Swan88

Jacob Hammond decomitted from Oklahoma in May of 2013 and committed to the Huskers in mid-August of 2013 (according to Rivals). The three Oklahoma commitments to-date, Buford, Lattin and McNeace, all committed (according to Rivals) to Oklahoma in October and November of 2013. While these three players appear to be excellent recruits for Oklahoma, they appear to have no connection to Jacob Hammonds decommitment decision, which occurred a half-year earlier.

Robin Washut (aka Robin Washnut) has a premium article this morning on Trey Dickerson. Sounds like an offer and official visit to Huskerland are a possibility. Check it out.

Hey, Norm, thought you'd enjoy reading the following post on Michigan's free Rivals board from a Michigan fan who seems to support your view: "We played well enough to win but I don't remember winning a big ten road game where so many bounces and 50/50 calls by the refs went our way. Not saying certain calls were wrong just, sayin..."

Or . . . If Smith hadn't traveled two or three times in a row . . . or if he hadn't given up that pick-six with 1:26 remaining . . .

Got back from the game and turned on the BTN wrap up show. Had I not known the score and what happened at the end, it sounded for all the world that Michigan won big and going away and that Michigan players are world beaters compared to the Huskers. Was shocked--had expected something a little more balanced. What's with that?

"Does Rivers do more for us than Hawkins did? I think there's probably a good chance he would have," says Norm. That's why you get those millions of dollars, Norm--to make judgment calls like that for the Husker basketball program. . . . Oh, wait a minute . . . that would be Tim Miles, not Norm. Never mind.

Here are some observations on progress of players through the Iowa game: 1. Inconsistency is a problem with this young team, but improvements are occurring at a meaningful pace. 2. Petteway is showing he can score a bunch of points, even against quality teams who know he is a scoring threat. Loved the TV announcer's recent comparison of his Nebrasketball production so far with his 3 points per game average at Tech--makes Tim Miles look like a genius in player development. 3. Biggs is making dramatic progress, even though his progress graph-line has significant peaks and valleys. 4. While it's easy to be frustrated with Pitchford's deficiencies, the reality is that he's making significant improvement. A double/double against Iowa, for example, is no minor accomplishment, and his defensive errors seem to be improving. 5. Webster is growing into his role. Like Biggs, his improvement graph is not a straight line, but it seems to be trending steeply upward nonetheless. 6. Shields' Sophomore slump will not last forever, particularly if progress by those mentioned above continues apace. 7. The fact cannot be ignored that the Huskers put up a valiant effort against Iowa, a ranked team, even though last year's second-leading scorer did not take a single shot from the floor in 23 minutes of play. The conclusion is this: significant progress is being made with this exceedingly young team.

My vote moved him up to 6.

One of the great benefits (sarcasm intended) to be derived from reading sports message boards like this is an increased level of stress and increased blood pressure over potential problems and potential benefits for a sports team . . . that never materialize. Over the holiday season we've collectively agonized and/or thrilled over the prospect of Hawkins transferring to A&M, Fuller not traveling with the team to Cincinnati, Biggs not traveling to Cincinnati, Webster going pro, someone else leaving Nebrasketball, Agau transferring back home, a kid from Utah St. transferring here, a kid from Georgetown transferring here--none of which materialized, other than the no-big-deal events of two guys not traveling to Cincinnati. But it's great entertainment and fun nonetheless . . .

The kid is from Omaha, recruited from Nebraska, and went to Louisville. I don't understand anyone's rational who thinks he would want to come back when he already had the chance to be here. You mean like the kid from Grant, Nebraska, recruited from Nebraska, and went to Duke? Can't understand how he would come back to Nebraska when he already had the chance to be here? It happened for Bill Jackman.

Here is a link to the official announcement on the Louisville University website, and here is the text of the announcement: Dec. 20, 2013 LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Louisville forward Akoy Agau has been suspended indefinitely from the Cardinals' men's basketball team. A 6-foot-8 freshman from Omaha, Neb., Agau (pronounced uh-KOY uh-GOW; like cow with a "G") has appeared in seven games this season, scoring two points and grabbing seven rebounds. He averaged 12.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and blocked 81 shots as a senior last season in leading Omaha Central to a 26-4 record and a fourth straight Nebraska Class A state championship. Louisville (10-1) plays at FIU on Saturday (6 p.m., Fox Sports 1).

