all I have to say is

[WarPig88]

Seriously, those of you who think that there is even loads of talent out there left to pursue are simply overreacting to the emotions of losing Portis and Qualls.

Neither of those guys were slam dunks to leave even though it was probable.

Portis is leaving when he is most likely going to be a late first round pick and Qualls has a chance to not be picked at all. Oversigning in the early period would have been the only way to make up for the loss of these two.

That same oversigning, would have looked extremely stupid if these two had chosen to stay, and both almost did.

Acting like it's the staff's fault for these guys being borderline on entering the draft is stupid.

Some of you need to step back and take in some perspective. It's not like both were lottery picks and the staff just laid back doing nothing. The truth is, one guy is leaving when he could have stayed and become a lottery pick and the other is leaving because his stock is likely to be at it's highest it will ever be after he played out of his mind in the last month.

It's good to know that there are such great basketball minds in this forum that you knew these two were for sure gone even though both have said they didn't make their minds up until this past week.

[WorfHog]

A thread full of scared grown men ready to jump off the cliff......relax

I'd remind Jump Ball posters to not to forget their blood pressure pills, if you freak out this much about things you cannot in anyway control I can't imagine how you react to real issues.

[WarPig88]

I'd remind Jump Ball posters to not to forget their blood pressure pills, if you freak out this much about things you cannot in anyway control I can't imagine how you react to real issues.

Amen

[LA Football fan]

I do not think anyone is freaking out.  They see it for what it is.  A team that just lost its two bell cows with nothing in place to really replace them.   The consensus before the season was that Portis had a high probability of leaving.  Him leaving shouldn't have caught anyone off guard especially the coaches.  Qualls was also rumored to possibly be leaving.  I understand about oversigning in the fall but as a coach you have to make sure you have a back up plan if those players do in fact leave.

We didn't seem to have a backup plan looking at who we are trying to sign right now.  I understand that there was a possibility of both staying but that possibility had to have been in the less than 50 percent category.  I understand that you really wouldn't want to oversign in the fall by two players not knowing for sure what the outcome with them was going to be, but oversigning one player would not have been a problem, especially with our history of having a player leave or transfer out seemingly every year.

IMO Mike has done a superb job of rebuilding this program from the depths it had been in.  APR is good, stability with players has improved, and the product on the court has gotten better every year.   Mike has to decide if he wants to sign a couple of reaches for next year or try to hang on to those schollies and try to reload in the 2016 class with some difference makers.  Tough decision to make knowing if we don't sign a replacement for them we will be shorthanded on talent next year.

We still have some good players but the question is do we have anyone that can take over a game when needed to get us a tough win.   Either way I am with Mike 100%.   I just think he let the ball drop this time.  It happens, nothing to freak out over.   

[rude1]

Why would you think that we have been recruiting top 100ish players this whole time and not hear a word about it? Why would you think that when we knew Jimmy Whitt and several other top 100 guards were being recruiting and then we heard NOTHING about any 2015 guard recruits after Whitt committed? It was no secret that we were recruiting Malik Dime. It was no secret that we were recruiting Ted Kapita. So why would we have some secret top 100 recruits up our sleeves now?

Face it -- the staff largely pulled back on recruiting serious talent when they go their primary targets. The only players we have been recruiting recently have been 3-star projects and a kid waiting to get an ACT score. If your best defense is "well, well, you don't know!!" then you don't have a defense. It's 2015. There are no real major secrets in the world of recruiting. Certainly not to the point of a school having multiple top 100 recruits lined up in mid April.

Either you don't understand recruiting or you just enjoy complaining. We signed the slots we KNEW were going to come open, after that you can't just go around recklessly throwing offers out there for spots you don't have open. No top 100 kid is going to sit and wait to see IF you will have a scholarship for him. What if Portis and Qualls had sub par years and decided to come back? Do you then tell them that's not an option or do you tell the signed recruits never mind we don't need you?

[Hawg Red]

Either you don't understand recruiting or you just enjoy complaining. We signed the slots we KNEW were going to come open, after that you can't just go around recklessly throwing offers out there for spots you don't have open. No top 100 kid is going to sit and wait to see IF you will have a scholarship for him. What if Portis and Qualls had sub par years and decided to come back? Do you then tell them that's not an option or do you tell the signed recruits never mind we don't need you?

KeVaugh did. I'm sure there were others as well.

If Portis and Qualls came back, you still have an open spot through Babb's transfer, or you can have Miles move on as a grad transfer. Just be real with him, tell him it doesn't look like he's going to get minutes again. He'll leave.

[WorfHog]

Is today the last day to sign 2015 recruits? Let's wait and see how it plays out before we accuse Mike of dropping the ball.

[hogsanity]

Seriously, those of you who think that there is even loads of talent out there left to pursue are simply overreacting to the emotions of losing Portis and Qualls.

Neither of those guys were slam dunks to leave even though it was probable.

Portis is leaving when he is most likely going to be a late first round pick and Qualls has a chance to not be picked at all. Oversigning in the early period would have been the only way to make up for the loss of these two.

