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Messages - izzy stradlin

#556
Another preview:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-football-bell-w-zone-23-oct23,0,4987866.story

I agree with Ypsi about season openers.  One of Wheaton's 2 best teams in the last decade was 2002 where they lost their first game to Alma and then rolled through the CCIW 7-0, Scoring  319 pts and giving up only  87.   This North Central team seems similar.
#557
I heard that Wheaton beat Wabash 35-21 in their scrimmage.   Not sure how much the 1st team played.   

I am interested to hear who ended up winning the 9 open starting spots on defense, especially the 4 linebackers.
#558
Quote from: FormerCard on September 07, 2009, 12:06:09 PM
Quote from: Son of Tailgater on September 07, 2009, 11:56:13 AM
Quote from: devildog29 on September 06, 2009, 06:19:46 AM
Quote from: WahooThunder on September 05, 2009, 10:00:42 PM
Ittersagen was cut by the Jaguars: http://www.jaguars.com/news/article.aspx?id=8174

I certainly think he's made the most of his opportunity so far. Hopefully he'll get signed to the practice squad tomorrow or find another team with greater need at cornerback.

From everything I've read, this certainly wasn't unexpected.  That being said, those same articles seemed to believe Pete was a good candidate for the practice squad.  Fingers crossed that is the case.  Certainly, all CCIW fans are behind him and wish him the best. 

It looks like Pete made the Eagles practice squad. Starting to follow in Studebakers footsteps but none-the-less congrats to Pete on his accomplisments thus far.

I could be wrong...but I dont see this anywhere.   Can I get a link?

U of I's J Leman, brother of former Wheaton LB and CCIW DPOY JD Leman, just made the Eagles practice squad.  I haven't heard anything about Pete. 
#559
Quote from: cciw on June 11, 2009, 06:57:29 PM
Quote from: izzy stradlin on June 10, 2009, 06:27:27 PM
Wheaton's 2009 class was just posted:

http://athletics.wheaton.edu/news/2009/6/10/FB_0610090527.aspx?path=football

Is this an unusually small recruiting class for Wheaton?  Looks small to me.


I would say it's about average.  Wheaton almost always has the smallest class in the CCIW. 
#561
Quote from: thundermike on April 23, 2009, 09:57:40 PM
Quote from: izzy stradlin on April 23, 2009, 07:54:13 PM
I have no idea who this mysterious D1 assistant coach is, but I am curious.   Since you guys don't want to give a name, I can't help but speculate for fun.

Names I can think of who might fit the description above ("religious philosophy" etc.):

Mark Morefield
Tim Maloney
Fred Quartlebaum
Rob Judson

??????



Interesting that you would say you have "no idea" and then proceed to list four names ;)

It will be interesting to see who Wheaton ends up choosing. It really all boils down to what type of coach the athletic department is looking for. The four candidates all bring something different to the table. I have my own inclinations as to who the choice will be, but that is fruitless conjecture at this point. The announcement will be made soon enough.

Sorry, bad choice of words.  What I meant was that I don't have the info that Greg and crusader nation have.  Feel free to share your inclinations.  Fruitless conjecture is what message boards are for (especially in the offseason).
#562
I have no idea who this mysterious D1 assistant coach is, but I am curious.   Since you guys don't want to give a name, I can't help but speculate for fun.

Names I can think of who might fit the description above ("religious philosophy" etc.):

Mark Morefield
Tim Maloney
Fred Quartlebaum
Rob Judson

??????

#563
Quote from: dansand on April 21, 2009, 11:37:21 AM
...continuing the Augustana thread, but with a more positive spin...

Another very nice addition to Augie's recruiting class. Jonathan DeMoss from St. Charles North. He's an athletic (also a very good football player) 6-4, 195-pound wing who played through a pretty serious elbow injury as a senior. He had surgery on it after the season. He was recruited by several CCIW schools and had D1 interest from UW-Green Bay, Western Michigan, Eastern Illinois and Miami of Ohio (where his dad played).

http://basketball.dailyherald.com/story/?id=287896

http://www.kcchronicle.com/articles/2009/03/12/16717515/index.xml


This is a really great recruit for Augie.  Jonathan was a 4 year starter and St Charles North and played AAU ball at the highest level with the JG Rising Stars and Illinois Stars where his teammates have included Jereme Richmond, DJ Richardson, Cully Payne etc.   He is a superb athlete who can defend at the D1 level.   During the AAU season, he was consistently put on the opposing teams number 1 offensive player.

