Trouble in Terp Town

First, they fail to make the post-season with a stacked team last year. Then in the off-season, JTIII starts sucking up the local talent, particularly Summers, who's been the best player in Maryland for the last two years. Now, one of their best players may be headed to jail. This brings us to the rhetorical question: Who is worse, a Terp Perp or a U Con?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/29/AR2005082900659.html

Great Big Ticket article

This has a great recap of GU's rise under JTIII: http://washingtontimes.com/sports/20050825-120644-8382r.htm

Hoyas land Vernon "Big Ticket" Macklin

Huge Get!!!! Consensus top 15 recruit and McDonald's AA lock picks Hoyas! Biggest recruit since Ivo? Othella? AP? -- well, certainly the biggest in a LONG time. He picked the Hoyas over UNC and Wake. We're back baby!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/24/AR2005082401900.html
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=91113&ran=85350
http://www.georgetown.rivals.com
http://rivalshoops.rivals.com/
http://story.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=2&c=428651&ssf=1&RequestedURL=http%3a%2f%2fscouthoops.scout.com%2f2%2f428651.html

http://hoyatalk2.proboards48.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=1124903477
http://mb26.scout.com/fuconnfrm6.showMessage?topicID=987.topic
http://www.redmen.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=phpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=25775

U Con scandal update

It looks like Hilton Armstrong was also invovled in the crime. I wonder why he hasn't been arrested.

http://www.courant.com/sports/hc-ucaffadavits0818.artaug18,0,479641.story?coll=hc-headlines-sports

Top 25

Still in it according to U.S. News, although no one should be happy with #23. Considering what the university has weathered over the last 10+ years that is pretty amazing. Then again, it is unclear whether the rankings ever bore a strong correlation to what is actually going on at these institutions. One piece of good news is that the magazine lists our endowment as $744,003,000. That's the largest # I've seen for it since 2001 when it was just under $800k. That said, it is 1/4 of where is needs to be for GU to competes with its peers. Top institutions of GU's size have endowments ranging from $2-3 billion. I have no idea of how we get from here to there. At least we have stopped the negative endowment growth and have hired a Chief Investment Officer to run the thing properly. A report in the Chronicle a while back said that GU was going to start more risky investing (highly yeild stuff). The (very successful) Yale model is to put 1/4 of the endowment in such investments -- with so little to lose it seems like a reasonable strategy . . . .

Top 50

Continuing with my postseason theme, I thought I'd refer everyone to this article by Andy Katz. This is part of a series of pieces (that are each hyperlinked in the article that I link to above) that ranks the top 50 college basketball teams for this coming season.

Sadly, we are not in the top 50. Is this a disappointment? Have we been slighted? I welcome your comments.

No Post Season?

So, the NCAA has purchased the NIT (see here). And it is possible that the NCAA will simply do away with the postseason tournament.

If they do, what does that mean for those "also rans" (like, as of late, our beloved Hoyas)? Even if you're not invited to the dance it's still nice to play after the regular season.

New PAC website

This has a lot of info on the new Davis center: http://performingarts.georgetown.edu/davis/

The photos are old though. Last month, when I was in D.C., the fascade was complete. It looks very nice.

UConn won't be as tough as we thought . . . .

With these two starters gone they won't have strong guard play at all.

http://www.courant.com/sports/college/husky/men/hc-price-arrested,0,3217479.story?coll=hc-big-headlines-breaking

Hoya updates

The Schedule:

Home (in conference):
Cincinnati
Pitt
Providence
Rutgers
St. John's
South Florida
Cuse
West Virginia

Away (in conference):
Connecticut
DePaul
Marquette
Notre Dame
St. John's
South Florida
Nova
West Virginia

Home (out of conference):
Fairfield
Duke
Vanderbilt

Away (out of conference):
Navy
James Madison
Oregon
Colgate
winner of UTEP/MVSU
Illinois
Michigan

We still need to add one more OOC game. Hopefully it will be a good one. This may be the hardest OOC schedule GU's ever had and probably among the hardest in college basketball -- we got what we asked for!

