Missouri Power Forward Juwan Morgan

[azhog10]

+1

We need people who will only be satisfied with a first class program....... coaches, administration, fans. If we were KY or Duke, would we wait for Haley's Comet to return before we got things going again?

I don't see CMA as someone who is satisfied with the current state of this team and the program. I see a guy who isn't satisfied and understands the logical climb and process it's going to take to get us there. The question is will he. But I have not once seen him lay down to have a good bleed. He seems very adament that we aren't where we need to be, but we are getting closer.

P.S. Duke hasn't had the crazy turnover at HC that Arkansas has had in the last 15 years and Kentucky had a couple down years but their program was never as far down as Arkansas was. Not really very good comparisons to where we were and where we are going.

[azhog10]

Morgan reportedly now has an offer from Indiana. IU just recently offered his MOKAN Elite teammate, Shake Milton.

Don't like that they offered Morgan, but I would say that this and the Milton offer might would seal the deal that Whitt will not receive an offer from IU unless it's late in the process.......

[mhuff]

I don't see CMA as someone who is satisfied with the current state of this team and the program. I see a guy who isn't satisfied and understands the logical climb and process it's going to take to get us there. The question is will he. But I have not once seen him lay down to have a good bleed. He seems very adament that we aren't where we need to be, but we are getting closer.

P.S. Duke hasn't had the crazy turnover at HC that Arkansas has had in the last 15 years and Kentucky had a couple down years but their program was never as far down as Arkansas was. Not really very good comparisons to where we were and where we are going.

I gave KY and Duke as examples to my point that their fans would not tolerate anything but the best for long. I also would agree that MA can't possibly be satisfied with the results of his tenure here. BUT...... it really irks me that MA has the Pel wry smile and folded arms posture as his team is getting their brains beat out by an inferior team. Where is the coach that has prepared his team and has a game plan or calls a timeout to set up a simple scoring play to score a badly needed basket and end the drought. I am not seeing it. To me the credit or discredit rises to the top. The ole MA doesn't have his kind of players does not work and never did for me. He is responsible for the players he has.

[-Blu]

Don't like that they offered Morgan, but I would say that this and the Milton offer might would seal the deal that Whitt will not receive an offer from IU unless it's late in the process.......

I'm thinking an offer may not come to Morgan, seems odd that with his stock at an all time high and we've been recruiting him for a while now it would be the perfect time to try to give an offer and get his commitment, before a school like Indiana swoops in and gets him.

That leads me to believe one of these scenarios is true...

1. The staff has another guy that they feel is better suited and have a really good shot at, and they are close to a commitment from him.

2. The staff doesn't think we will lose Portis after this year, and that we have enough guys at the 4/5 position, and going to fill Alandise Harris scholarship with a guy that plays the 3/4 position like Harris does.... (Melvin Frazier).

I'm leaning more towards scenario #1 though because in matter of about a week and a half we offered..... Blackshear, Morrow, and Giddens, all who would fit that 4/5 position mold. 

[mhuff]

I'm thinking an offer may not come to Morgan, seems odd that with his stock at an all time high and we've been recruiting him for a while now it would be the perfect time to try to give an offer and get his commitment, before a school like Indiana swoops in and gets him.

That leads me to believe one of these scenarios is true...

1. The staff has another guy that they feel is better suited and have a really good shot at, and they are close to a commitment from him.

2. The staff doesn't think we will lose Portis after this year, and that we have enough guys at the 4/5 position, and going to fill Alandise Harris scholarship with a guy that plays the 3/4 position like Harris does.... (Melvin Frazier).

I'm leaning more towards scenario #1 though because in matter of about a week and a half we offered..... Blackshear, Morrow, and Giddens, all who would fit that 4/5 position mold. 

I agree with you and Arkansas1 that we must have something working that may not be public knowledge...... I hope that is the case. I am in the hopes that Allen will change his mind. Call me a homer..... but his name is not on the dotted line.

[HawgAdvocate]

Don't like that they offered Morgan, but I would say that this and the Milton offer might would seal the deal that Whitt will not receive an offer from IU unless it's late in the process.......

Yeah, considering the family ties and Whitt's spring ascendence, Whitt to IU seems unlikely. If it was going to happen, it should have already happened. It's odd too, considering how many combo/shooting guards they've been after for the 2015 class. UNC and Mizzou are my biggest concern(s?) in regards to Whitt.

[HawgAdvocate]

I'm leaning more towards scenario #1 though because in matter of about a week and a half we offered..... Blackshear, Morrow, and Giddens, all who would fit that 4/5 position mold. 

In recent interviews Morrow isn't mentioning us as having even offered him (not good for Arkansas). Giddens was never going to happen in the first place, but for the sake of this thread, he listed his five finalists (surprise: Arkansas isn't among them) and plans to announce on July 4th. Just because we offer someone doesn't mean we're a contender.

