The Chamber is back with a heavy dose of basketball recruiting. But, before we get into that (courtesy of Alex Schiffer), we'll take a look at the AD search, some football recruiting and football team thoughts.
As always, the Chamber is premium information for subscribers only, so please keep discussion limited to the Tiger's Lair.
Let's start with the AD search.
I'd heard some indications, and kind of thought it myself, that were confirmed when I read Hank Foley's Q&A with Joe Walljasper in the Tribune. This is a hire being made by Todd Turner and his search firm. The "search committee" hasn't even been involved yet. Foley has interviewed between five and 10 candidates with Turner. None of the committee members have been involved in that. Now that they're on "round two" the committee will become involved, but it doesn't seem in any way that the search committee has had anything to do with the search until the second round of interviews.
In reading Foley's interview, I also had my information backed up that Jon Sundvold and Mike Owens aren't likely to be Mizzou's next AD. I've been told Sundvold pretty much isn't the guy and it seems that way with Owens to me too. This is going to be somebody with some experience. And it's likely NOT to be someone with significant Mizzou ties in my opinion. It's going to be somebody that Todd Turner and his firm have worked with before. I'd put money on it.
I continue to hear this is going to be done in the next week or two. And Foley admitted that in the Trib. Who they hire? No idea.
-- Fairly quiet week on the recruiting front in football. Coaches have been getting ready for camp, kids have been getting ready for their own practices. A few new offers have gone out and we've posted those in the Daily Down Low threads throughout the week. But as far as real movement, the only news was Larry Boyd naming a top four, which, as expected, included Mizzou, as well as Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Illinois. From what we've heard, Oklahoma State is the big factor here right now, pushing Missouri. Boyd visited Stillwater in June and really enjoyed himself. Still believe Boyd is Missouri's to lose, but the Pokes are very much in the conversation.
-- In addition, after his visit I talked to Tony Adams after he visited Missouri. He told me he had a couple schools in his head, but didn't want to release them. I got the sense from the conversation that Missouri is in excellent shape. And I've talked to some people who think he might be the best athlete in the state this year. Seeing him in person, I think they might be right.
-- The big recruiting news this week was the surprise commitment of 2018 New Orleans (La.) defensive end Josh Smith. It took a lot of us off guard, but the important thing to note is that Missouri's staff is viewing this like a real commitment. There have been recruits who just commit on Twitter before, but don't have Missouri offers (or interest). This isn't that case.
It also signals another departure from how Gary Pinkel offered versus how Barry Odom offered. Gary Pinkel would have the entire staff deliberate on recruits before offering, and sometimes that pace hurt them in the long run. I do not believe Odom is being careless, but he is obviously putting more faith on his individual assistants to offer recruits they believe in without discussing it as a group. That was shown by the fact that Sam Carter, a defensive analyst, was the coach who offered Smith and was recruiting Smith. As we've said, Smith certainly has the frame and build of an FBS defensive lineman. There's plenty of time between NSD 2018, but getting in the door early with Smith could be seen as a huge benefit.
-- Another interesting tidbit -- Missouri sent an official offer out to 2017 Jacksonville (Fla.) QB Mac Jones, a four-star Alabama commitment who was first committed to Kentucky. I have no idea if Missouri has a shot, but Jones started following me (Pete) on Twitter, and started to like and retweet comments I've recently made about Mizzou. No one we've talked to knows if he's interested, but this is certainly out of the blue, and thought I should at least pass it on.
-- Not much more to say than we've said on the departures of Walter Brady and Harold Brantley. Neither is going to be back on the team. Missouri is moving on. No other choice.
-- A few names I've heard good things about the last couple weeks in football: Rickey Hatley, Michael Scherer, Thomas Wilson, Spencer Williams, Marcel Frazier. Also had one person tell me "Marvin Zanders looks like a different quarterback." He won't start, but I can almost guarantee there's a role for him on the field this yea
Hoops recruiting/team update:
Missouri heads to Europeon Fridayf or its tour of Italy. While the only updates we'll get back here is box scores two players whose performances are worth watching are Frankie Hughes and Jordan Geist. Both have impressed the coaching staff over the summer with their scoring ability and appear to be in shape for more playing time than was expected. If both play well in Italy, it will be interesting to see the adjustments Kim Anderson makes with his lineup.
Now on to hoops recruiting.
-- Obviously the departure of Corey Tate leaves the staff a man down to go on the road. We currently don't have an update on who Missouri has interviewed for the vacant assistant coaching job but it likely won't get filled until after the team returns from Europe. Despite Tate's departure, Missouri will continue to recruit Jordan Goodwin, though the Tigers weren't high on their chances for him even with Tate.
NOTE: After posting this, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports tweeted that Anderson will hire Loyola's Emmanuel Dildy as an assistant.