Memories:
Check out this dig on Esherick as one of the least wanted college basketball coaches in the country:
"If only the rest of college basketball would view Esherick as glowingly as Esherick views Esherick. Before being fired last year by Georgetown, Esherick told the Washington Times that the school was "lucky to have (me)." After applying for the New Mexico State vacancy this spring, Esherick told The Albuquerque Tribune, "I'd be a heck of a coach for them." Just like he was with the Hoyas? Rent a Porsche and return a Kia, you get arrested. Do what Esherick did to John Thompson's program, you get fired."
http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/story/8696537

Kenner League Report:
A number of knowledgeable posters on the Board have been writing up reviews of the new guys on the team. The biggest story from the summer though is the play of Roy Hibbert; everyone says he looks much, much better -- more agile, better shot, better timing, etc. It would be huge if he could blow up. The best newcomer everyone agrees is Marc Egerson. He has a pro-body and all facets of his game look polished. Great shot, great passer, decent rebounder, etc. This is welcome news as he was the least touted of all of the freshmen. Also a surprise is Pat Ewing Jr. Everyone says he has looked spectacular -- shooting, running the floor, blocking shots -- he is by far the most athletic Hoya since. . . . Too bad we have to wait another year before he suits up. It is clear to everyone that his leaving Indiana was not just sour grapes -- Davis did not know how to use his prodigious talent. Jesse Sapp has gotten favorable reviews. He was our highest rated recruit and played like it. Great shot, super quick with the ability to penetrate. He should get serious PT but probably won't take Wallace's spot. Everyone says Wallace has really bulked up and developed some driving ability. The other two freshmen did not have as glowing reviews. Josh Thornton seems to be a shooter with a beautiful stroke but without great instincts on when to shoot. That is something the coaches need to work on; but his shooting ability could prove very useful in the Princetown offense. Octavius Spann didn't get great reviews. He seems out of sync to more observers. All in all, much reason to be optimistic going into the brutal schedule!

Excellent

I feel that our little corner of the Blogosphere is maturing...thanks for your analysis Diamond (and, yes, I did mean the National Review Online).

In the continuing spirit of posting things that raise Diamond's ire, here is Manny Miranda's first regular column from OpinionJournal.com, a site affiliated with the Wall Street Journal. Apparently, Mr. Miranda will be reporting on the Supreme Court nomination of Justice Roberts.

Props to JTIII

http://cbs.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/8659033

The Dream

Piggy-backing on Mike's post re the multisport facility, let's keep the dream in sight . . . .

Post article

The Post ran an article on the 5th Circuit:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/18/AR2005071801251.html

Schedule update

So our schedule for next year is taking shape. Out of conference we'll be playing playing Oregon, Michigan, Illinois, and Navy away. We have Duke and Fairfield at home. We'll also be playing in the Sun Bowl Tounament which features UTEP, Mississippi Valley, and Colgate. As far the conference schedule goes we've got Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Providence, Rutgers, St. John’s, Cincinnati, South Florida and West Virginia at home. Away we'll play Marquette, DePaul, South Florida, Connecticut, Notre Dame, Villanova, West Virginia and St. John’s. We don't get Seton Hall or Louisville this year. This is definitely the hardest schedule GU has ever played in the regular season. In particular, the number of OOC road games is very high -- a nod to the need to have a much higher RPI so as to be able to get an at-large bid out of a crowded Big East field. I don't think we've ever had so many top flight OOC games in general: Oregon, Michigan, Illinois, and Duke should all make national tv. The one disappointment: no Ricky P.

Wormley Sold

According to the Post GU got $8+ for it. It was purchased in 1997 for $1.5. That's a tidy profit but I'd rather have the property.

This will make the IPB VERY happy . . . .

http://www2.georgetown.edu/my/stories/index.cfm?Action=View&StoryID=1139

GU hits homerun with B-school Dean.