Along with a slight dip in his numbers during his senior season (likely due to his elbow injury) what kept him from good D1 offers was his inconsistency on offense and a subpar outside shot.  This is something he may be able to develop more, however, when he concentrates on one sport.  

Jonathan was actually also Wheaton's number 1 target, but unfortunately the admissions office did not cooperate.  

Should be a great player for Augie.  I know Giovanine is really high on Jonathan and I expect him to get on the court early because of his ability to defend.    

#564
Ittersagen mentioned in an SI.com article on small school sleepers for the draft. 

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/football/nfl/04/20/small.school/

Illini fans might also notice mention of Walter Mendenhall, who is incorrectly identified as Rashard's younger brother.

#565
Quote from: Above The Rim on April 08, 2009, 09:46:23 PM
Quote from: thundermike on April 07, 2009, 11:46:51 PM
Quote from: USee on April 07, 2009, 11:14:17 PM
Speaking of recruiting, I worry that the coaching change at Wheaton will have a negative impact on their ability to attract their top names. First, with the growing probability of Coach Harris' retirement I wonder how aggressively they filled the pipeline and with their playoff run and Harris' subsequent retirement I question what their recruiting class will look like.

Anyone have any info?

I don't have any specific info, but if Coach Frank ends up being the new coach I doubt the change will affect recruiting that much since Frank and Coach Handy do a lot of the recruiting. Just a thought.

Despite his position as captain of the Wheaton basketball ship, I doubt Coach Harris' retirement will have more than a negligible effect on Wheaton recruiting, especially if one of the current assistants gets the head job or they both stay with the program if someone else is brought in. There are at least 3 reasons for this.
1. The name Wheaton College is bigger than any individual, player or coach included. Wheaton basketball will still be successful after Harris and Raymond are gone.
2. At most schools, the assistants do as much, if not more, recruiting than the head coach. Most recruiting coordinators are assistant coaches.   
3. Despite the fact that some Wheaton backers might disagree, Wheaton has somewhat of a built in recruiting edge due to its religious philosophy. Wheaton really rarely competes with the other CCIW schools for local players. If the recruit subscribes to Wheaton's religious tenants, he is going to Wheaton. If he doesn't, Wheaton isn't likely to be recruiting him in the first place. And, the other CCIW schools are not recruiting all those players on the current and former Wheaton rosters from New Hampshire, Texas, Nebraska, etc. I would venture to say most of them sought Wheaton out. Thats what I mean by a "built in" advantage.

I don't think naming a new head coach is as urgent a need as some have suggested.



I think you underestimate the impact coaches have at Wheaton.  While Wheaton is a nice name and has a lot to sell, what good has it ever done for the baseball team or the basketball program in the years immediately prior to Harris or Football leading up to Bishop/Swider. 

It's true that there are some recruits who seek out Wheaton.  On the other hand if you talk to coach Swider, he will tell you that when he goes on his recruiting trips to Texas, most of the players have never even heard of Wheaton.  Wheaton has a lot to offer, but you have to find the players and sell the school/program. 

I disagree that Wheaton rarely goes up against the CCIW for local recruits.  That's true for out-of-state players but the good in-state kids often end up on the radar of other CCIW schools.  Jeremy Pflederer was recruited pretty hard by other confernce schools.  Wheaton's top target this year is being heavily recruited by Giovanine, Scherer and Raridon.  I could list others.  Sure, some kids are dead set on going to a Christian school, but there are many who could fit in and be happy at Wheaton or another CCIW school.   

I agree that long term Wheaton will be successful, but that is in large part because I trust that the administration will make a good hire.  The process and timing of a coaching change, however, can easily have an impact on what kind of class Wheaton has this year.
#566
Quote from: USee on April 07, 2009, 11:14:17 PM
Speaking of recruiting, I worry that the coaching change at Wheaton will have a negative impact on their ability to attract their top names. First, with the growing probability of Coach Harris' retirement I wonder how aggressively they filled the pipeline and with their playoff run and Harris' subsequent retirement I question what their recruiting class will look like.

Anyone have any info?

I am fairly certain that Harris checked-out on the recruiting side of things early this year knowing that he was retiring.  Coaches Frank, Handy and Panner have been doing the majority of the recruiting.

