Happy we have Mick

[Gotcha23]

Mick brought in many of the good players Huggs had at UC. Kenny Satterfield, DeMarr Johnson, etc. Look at his results recently with all of his good recruiters gone-13-19 wont cut it at a school like WV. Once he got the players, he was good at transforming them into good players. At WV, he has made poor decisions as to who he recruits. They are like Xavier with all of the turnover recently, Huggs has even had to kick some kids out, which he never did too often. He is a good coach, he knows how to develop players and get the most out of them. He is much more successful at transforming bigs than Cronin has been, just look at Maxiell, Hicks, Martin, etc.

I'm not talking about WVU. Im specifically talking about his time here. You can't possibly give Mick credit for those recruits when Huggs was the head coach. They came for Huggs PERIOD. I want you to seriously think about what you're writing. Think of the kids Huggs had here and compare them to Mick's. I love both coaches but please be realistic.

 

[Gotcha23]

Mick brought in many of the good players Huggs had at UC. Kenny Satterfield, DeMarr Johnson, etc. Look at his results recently with all of his good recruiters gone-13-19 wont cut it at a school like WV. Once he got the players, he was good at transforming them into good players. At WV, he has made poor decisions as to who he recruits. They are like Xavier with all of the turnover recently, Huggs has even had to kick some kids out, which he never did too often. He is a good coach, he knows how to develop players and get the most out of them. He is much more successful at transforming bigs than Cronin has been, just look at Maxiell, Hicks, Martin, etc.

MARTIN AND LOGAN WERE THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE COUNTRY IN THEIR TIME HERE.

 

[coachpipe]

I'm not talking about WVU. Im specifically talking about his time here. You can't possibly give Mick credit for those recruits when Huggs was the head coach. They came for Huggs PERIOD. I want you to seriously think about what you're writing. Think of the kids Huggs had here and compare them to Mick's. I love both coaches but please be realistic.

I see the recruiting process going something like this..

Mick--Hey im mick cronin..how would you like to come to the University of Cincinnati and play under head coach Bob Huggins?

 

[ucdave]

I see the recruiting process going something like this..

Mick--Hey im mick cronin..how would you like to come to the University of Cincinnati and play under head coach Bob Huggins?

If it were that simple, why has Huggs' recruiting dropped off as much as it has?

 

[coachpipe]

If it were that simple, why has Huggs' recruiting dropped off as much as it has?

It was mostly just a joke (with maybe a little truth in it)... but isnt that essentially what the recruiter does? say how would you like to play for X coach. and then talk up the coach and the program. essential just sweet talking the parents into buying their product?

But what happened to Huggs is he got a bad reputation for the way good Ole Nancy handled his whole situation..but thats just my take on it

And its West Virginia..I dont think much else needs to be said about that place...why would ANYONE want to go there anymore...Especially after the student athletes got fucked hard by having them join the Big 12

I also want to make it clear if anyone thought otherwise...I am not a Mick hater...I love Mick..and I love that we had Huggs..Both of them did great things for this university

 

[JasonS]

I love Huggs as much as the next guy (I was a student in 1999-2000 when we were number 1) but there is a bit of revisionist history going on here. A couple things that people either forgot or fail to mention.

1. Huggs' recruiting dropped off when he was here at UC. It coordinates pretty closely with Mick going to UL. I am not saying this was the reason, just interesting.

2. Kenyon and Logan were not 5 star prospects but were talented hard workers. Some people want to remember them as being the greatest recruits ever. People would have made a lot of money saying Kenyon would be player of the year and the #1 pick when he was recruited.

3. The success of the head coach can be greatly attributed to the success and work ethic of the assistant coaches. The best coaches in the country put together the best staffs. Just look at Duke, Michigan St, etc. It is not just as simple as come play for the head coach though that is a part of it.

 

[bearcat jeff]

MARTIN AND LOGAN WERE THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE COUNTRY IN THEIR TIME HERE.