Blackshear is the only possibility of your three, and he's not getting much press as of yet. What's more likely is that, due to having only two known openings, MA would rather hold off on giving a 2nd commitable offer and see what the spring offers us rather than settle for an easy commitment from some low-hanging fruit.

[ArkansasI]

HA,

What I know about recruiting basically comes from this board. In fact, I depend quite a bit on the information that you post. (You seem well informed.)

Based upon the current roster, I'm signing the best 2 players I can find - regardless of position.

I really like a couple of players on our team, but I don't believe that the program has progressed to position recruiting. So, I'm at the best player available. I'd be really happy to find players that are crazy fast or crazy strong. A guy who is both would qualify as a God-send.

How would you evaluate what we know about recruiting?  Is there a logical reason that we haven't offered Morgan - assuming that's the case?

[psooie]

So its 2 guys in the fall and maybe 2 guys in the spring depending on who leaves? Probably juco's in the spring if needed.

[HawgAdvocate]

How would you evaluate what we know about recruiting?  Is there a logical reason that we haven't offered Morgan - assuming that's the case?

We're heavily invested in landing Jimmy Whitt, and that's all we know for sure. Nothing ground-breaking about it.  As for Morgan, aside from what I've already posted within this thread, logically there are a couple theories I could come up with.

1) Up to this point, the staff doesn't value Morgan as much as some of these other programs do

2) The staff doesn't feel as if we have a realistic shot at landing him

[HawgAdvocate]

So its 2 guys in the fall and maybe 2 guys in the spring depending on who leaves? Probably juco's in the spring if needed.

Could just as easily be one in the fall, & one in the spring. If we miss on Whitt, who has said he'll sign in November, then it could be 2+ in the spring.

[rzrbackramsfan]

We're heavily invested in landing Jimmy Whitt, and that's all we know for sure. Nothing ground-breaking about it.  As for Morgan, aside from what I've already posted within this thread, logically there are a couple theories I could come up with.

1) Up to this point, the staff doesn't value Morgan as much as some of these other programs do

2) The staff doesn't feel as if we have a realistic shot at landing him

It could also be that we're trying to land another player they want more.

[HawgAdvocate]

It could also be that we're trying to land another player they want more.

Hence the "aside from what I've already posted within this thread" portion of my post. Blackshear & Frazier are the only known other possibilities in that regard. Frazier's recruitment is eerily silent, for whatever reason. Reminds me of D'Angelo Allen from last year.

[ArkansasI]

2) The staff doesn't feel as if we have a realistic shot at landing him

I hope this isn't the case.  The guy lives close enough to Arkansas to be an attractive draw for his family.  If Blackshear and Frazier are marginally better, then we better have good vibes coming from them.

Of course, if the staff doesn't think Juwan is worthy of an offer, that is a whole 'nother thing.

I realize that there is much more to all this, but the great Hog teams have always relied on regional talent.

[HawgAdvocate]

Morgan visited Indiana this weekend. He's talking to Crean and another assistant a few times per week now.

Indiana, Washington, Vanderbilt, Northwestern and Creighton are the schools that are recruiting him hardest.

http://indiana.scout.com/2/1411667.html

Prolly a good time to move on from Morgan.

[The_Iceman]

UPDATE: Morgan has officially been offered a scholarship. The staff gave him the news while he was visiting the campus.

[MP24]

http://www.wholehogsports.com/news/2014/jun/26/thursda/

[TomBigBeeHog]

Would be a great pick up.

[-Blu]

Our staff is so quite in everything they do, did anybody know he was down here for a visit last Wednesday?  Last we heard he didn't even have an offer.

Anyways, good to see the staff made an offer, I always thought if we did offer we'd have a good shot at him.

[Razorod]

Our staff is so quite in everything they do, did anybody know he was down here for a visit last Wednesday?  Last we heard he didn't even have an offer.

Anyways, good to see the staff made an offer, I always thought if we did offer we'd have a good shot at him.

I guess, like it or not, that is the MO of this staff. They definitely like to keep things under wraps.

[Hawg Red]

I want Whitt and Morgan/Frazier for this class. I think Morgan might take some time to develop but I think he'll be a good one.

[-Blu]

I want Whitt and Morgan/Frazier for this class. I think Morgan might take some time to develop but I think he'll be a good one.

I agree on Morgan, I'm not that "high" on him, just from a scoring and low block scoring standpoint. But, recruiting analyst obviously see his potential and so does our staff, they don't just give away 4 star rankings.  1 thing that I can say about Morgan, is he is a hard worker and he works on the defensive end, those are the type of guys are staff likes and feels comfortable with.  If things work out perfect for us and Portis returns and we get Morgan, we wouldn't need Morgan much next year, and we'd have time to put some weight on him and improve his low post game, before he really played any significant minutes.

