*** Otule Commits!!! ***

[muguru]

http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/default.aspx

[Thomas' Danish Delight]

NIIICE!

We got our big now.  Kick ass

[bilsu]

That is great. Now we have to add another big next year.

[muarmy81]

Cool,
Does anybody have some video on this guy.  Sounds like he could really be a polished player after some time at MU, hopefully he progresses this year and can make an impact next year with us. 
Now,
Where do we get an additional scholarship?

[ToddRosiakSays]

Otule commitsOtule commits
By Todd Rosiak
Sunday, Nov 4 2007, 11:47 AM

Chris Otule, a 6-foot-10 center from Fort Bend Bush High School in Richmond, Tex., has orally committed to MU.

Otule's commitment is the second in a week for MU.

"Chris is probably one of the fastest-developing big men I've been around," said coach Ronnie Courtney, who is in his first year as coach at Fort Bend Bush after a six-year stint as head coach at Division I Texas Southern University. "Last year he had a season where he didn't play a whole lot, but got in here and had a great summer and came back to school and is improving as we speak. A very mannerable and intelligent young man, I can tell you that."

Otule, who is currently on his official visit to MU, chose the Golden Eagles over Baylor, Nebraska and Rice, but Courtney said both Kentucky and Connecticut had been expressing interest of late.

"He said it was a family atmosphere," Courtney said of Otule's reasoning for committing during his visit. "He loves Coach (Tom) Crean, he loves the players he is around, he loves the campus and the engineering program that Marquette has to offer. Coach Crean and those guys did a great job of showing the real Marquette, and how they are on a day-to-day basis."

Otule did not start as a junior at Fort Bend Bush, and Courtney estimated he averaged 5.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game on a guard-dominated team.

"He's very athletic," Courtney said. "He doesn't have big feet; he wears a size 14 shoe. But he can run like a gazelle. His wing span is 83 inches."

Courtney said at this point, Otule's offense is ahead of his defense.

"Chris is very multi-talented. He's got great post moves, I've even let him shoot a couple threes," said Courtney. "He can shoot the jumper and he can put it on the floor. I've gotten him to develop a jump hook with both hands, a drop-step and dunk on both sides of the basket. There's just a number of things that we've been working on.

"Defensively, he's a shot-blocker. He does a great job clogging up the middle for us."

Otule is the third Texas player to commit to MU over the past three weeks, joining Class of 2009 wing Erik Williams and Class of 2008 wing Joseph Fulce.

Otule's commitment puts MU over the scholarship limit heading into the 2008-'09 season, as its three available tenders have already been committed to Fulce, Nick Williams and Tyshawn Taylor.

MU oversigned by one last year as well, but that player, Damian Saunders, ultimately wasn't admitted into MU due to academic concerns.

The fall early signing period runs from Nov. 14-21.


http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2007/11/04/otule-commits.aspx

[MUWarrior11]

Next year we will have Mbakwe, O'Tule, Williams, Taylor, and Fulce all as newcomers.
That is pretty solid, both at guard and in the frontcourt.
Things are looking alright after all. Nice job to TC and staff

[Daniel]

There seems to be a lto of excitement about OTule from all concerned - yet they list him as a one star player in positon.  Sound slik ehe is better than that..... is there video anywhere on him?

Welcome to OTule!  O'Tule will Rule!

[muwarrior87]

with his huge growth spurt, he hasn't really had the chance to grow as a center. He will be a bit of a project but from what we've heard about him, he should be able to contribute for the team.

[bilsu]

Amal McGaskil did not start in high school and I believed he averaged only 4 points. Turned into a pro player.

[Doctor V]

A one star player?? I dont know anything about the kid but the way people have been talking about him I would have guessed a 3 star. Is he really a 1 star? If he is then we must be getting excited about any big we snag.

[mviale]

Credit goes to the MU coaching staff that has many roots in Texas - Rab, Setzer and Williams

[downtown85]

A one star player?? I dont know anything about the kid but the way people have been talking about him I would have guessed a 3 star. Is he really a 1 star? If he is then we must be getting excited about any big we snag.

Good point. He's a project.  Also, given the priority placed on and over recruitment of guards and the weakness obvious to all fans that this team has on the front line, ANY recruit above 6'8" gets people excited.  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

I hope I am wrong and Otule turns out to be a monster in the paint and some of these top 100-150 level players step up over the next 2-3 years.

