UGA MBB
UGAWBB
College Basketball
ESPN: The challenges of men's college basketball recruiting on a small budget
“The University of Kentucky, for example, has a $2.3 million recruiting budget for its men's teams, per Department of Education data. In contrast, Morehead State -- an hour outside Lexington -- spends $111,000 annually.
Kansas, which won the 2022 national championship and recently added Michigan transfer Hunter Dickinson, pays $20,000 a month to private charter service WheelsUp for head coach Bill Self to use for personal and business use, including recruiting trips. At Michigan State, Tom Izzo has had access to private jets for recruiting since 2010, when he signed an extension following back-to-back Final Four trips. Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson's contract includes a clause for "use of charter flights for regular season and tournament games and for recruiting trips," per the Houston Chronicle.
And earlier this month, Florida State's booster club, the Seminole Boosters, agreed to pay $9 million to buy two planes the athletic department will be allowed to use, per the Tallahassee Democrat.
Wealthy boosters can also lend their planes to coaches for recruiting needs, such as former Iowa representative Steve Sukup, who has loaned his private plane (and pilot) out to Iowa State coaches on recruiting trips in previous years.
From Arizona State to Syracuse, the access to private travel and other accommodations adds a layer of ease to the lives of coaches who enjoy those perks.
But the differences extend beyond the amount of cash each school has to use in recruiting. The complexities of the transfer portal further complicate the job for non-Power 5 coaches, who try to add more talent each offseason without losing their best players to bigger, richer programs.
"What the NCAA has done is it has turned us into general managers, instead of basketball coaches," said North Carolina Central head coach LeVelle Moton. "We've got to assemble a roster every single year. It's hard for us, being at this level, because now, with all that said, we haven't even spoken about NIL. The one thing I've learned is that you can't out-recruit money."
To the coaches who endure those sizable financial disparities, recruiting on a budget requires patience, efficiency and, well, a working cell phone.
During the Peach Jam tournament in Augusta, Georgia, St. Thomas - Minnesota head coach Johnny Tauer's iPhone crashed. He had to borrow other coaches' phones to make recruiting calls and to stay in touch with his staff that week.
That can happen to anyone. But he was also worried about getting to the airport to catch his flight home, not a concern for some of his high-major peers who'd flown to Augusta on chartered jets that would never leave without them.
"Fortunately, I'd been there two weeks earlier and met a taxi driver and I still had his business card, so he was my lifeline to the airport," Tauer said.
Travel is not the only consideration for Tauer and other non-Power 5 coaches who attend events around the country. Cost-effective recruiting also demands tough decisions related to official visits and staffing major grassroots events, which can sometimes charge more than $500 for official team rosters so coaches can identify players on the court as they evaluate.
"I joke that some of these AAU events are the most expensive basketball games I've ever gone to," Tauer said. "You and I could buy courtside Minnesota Timberwolves tickets for less."
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...sketball-recruiting-small-budget?platform=amp
Clemson
Kennesaw State
Georgia State, Indiana, Florida State Highlight Owls' 2023-24 Schedule
https://ksuowls.com/news/2023/8/24/...da-state-highlight-owls-2023-24-schedule.aspx
Memphis
Rothstein: Memphis' projected starting five without DeAndre Williams --- Jahvon Quinerly, Caleb Mills, David Jones, Jaykwon Walton, and Jordan Brown --- will have an average age of 22.6 years old on opening night.
No team in college basketball will want to see this team in March.
Miami
Penn State
Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Penn State football, men’s basketball athletes struggling in the classroom, NCAA report finds
https://www.post-gazette.com/news/e...es-academics-ncaa-report/stories/202308240136
Pittsburgh
Rothstein: Dior Johnson is no longer enrolled at Pitt, per release.
Rutgers
Asbury Park Press: Rutgers basketball: After foreign tour, new floor general Noah Fernandes off and running
https://www.app.com/story/sports/co...f-and-running-after-foreign-tour/70657592007/
USC
NBA
Milwaukee
NYT: Giannis Antetokounmpo Wants It All. Even if It’s Not in Milwaukee.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/24/...ytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
History
UGAWBB
College Basketball
ESPN: The challenges of men's college basketball recruiting on a small budget
“The University of Kentucky, for example, has a $2.3 million recruiting budget for its men's teams, per Department of Education data. In contrast, Morehead State -- an hour outside Lexington -- spends $111,000 annually.