I guess, like it or not, that is the MO of this staff. They definitely like to keep things under wraps.

Yes they do.  As a fan it's kinda frustrating because you want to follow the recruiting, however I completely understand the logic in them keeping stuff "in house" and can't knock them for it.

[Hawg Red]

I agree on Morgan, I'm not that "high" on him, just from a scoring and low block scoring standpoint. But, recruiting analyst obviously see his potential and so does our staff, they don't just give away 4 star rankings.  1 thing that I can say about Morgan, is he is a hard worker and he works on the defensive end, those are the type of guys are staff likes and feels comfortable with.  If things work out perfect for us and Portis returns and we get Morgan, we wouldn't need Morgan much next year, and we'd have time to put some weight on him and improve his low post game, before he really played any significant minutes.

I think the ideal haul for the Hogs would be to sign Whitt and Morgan in the early period. This essentially replaces what we lose with Madden and Harris, though other players will actually be taking their place (Williams/Thompson for Harris and Babb for Madden). I don't really like to look at it as replacing the positions you lose. I think it's best to just get the best players you can regardless of position, but it seems these are probably the two best players we're recruiting right now (that we have an honest shot at). Then maybe we could get Frazier in the late period (on the strength of a nice NCAA tournament showing, hopefully) if we lose Portis or Qualls. Hopefully whatever is holding his recruiting back will be cleared up by then. I really like his game as well and we've been on him for a while.

[Razorod]

I think the ideal haul for the Hogs would be to sign Whitt and Morgan in the early period. This essentially replaces what we lose with Madden and Harris, though other players will actually be taking their place (Williams/Thompson for Harris and Babb for Madden). I don't really like to look at it as replacing the positions you lose. I think it's best to just get the best players you can regardless of position, but it seems these are probably the two best players we're recruiting right now (that we have an honest shot at). Then maybe we could get Frazier in the late period (on the strength of a nice NCAA tournament showing, hopefully) if we lose Portis or Qualls. Hopefully whatever is holding his recruiting back will be cleared up by then. I really like his game as well and we've been on him for a while.

Ditto.

[HawgAdvocate]

Morgan has said recently (last weekend) that Indiana and Washington will definitely get official visits. There's two of his five. He also said, along with IU and Washington, that Vandy, Creighton, & Northwestern are recruiting him the hardest. Arkansas appears to have some ground to make up.

[mhuff]

I think the ideal haul for the Hogs would be to sign Whitt and Morgan in the early period. This essentially replaces what we lose with Madden and Harris, though other players will actually be taking their place (Williams/Thompson for Harris and Babb for Madden). I don't really like to look at it as replacing the positions you lose. I think it's best to just get the best players you can regardless of position, but it seems these are probably the two best players we're recruiting right now (that we have an honest shot at). Then maybe we could get Frazier in the late period (on the strength of a nice NCAA tournament showing, hopefully) if we lose Portis or Qualls. Hopefully whatever is holding his recruiting back will be cleared up by then. I really like his game as well and we've been on him for a while.

[OnTheHillHogFan]

He told Dudley that Arkansas would get an official

[HawgAdvocate]

He told Dudley that Arkansas would get an official

Here's that and more from Scout/Dudley (free)
http://arkansas.scout.com/story/1414971-arkansas-now-has-morgan-s-full-attention?s=10

[Hawg Red]

Here's that and more from Scout/Dudley (free)
http://arkansas.scout.com/story/1414971-arkansas-now-has-morgan-s-full-attention?s=10

I like what I'm reading here. I like Morgan even more after reading that, too. Seems like a good kid. That's one thing the staff should get a lot of credit for -- they seem to be bringing in a lot of quality young men.

[The_Iceman]

Here's that and more from Scout/Dudley (free)
http://arkansas.scout.com/story/1414971-arkansas-now-has-morgan-s-full-attention?s=10

"Morgan (6-8, 215), who Scout.com has rated as a four-star prospect, the 16th-best power forward and the 81st-best player nationally, was immediately education about the school's education opportunities.

"It was a great visit and what maybe impress me the most was we went straight to the academic side of things first," Morgan said. "That showed how much he cares about the total person and not just the basketball player."

Good grief Dudley. You are a professional writer.

[longtimeHogfan]

Just reading about this youngster and I see MA offered him.  Why do you suppose Missouri hasn't?  Hometown guy, ranked #2 in the state....?

[-Blu]

According to Verbal Commits he does have an offer to Mizzou, not sure if that's the new staff or the old staff however.  I also heard him on a radio interview answer a question about pressure to stay and play for his home state, so I'm assuming that meant he had an offer from them, or at the very least strong interest.

[Hawg Red]

I don't think all of the recruiting services are up-to-date on Morgan's recruitment. I see sites with no Indiana offer listed as well.

