RecoveringHillbilly

https://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/2021/08/syracuse-native-former-syracuse-star-felisha-legette-jack-is-very-interested-in-syracuse-womens-basketball-job.html

Not a shock, her home, her alma mater.

2 hours ago, Buffalobonnie said:

UB to the ACC? Big 10?  Didn't you guys just get rid of soccer and baseball because they were too expensive? Did you get a new football stadium?    Don't forget us when you go to the ACC.

In all seriousness, the costs/savings were a red herring. Only Men's swimming caused a real battle to try to reinstate. UB saw how several P5 programs had the minimum of sports so they re-evaluated the department. UB's athletics spending went from $31M in 2014 to $46M in 2019. And since the cuts occurred, UB won more contests and MAC titles then ever before. So most have forgotten.

3 hours ago, MKBullsfan said:

Great start to this game. If we play our up tempo game no one can hang with us. Need Wes to be healthy by Saturday. Where was Moss? Anyway, great team win and let’s go Bulls. 

I saw Moss was inactive. Seeing Nate give the helmet to Perk was amazing but Wes with crutches in the locker room was tough to see.

There is a lot being thrown out there with little clarity, lots of click bait, some logical and some wishful. And tons of 'truthiness": One tweet says Kansas has a call with Big10 set up, another sports writer says no there isn't, someone retorts it is calls to schools not the Big10 offices. Someone reports A&M was kept in the dark for months by the SEC, then reporters push back and say they have heard that is false.

People will clamor the other conferences have to react but it is not so easy, there are many issues with GoR, long TV deals and core rivalries. It is only the Big12 who have to clamor, just like the Big East before them. Both were always unstable leagues for various reasons. Texas didn't like that the recent Big12 tv contract look-in did not look so hot. And Oklahoma got sick of being pushed into way too many 11am kickoffs to satisfy tv demands. It makes sense for them to look elsewhere

The PAC12 have said they are in no rush but will listen, which is wise. The Big10 can sit and wait as they print money just as well as the SEC. Sure they could take Kansas and Iowa St easily (both are AAU), but they will likely wait and see. The ACC can wait forever for Notre Dame (contractually the Domers can only join the ACC). I am a WVU fan and I'd be shocked if they invited the 'eers, as much as WVU fans are pushing hard once again for an ACC invite. So I think the Big 12 stays together and adds 2-4 teams.

A great story from the Bronstein on how it all came together. I wish I could always give this level of commitment to UB!

link

Ahh, 10 years on and once again so many are distracted by realignment. I didn't even notice the Olympic Opening Ceremonies...why do that when I could read football reactions on twitter and message board?

There is so little information this early on with the exception of the actual UT/OU actions coming along fast. Is it true KU and ISU are set to talk to the Big10? Maybe, as the same iffy tweet on it are being picked up by media. But of course all the teams have to make calls, and based on the Big 12/AAC fan boards, they are all in good hands because their leaders are "looking out for them and will not let them down." Just wait when they do let some fans down. I especially love how realignment talks go on at the very highest levels but they find sources and talk to anon AD's who say things like Cincinnati and UCF won't move the needle (a Big 12 AD), or Big 12 schools would not move the needle (an ACC AD). So do they think there are other UT's and OU's out there, and only those move the needle? It is like everyone thinks their school deserves to be in the best conference, playing the top 10 teams, and making $40+ a year in TV money. Humility is in short order these days.

This site has us projected as the 6th best mid-major, behind only Gonzaga, BYU (mid-majors..based on conference only), Loyola, Drake, and Belmont.

https://heatcheckcbb.com/college-basketball-mid-major-rankings/

ESPN recalculated their pre-season Power Index and it still left us at #64, also 1st in the MAC, so 2 major CFB sites can't be wrong! 🤘

Great stuff Dabulls!

https://twitter.com/UBmenshoops/status/1413184478168719360?s=20

Skogman! Damn..

And the usual from the veterans. 

https://twitter.com/Dev1n__50/status/1412521905232437253?s=20

Big DT on one of the most loaded HS teams in the country.

Local story on him

Great to see all the connections and JP's success was a big factor.

6 hours ago, Jeseph said:

Brock has also signed with Barstool 🤣

https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ8seKLrlii/

Amazing! 🤑

And unfortunately for student athletes like Mballa, who are here on a Student Visa, and its restrictions on earning a living, much needs to be worked out on that front.

https://twitter.com/PeteThamel/status/1410416591158849536?s=20

Sources: Buffalo has received 12 commitments among the 14 official visits it has held since Mo Linguist took over as coach. Nine of those are commitments for the 2022 class. Bulls off to a hot start.

Reloading and winning off-field battles already. 

Built like a linebacker and too fast to be a fullback. Already more beef than Jordan Johnson when he came to UB. Hopefully he can be as productive as Thermilus was as a big tailback, at the least.

Great! I was hopeful we would get a verbal from a local receiver among McMillian, Addison Copeland (Pitt Verbal), Paul Woods (Rutgers transfer verbal to URI). He should be a solid MAC receiver, and I am glad we impressed him over Toledo, as they have signed some solid WNY players out from under us in the past.