-- Barring a very late addition, Missouri will likely take the scholarship hit from the NCAA sanctions this year giving the Tigers two open scholarships for 2017. The staff is currently focused on adding high scoring guards and their wish list includes the likes of Victor Bailey Jr., Wabissa Bede, Marcus Carr, CJ Roberts, Wyatt Wilkes and Lamine Diane. Right now if looks like the Tigers would take any combination of these guys, should they want to commit.
-- Roberts recently told PowerMizzou he definitely plans to visit Missouri. It appears Missouri has a good shot at him. I saw him play at the Pangos All-American Camp in LA before he had a Missouri offer and a lot of scouts were blown away by him. He put on a show against higher ranked point guards like Trae Young and Trevon Duval and didn't shy away from guarding those guys despite their superior talent. After Roberts scored consecutive baskets on Young's team a scout I'm friendly with came up to me and said, "Who does this kid think he is? No one was expecting him to play like this against these guys."
-- Bede has said Missouri might get a visit but the Tigers have a lot of ground to make up in his recruitment. We are currently playing phone tag with Wyatt Wilkes. Missouri recently made the cut for Wilkes' top five and the coaching staff absolutely thinks Wilkes would be a great get if they can pull it off. After talking with scouts he appears to be a old-fashioned Missouri recruit, the player who outplays his recruiting ranking and didn't get his due in high school for some reason. We'll have more on these two once we get in touch with them.
-- I was able to get in touch with Marcuss Carr, who said he plans to cut his list down within the next week and set up a timetable for the rest of his recruitment. I would expect Missouri to make that cut. He tore his ACL last fall though and missed his entire junior season at Monteverde. I tend to doubt that he’s high on Missouri’s wish list because of his knee but it appears the staff isn’t worried about that. Landing a top-150 out of a national power like Montverde would be impressive for the program, especially given the last two years.
--Then there's Victor Bailey Jr. I've beaten the drum on him for a while now on the board and I'll stick to what I've previously said; If Missouri goes all in on him I think they can get him. His family is still very big followers of the university and understands the problems that are going on on campus. Bailey's recruitment has been very inconsistent, so if the Tigers show they absolutely want him I think he'd commit despite the uncertainty and everything. The parents seem to believe in the university and are optimistic about the problems getting solved here. He plans on setting up some visits soon so I'll reach out to him in the near future to get a feel for his game plan. He had told me at Pangos that he plans to visit Missouri.
As always, the Chamber is premium information for subscribers only, so please keep discussion limited to the Tiger's Lair.
Let's start with the AD search.
I'd heard some indications, and kind of thought it myself, that were confirmed when I read Hank Foley's Q&A with Joe Walljasper in the Tribune. This is a hire being made by Todd Turner and his search firm. The "search committee" hasn't even been involved yet. Foley has interviewed between five and 10 candidates with Turner. None of the committee members have been involved in that. Now that they're on "round two" the committee will become involved, but it doesn't seem in any way that the search committee has had anything to do with the search until the second round of interviews.
In reading Foley's interview, I also had my information backed up that Jon Sundvold and Mike Owens aren't likely to be Mizzou's next AD. I've been told Sundvold pretty much isn't the guy and it seems that way with Owens to me too. This is going to be somebody with some experience. And it's likely NOT to be someone with significant Mizzou ties in my opinion. It's going to be somebody that Todd Turner and his firm have worked with before. I'd put money on it.
I continue to hear this is going to be done in the next week or two. And Foley admitted that in the Trib. Who they hire? No idea.
-- Fairly quiet week on the recruiting front in football. Coaches have been getting ready for camp, kids have been getting ready for their own practices. A few new offers have gone out and we've posted those in the Daily Down Low threads throughout the week. But as far as real movement, the only news was Larry Boyd naming a top four, which, as expected, included Mizzou, as well as Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Illinois. From what we've heard, Oklahoma State is the big factor here right now, pushing Missouri. Boyd visited Stillwater in June and really enjoyed himself. Still believe Boyd is Missouri's to lose, but the Pokes are very much in the conversation.
-- In addition, after his visit I talked to Tony Adams after he visited Missouri. He told me he had a couple schools in his head, but didn't want to release them. I got the sense from the conversation that Missouri is in excellent shape. And I've talked to some people who think he might be the best athlete in the state this year. Seeing him in person, I think they might be right.
-- The big recruiting news this week was the surprise commitment of 2018 New Orleans (La.) defensive end Josh Smith. It took a lot of us off guard, but the important thing to note is that Missouri's staff is viewing this like a real commitment. There have been recruits who just commit on Twitter before, but don't have Missouri offers (or interest). This isn't that case.