[RazorAg]

It's almost impossible to find an accurate offer list anywhere for bball recruits.  The big four services never have accurate lists; it's clear that's not a priority of theirs.  Probably b/c they have small staffs.  Verbal Commits is decent, but I find mistakes often with them, too, most often due to the fact that they don't vet out offers through coaching staffs; instead, they just rely on what the kids say on Twitter and articles they find.

All said, I don't believe Mizzou has offered Juwan.  Why?  Not sure.  Could be one or more of several possible reasons.

[HawgAdvocate]

Zagoria has a new article on Morgan, where Indiana and Washington are featured as the two programs who are recruiting him hardest. Arkansas is mentioned as having offered.

It's looking like Jimmy Whitt or bust for the fall signing period.

http://zagsblog.com/articles/indiana-washington-after-surging-prospect-juwan-morgan/

[rzrbackramsfan]

Eh, I wouldn't use that to count us out.  It's not quantity but quality of time.

[HawgAdvocate]

It's not quantity but quality of time.

Well, hold on to that rope all ya like.

[HawgAdvocate]

There is a new Rivals (Indiana) article on Morgan that came out yesterday.

Morgan talks about his upcoming visit plans, Indiana, and his decision timetable. I'm not a Rivals subscriber, but based on a Tweeted question to the article's author by some other Razorback fan, there does not appear to be any mention of Arkansas within the article.

https://indiana.rivals.com/barrier_noentry.asp?sid=942&script=%2Fcontent%2Easp&cid=1659099

[HawgAdvocate]

Morgan continues to highlight Indiana and Washington as the two that currently "stand out" most, though Arkansas does get mentioned as having offered, among others - http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/07/19/peach-jam-recruiting-notebook/related/

Mizzou's (mostly) new staff finally offered Morgan this past weekend, as did Iowa.

[TomBigBeeHog]

Morgan continues to highlight Indiana and Washington as the two that currently "stand out" most, though Arkansas does get mentioned as having offered

Well, we did "stand out" enough that he has visited us already. Looks like we're in good shape. Thanks for the update.

[HawgAdvocate]

Well, we did "stand out" enough that he has visited us already. Looks like we're in good shape. Thanks for the update.

His words, not mine, of course. We should still get an official visit, but it appears we need to make up some ground if we truly want Morgan.

[Etowah]

I think we are way behind with Morgan...just not going to happen.

My concern is that it apprears we are losing ground with Whitt.  I thought at one time he was ours to lose...that does not appear to be the case.

He has blown up...and from what I have heard it is completely wide open for him now.

[GEO-HOG]

247 shows a lot of picks for Mizzou for Whitt.  I know we should take that with a grain of salt, but it's still interesting.

[Hawg Red]

247 shows a lot of picks for Mizzou for Whitt.  I know we should take that with a grain of salt, but it's still interesting.

It's definitely something. Not sure what. 247 was also 100% Arkansas for KeVaughn Allen, IIRC. Grain of salt is an understatement.

I'm still very optimistic that we land Whitt.

[HawgAdvocate]

247 shows a lot of picks for Mizzou for Whitt.  I know we should take that with a grain of salt, but it's still interesting.

Yeah, I'd lean more towards what Porked Tongue has posted. It's likely down to Arkansas and SMU. Things could always change once he starts taking official visits or if he receives an offer from Kansas. But those 247 projections are just harmless guesses far more often than not.

[TomBigBeeHog]

Yeah, I'd lean more towards what Porked Tongue has posted. It's likely down to Arkansas and SMU. Things could always change once he starts taking official visits or if he receives an offer from Kansas. But those 247 projections are just harmless guesses far more often than not.

I like our chances a lot if it's between us and SMU. Hopefully, the early start we had (recruiting him since 9th grade) gives us the edge when he has to go with his gut and make his final choice.

[Hawg Red]

No real surprise at this point, but we didn't make the cut for Morgan's top/final 7.

Creighton
Indiana
Kansas
Missouri
Stanford
Vanderbilt
Washington

[HawgAdvocate]

No real surprise at this point, but we didn't make the cut for Morgan's top/final 7.

Creighton
Indiana
Kansas
Missouri
Stanford
Vanderbilt
Washington

Makes sense. RazorAg indicated a while back that we were likely behind other schools because we waited so long to offer.

A recent Zagoria article also mentioned some schools had missed out due to coming on too late.

[forrest city joe]

Recruiting is going fine. people just need to relax. i am listening to Dudley Dawson and Bo crying about basketball recruiting now. Mike Anderson and his staff will be OK.

[Hawg Red]

Recruiting is going fine. people just need to relax. i am listening to Dudley Dawson and Bo crying about basketball recruiting now. Mike Anderson and his staff will be OK.

Just giving an update on a known Hog target.