Oso planning to go pro
Much has transpired during the past 24 hours so I feel compelled to provide and update. I had scheduled a sit down interview with Stan Laws and DJ Newbill for tonight in Philadelphia. Stan welcomed an opportunity to set the record straight and address the many rumors floating around about this unfortunate situation. The coach called to inform me this afternoon that he'd been instructed by Newbill family attorneys not to speak on camera regarding the events surrounding the recruitment process and dismissal of DJ Newbill. Fact is, Newbill had offers from other Big East schools and because of an NCAA rule is no longer eligible to participate for a program affiliated with the conference. That is not sitting well with the Newbill family. Many schools have already called to offer DJ a scholarship. He will weigh all offers and probably make a decision in the very near future. I have stated this before but want to reiterate that I recently moved to Philly for a new job opportunity. Because I have broadcast experience and my own camera equipment, I decided to call DJ's high school and ask permission to do a feature story on Newbill for the fans of MU. They recommended I talk to Stan and he and DJ were happy to accommodate my request. I met them on Saturday to conduct some interviews and get b-roll footage for the piece. If I lived in Chicago I would have done the same thing with Reggie Smith, etc. For those asking why I've made such a big deal over a "mid tier" type recruit my answer is because he's the student athlete that happens to be close enough for me to interview and feature on camera. Period. It's as simple and straight forward as that. I wanted to provide fans of Marquette and inside look at an incoming freshman. I wish I could have done it for each kid joining the Marquette fray. That was not feasible. In my preparation to post the piece on DJ, I developed a relationship with Stan, DJ and other Philadelphia hoops players during this process. Stan called me on Tuesday to inform me of what had happened earlier in the day so I would not run the Newbill feature as planned next week. I asked if I could break the most current version of events and he gave me the green light. I am going to post a video tomorrow which includes portions of the interviews I conducted over the past few weeks to shed some better insight on DJ's journey to Marquette.
It would not surprise me if they took legal action of some kind. Whether it works or not, who knows. And I don't blame them for being upset. We're talking about their kid's life here....his options are limited (no Big East school) and because it's late in the game, fewer schools have any open scholarships. Yeah, I'd be damn pissed off.And so would 99% of the people here if they answered honestly and their son \ daughter signed a NLI and was "cut" the last day of June due to no fault of their own.
You know, Chicos, I'd be more than pissed..., I'd be hurt. However, if I knew from the getgo that I was in effect waitlisted..., well, I guess I'd have had a contingency plan, a fall back school. It almost seems as though Newbill didn't believe MU was still looking- so, did he know? or not?
Sheesh, the whiplash from people who loved Brad's videos 5 minutes ago and now consider him a spawn of Crean is ridiculous.Settle down people. He doesn't have the acquired wisdom of 50+ year olds who sit on their alma mater's basketball message boards all day at work.
Chico, your man Crean isn't coming back. We like Buzz and what he is doing for the program. Buzz may make some mistakes. All and all he has been awesome. Is your soap box high enough?
Fact is, Newbill had offers from other Big East schools and because of an NCAA rule is no longer eligible to participate for a program affiliated with the conference. That is not sitting well with the Newbill family.
Once he signed that LOI, he was never going to play for another Big East school.
Therein lies the problem and why lives are affected when you throw 18 year olds under a bus and don't honor commitments.Yet people here get cranky when this is pointed out and the messenger is the bad guy. The koolaid is very strong for some. Jim Jones is smiling in hell somewhere.
1.Do you know that any other Big East team offered him? No,you don't.
Question: If MU took him on and cut him after next year, that would satisfy your idea of a "commitment", correct?