bigruss

lol "Obama stopped playing golf to campaign"

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Nov 18, 2016 -> 10:09 AM) Next year will be worse. You lose 5 Seniors, including Hill and both your centers. If Black and JCL make leaps this year (1) this team will comfortably make the tournament; and (2) I'll feel much better about next year, but '18 is going to be a really young and unproven roster. Yea but if you're evaluating Groce you need to consider if he recruited to make the tournament once every 3/4 years or if he's building a consistent winner. Making the tournament, while tough in 2018, will be essential to proving that he can coach and build a winner.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Nov 18, 2016 -> 09:46 AM) I think you got your info from 247 who has incomplete data because their site didn't exist back then. Brandon Paul and DJ Richardson for example, were top 50 recruits. #35 and #49 RSCI respectively. That was 3 top 15 years classes in Weber's in his final 4 years. Anyways, my point is not what Weber left (irrelevant talking about Groce's 6th year), it's that Groce isn't even recruiting at a level above him, which we hired him to do and that this type of talent isn't somehow unique for use, even compared to the Weber years. Yea I did, good call. I find their site easier to navigate so my bad on that. But dude, you brought up Weber's recruiting and a huge part of that is that 8 of 10 of his last players recruited didn't make it to year 3 at Illinois. Throw rankings out of the window at that point, that's terrible recruiting/coaching/development, unless you're Kentucky and it meant they were all NBA draft picks. I 100% agree that Groce has been a major disappointment, and I'll continue to say that if Groce doesn't make the tournament this year then he's gone. In fact, I'll say if he doesn't make the tournament this year and next he should be gone. There are no more excuses at this point.

Jenks, did I not just say a few posts up that if they don't make the tournament that he should be fired?

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Nov 17, 2016 -> 07:06 PM) Derrick Favors>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Tilmon Tilmon is great don't get me wrong. But he's not like a Ben Simmons esque program changer. Closer to 25th in the country than 1. The 2018 team probably isn't even better than the team we're running out now. No way we keep Groce if he misses the tournament. This class as it stands will probably be about 12-15th best in the country. That's not even better than what Weber was getting us in his last years. Groce has lowered expectations for this program that it almost seems to be helping him. I don't necessarily disagree with your points but quite frankly I'm shocked that you didn't say you wished JT went elsewhere so that Groce's fate was sealed. Your hate for Groce knows no bounds Groce classes: 2017: class 8th (incomplete) 2016: class 101 2015: class 16 2014: class 55 2013: class 14 Those Weber classes 2012: Nothing 2011: Abrams (65), Egwu (76), Shaw (64), Henry (63), Langford (159), Ibby (NR) - class 10 2010: Richmond (29), Leonard (30), Head (80) - class 11 2009: Richardson (97), Paul (101), Griffey (103), Bertrand (122) - class 38 2008: class 152 2007: class 33 2006: class 42 2005: class 56 2004: class 49 So in Weber's last 4 years he was barely doing as well as Groce is now. Yes, 2 top 30 players was impressive in 2010. That said, we had 8 early departures from the 2010 and 2011 classes (with only 1 going to the NBA) and nobody in the 2012 class, just awfulness there. It's crazy how badly Weber burned this program down. Groce has a slight pulse again, we shall see if he can continue to build upward.

QUOTE (Deadpool @ Nov 17, 2016 -> 06:23 PM) You're used to being wrong. A top 10 class is enough excitement to sustain a program for one year. The effects of firing Groce after this season would be catastrophic. Don't encourage him. No, that's not enough. If he got Wilkes too then yea sure but this class alone isn't a coach-saver. You can't be at Illinois and miss 4 tournaments in a row, unacceptable. 3 was already too many but he gets a half-pass with all the injuries last year.

QUOTE (fathom @ Nov 17, 2016 -> 05:46 PM) He should be fired if they don't make the tournament. No recruit is more important than the coach in place Agreed.

Groce has never had a bigger smile in a press conference than today:

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 17, 2016 -> 12:57 PM) What I take from this, Illinois must have raised their bid? No idea on that, but from reports when Groce met with Tilmon in person earlier this week it made all the difference.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Nov 15, 2016 -> 12:44 PM) Hopefully Tilmon signs tomorrow.... Many reports saying it's done, going to Illinois.

