Author: David Shama

Smith’s recruiting hasn’t been impressive.  If White and Mbakwe were playing and performing at a level resembling their preseason hype, the recruiting assessment would be different.  The reality is that after two recruiting classes the staff has yet to put a star player on the floor.

That might change and not only because of Mbakwe who reportedly has been impressive in practices.  Sophomore Ralph Sampson III has the potential to become one of college basketball’s better centers.  Freshman forward Rodney Williams, a wonderful athlete who can put fear into any entrant in a slam dunk contest, is a possible NBA first round draft choice some day.

But for now the Gophers’ talent and blend of basketball tangibles and intangibles doesn’t equate to the better rosters in the Big Ten conference.  That’s on the Minnesota staff and so, too, is effort which although usually admirable was not only unsatisfactory against Ohio state but helped sink the Gophers in a road game against Indiana they should have won.

Because of timing, home state recruiting has been less productive than it could have been.  Had Smith arrived at Minnesota a few years prior to when he did, the Gophers might be playing with a much more talented roster.  Cornell senior Ryan Wittman (Eden Prairie), Kansas junior Cole Aldrich (Bloomington), Wisconsin junior Jon Leuer (Orono) and Wisconsin sophomore Jordan Taylor (Bloomington) are Minnesota natives playing major roles in helping their teams compete for championships.  Smith arrived too late to be a factor in bringing some or all of them here.

Smith didn’t please some Gophers fans and probably University administrators when he allowed former coach Clem Haskins on the Williams Arena floor for a reunion celebration of the 1990 NCAA tournament team during halftime of a home game last month.  Haskins cost the athletic department a lot of money, energy and image, along with a forfeited Big Ten championship, because of the infamous academic scandal.

University leaders are sensitive to past problems with the NCAA.  In 2007 Smith interviewed former Gophers assistant Jimmy Williams regarding a job on the Minnesota staff.  Gopher athletics director Joel Maturi didn’t want to hire Williams because Minnesota had NCAA rules violations when Williams was an assistant here many years ago.  Williams, though, resigned his position as an assistant at Oklahoma State after being contacted by Smith and lawsuits against the University of Minnesota and Smith were later filed.

Smith is a likeable guy, a gentleman.  He makes an effort to show kindness to people and that personality has resonated with Minnesotans.

His arrival here was embraced by fans who knew of his national championship at Kentucky and habit of having the Wildcats in the NCAA tournament.  He created a buzz but not a mania about Gophers basketball.  The program is relevant again in this town with sellouts for Big Ten games, but not for the nonconference.  Those games, with Smith’s approval, consist of opponents lacking box office appeal.

Smith’s annual compensation, with incentives, is in the $2 million range. That raises expectations about winning and filling up Williams Arena.  He’s an upgrade over previous coach Dan Monson, an opinion everyone other than the Monson family and close friends will agree on.  But can Smith raise the status of this program to near annual Big Ten title contender and create a warm place in the hearts of more local winter sports fans?

The next two seasons will likely provide the answer.  Depending on how the personnel finalizes, the Gophers could be formidable next season, or still going in reverse.  Let’s say Nolen becomes academically eligible, Mbakwe finally plays, and Williams and Sampson fulfill their potential.

If that happens, Smith gets his halo back.  That is if he’s still here.  The Tubby-to- another-school rumors won’t go away and the one with the most energy is Maryland.  Coach Gary Williams, who won a national title in 2002, has only one season above .500 in the ACC during the last six years.  Smith is a Maryland native with relatives and family back east.

If Smith leaves Minnesota but the Gophers talent mix emerges, then a new Minnesota coach might be wearing a halo.

Unless Seantrel Henderson accepts a scholarship offer, the Gophers aren’t likely to move up much in the rankings that list the college football recruiting classes for 2010.  Rivals.com has the Gophers at No. 48 while Scout.com ranks Minnesota No. 66, the lowest of any Big Ten Conference school.

Henderson, the offensive tackle from Cretin-Derham Hall, has consistently been ranked among the top five prep prospects in the country by recruiting sources.  He told Sports Headliners about a week ago that he will choose Miami, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Ohio State or Southern California.  The opinion here is the Gophers are unlikely to be his final choice.

Rivals.com and Scout.com use a five star rating system.  Henderson, of course, is a five star and Rivals has two four star players on the list of Minnesota verbal commitments, offensive tackle Jimmy Gjere of Irondale and running back Lamonte Edwards from Woodbury.

While the Gophers rank low in the recruiting rankings, that doesn’t mean the class of 2010 won’t help Minnesota become a winning program.  There’s not a one-to-one correlation between the best recruiting classes in the country and who wins football games a few years later.

It’s something like the big shot who brags about having an expensive car to drive around town.  Some schmuck drives a junker but can still arrive at the same destinations as the big shot.

In Sports Illustrated’s preview of the top 10 football teams for next season the magazine (January 18 issue) ranks Boise State No. 2, Iowa No. 5 and Wisconsin No. 10.  Annual recruiting rankings seldom, if ever, have any of those programs in their top 20 listings.

The most hyped recruits often are big contributors to their college teams but other factors determine whether a program wins.  Lesser publicized players frequently become extraordinary, too.  Sometimes their college coaches find new positions for them that allow their talents to emerge, or players may develop late physically and emotionally.

Whether a school has winning teams is impacted too on how effectively the collective roster fits together.  Is the sum better than the parts?  A roster of good players that fill every need and get along with each other is a better bet to win than a team with a couple of stars, glaring needs in several positions and a grouchy locker room.

Gophers coach Tim Brewster told Sports Headliners he expects to “add” a couple names to the verbal commitment list before Wednesday.  “We battle until the final whistle,” he said.

Under NCAA rules coaches can’t leave their campuses after midnight on Saturday for further recruiting.  Brewster was at the end of recruiting last Friday when he spoke with Sports Headliners.

“I am finishing up one of the wildest weeks I’ve ever had,” he said.  “I am exhausted.”

During five days Brewster’s destinations were Dallas, Houston, Detroit, Indianapolis, Miami, Atlanta (twice), St. Louis and Minneapolis.  All of that is just a blip in all the time and energy Brewster, his staff and other college coaches spend recruiting.  On Friday Brewster gave some hint about what he will detail on Wednesday at a news conference when he said about his 2010 recruits: “I feel really good about this class.”

For more on Rivals.com and Scout.com visit https://rivals100.rivals.com/teamrank.asp?Year=2010&Page=2&PosType=0&Sort=0

https://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&p=9&c=14&yr=2010