Zach Auguste to ND?

[Lighthouse 84]

Just read it on the other board.. does anyone have any confirmation?

[Silkk the Shaka]

Can't confirm, but this whole conference clusterf*ck couldn't have happened at a worse time.  He was on his official visit!  Sucks for Buzz, it seemed like he was our highest priority and that could have tipped the scales in ND's favor just because they have a shitty football team.

[4everwarriors]

Always a bridesmaid.

[GGGG]

We are not "always a bridesmaid."  The nature of recruiting is the many players you want are going to head elsewhere.

[Canadian Dimes]

Would love to have Auguste, but after BUZZ gets Taylor and Burton this summer I think the "always a bridesmaid" is a little over the top.  Lots of good guys still out there if true.  Washburn, Nolan, Blaise, Prince, Bail,etc.

[downtown85]

Time to get the 7 footer. 

[4everwarriors]

Restated:
Always a bridesmaid when it comes big men.

[GGGG]

Would love to have Auguste, but after BUZZ gets Taylor and Burton this summer I think the "always a bridesmaid" is a little over the top.  Lots of good guys still out there if true.  Washburn, Nolan, Blaise, Prince, Bail,etc.

I haven't heard our name mentioned with Washburn, Bail or Ibeh for quite some time.

[MattyWarrior]

Bad news travels fast. He wants to be a leprechaun.

[Silkk the Shaka]

Restated:
Always a bridesmaid when it comes big men.

Thankfully Gardner still has three years of eligibility.

[lab_warrior]

Always a bridesmaid.

Were you lobotomized since a few weeks ago, when we got Steve Taylor?

[Canadian Dimes]

Restated:
Always a bridesmaid when it comes big men.

Well we could start two very capable  Big East players in Gardner and Otule this year and they are a Soph. and Junior respectively.  Buzz was not a bridesmaid for them.  I think you are letting the previous coach's inability to recruit cloud your judgement of this coach's.  Buzz will sign a good big with one of his two remaining scholarships ( between this year and next).  
I have absolutely complete confidence in that.

[Tulsa Warrior]

I have confidence in Buzz.  There are a lot of options out there and Marquette's coach is relentless on the recruiting trail.  He will also have the added ammunition of pointing to the development of Otule and Gardner -- two under the radar bigs.

[79Warrior]

Can't confirm, but this whole conference clusterf*ck couldn't have happened at a worse time.  He was on his official visit!  Sucks for Buzz, it seemed like he was our highest priority and that could have tipped the scales in ND's favor just because they have a crapty football team.

I agree. MU is in limbo land conference wise right now. Certainly not a good thing recruiting wise as we really do not know how all this shakes out. Don't blame the kid at all to take a pass on MU.

[GGGG]

Hold on....let's not blame the conference mess just yet.  The guy was reported to be leaning toward ND for awhile.  For some reason they left the picture, then returned.  I don't think this is a terribly surprising development considering that background.

[79Warrior]

Hold on....let's not blame the conference mess just yet.  The guy was reported to be leaning toward ND for awhile.  For some reason they left the picture, then returned.  I don't think this is a terribly surprising development considering that background.

I am not saying that. But, if you think for a minute this does not hurt recruiting I think you are mistaken. We have been using our membership in the BE as a positive recruiting tool. If you think a diminished BE does not have an effect on a kids perception, then I would respectfully disagree.

[GGGG]

I never said it wouldn't hurt recruiting.  I'm just not blaming this specific loss on the conference instability.

[NersEllenson]

This one hurts.  Pretty sure Buzz and staff went HARD after Auguste this summer, and made him Priority Number 1 of available players.

All of the conference uncertainty certainly does not help matters - and it is easy for a Notre Dame or other school with a football team to throw out the question - where will MU be if there is further conference realignment/Big East breaks up?

Any inch a school can get in recruiting, they are going to use.  If MU had the ability to do so, I'm sure Buzz and company would raise questions in a recruits mind about conference affiliation/stability - going to a school without football.

That said, Buzz still has a lot of cred on the recruiting trail, and MU should still be fine so long as Buzz stays.  The bigger issue is, does MU potentially going to a potentially stepped down league change Buzz's commitment to MU/perception of MU?  Let's hope not.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Auguste is by all appearances a solid kid and had great advisers. He played with the Albany Rocks in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball Leagus, but his base was the Mass Rivals, whose alumni are Carson Desrosier (Wake Forest) and Evan Smotrycz (Michigan).  His mentor was Tago Palazzi, NBA Celtics and Holy Cross alum. I doubt conference mayhem was his deciding factor, but am guessing school and academic fit came into play more so.

Also, I doubt Buzz or MU "lost" him vs. ND "won" him over. A nice change of pace. Good luck to the kid.

[brewcity77]

The mid-week ND visit was never a good thing. I remember him being an Irish lean months ago, can't say it's shocking, but definitely disappointing. What is more disappointing is that Auguste had clearly become our top priority. Mbargorba hasn't been mentioned with us in awhile, no idea where we stand with him. Nolan is still a possibility, but it sounds like he has a great vibe with Clemson and Brad Brownell. Hope Buzz has a solid plan B in place, this is a disappointment.

[BCHoopster]

Tons of time left over with 1 schooly open, transfers, spring recruiting, you have 12 for the following year,
can always bank it 2013.  I am sure a sleeper is out there somewhere.

[Bieberhole69]

Tons of time left over with 1 schooly open, transfers, spring recruiting, you have 12 for the following year,
can always bank it 2013.  I am sure a sleeper is out there somewhere.

I'd like to see Buzz get involved again with JUCO's

[bilsu]

I wanted Auguste, but I always worried what effect his signing would have on Anderson and Taylor. With Wilson, Anderson and Taylor we have three good switchable forwards for two years before Wilson graduates. No doubt Auguste is a more impact player, but I thought in the long run Blaise MB....... might be fill a greater need. However, that only happens, if he signs and develops. I suspect whether we are in the Big East or not is less important to him as to a team that can develope him. I think Blaise playing behind Otule for one year and Gardner for two would be the perfect timeline for him to develope. Nolan would have a greater initial impact, but again he is apparently a forward and not a center.

[real chili 83]

Here's the link to the article in the South Bend Tribune from this morning confirming his choice.

http://www.southbendtribune.com/sbt-notre-dame-mens-basketball-auguste-chooses-irish-20110923,0,2526851.story

[RubyWiscy]

I think people need to remember that if we get excited about a recruit on these boards, Buzz likely has a quite different perspective on our chances of getting him.  How many players has he signed that we never talked or knew about?  He may have effectively moved on from a player long before his commitment to a different school.  We just don't know.