Lincoln Chafee

QUOTE (JenksIsMyHero @ Nov 10, 2016 -> 04:14 PM) So it must be a done deal that he's gone. Some of the insider Illini guys on Twitter (Jeremy Werner) are basically saying it without saying it outright. They are holding out the slimmest glimmer of hope but yea, odds are heavily in favor of signing with SLU or at the least decommitting this week.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:52 PM) By what evidence? There will never be a picture of a check or a recording of the conversation but they have connections to players' camps and that's how they hear these things. EDIT: Removing some details, it is pay info so will only stay at high level of info.

QUOTE (gatnom @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:47 PM) More than Illinois is, at least. This is important to note, Illinois wasn't clean in this to begin with, every school plays dirty to some extent.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:33 PM) You really think they are paying him? I mean I don't want to sound like a salty fan, but yes and it's been backed up in the premium sites.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:16 PM) Oh, ouch. That is the one recruit I have actually seen in person. That is a big one, that kid is a freak. Real good shot at the NBA IMO. EDIT: I didn't realize he went back to East STL either. Too bad, I would have loved to see him play in my HS's gym this year as we host LaLumiere where he played last year. They are currently ranked as the #1 HS team in the nation. Yea as soon as he went back to East STL the red flags were starting to get raised but he kept saying he was solid to Illinois. But Ford is doing the same thing he did with Jordan Goodwin, offering him more $$ than anyone thought he could and shutting down the recruitment quickly after that. Tilmon at least met with the an assistant coach but man it wouldn't shock me at all if he signs with SLU this week which is just amazing.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:08 PM) What replacement is getting the most chatter? There's nothing right now that I've seen, quite frankly Illinois would not be that of an attractive job.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:13 PM) Not following UI closely, but who is he losing? Jeremiah Tilmon

QUOTE (bmags @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 04:05 PM) We've lost our ability to manufacture with human labor cheaply. We manufacture cheaply just fine. Yea I was trying to say that, but that's more succinct.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 03:52 PM) I see first hand that construction and business spending is up and we are coming up on a HUGE tech bubble (hopefully doesnt pop) which makes us THE leader in the world. But I guess since some factories closed over a decade ago that business sucks. I mean I get that people are upset about wage increases being super sluggish, but I think that's a lazy way to look at it but dumb people fall for it because it's easier than switching careers. I also love how there's this huge movement to bring jobs back to America, yet Trump's hats are made in China. Yea, he really cares about manufacturing jobs here. So many people clamor for this, and republicans gobble it up even though they all know it's not feasible. We've lost our ability to manufacture competitively (at least with high paying jobs on the floor). But of course they won't admit that, they just blame policy for it.

It's worthwhile to note that companies are making more money than ever, the market is doing fine. What isn't going well is the middle class especially with wage increases. There is a legitimate gripe with how Obama was handling this, he was super friendly to companies (and somehow republicans still didn't like that) but it has nothing to do with the economy still being down, it's about the spread of wealth. Trump hasn't shown any policies that would be friendly to the middle class, at best we've seen policy talk around trade agreements but those aren't battling that problem directly. I just don't understand how people think trickle down effect economics are needed right now when that's essentially what we have currently. I'd rather see policy around middle class tax cuts, tax breaks for family's sending kids to college, etc, especially centered around those going into science/engineering/business fields. Enable the middle class to get jobs that will exist tomorrow, not jobs that existed 30 years ago. That's how you move them forward.

QUOTE (JenksIsMyHero @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 08:51 AM) 1) Making abortions more difficult and overturning Roe v. Wade are two very different things. 2) One of the most beloved Democrats of the last half century is a serial adulterer. 3) He took a pause at his RNC speech to applaud the audience for applauding about homosexual rights. That's how far the "right" has come on the issue of gay marriage. LOL love republicans. Get the government out of regulating everything! Except abortions and gays, let's make sure to regulate the hell out of them. That's cool with us.

f*** b**** ass s*** ass f***

Every time CNN shows a democratic heavy county update they keep hoping she closes the gap but each time it feels like it's just not enough. Just can't gain traction in so many states.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Nov 8, 2016 -> 09:08 PM) I never said all, but we knew that this election would have nothing to do with actual policy once Trump won the nomination. Bernie is about as clean as you can get for a politician while Clinton is heavily disliked and mired in controversy. That is very true and I agree with that, there'd still be a solid republican base that would fight hard vs Bernie's policies.