[LUconn]

both

[ALUmnus]

In anticipation of today’s announcement, the Athletics Department self imposing the NCAA sanctioned penalty early by reducing the number of scholarships for the 2007-08 academic year by one. The program will also be subject to a scholarship reduction for the 2008-09 year, concluding the NCAA penalties.

“Unfortunately, from the years of 2003-04 through 2006-07, we had a substantial number of men’s basketball players leave our program,” continued Barber. “In addition, nearly all left Liberty academically ineligible according to NCAA standards. The combination of these two factors resulted in our low APR score for this program.

[Cider Jim]

Too bad the Quiz Bowl graduation rates aren't factored into the formula.

[Schfourteenteen]

In anticipation of today’s announcement, the Athletics Department self imposing the NCAA sanctioned penalty early by reducing the number of scholarships for the 2007-08 academic year by one. The program will also be subject to a scholarship reduction for the 2008-09 year, concluding the NCAA penalties.

“Unfortunately, from the years of 2003-04 through 2006-07, we had a substantial number of men’s basketball players leave our program,” continued Barber. “In addition, nearly all left Liberty academically ineligible according to NCAA standards. The combination of these two factors resulted in our low APR score for this program.

What a terrible jab at our old friend.
THAT EVIL SNAKE!! JUST GRINDS MY GEARS!!!

[ATrain]

For tennis, the men had the highest combined GPA of all the mens teams on campus. The women fell just behind women's bball and vball. For the women, the score is due to a ton of transfers before the new era in LU athletics. We graduate one player and return everyone else-who are all easily academically eligible-so the women's APR is going to go up.

Finally, this thread was not worthless without those pics...eesh, I'm so happy I lost 10 pounds since those were taken.

[LUconn]

Lang's article in the N&A confirms BJ is in good academic standing. So that's helpful.

[Fumblerooskies]

Again...where the heck is CHECKMATE????

[olldflame]

Again...where the heck is CHECKMATE????

No doubt furiously trying to figure out a way to spin this as being someone elses fault.

It looks like a pretty quick turnaround has been made on this and the current situation is encouraging.

I wonder if Dees was among those who were ineligible when they left? More likely some of the Juco transfers who only stayed a year.

[jcmanson]

No, I had several classes with Dees and he was a good student, and in good academic standing. He only played here 2 years, but when he left he was a senior academically and could have graduated in 3 years.

[grm]

I'll give you a little spin. Dwight left after Randy was not renewed, and Damien did not graduate, which was under the watch of Barber/McKay. Figure those two in, and see what you get. Also, Elijah was dismissed out of necessity, and that hurt, and Rashad was along the same lines. In 2003-2004 men's bball had the highest APR on campus.

You might want to read this article from Sporting News ...

"NCAA hits men’s basketball hardest in APR results"

"Coaching changes. More than 70 percent of the basketball programs that earned an APR penalty experienced at least one coaching change during the four-year period that was measured. Most of those occurred because coaches were fired.
Coaching changes clearly have some effect on diminished APR,” said Walter Harrison, University of Hartford president and chair of the NCAA committee on academic performance. “We’re looking to see if we can’t find ways to address that.”
Either the NCAA ought to consider the disruption coaching changes cause for programs in terms of transfers and academic performance, or schools will have to pay greater attention to this issue when deciding whether it’s necessary to fire a coach."

To put this on Randy is a joke, and is very close to a lie from whoever first hinted at it. Again, check to see who lost Dwight, and who was watching Damien. I'm happy for the guys that have the program, but for goodness sakes, run it now and stop
looking to Randy every time you screw something up.

[olldflame]

The more I think about it, this is one subject I am NOT comfortable speculating about, at least as far as specific players are concerned. IMHO this is a bi-product of the whole "quick fix" approach our former coach took toward recruiting. Very short-sighted, and we are now reaping what was sown.

[olldflame]

You've got to be kidding me grm, trying to pin Damien not graduating on McKay, who did not recruit him and never coached him? Let's get real here; and as far as Brew leaving is concerned, he told each and every person who asked him that it had nothing to do with the coaching change. The only people saying otherwise are Barber haters looking to blame him for not having Brew's talent on the court another year.

Who recruited Miller and Robinson, and who was responsible for helping them succeed academically?

Looking at this mess, I can see why Barber said that RD would not have been renewed even if we had gone to the NCAA.

These problems were not a result of the coaching change.