This is a very good hire -- the sort of senior administrator we should always be hiring:

The Georgetown University CommunityLadies and Gentlemen:With great pleasure, I write to announce that, in close consultation with Provost James J. O’Donnell, I have appointed George G. Daly as Dean of the McDonough School of Business. Professor Daly will assume his duties on a full-time basis in the fall semester but will be spending a considerable period of time at Georgetown between now and then. Dean of the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University from 1993 to 2002 and now Albert Fingerhut Professor of Business Administration there, Professor Daly brings to Georgetown a strong record of leadership in business education, a deep commitment to providing outstanding educational opportunities for students and robust support for faculty scholarship, and an imaginative vision for the future of the McDonough School of Business. As Dean of the Stern School, Professor Daly oversaw the school’s rise in national prominence as it achieved its first top-ten ranking for all of its undergraduate and graduate degree programs. He also led the effort to raise $150 million for the school, a sum greater than the cumulative total of funds raised in the school’s previous 100 years. Before his appointment at NYU, Professor Daly was Dean and Professor of the College of Business Administration at the University of Iowa from 1983 to 1993 and Dean of the College of Social Sciences at the University of Houston from 1979 to 1983. Early in his career, he held teaching appointments at the Miami University and the University of Texas at Austin and was chief economist in the Office of Energy Research and Development at The White House. He has also served on a number of corporate and non-profit boards and has held a number of leadership positions within the American Assembly of Collegiate Business Schools. Professor Daly’s areas of scholarship and teaching include applied microeconomics, economics of organizations and contracting, and leadership. He has published a number of articles, book chapters, and monographs and has authored several research reports for government agencies. Professor Daly holds an undergraduate degree from Miami University of Ohio and a master’s and doctoral degree from Northwestern University—all in economics. I am grateful to the search committee, led by Jim O’Donnell, for its commitment to recruiting to Georgetown a truly outstanding national leader in business education. I also wish to express my deep appreciation to Reena Aggarwal, who has provided dynamic leadership as Interim Dean, helping the school to advance in crucial areas during this time of transition. Dean Aggarwal has been particularly effective at ensuring that fund raising for the new MSB facility moved forward on the ambitious schedule we had established to realize the new building as soon as practically feasible. Dean Aggarwal will return to the faculty on July 31 and will spend the coming academic year on sabbatical at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A number of faculty of the School of Business had an opportunity to meet with Professor Daly earlier this month, and I look forward to introducing him and his wife, Barbara, to the full University community in the new academic year. I also look forward to the dynamic leadership he will bring to the McDonough School as we build on the momentum of recent years to strengthen further the school’s standing among the nation’s leading business schools. You have my very best wishes for the summer.Sincerely,John J. DeGioia

JTIII can recruit!!!!

This is such a revelation. His Dad was not even doing this when we were at the Hilltop. Another great pick-up: DaJuan Summers out of Baltimore, currently ranked #71 nationally by rivals (#28 by hoop alliance), 6'8 225, supposedly highly versitile game (think Princetown offense). He apparently had offers from MD and Wake, among others. He will certainly be the heir to Jeff Green, whom we may only have for one more season. I'll add a link once the story is accessable.

So, assuming Wallace and Ewing get a scholorships, we only have one left for 2006. Everyone is hoping for Vernon Macklin -- I think JTIII might be going for broke with him and reserving the scholly.