[TVDirector]

A one star player?? I dont know anything about the kid but the way people have been talking about him I would have guessed a 3 star. Is he really a 1 star? If he is then we must be getting excited about any big we snag.

scout has him 3.
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=8&c=1&nid=3452492

[bma725]

  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

Hoopscoop already had it as a top 25 recruiting class before the Otule committ, and has the other 3 players ranked in the top 100.  They split the players into distinct groups, 1-10, 11-40, 41-70 and 71-100.  They have Williams and Taylor in the 41-70, and Fulce in the 71-100. 

That's not mediocre by any stretch of the imagination.

[muarmy81]

A one star player?? I dont know anything about the kid but the way people have been talking about him I would have guessed a 3 star. Is he really a 1 star? If he is then we must be getting excited about any big we snag.

Good point. He's a project.  Also, given the priority placed on and over recruitment of guards and the weakness obvious to all fans that this team has on the front line, ANY recruit above 6'8" gets people excited.  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

I hope I am wrong and Otule turns out to be a monster in the paint and some of these top 100-150 level players step up over the next 2-3 years.

Dude,
Seriously, how may times do you need to post this?  Won't hang with the upper echelons of the Big East?  We haven't landed a 5 star recruit in...I don't know how many years while Syracuse, UConn, Louisville always do yet we've done just fine to this point.  And I know you'll counter with we won't be able to keep up with those programs but honestly, how many of those 5 star players are going to stay long enough to develop themselves and the team into a national power?  Not too many, meanwhile you see all these cinderellas in March experience success because they have jr's and sr's who've stayed around for 4/5 years and developed themselves and the team.  Personally, I think we're just fine.  We add the right mix of talent and stability that grows and develops our teams into respectable competitors.  The sky isn't falling and I don't see if falling anytime in the future.  Trust in the coaches to find and develop talent and understand that many of these "dream" recruits aren't necessarily going to be sticking around long enough to force MU into the cellar of the Big East...

[downtown85]

  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

Hoopscoop already had it as a top 25 recruiting class before the Otule committ, and has the other 3 players ranked in the top 100.  They split the players into distinct groups, 1-10, 11-40, 41-70 and 71-100.  They have Williams and Taylor in the 41-70, and Fulce in the 71-100. 

That's not mediocre by any stretch of the imagination.

I think RSCI is probably the fairest assessment of a recruit as it is a composite of all the recruiting services.  We have exactly 1 top-100 recruit in Nick Williams who is ranked 95.  The rest of the recruiting class isn't ranked. 

http://home.nc.rr.com/rsci/RSCI_100_Fall_2008.htm

I think this recruiting class is perfectly fine for the Conference USA days.  It is even o.k. by big east standards as long as every year isn't like this.  It is just that we are now having 3 years in a row of similar recruiting results.  2005 was our last great class.  I was just hoping that 2008 would be similar.  My hopes are dashed again.   

I do hope that our players this year do some damage in the tourney so we can become even higher profile to snag some of our 2009 prospects like Murphy and/or Wilson. 

[rocky_warrior]

Wow!  Excellent news!  Scholarship table updated...

http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?page=8

[mu_hilltopper]

Rock .. did you update the schollie count for 09, 10, 11?  It's currently 3,3,4 .. If I'm counting correctly, it should be 2,5,9.  .. Right?  13 minus non-walk on players.

And that big ol -1 for next year.  Ouch.  Deja vu all over again.

[downtown85]

A one star player?? I dont know anything about the kid but the way people have been talking about him I would have guessed a 3 star. Is he really a 1 star? If he is then we must be getting excited about any big we snag.

Good point. He's a project.  Also, given the priority placed on and over recruitment of guards and the weakness obvious to all fans that this team has on the front line, ANY recruit above 6'8" gets people excited.  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

I hope I am wrong and Otule turns out to be a monster in the paint and some of these top 100-150 level players step up over the next 2-3 years.

Dude,
Seriously, how may times do you need to post this?  Won't hang with the upper echelons of the Big East?  We haven't landed a 5 star recruit in...I don't know how many years while Syracuse, UConn, Louisville always do yet we've done just fine to this point.  And I know you'll counter with we won't be able to keep up with those programs but honestly, how many of those 5 star players are going to stay long enough to develop themselves and the team into a national power?  Not too many, meanwhile you see all these cinderellas in March experience success because they have jr's and sr's who've stayed around for 4/5 years and developed themselves and the team.  Personally, I think we're just fine.  We add the right mix of talent and stability that grows and develops our teams into respectable competitors.  The sky isn't falling and I don't see if falling anytime in the future.  Trust in the coaches to find and develop talent and understand that many of these "dream" recruits aren't necessarily going to be sticking around long enough to force MU into the cellar of the Big East...