The coaching change was a result of these problems!!!

["R" i "]

Brew left because some rules were going to be enforced more than they had in the past.(His wifes tuition) He said himself coach Mckay was the best coach he had ever been around. Elijah was trouble from the get go. So why did we recruit him? I put this loss of scholarship solely on the old coaching staff. All of this years seniors are going to graduate. BJ is in academic good standing. And I dont See many of the other current players in any trouble. J Holland was in lots of grade trouble, but look where that landed him. Finishing his degree with out basketball. The new staff has it together when it comes to grades and character.

[grm]

In case you can't read what I am saying, here it is:

1. Character or no character, when you are the AD & you make a coaching change, you need to carefully
watch what happens with the players for the remainder of the year, because it is now on your shoulders.

2. If you guys are saying that Dwight & Damien were losers and should not have been recruited, you certainly have that
right. I'm saying that they were eligible at the time that Randy was non-renewed, but then they weren't, and now it's
hurting us. Did you expect Randy to continue to moniter them after he was released? He was out of his office by Friday
@ 5:00 p.m., & of course was expected to maintain a distance from the team. Nothing wrong with most of that,
but now, those running the program have to embark on high level maintenance. Them, not Randy.

It's still a bottom line. It's the program of McKay/Barber. Let them make it successful. If the LORD tarries, there will come a time when they (and you idiots) will have to stand up for yourselves on all matters relating to the success or failure of the basketball program. It's been over a year, and the people who refuse to let it go are the people on this board. Just re-read the posts. Either make it open season where we blast each other every minute and every post, or shut-up and move on.

[jcmanson]

Did it matter if Damien and/or Dwight graduated or left in good academic standing? Would we have still lost the scholarships? If so, it’s pointless to debate who was supposed to “watch” after them.

[RagingTireFire]

Actually, it's my understanding that the APR makes room for players that sign pro contracts. Brewington ended up in a league somewhere so he doesn't hurt us. Or at least, not as badly.

[jcmanson]

Actually, it's my understanding that the APR makes room for players that sign pro contracts. Brewington ended up in a league somewhere so he doesn't hurt us. Or at least, not as badly.

If that's the case, then it's the same for Damien as well since he also signed a pro contract.

[grm]

Someone could check with Buck on these matters, that is, if he is allowed to speak about it. Since it is basically a public matter at this point, you'd think that specifics would be readily available. Then, one would think, debate would be eliminated, since all facts would be there for all to see, and to interpret as they wish. I would welcome such a situation.

[grm]

I'm also very interested in SCAR weighing in on this one. I feel like he knows this stuff quite well, and has been close to the situation. (Not saying he is the only one, but one who knows and who has been fairly objective in his judgments).

[checkmate]

Again...where the heck is CHECKMATE????

I will do my homework on this. Thanks for the insights grm. Barber's attack dogs I see are already barking.

[LUconn]

I thought that the problem with the APR is that it didn't make exceptions for guys who went pro. A player leaving hurts some but what they call "0-2" kills your score. 0-2 being a guy who leaves the school and is in bad academic standing.

[ToTheLeft]

BJ's GPA was over 3. He was not a part of the problem.

[Chris Lang]

Actually, it's my understanding that the APR makes room for players that sign pro contracts. Brewington ended up in a league somewhere so he doesn't hurt us. Or at least, not as badly.

It does, but if the player is academically ineligible at the time he departs school, it still counts against the school. That was one of the worries that Bobby Knight brought up when the NBA put the age limit on. What incentive does a freshman like Kevin Durant or Michael Beasley have to go to class when they know they'll be leaving after one year? Trying to get those kids to stay eligible in the spring after basketball is done is very difficult.

As far as your question grm, the full school APR numbers are public record through the NCAA, but I don't believe the school has to release specific individual numbers, i.e., who was ineligible/eligible at the time. There are probably some privacy rules involved, and plus, with Liberty being a private institution, it isn't required to release anything it doesn't want to.

NOTE: Just saw LUConn's post. He's spot on.

[RagingTireFire]

I think the argument about who's responsible for Brewington and Holland is a moot point anyway. There's no way that those two guys alone accounted for or were even mostly responsible for such a horrible APR score.

[LUconn]

Well, most of the discussion in the mbb forum is just a big game of "gotcha". So I didn't expect anything less.


In the end APR and GSR is a joke but we have pretend as if it's important because the NCAA does.