June 9, 2005 – Reigning Baltimore Player of the Year and top frontcourt prospect DaJuan Summers has committed to attend Georgetown University. As previously reported by HoyaReport.com, Summers is a 6'8"+, 225lb forward capable of playing inside, and out. During Summers' junior season, he led the McDonogh School, located in Owings Mills, MD, to a 23-6 record, while averaging 20.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per contest. This prodigious output garnered him Baltimore Player of the Year honors, an obviously prestigious award presented by the Baltimore Sun newspaper. His Amateur Athletic Union coach, Anthony Lewis is effusive regarding Summers' ability to post up, get to the rim via a couple of dribbles, fill fast break lanes, rebound, and shoot from the perimeter. Coach Lewis is even more expansive when asked to describe DaJuan as a person. "I think if you've ever watched him play, and he's a very good player, he's even a better person" is how the two decade-long director of the Cecil Kirk organization summarized his feelings. According to DaJuan, he contacted Coach Thompson today, and delivered his decision. Reached at his West Baltimore home, Summers revealed that he is "Happy" to have chosen his future college home. "I feel it's a good fit" and "I'm going to be happy there" was how he expressed his feelings. In fact the young man was visibly excited, as he revealed, "I'm smiling right now, as I'm talking to you". Coach Lewis shared in Summers' elation: "He feels like it's a good fit. I feel the same way. I think it's very positive". DaJuan is not the first Cecil Kirk player to attend school at Georgetown; he is actually the fourth. Hoya greats Reggie Williams, David Wingate, and Kevin Braswell all benefited from Coach Lewis's tutelage as well. This writer can attest that DaJuan is not only possesses basketball acumen, but intelligence and personality as well. Add the excellent job his mother, Twana Summers has done raising DaJuan, and her other two other children, Regina and Malik, and it's not surprising DaJuan is achieving so much. This affable, well spoken young man has success written all over him. HoyaReport.com will be publishing a more extensive piece on DaJuan Summers soon. For the time being, the HoyaNation should revel in his commitment to the Blue and Grey. Coach John Thompson and his staff are hard at work turning the fortunes of the Hoya program around. Now, top level recruits are recognizing it also.Congratulations DaJuan. Your hard work and dedication are evident. With you bringing that, along with everything else you represent to the school at O Street, NW, Georgetown's Hoya Paranoia will be back soon. You are bound to impact the school, on and off the court.

More info on Summers:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/bal-sp.boys21mar21,1,3188539.story?coll=bal-utility-highschoolsp&ctrack=2&cset=true
http://www.bmorehoops.com/dsummers.html
http://mdvarsity.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=300504
http://www.marylandprephoops.com/Class%20of%202006/Html/DejuanSummers2.htm
http://www.marylandprephoops.com/Class%20of%202006/Html/DejuanSummers.htm

New AD

Sounds like a good pick from a top-notch Athletic Department:

I write to announce the appointment of Bernard M. Muir as Director of Athletics, effective July 1, 2005. Now Deputy Director of Athletics for Administration and Facilities at the University of Notre Dame, Mr. Muir has overseen the campus’s athletics facilities, game management operations, and club and intramural sports and campus recreation, and has served as primary administrator for a number of sports and as secondary administrator for football. He previously served as Notre Dame’s Senior Associate Athletic Director for Student Welfare and Development, a role through which he engaged deeply in all aspects of the student-athlete experience, including academic performance and participation in campus life. From 1992 to 2000, he held various posts at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, including director of operations for the Division 1 men’s basketball championship. Mr. Muir holds a bachelor’s degree from Brown University, where he played basketball, and a master’s degree from Ohio University. Mr. Muir is highly regarded by his colleagues at Notre Dame, the NCAA, and throughout intercollegiate athletics, as well as by the coaches and student-athletes with whom he has worked over the past dozen years. At Georgetown, he will provide strong leadership to ensure that we build on our tradition of integrity, excellence in competition, and academic distinction in intercollegiate athletics. He will evaluate and build upon our deep commitment to provide a truly distinctive, holistic student-athlete experience. He will also be responsible for the supervision, support, recruitment, and retention of outstanding coaches. In terms of athletic department operations, he will work to enhance fundraising, ensure the most efficient use of resources, increase revenue, and improve our facilities. In these and other ways, Bernard will set the tone for Georgetown athletics and ensure that we draw upon the talent and resources of all who contribute to the realization of our goals. Bernard’s recruitment is the result of a national search in which a number of Georgetown Board members, faculty, coaches, alumni, and administrative leaders took part. I wish to express my deep appreciation to all who participated in this process.I am also deeply grateful to Adam Brick for his generous and effective leadership as Interim Athletic Director in 2004-05. He ensured that this past academic year was a successful one for student-athletes, coaches, and staff. With his leadership, we were able to keep a number of critical projects on track, recruit outstanding new members to our team in athletics, and improve the management and performance of a number of our operations. He represented Georgetown very well in Big East conference policy deliberations. Adam has long been an invaluable member of the University community and his commitment to excellence at Georgetown has made enduring differences here. I look forward to introducing Bernard Muir to the University community, and to the contributions he will make to Georgetown, our athletics programs, and our students in the years ahead. You have my very best wishes.Sincerely,John J. DeGioia