And Mick Cronin had to convince Huggs to give Logan a scholarship.

 

[ralph1950]

And Mick Cronin had to convince Huggs to give Logan a scholarship.

True, Huggins thought Logan was a short, slow, fat kid and did not want him. Mick had to beg Huggins to take Logan.

 

[Gotcha23]

And Mick Cronin had to convince Huggs to give Logan a scholarship.

You guys are out of your minds I can't believe this is even a discussion. What kids the last 7 years even compare to Huggs kids? Micks the man but it's not even close gentlemen.

 

[ready2go]

Huggins was getting superior talent way before Mick's days on the staff. Remember, the early-mid 90's...Mick was still pooping his pants and being breast fed

 

[JumpinJack5]

Huggins was getting superior talent way before Mick's days on the staff. Remember, the early-mid 90's...Mick was still pooping his pants and being breast fed

Because he had other good recruiters who left, and then he had Mick. Now, he has no one.

 

[IDC]

I've been following this board for about a month. JumpinJack, get a grip on reality. First the Deveroes stuff, now this.

Huggs went to two final fours long before Mick was here. Mick is great at evaluating talent, evidence by all they guys he gets in on early, but he has struggled to close the deal without Huggs and Pitino. I hope he turns into a great closer, but he's not there yet.

Huggs is struggling because WV in the Big12 is an epic fail, and his reputation is pretty well shot.

 

[JumpinJack5]

I've been following this board for about a month. JumpinJack, get a grip on reality. First the Deveroes stuff, now this.

Huggs went to two final fours long before Mick was here. Mick is great at evaluating talent, evidence by all they guys he gets in on early, but he has struggled to close the deal without Huggs and Pitino. I hope he turns into a great closer, but he's not there yet.

Huggs is struggling because WV in the Big12 is an epic fail, and his reputation is pretty well shot.

I guess making a Sweet 16 with average prospects in one of the toughest conferences in basketball isn't "closing the deal" in your mind. Also, while Hugs didnt have much to start out with, he had way more than Mick did. Ronald Allen and Adam Hyricanuk are not going to help you close the deal. Cashmere Wright, Yancy Gates, Lance Stephenson, Jermaine Lawrence, and Shaq Thomas, he has closed the deal on all of them. Bob Huggins never really had big time recruits until Mick came, he had JUCO guys and other under-the-radar prospects. I see that you also enjoy revisionist history.......

 

[Gotcha23]

I guess making a Sweet 16 with average prospects in one of the toughest conferences in basketball isn't "closing the deal" in your mind. Also, while Hugs didnt have much to start out with, he had way more than Mick did. Ronald Allen and Adam Hyricanuk are not going to help you close the deal. Cashmere Wright, Yancy Gates, Lance Stephenson, Jermaine Lawrence, and Shaq Thomas, he has closed the deal on all of them. Bob Huggins never really had big time recruits until Mick came, he had JUCO guys and other under-the-radar prospects. I see that you also enjoy revisionist history.......

Do I need to seriously go back prospect by prospect for you to admit you're incorrect? Everyone knows this is the biggest crock of **** ever posted on this board.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Mods, must we even in a down period endure another Mick vs Huggs debate. Please make it stop.

 

[handwaver]

I'm not talking about WVU. Im specifically talking about his time here. You can't possibly give Mick credit for those recruits when Huggs was the head coach. They came for Huggs PERIOD. I want you to seriously think about what you're writing. Think of the kids Huggs had here and compare them to Mick's. I love both coaches but please be realistic.

I like them both...As to talent of players:

Blount, Bobbit, Fortson, Martin, Patterson, Satterfield, Van Exel, Wingfield, Johnson & Maxiell all saw at least some NBA time, & several had good careers in the Bigs - can't knock that.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

While as a UC fan I feel very fortunate we have had both Huggs and Mick to rebuild our programs. Here is the guy they shoud all be comparing themselves to. A hometown product ,ex-player and Veteran. He also coached at My alma-mater Rollins college in Winter park. For those old enough to realize who actually put UC on the map and fostered a rich tradition that UC is cultivating today it is the gentlemen below.