That same oversigning, would have looked extremely stupid if these two had chosen to stay, and both almost did.

Acting like it's the staff's fault for these guys being borderline on entering the draft is stupid.

Some of you need to step back and take in some perspective. It's not like both were lottery picks and the staff just laid back doing nothing. The truth is, one guy is leaving when he could have stayed and become a lottery pick and the other is leaving because his stock is likely to be at it's highest it will ever be after he played out of his mind in the last month.

It's good to know that there are such great basketball minds in this forum that you knew these two were for sure gone even though both have said they didn't make their minds up until this past week.

I am more down on the fact that the bench is not more talented. While it is not realistic to have another secpoty on the bench, or someone with Qualls freakish athleticism, to have just lost between those two and graduating srs over 80% of the offensive production is a little staggering.

Look at what the team now has. They are either going to be counting on FR or a transfer who sat out last year to produce 60 pts per game, and that is assuming everyone returning puts up at least what they did this year. Durham should pick up some of Maddens numbers.

[rude1]

KeVaugh did. I'm sure there were others as well.

If Portis and Qualls came back, you still have an open spot through Babb's transfer, or you can have Miles move on as a grad transfer. Just be real with him, tell him it doesn't look like he's going to get minutes again. He'll leave.

Now you are making things up, you have NO idea why Allen did or didn't sign, but I can assure you it wasn't because he was waiting to see if Fl. was going to have a scholly for him. You have now gone beyond ridiculous with your posts. You don't just keep signing, then arbitrarily toss players off the team to make it work.

[Hawg Red]

I'm not making anything up. You said no top 100 guys are going to commit to schools that don't have spots. I pointed out that KeVaughn did. Florida was two over when he committed. Not sure what your deal is.

[rude1]

I'm not making anything up. You said no top 100 guys are going to commit to schools that don't have spots. I pointed out that KeVaughn did. Florida was two over when he committed. Not sure what your deal is.

Not what I said either, I said NO top 100 player is going to commit and then sit around and wait to see if you have a spot for them. Yes you can over sign when you already know what spots are going to open up, but you can't do that when you don't know or it can lead to disaster. Allen not signing had NOTHING to do with him waiting to see if there was a roster spot for him.

[Hawg Red]

Do you know that Florida knew spots were going to open up? How do you know? Why didn't KeVaughn sign early?

[rude1]

Do you know that Florida knew spots were going to open up? How do you know? Why didn't KeVaughn sign early?

How do you know they didn't? The fact that they were not just recruiting but SIGNING players should tell you that they knew. Oh I forgot in YOUR world you just keep recruiting and signing till it's all over, then you pick your favorite 13 and tell the rest to take a hike.......

[Hawg Red]

But KeVaughn didn't SIGN until after spots were opened...

[rude1]

But KeVaughn didn't SIGN until after spots were opened...

Your point?

[Hawg Red]

My point is you've chastised me for saying things that I don't know for sure, and you're doing the same thing....

[rude1]

My point is you've chastised me for saying things that I don't know for sure, and you're doing the same thing....

Such as? If you believe that Allen was sitting on his hands praying at night that Fl. was going to have a roster spot for him and he was willing to wait and see, there is no hope for you.

[Hawg Red]

I don't believe that. But I don't necessarily believe that Florida's staff absolutely knew they'd be losing people. Maybe they had a pretty good feeling Frazier was going to declare.

[Atlhogfan1]

This was partially caused by the classes getting unbalanced and only having two seniors.  Now I think they should have known, and may have, both were gone.  Portis maybe waivered.  I don't believe Qualls ever truly intended to play another season at Arkansas.  But it is tough to recruit till it is official.  The staff hasn't been the best at managing rosters and keeping balance.  Mizzou ran into it after they left.  We will too but to a lesser degree after next season.  The current Fr class, Beard and Thompson, needs to have a player added to it at some point.  If you aren't a dynamic recruiting staff and program that can replenish quickly and you count on 4 year players, unbalanced classes will lead to inconsistency.  We've had attrition for various reasons. 

I'm not going to suggest who I think should have been cut or never taken but the 2016 Sr's are an underwhelming group.  In 2017, we will have 2 scholarship Sr's as of now in Kingsley and Hannahs.  2018 Sr class only have 2 players in it now too. 

The staff left themselves no room by taking in Hannahs and Miles. 

Classes since the staff came to Arkansas:

2011 inherited
BJ - gone two seasons early
Mickelson - transferred after two
Abron - transferred after one
Madden - made it for 4 seasons


2012 first class for this staff
Qualls - one good season, one very good season, gone a season early
Wagner - transferred out after one season
Clarke JC - senior in 2014
Harris transfer - senior in 2015
Williams - a chance to join Madden in making it 4 seasons
Bell - a chance to join Madden in making it 4 seasons

2013
Portis - one good season, one great season, gone two seasons early
Kingsley
Miles transfer - senior 2016
Watkins walk on

2014
Babb - transferred out after one season
Beard
Thompson
Durham JC - senior 2016
Hannahs transfer - senior 2017

2015
Whitt
Kapita
3 open scholarships