You are wrong on so many levels I don't know where to begin.  First, I never said we need 5-star, one-and-done recruits. What I said in other posts is that I think you build an upper level BE program with 2 top-100 recruits per year and 1 project per year.  Secondly, imagine, just imagine for a second we did manage to land a Michael Beasley (or a Dwyane Wade or a Carmelo Anthony).  Imagine if we had Beasley this year.   We would be top-5 ranked and a serious contender for the national championship. Wouldn't that be nice?  Frankly, I'm not content to be a cinderella and I do not think a bunch of 2 and 3 star guys is a recipe for success.  I think I saw somebody here post once, "if you want to win the Kentucky Derby you need a thoroughbred."  

That all being said, I hope Otule is one of these recruits who flew below the radar and wasn't picked up by the scouting services till now. Perhaps he should really be rated 4 or 5 stars.  There are some accounts that suggest that.  However, more info tends to suggest he is still a project.      

[bma725]

  However, 2008 is proving to be another mediocre recruiting class which doesn't seem to address the weaknesses of this team.  I am personally worried that we won't have the talent to be part of the upper echelon of the Big East in a couple of years.

Hoopscoop already had it as a top 25 recruiting class before the Otule committ, and has the other 3 players ranked in the top 100.  They split the players into distinct groups, 1-10, 11-40, 41-70 and 71-100.  They have Williams and Taylor in the 41-70, and Fulce in the 71-100. 

That's not mediocre by any stretch of the imagination.

I think RSCI is probably the fairest assessment of a recruit as it is a composite of all the recruiting services.  We have exactly 1 top-100 recruit in Nick Williams who is ranked 95.  The rest of the recruiting class isn't ranked. 

http://home.nc.rr.com/rsci/RSCI_100_Fall_2008.htm

I think this recruiting class is perfectly fine for the Conference USA days.  It is even o.k. by big east standards as long as every year isn't like this.  It is just that we are now having 3 years in a row of similar recruiting results.  2005 was our last great class.  I was just hoping that 2008 would be similar.  My hopes are dashed again.   

I do hope that our players this year do some damage in the tourney so we can become even higher profile to snag some of our 2009 prospects like Murphy and/or Wilson. 

Thing about the RSCI is that it can mislead you if you don't know about the individual rankings.  For example, Fulce can't be a part of RSCI because he's a JUCO, and the rankings of JUCOs are done separately by nearly everyone.  The other thing is, one good ranking can severely skew the rankings of the player involved in either direction which is exactly what happened with Williams.

Take a look at Williams and Taylor, and you'll see that despite Williams being in the RSCI, Taylor is higher ranked by nearly every service.  HoopScoop has Taylor at #56 and Williams at #70.  Rivals has Taylor at #104 and Williams at #149.  Scout has Taylor as the #18 PG and Williams as the #33 SG.  Rob Harrington has Taylor at #82 and Williams isn't in the top 100.  In fact of every ranking service that the RSCI uses to make their list the only one that has Williams more highly ranked than Taylor is Scouts Inc.  Which is generally regarded as the worst ranking service out there.  In fact their information is so bad, they don't even know that Tyshawn Taylor is a PG, they have him listed as a SG.

My point is, you can't take the RSCI that seriously, because it's a flawed system.  Nearly every ranking service out there thinks Taylor is a better player than Williams. But you'd never know that just looking at the RSCI.

[BuzzSucksSucks]

Wow!  Excellent news!  Scholarship table updated...

http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?page=8

Don't mean to nitpick, but Mbakwe should be redshirted this year and given another season.

[77ncaachamps]

Nice.

But I'm tired of big men projects!!!

And size 14 feet?!? I've got just as big feet as him (13), and I'm 5'9"!!! I hope that means he's nimble!

Maybe MU's 2nd "dynasty" will not rely on a NY connection, but a TX connection!

[rocky_warrior]

Don't mean to nitpick, but Mbakwe should be redshirted this year and given another season.

Ooops, forgot to change that.  Thanks!  Updated again
http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?page=8

[muwarrior87]

Last I remember, Wade wasn't that highly ranked out of high school. I could be wrong.  He blossomed into a phenomenal player. It isn't always about landing the top 100 players if you have the experience from years past to teach the incoming guys the ropes and have a coaching staff that can develop players. Sure, recruiting high does help, but an experienced team is often better than a team filled with 4 and 5 star recruits that are freshman.

[Desert_Eagle]

I'm excited to have Otule, but don't you think this will hurt our chances with Jamil Wilson and Erik Murphy for the '09 class?