Wheaton does need to make a decision here shortly if they want to be successful with this year's class.  This is prime time for D3 athletes to make their college decisions and I assumed  that Wheaton would have a coach in place by now. 

#567
Quote from: 79jaybird on March 18, 2009, 05:36:48 PM
Would Wheaton hire Nate Frank  as the head coach?  Nate and I have had some pretty good chats.  He's a first class guy.

I think Nate has a shot.  He doesn't have as much experience (he worked in the business world for a few years before returning to join Wheaton's staff),  but I think he has outstanding upside as a head coach especially because of his ability to relate to players in recruiting.   
#568
Quote from: Gregory Sager on March 14, 2009, 02:18:53 PM
* Wash U did play good defense throughout the game, which certainly held down Wheaton's scoring, but a lot of Wheaton's offensive woes appeared to be just plain ol' tightness. The Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance played like a team that was afraid to lose; the Bears played like a team that expected to win. As I said to Pat last night, there's a "been there, done that" attitude that national champions carry with them in tough games, and that attitude was on display last night.

I agree about Wheaton's tightness.  I think you could see it at the end of the UWP game too.  It is something we really didn't see  last year in the tourney when Wheaton had nothing to lose.  I think the Wheaton players were feeling a different kind of pressure this year with their D3hoops rankings, hosting a sectional, fans lined up for tickets while they were praticing this week etc.. 

On a different note, I think people overanalyze basketball and try to make it into a science too often-- trying to decide which is the "better/best team."  When fairly evenly matched teams play in a one game setting, it simply comes down to who makes more shots.  Last night, both teams rebounded and played great defense, but Wash U made more shots and were the better team... last night.   I don't think you can say anything else with any degree of certainty. 

Wheaton hits a couple of their big shots down the stretch and everyone would be talking about Wash U's dropped passes or Panner's second half D on Thompson.   While some of Wheaton's shooting was tightness or Wash U's defense, a larger portion of shooting is just randomness.

In the NBA playoffs, the best team usually wins it all. In NCAA tournaments, it's one of the best teams.   In Salem, a team that is realistically the 12th "best" team in the country might get hot and beat Wash U or St. Thomas.  That's what makes it fun.


#569
Quote from: sac on March 09, 2009, 11:40:51 PM
I don't know what you're trying to prove.  Most D3 regionals are general admission.......most also designate areas for opposing teams to sit. :-\

Wheaton did have sign just outside King Arena designating UWP fans to sit on the west side of the gym and Wheaton fans on the east side on Saturday.  It wasn't a huge sign.   The east was close to full 15 min before tipoff, so many Wheaton fans ended up mixed in on the UWP side. 

Just my opinion, but in general admission, if your designated seating section is full and there are open seats anywhere in the gym, it's open season-  you paid your 6 bucks (though I am not saying that is what happened Friday and I am sorry that some fans here had a subpar experience). 
#570
Quote from: thunderwearer on March 07, 2009, 11:45:06 PM
With regards to UWP great adjustments, I was very impressed with their move to the 1-3-1 zone with a 5 minutes left in the game. This took Wheaton out of their offense and made them quite stagnant. This helped UWP come back from the 9 point deficit. The other thing that I noticed, UWP spaced their floor really well. They noticed that Wheaton was playing off their guards on the weak side of the ball to help with the big guy, UWP then put their best shooter on the weak side of the ball for skip passes and got a couple of good looks against Wheaton's tough D.

I will also say that I was confused why Wheaton continually attempted to front Skemp. Skemp got so many easy looks because they were able to float the ball over the front defender and Wheaton had no one to help not that it would have helped. I personally thought that Wheaton would have had better success playing behind Skemp and pushing him further from the basket.

With all that said, Wheaton had a sort of off night (free-throw and turnovers) and still came away with the "W". I don't think any team will be looking forward to meeting this Wheaton team and I think if they play to their potential, they can keep advancing.

I agree, Wheaton definitely failed to adjust in their low post defensive scheme.  Wiele did his best trying to deny, and got a few deflections in OT, but the quick weakside help that worked for the CCIW was a non-factor for someone 6-10 265 with great strength and agility around the rim. 

If Wiele plays behind Skemp, maybe he shoots 60% on a few more 5-foot jump hooks instead of 80% on mostly layups and dunks?

Skemp is easily the best big-man in D3-- a notch or two better than Ruch (however, I have only seen each play in person twice  FWIW).