And it's tough to make a run in any tournament with only a 6- or 7-man rotation of healthy players, like the end of last year.

Here is a recent highlights video from Sunrise Christian Academy. Keanu Pinder is # 20.

This statement from Whittington appears to have a Tim Miles' sense-of-class written all over it: "I'd like to thank Georgetown. I really appreciate everything they did for me -- both the coaching staff and the players," Whittington said, "but now it's time for me to move to another stage in my life."

Don't think this is Rosenthal's transfer because: 1. This player is coming as a walk-on; and 2. Rosenthal seems to be referring to a scholarship player: "I can say this: Keep an eye on a midseason Division I transfer. Somebody that would fill the current vacant scholarship and would be eligible to play by the time NEXT Big Ten season starts."

Here's guessing that Whittington is not Rosenthal's transfer.

If Whittington is Rosenthal's transfer, why are we waiting for the announcement? The guy has been dismissed from the Georgetown team and is available for other schools to consider, so there is no reason for secrecy or for being coy. Also, Rosenthal seems to suggest that this transfer is a done deal and merely awaiting the appropriate time for announcement, while Whittington still appears to be looking at options.

Here is some information from the internet (so it must be true) on Comanche High School in Oklahoma: Comanche High School Enrollment: Total Enrollment - 338 Rank in Oklahoma - 136 out of 466 Comanche High School Students by Grade: 9th - 94 10th - 87 11th - 74 12th - 83 Comanche High School Students by Gender: Male - 168 (50%) Female - 170 (50%)

Loved seeing the flagrant foul from Creighton's sixth-year senior! It was very telling moment: end of the game with a 15-or-so point spread, the spread had been 30+ earlier in the half, starters for both teams were still in the game, Huskers were in the midst of a significant run, the Husker's press was having an effect, Huskers were getting some break-away flushes, Petteway out-hustled everyone to the ball, and the "seasoned" player from Creighton let his frustrations take over. That moment spoke volumes about what was happening on the court and about the winning team's frustration over a turning-of-the-tide of dominance on the court--from the Senior-laden home team to the upstart team dominated by freshmen and sophomores in their first "away" game together--ever. Priceless!

Now that response from the Creighton coach . . . is a stunner. Can't believe McDermott would celebrate his player's flagrant foul. The difference between the reactions of the two coaches on the flagrant foul matter is truly unbelievable . . . and telling!

Loved Webster's block from the top of a three-attempt--absolutely smothered the shooter. Thought Hawkins showed excellent promise, particularly on defense and especially for his first regular season game. Can't wait to see this Husker team later in the season when they have some more experience under their belts. Loved that Creighton's 6th year senior Gibbs got a frustration foul ejection at the end of the game. Loved the full-court press! Here's betting the team gets to be pretty good at that. Loved how the team fought hard after a disastrous start! Can't wait for the next game!

Not sure how you score this in basketball: 1. Gibbs with a take-down and near-fall; and 2. Petteway with a reversal and near-fall. Probably a wash. Also, I don't think you get a "pancake" score in any sport if the pancaked player is already on his back when you jump on him. Scoring is so hard these days . . .

Here is a distinction that seems significant: 1. Gibbs, the instigator, walked off the court with a smirk on his face and to cheers from the crowd, by my observation. 2. By contrast, Petteway, who merely reacted to abusive behavior, was broken up in the locker room and apologized to his teammates, according to Tim Miles. Priceless!

Observations: 1. Wow. Didn't know Gibbs to be a thug. But that was pretty bad!!! Not very often a guy on the winning team goes off like that. Showed some definite frustration. Too bad Petteway couldn't just take the abuse for the good of the team--Gibbs was definitely the initiator and aggressor. 2. Huskers will be fine. Learned a lot this game.

My vote is a qualified "success." Played good teams, worked through adversity, played the best as a team in the last part of the last game, developed team leadership, went through a steep learning curve on foul issues, saw significant development for Webster toward the end, saw Petteway emerge as a major force, saw Smith's contribution develop dramatically, saw improvement for Shields at the end, etc. The qualification is this: it's early in the season, and progress is never a straight line--it's still a matter of where they go from here.