PG Austin Waddoups from American Fork has signed with Southern Utah after getting a scholarship offer on May 6. Idaho State also offered him a scholarship. The Bengals offered on May 4. As far as I can tell, it is the first recruit for SUU.
"It feels great - it feels like a huge stress relief," he said. "I kinda knew it was gonna be like this. A lot of people have told me I'm too small to play Division I ball. I wanted to be patient."However, he will not be helping SUU this year. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Waddoups will go on his LDS Mission starting this July, and will join the team for 2014. I believe Waddoups is the Thunderbirds' first recruit this year.
And waiting for something good worked out for Waddoups, who helped lead American Fork to a share of the Region 4 title this past season. He was the second-leading scorer on the Cavemen, which also boasted Utah State signees Quincy Bair and Marcel Davis.
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< sarcasm >This bodes well for ISU, making late offers and getting beat by the new member of the conference for his services. < /sarcasm >
ReplyDeleteYeah no kidding. Kids never choose other schools.
ReplyDelete-Cub
Bill Evans is a joke
ReplyDeleteBut of course he is. Is this about Swanson or Bill Evans?
ReplyDelete-Cub
Who's Swanson?
ReplyDeleteNot sure... Thought this was about Evans lack of ability to recruit.
ReplyDeleteYou guys are all confusing me now!
ReplyDeleteBased on ISU's record and situation left to them from the worst Bengal coach in 50 years, O'Brien, I'd expect recruiting to be a little tough. But, they did have a head start in knowing they'd be searching for a coach, and it boggles the mind a little that schools such as NAU and SUU, with coaching hires which took place much later, are out-recruiting ISU. I think making an initial offer to a high school player on May 4th, for crying out loud, shows they didn't have their ducks lined up in a row.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what the deal with mentioning Swanson is?
Not sure why you would call Evan's a joke, either. If that was you. That is the thing about being anonymous, you can't tell who you are talking to.
ReplyDeleteSo, ISU did not get a kid that is going on a mission this summer? This kid chose Southern Utah--and that makes ISU and Evan's a bad? Forget the fact that the kid can be recruited after his mission. This is what I call a feel good signing. Because the kid will not play this year and who knows what will happen after his mission. So, this is in no was a signing that helps or hurts anyone immediately.
With that said, the lack of commitments this late in the process concerns me too. As I am sure you are aware, ISU has APR problems in football and these deficiencies have riddled the whole athletic department. So, what does that have to do with recruiting you ask? Well ISU's academic requirements now far exceed any school in the Big Sky Conference--because the BEEFED UP standards are now in place for all athletic programs. Evans is no doubt handcuffed by these stringent academic hurdles. So the recruiting challenges have less to do with Evans and more to do with Idaho State as a whole.
My reference to Swanson was from a thread earlier bashing Evans for not giving him a scholarship. It is amazing that friends and family members use a forum like this to try and influence opinions and force a coaches hand. One must also remember that any walk-on that would be awarded a scholarship would have to meet very stringent academic requirements as well. NOT SAYING that Swanson did or did not, but any potential walk-on getting a scholarship would need to meet those requirements. So, ISU has challenges going that route as well.
-Cub
I thought Garrett Swanson was told he'd get a scholarship next year. Is this true, then, that Evans pulled the offer?
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