It also signals another departure from how Gary Pinkel offered versus how Barry Odom offered. Gary Pinkel would have the entire staff deliberate on recruits before offering, and sometimes that pace hurt them in the long run. I do not believe Odom is being careless, but he is obviously putting more faith on his individual assistants to offer recruits they believe in without discussing it as a group. That was shown by the fact that Sam Carter, a defensive analyst, was the coach who offered Smith and was recruiting Smith. As we've said, Smith certainly has the frame and build of an FBS defensive lineman. There's plenty of time between NSD 2018, but getting in the door early with Smith could be seen as a huge benefit.
-- Another interesting tidbit -- Missouri sent an official offer out to 2017 Jacksonville (Fla.) QB Mac Jones, a four-star Alabama commitment who was first committed to Kentucky. I have no idea if Missouri has a shot, but Jones started following me (Pete) on Twitter, and started to like and retweet comments I've recently made about Mizzou. No one we've talked to knows if he's interested, but this is certainly out of the blue, and thought I should at least pass it on.
-- Not much more to say than we've said on the departures of Walter Brady and Harold Brantley. Neither is going to be back on the team. Missouri is moving on. No other choice.
-- A few names I've heard good things about the last couple weeks in football: Rickey Hatley, Michael Scherer, Thomas Wilson, Spencer Williams, Marcel Frazier. Also had one person tell me "Marvin Zanders looks like a different quarterback." He won't start, but I can almost guarantee there's a role for him on the field this yea
Hoops recruiting/team update:
Missouri heads to Europeon Fridayf or its tour of Italy. While the only updates we'll get back here is box scores two players whose performances are worth watching are Frankie Hughes and Jordan Geist. Both have impressed the coaching staff over the summer with their scoring ability and appear to be in shape for more playing time than was expected. If both play well in Italy, it will be interesting to see the adjustments Kim Anderson makes with his lineup.
Now on to hoops recruiting.
-- Obviously the departure of Corey Tate leaves the staff a man down to go on the road. We currently don't have an update on who Missouri has interviewed for the vacant assistant coaching job but it likely won't get filled until after the team returns from Europe. Despite Tate's departure, Missouri will continue to recruit Jordan Goodwin, though the Tigers weren't high on their chances for him even with Tate.
NOTE: After posting this, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports tweeted that Anderson will hire Loyola's Emmanuel Dildy as an assistant.
-- Barring a very late addition, Missouri will likely take the scholarship hit from the NCAA sanctions this year giving the Tigers two open scholarships for 2017. The staff is currently focused on adding high scoring guards and their wish list includes the likes of Victor Bailey Jr., Wabissa Bede, Marcus Carr, CJ Roberts, Wyatt Wilkes and Lamine Diane. Right now if looks like the Tigers would take any combination of these guys, should they want to commit.
-- Roberts recently told PowerMizzou he definitely plans to visit Missouri. It appears Missouri has a good shot at him. I saw him play at the Pangos All-American Camp in LA before he had a Missouri offer and a lot of scouts were blown away by him. He put on a show against higher ranked point guards like Trae Young and Trevon Duval and didn't shy away from guarding those guys despite their superior talent. After Roberts scored consecutive baskets on Young's team a scout I'm friendly with came up to me and said, "Who does this kid think he is? No one was expecting him to play like this against these guys."
-- Bede has said Missouri might get a visit but the Tigers have a lot of ground to make up in his recruitment. We are currently playing phone tag with Wyatt Wilkes. Missouri recently made the cut for Wilkes' top five and the coaching staff absolutely thinks Wilkes would be a great get if they can pull it off. After talking with scouts he appears to be a old-fashioned Missouri recruit, the player who outplays his recruiting ranking and didn't get his due in high school for some reason. We'll have more on these two once we get in touch with them.
-- I was able to get in touch with Marcuss Carr, who said he plans to cut his list down within the next week and set up a timetable for the rest of his recruitment. I would expect Missouri to make that cut. He tore his ACL last fall though and missed his entire junior season at Monteverde. I tend to doubt that he’s high on Missouri’s wish list because of his knee but it appears the staff isn’t worried about that. Landing a top-150 out of a national power like Montverde would be impressive for the program, especially given the last two years.
--Then there's Victor Bailey Jr. I've beaten the drum on him for a while now on the board and I'll stick to what I've previously said; If Missouri goes all in on him I think they can get him. His family is still very big followers of the university and understands the problems that are going on on campus. Bailey's recruitment has been very inconsistent, so if the Tigers show they absolutely want him I think he'd commit despite the uncertainty and everything. The parents seem to believe in the university and are optimistic about the problems getting solved here. He plans on setting up some visits soon so I'll reach out to him in the near future to get a feel for his game plan. He had told me at Pangos that he plans to visit Missouri.
