[Rosiak's Blog] Mbakwe cleared

[ToddRosiakSays]

Mbakwe cleared

Freshman forward Trevor Mbakwe was given the all-clear by the NCAA Clearinghouse this afternoon, just three days before the official open of practice.

"Thrilled for the program, but really excited for him because it's been wearing on him," said coach Tom Crean. "He's done, in my opinion and I think in everyone else's, an incredible job of staying focused, going through the daily process of being a college student and not knowing what was next when it comes to something that he loves."

The 6-foot-7, 240-pound Mbakwe is expected to step in and play a large role for MU immediately. His academic record had been undergoing scrutiny and he had been barred from any organized team activities while the process was underway, much like Lazar Hayward a season ago.

http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/10/09/mbakwe-cleared.aspx

[SoCalwarrior]

Welcome aboard Trevor.  Grab a board!

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Great news.

I have no idea what the hold up was... but it doesn't really matter now.

[rocky_warrior]

Hip Hip Hooray!!!

[spiral97]

HALLELUJAH!!!

[Pardner]

Huge...good for at least three BE wins vs. YAG (out of ND, GU, DU or LU).  I think he makes us a Top 10 team. 

[SGWarrior]

Best news I've heard in about a week!  Now lets get practice started and a couple more recruits on board!

[ToddRosiakSays]

Mbakwe cleared

Freshman forward Trevor Mbakwe was declared academically eligible by the NCAA Clearinghouse on Tuesday afternoon, just three days before the official open of practice.

"Thrilled for the program, but really excited for him because it's been wearing on him," said coach Tom Crean. "He's done, in my opinion and I think in everyone else's, an incredible job of staying focused, going through the daily process of being a college student and not knowing what was next when it comes to something that he loves."

The 6-foot-7, 240-pound Mbakwe is expected to step in and play a large role for MU immediately. His academic record had been undergoing scrutiny and he had been barred from any organized team activities as a result, much like Lazar Hayward a season ago.

"It was real tough, but my teammates did a good job of keeping me in a good mood," Mbakwe said. "Lazar went through the same thing last year, so I figured if he could do it I had no excuses not to. It was hard not being able to do training table and certain things with my teammates, but everything wound up being worthwhile."

Hayward's case was different in that he was cleared to practice with the Golden Eagles just prior to the team's annual "Marquette Madness" event, but had to wait an additional three weeks before being fully cleared to play in the regular season. Mbakwe, meanwhile, wound up missing roughly five weeks, including MU's Labor Day trip to Vancouver, British Columbia for a series of four exhibition games.

And Hayward, while a highly touted recruit, also wasn't being counted upon as heavily early as Mbakwe will be. Assuming he's able to catch up with his conditioning, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Mbakwe playing upwards of 20 minutes per night right off the bat because of his ability to rebound, block shots and get to the free-throw line.

Crean, however, isn't jumping the gun just yet.

"I do have to caution all of our fans and supporters; like Lazar a year ago, when you miss a day as a freshman, it's almost a week for a freshman," he said. "That becomes really hard. He's missed a lot of the teaching that we've done in our team workouts and individual workouts. But we'll get him up to speed as quickly as we can.

"I think we have to keep it simple for him in the sense of, 'Go out and get used to what you do,' which is get to the rim, rebound the ball, run the floor, block shots and defend. Then he'll get all the nuances that come with it." 

Said Mbakwe: "I'm just going to do my role: rebound, play defense, score when I have to, and have a good season."

http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/10/09/mbakwe-cleared.aspx

[muwarrior87]

Finally!! No more 'if Mbakwe is cleared...' on this message board! thankfully he was cleared before Marquette Madness. I think it will just add to the excitement...especially if he takes part in the dunk contest 

[GoMarquetteSays]

Mbakwe Ruled Full Qualifier By NCAA Clearinghouse
         

Marquette University men's basketball player Trevor Mbakwe has been designated a full qualifier and is able to join his teammates on the court immediately, the NCAA Clearinghouse announced late Tuesday afternoon.
         

http://www.gomarquette.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/100907aab.html
         

[Knight Commission]

nice!

[Moe]

That is great news.  At the same time this clearinghouse thing is not in the best interest of the NCAA.  It currently takes too long and hurts teams and students.  Not to mention fans :-)

[🏀]

The clearinghouse is necessary. It may be under-staffed however.

[Phi Iota Gamma 84]

According to the Official MU site

[muwarrior87]

and according to other threads...

[77ncaachamps]

WATCH OUT

BIG EAST!!!

[Schoolyard]

This is awesome.  Glad to see the NCAA finally took their head out of their...

Now lets just hope and pray we don't hear this as excuse like we did with Lazar.

[mviale]

If he was 2 inches taller - final four for sure

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[Canned Goods n Ammo]

If he was 2 inches taller - final four for sure

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HAHAHAHA... nicely put.

I have to admit that I get stuck in the numbers sometimes... but 2 inches (especially in the college game) doesn't really mean much.

[MU gimp ONE]

If he was 2 inches taller - final four for sure

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HAHAHAHA... nicely put.

I have to admit that I get stuck in the numbers sometimes... but 2 inches (especially in the college game) doesn't really mean much.

very true, look at Eric Hicks from cincy a couple years ago.  he was listed as 6'6" and was eating us for breakfast down low.  it's all about how physical and athletic the player is. 

[mosarsour]

Thank God!

[Secret of the Ouse]

Great news with perfect timing, nice to see he wont miss anymore official practice