Projections

Thanks! A much better prognostication than Phil Steele who picked us 4th in the East.

Going off the Quian Williams transfer from EMU to UB, it is basically a next Bull up at WR as Daniel Lee entered his name to the portal today. Williams is younger and more versatile. 

He was their top kickoff return man, so that's a plus. Agreed, he could end up a solid contributor. 

14 hours ago, Dabulls said:

I believe that Khamran Laborn could take Wilson’s spot, he’s incredibly quick. We got some good linemen as well coming in. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the true freshman step up and play this season 

I have wondered about Khamran. He has ability and I would bet he wants to be on the field with his cousin this year. But with several SR and super Sr WR's, would this staff choose to RS him, like the last staff handled Anthony Johnson out of JUCO? That worked out well in the long run. Marlyn Johnson and Porter will push those Sr's for playing time, too.

I agree a freshman, like Gassett, would be tough to sit if he has the major talent his speed could provide.

46 minutes ago, UBinMD said:

Good analysis. I see that O'Hagan is coming back to help out, so maybe he can help with that learning curve for the next center. I'm really looking forward to having the past players around. It seems like our current coaching staff is going above and beyond to get them back in the fold. I never heard anything about the previous coaching staff doing any of that. It seemed odd not to lean on those people that have had success. I'm glad that's becoming a thing now. The kids will enjoy it I think!

True, past players would visit under the last staff, but adding from the past winning teams can only help.

I certainly hope we grab a few more transfers and haven't slowed down. The Big 12 isn't the best defensive league by a long shot but I like the look of Rogers and Beck fitting in.

This year's graduations and transfers are no where close to the loses from 2018 into 2019. We had only 2 of 10 All-MAC players back in Patterson and Ksiezarczyk. And we won 8 games.

6 hours ago, 121Merrimac said:

Wow, huge numbers.  50M will go to athletics. 

https://mobile.twitter.com/WMUBroncos/status/1402322347248414720

What you get when Michigan has no major private universities. UM is basically a state-related monster with a $12B endowment, driven by Detroit's economy and giving. MSU AAU with a $3.5B endowment as well. Donations will end up at Wayne St and the MAC Directionals before the likes of Detroit Mercy.

Teams that lost the most per 247.com

Based on the Athlon projections link in the article, as far as starters that projected 2 deep looks glaring (Debose + Cone should be circled too, while Woods is still on the roster). As it is, before the transfers we had four 2020 All-MAC players going pro who had to be replaced. Riggins, Wright, James Patterson, Fuzak, Marks, Ron Cook, McNulty have been All-MAC, and Vantrease is 12-4 as a starter. Winning the MAC East looks a lot tougher, but another bowl should be our team's basement. We need:

*Polgar to step in a center, the same way Novitsky stepped in for O'Hagan. Or he/Jordan Johnson at guard, if the new JUCO center wins a starting spot. Otherwise the backup OL players have decent experience in the last 2 years of blowout wins. You just hope the blocking schemes of the new staff fit the zone blocking experience of the current players.

*We have experienced possession and slot receivers, and Molinich is a beast blocking TE. So we need to uncover at least 1 speedster among the younger WR's and work in Tyler Stevens as a tall TE receiving option.

*Adam Beck should be competitive at DB to replace Hill. DB's and LB's are experienced and strong MAC units. Rogers in for Wilson, different skills at DT but should flourish in the MAC. Depth players like Polizzi, Wolo, and Kyler Laing were sneaky productive when they got in last season so the D should be a strength.

https://twitter.com/UBFootball/status/1403462935213744136?s=20

No doubt he and staff have the best plan forward to prepare for Wagner.

The 2021 roster is updated and all the signees are listed, with none of the transfers coming in listed yet. Tyrece Woods is still listed so not sure what that indicates. OL and DT are worrisome so it's exciting to see the transfer commitments.

Silly me forgot the UB women had no post-season options as the WNIT post season tournament was not around until '98, and UB was on their 4 year transition until '95-'96.

For UB, that fact, along with geography, hurt Townsend's attempts to gain an invite from the NAC (America East), while Hofstra and Townson were admitted. The Hockey East/NAC schools did us no favors, while Ippoliti + Mid-Con/MAC Presidents, pulled UB out of the depths with two conference invitations. It is incredible that UB was in the D-1 hinterlands in 1993, but once they were out of their transition in 1995, the MAC invited. 

On 6/7/2021 at 11:03 PM, BrooklynBull said:

If you consider going 89-107 after the prior coach (Sal Buscaglia) went 155-71.

Comparatively, yes, back then I felt like the women's team were setting a standard out of the gate in the MAC, like the women's soccer team when they won the 2000 MAC regular season title. MAC women's basketball was earning 2 bids several years, so it was a step-up from the ECC/Mid-Con competition. Beat UNC for one more half than the men did vs the Tar Heels. Multiple players were earning All-MAC awards, unlike MBB who didn't have anyone above HM/All-Freshman team until Battle was 2nd team in 03-04.