't know if the rumors of them being interested in UB are true or false)

The high school route was their strategy last offseason. They've been actively pursuing transfers since the portal opened. The NIL situation is getting addressed as well. These are all reasons why I said recently that I have some optimism about their program heading into the future despite what happened this past season.

There's a difference between what they want to do and what they're actually able to do. They know their roster wasn't properly constructed this past season.

Yea, you're absolutely right. I'm not sure Oats would've signed an extension with a much larger buyout though when that could've been a deterrent from other schools pursuing him. The buyout money definitely should've been used for going after a bigger coaching candidate though.

Have heard that Halcovage has gone into this offseason with a slightly different team building mentality. He arrived at UB last year with the intention of building the program through young players and development. I think he's aware that he needs more veterans on this team. Whether or not he'll be successful in convincing experienced players to transfer to UB is another story.

To be fair, Oats signed that extension fully aware that he was likely leaving in the near future. He was doing the athletic department a favor with the buyout but UB chose to promote a cheaper internal candidate rather than spend big money on an up and coming outsider.

Had a quick little interview with Pete Lembo following practice today.

The recent talk was that they were close to establishing one but were undecided about going public about it.

There's several leaders within P5 programs that think some of these issues need to be addressed as well. The biggest problem is that the NCAA is powerless. They tried to force 2nd time transfers to sit out a year but that was struck down in court. I don't think the majority of the P5 schools care about the money aspect but I do believe there's some anger about the unlimited transfers and players attempting to use NIL against in ways that are detrimental to their own schools.

I went in-depth regarding some of the unintended consequences of NIL and the transfer portal and why it's absolutely vital that both be regulated in the near future. I also discuss why that's easier said than done with the NCAA being essentially powerless to do anything at the current moment. Let me know your thoughts!

Here's a video I made with an in-depth breakdown of the consequences of NIL and the transfer portal and why they need to be addressed by the NCAA.