BearsTruth Board

What a great interview!

Nice! That was legit Ashley. Thanks for the great questions and glad Coach Weaver gave such detailed answers.

While I would expect him to be excited about his player, the comments others have made + the late growth spurt make me think he is going to be a steal for Baylor.

Also love the positive comments about the Baylor staff.

Soft hands, high motor, competitive fire and a versatile game. I like it.

I know it's asking a lot but an interview of this quality and interest each week with the coach of the a new recruits in the big 4 sports (FB, MBB, WBB, Baseball) would be pretty awesome. If you've already done others where do I find them?

Great interview Ashley ! Sounds like a great kid and a winner !!

May have already been posted, but do we have video on him?

Better than our success with phenoms.

Acy was headed to prep school to improve his offers.

Udoh was a elite defensive recruit that was looking at mid-majors while Michigan weighed their interest. His offense developed at BU.

The recruiting of high schoolers before they reach a real stage of physical and emotional maturity is scandalous in football, where more than a few athletes with an earlier stage of development shine early, only to be diminished in some instances when others catch up and even surpass them.....some find it discouraging to face daily competition for positions which they assumed would be theirs by something akin to divine right. They respond by coasting rather than working, posturing rather than committing to the task at hand....I find it reasonable to think that "late bloomers" will continue to develop more rapidly than many of the highly decorated recruits who have topped out or lost the intensity and desire necessary for advancement in major college football.

Normally, with the exception of big men, the same situation does not prevail in basketball, though there are occasional similarities. Skill sports require early starts, as a rule, and aptitude is easily ascertained by the sophomore or junior year in high school, if not before.
The exception is that represented here: the rapid physical growth that takes a player from one position into another due to inches added along the way. Many fine players, Michael Jordan the most notable example, did not have the early success that marks the precocious young athlete, but with accelerated growth and application, soon enough show that they belong.

I normally discount the comments of high school coaches who tout their own players, and prefer to hear what rival coaches have to say about them. It is customary to enlarge the profiles of those in whom we have invested so much, and it colors our judgments. But this coach seems to have touched on some of the most important points of interest, and I was particularly interested to note that his player performed at his best against the superior teams he faced. That competitive edge is the most important element in the review of his year of growth and achievement.

If it is present, the rest can be coached -- if it is absent, or in small supply, the best of coaches will fail to hone his skills to the necessary level. His passion for the game and his sense of the value of team unity are highlights; I think that Coach Drew has found a gem.
Sometimes in assessing recruiting it is as important to note who a staff passes over as it is who they select. Some great talents are not a good fit, and Drew knows that. The gap between a superior talent at 17 or 18 and one of somewhat lesser apparent ability is not as great as some might think, but the difference in attitude is critical. I like this choice, as I liked the one of Rykhoek, because I think that there is something to build on and I never underestimate the value of continuity in a program.