Ed Jucker, was an American college basketball player and coach. He was the former head basketball coach at the University of Cincinnati in the 1960s. Jucker also attended Cincinnati as an undergraduate student and played on the school's basketball teams during the 1938, 1939, and 1940 seasons. He was the captain of the 1940 team. Also, while an undergraduate Ed Jucker became a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. He was born in Norwood, Ohio.

Under Jucker's coaching direction in the early '60s, Cincinnati won back-to-back NCAA basketball championships in 1961 and 1962 and almost won a then-unprecedented third consecutive title in 1963 until the Bearcats were upended 70-68 in overtime by Loyola of Chicago and All-American Jerry Harkness. Jucker holds the record for the highest winning percentage (.917) in NCAA tournament play.

Ed Jucker was a professional baseball prospect until he decided to start coaching instead of trying to make it into Major League Baseball. His coaching career began at Batavia High in Clermont County, Ohio, east of Cincinnati. Following service in the Navy during World War II, he joined the college coaching ranks as assistant basketball coach at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1946. Two years later, he became head basketball coach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Jucker returned to Cincinnati in 1953 as assistant basketball coach and baseball mentor. He directed the UC freshman to a 67-21 record in six years as the freshmen team coach while his baseball teams were 87-39 over seven years.

In 1954, Jucker recruited and coached Sandy Koufax at UC. After watching Koufax in his first practice, Jucker got him a work-study scholarship.

Jucker left UC after the 1965 season. In 1967, he became the head coach of the Cincinnati Royals, a position he held for two seasons. Jucker then went to Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida where he built the school's basketball program into a national contender in NCAA Division II.

Ed Jucker died on Callawassie Island, South Carolina in 2002 at age 85.

 

[JumpinJack5]

I like them both...As to talent of players:

Blount, Bobbit, Fortson, Martin, Patterson, Satterfield, Van Exel, Wingfield, Johnson & Maxiell all saw at least some NBA time, & several had good careers in the Bigs - can't knock that.

But how high were they ranked coming into UC and who recruited the top prospects? No one is denying that Huggs could really develop players, but they were usually under-the-radar guys until roughly around the time Mick joined the program. Does that mean Mick is the only reason we got top talent, no, but he definitely played a role in it. Huggs might have gotten a few when Mick wasn't there, but Mick was known as a great recruiter and helped snag Satterfield, Johnson, and a few others. The other ones you mention on this list were all good players, but they weren't highly touted out of HS. Pitino hired Mick for a reason, you know. Huggs was not happy when Mick left because Mick played a big role in recruiting. It would be similar to the effect of Larry Davis or Darren Savino leaving now, both have played a big role in helping our program. While Im sure we would still get some NYC kids without Savino, it would definitely hurt to lose him, you can't deny that.

 

[All we do is Guyn]

I think this year is going to be a great measure of how good of a recruiter Mick really is. Everyone is hyping up this recruiting class so much, even though to me it looks really similar to the 2011 class that hasn't stepped up in at all.

-Guyn/Johnson
-JDIII/Caupain
-Sanders/Morman
-Thomas/Lawrence
-Ellis/Strickland

I also think its alarming that even though Mick was able to offer immediate playing time to top recruits with Yancy and Cashmere leaving, our point guard and center spots are huge question marks.

 

[JumpinJack5]

Do I need to seriously go back prospect by prospect for you to admit you're incorrect? Everyone knows this is the biggest crock of **** ever posted on this board.

Compare the number of 4 and 5 star recruits Huggs had before and after Mick and the number of 4 and 5 during Micks stay at UC. Lets see it, I will be waiting, the numbers won't lie.........,