Kansas, which won the 2022 national championship and recently added Michigan transfer Hunter Dickinson, pays $20,000 a month to private charter service WheelsUp for head coach Bill Self to use for personal and business use, including recruiting trips. At Michigan State, Tom Izzo has had access to private jets for recruiting since 2010, when he signed an extension following back-to-back Final Four trips. Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson's contract includes a clause for "use of charter flights for regular season and tournament games and for recruiting trips," per the Houston Chronicle.
And earlier this month, Florida State's booster club, the Seminole Boosters, agreed to pay $9 million to buy two planes the athletic department will be allowed to use, per the Tallahassee Democrat.
Wealthy boosters can also lend their planes to coaches for recruiting needs, such as former Iowa representative Steve Sukup, who has loaned his private plane (and pilot) out to Iowa State coaches on recruiting trips in previous years.
From Arizona State to Syracuse, the access to private travel and other accommodations adds a layer of ease to the lives of coaches who enjoy those perks.
But the differences extend beyond the amount of cash each school has to use in recruiting. The complexities of the transfer portal further complicate the job for non-Power 5 coaches, who try to add more talent each offseason without losing their best players to bigger, richer programs.
"What the NCAA has done is it has turned us into general managers, instead of basketball coaches," said North Carolina Central head coach LeVelle Moton. "We've got to assemble a roster every single year. It's hard for us, being at this level, because now, with all that said, we haven't even spoken about NIL. The one thing I've learned is that you can't out-recruit money."
To the coaches who endure those sizable financial disparities, recruiting on a budget requires patience, efficiency and, well, a working cell phone.
During the Peach Jam tournament in Augusta, Georgia, St. Thomas - Minnesota head coach Johnny Tauer's iPhone crashed. He had to borrow other coaches' phones to make recruiting calls and to stay in touch with his staff that week.
That can happen to anyone. But he was also worried about getting to the airport to catch his flight home, not a concern for some of his high-major peers who'd flown to Augusta on chartered jets that would never leave without them.
"Fortunately, I'd been there two weeks earlier and met a taxi driver and I still had his business card, so he was my lifeline to the airport," Tauer said.
Travel is not the only consideration for Tauer and other non-Power 5 coaches who attend events around the country. Cost-effective recruiting also demands tough decisions related to official visits and staffing major grassroots events, which can sometimes charge more than $500 for official team rosters so coaches can identify players on the court as they evaluate.
"I joke that some of these AAU events are the most expensive basketball games I've ever gone to," Tauer said. "You and I could buy courtside Minnesota Timberwolves tickets for less."
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...sketball-recruiting-small-budget?platform=amp
Clemson
Kennesaw State
Georgia State, Indiana, Florida State Highlight Owls' 2023-24 Schedule
https://ksuowls.com/news/2023/8/24/...da-state-highlight-owls-2023-24-schedule.aspx
Memphis
Rothstein: Memphis' projected starting five without DeAndre Williams --- Jahvon Quinerly, Caleb Mills, David Jones, Jaykwon Walton, and Jordan Brown --- will have an average age of 22.6 years old on opening night.
No team in college basketball will want to see this team in March.
Miami
Penn State
Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Penn State football, men’s basketball athletes struggling in the classroom, NCAA report finds
https://www.post-gazette.com/news/e...es-academics-ncaa-report/stories/202308240136
Pittsburgh
Rothstein: Dior Johnson is no longer enrolled at Pitt, per release.
Rutgers
Asbury Park Press: Rutgers basketball: After foreign tour, new floor general Noah Fernandes off and running
https://www.app.com/story/sports/co...f-and-running-after-foreign-tour/70657592007/
USC
NBA
Milwaukee
NYT: Giannis Antetokounmpo Wants It All. Even if It’s Not in Milwaukee.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/24/...ytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
History
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