All Things Kyle Washington Thread - UPDATED (9/23): Commits to North Carolina State

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balds said:
Have you been to Ames? I know you're from there, but come on. Ames and Waco, TX are places you drive through. I've been to both and can't fathom why anyone would CHOOSE to live there.
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Exactly - You drive THROUGH Iowa you don't stop there. Junk State.
 

balds said:
Have you been to Ames? I know you're from there, but come on. Ames and Waco, TX are places you drive through. I've been to both and can't fathom why anyone would CHOOSE to live there.
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Not trying to stir the pot or "defend" Ames, but I'm from Minnesota and live in Minnesota now. I went to school at Iowa State (and therefore lived in Ames, obviously). I had a great experience there and loved living there while in college. There is a very different feel between Iowa State and Minnesota (the U).

I think some recruits like the idea of being the main draw in town and essentially being a local celebrity. Some recruits like the feel of the U better with it's location in a large metropolitan area.

To me, this is a case of "to each, his own." Pros and Cons of both, but you can't deny that Hoiberg is certainly doing a good job of convincing decent recruits that Ames is the right place for them.
 

Ames Iowa is actually a fun college town. I was down there quite a few times for club athletics when I went to the U and we always had a blast.
 

ISU_phoria said:
Not trying to stir the pot or "defend" Ames, but I'm from Minnesota and live in Minnesota now. I went to school at Iowa State (and therefore lived in Ames, obviously). I had a great experience there and loved living there while in college. There is a very different feel between Iowa State and Minnesota (the U).

I think some recruits like the idea of being the main draw in town and essentially being a local celebrity. Some recruits like the feel of the U better with it's location in a large metropolitan area.

To me, this is a case of "to each, his own." Pros and Cons of both, but you can't deny that Hoiberg is certainly doing a good job of convincing decent recruits that Ames is the right place for them.
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I have no doubt that it can be fun as any college town is fun because you have roughly 20k kids your own age running around.

However, Ames is a tiny town and there is not much to do there or in relatively near by Des Moines. They don't have MOA, all the lakes, the down town, up town, dinky town, shopping, amusement parks etc. Mpls and St. Paul combined for over 20 fortune 500 companies and the "U" plays in the B1G IMO a much better and more stable conference than the Big 12.
 

Wouldn't You like to Know said:
I have no doubt that it can be fun as any college town is fun because you have roughly 20k kids your own age running around.

However, Ames is a tiny town and there is not much to do there or in relatively near by Des Moines. They don't have MOA, all the lakes, the down town, up town, dinky town, shopping, amusement parks etc. Mpls and St. Paul combined for over 20 fortune 500 companies and the "U" plays in the B1G IMO a much better and more stable conference than the Big 12.
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So all basketball players should go to Southern Cal?
 


Wouldn't You like to Know said:
I have no doubt that it can be fun as any college town is fun because you have roughly 20k kids your own age running around.

However, Ames is a tiny town and there is not much to do there or in relatively near by Des Moines. They don't have MOA, all the lakes, the down town, up town, dinky town, shopping, amusement parks etc. Mpls and St. Paul combined for over 20 fortune 500 companies and the "U" plays in the B1G IMO a much better and more stable conference than the Big 12.
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I don't think someone can truly understand the appeal of any campus or town unless they've really spent some time there and truly "experienced" the environment. You list a lot of very good reasons why a recruit (or student) might want to attend the UofM. I'd guess you might have provided this list based on your personal experience and own "fond memories". (However, I hate the MOA, so I'm just can't see that as a draw...haha)

Similarly, there are a lot of things ISU has that the U doesn't which could be potential selling points to recruits (students). I've spent a great deal of time on both campus (including my college days) and experience the "good, bad & ugly" of both.

I still go back to: "to each his own"

While the Big XII was on very rocky ground a couple years ago, it is rock solid now, evidenced by TCU and WVU joining as well as the new TV deal. I don't think that is an issue any more.
 

Kyle has trimmed his list to Marquette, OSU, Washington, Baylor, ISU, NC State, and Louisville.
Via NY2LAsports
 







ISU_phoria said:
I don't think someone can truly understand the appeal of any campus or town unless they've really spent some time there and truly "experienced" the environment. You list a lot of very good reasons why a recruit (or student) might want to attend the UofM. I'd guess you might have provided this list based on your personal experience and own "fond memories". (However, I hate the MOA, so I'm just can't see that as a draw...haha)

Similarly, there are a lot of things ISU has that the U doesn't which could be potential selling points to recruits (students). I've spent a great deal of time on both campus (including my college days) and experience the "good, bad & ugly" of both.

I still go back to: "to each his own"

While the Big XII was on very rocky ground a couple years ago, it is rock solid now, evidenced by TCU and WVU joining as well as the new TV deal. I don't think that is an issue any more.
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Could you please provide one example of a selling point that Iowa State would have over the U?

Not saying there are not any, just curious why you didn't list any.
 

Sounds like he hasn't had much interest for awhile now.
 



Winasota Gopher said:
Could you please provide one example of a selling point that Iowa State would have over the U?

Not saying there are not any, just curious why you didn't list any.
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I know several people who have gone to Iowa State because of the programs they offer (especially engineering). In addition, in Ames the Cyclones are the only show in town so you don't have to share the spotlight with the pros. The campus is awesome and is the central part of town. At the U, you get that big campus feel and not always in a good way. The Cyclones have a new practice facility for basketball. They made it to the second round of the tournament last year. Right now, the vibe around Iowa State basketball is positive and they are seen as an up and coming program. Their coach is a former NBA player and executive and still has huge NBA ties. Darn near every Division 1 player thinks they can play in the NBA someday so that sells well. I know of a recruit who is still considering ISU and has recently eliminated the Gophers whose father gushes over Hoiberg.

So far for 2013, they have two 4 star recruits (having "beaten" the Gophers for at least one of them) so they must be doing something right.
 

I agree that Hoiberg having NBA ties is a huge positive.

I disagree about any recruit going there for academics over the U, especially engineering, where we are fantastic. If kids were actually concerned about the degree and job, they would go to Minneapolis, which is consistently ranked as the best city for jobs. I'm not trying to rip the city, I'm just saying that Minneapolis makes more sense.

With that said, I think the problem is pretty simple - Hoiberg connects better to recruits.
 

Not many b-ball playes or athletes for that matter oing into engineering. If the big city was all the kids thought of- well then nyu and chicago would kick ass.
 

Energetic coaching staff. Great college town. Good conference. Tons of momentum. Oh yea, practice facility.
 

Winasota Gopher said:
Could you please provide one example of a selling point that Iowa State would have over the U?

Not saying there are not any, just curious why you didn't list any.
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Better facilities, better coaches, coaches with NBA ties, bigger crowd at games, and probably the most important, a better team.

You don't seem to realize what a college town is actually like. There are 31k students at ISU with another 4-5k DMAC kids living in Ames. The population of Ames is somewhere around 60k, making it that well over half of the population is of college age. When you are 18-23, it's an extremely fun environment.
 

captain.hindsight said:
I agree that Hoiberg having NBA ties is a huge positive.

I disagree about any recruit going there for academics over the U, especially engineering, where we are fantastic. If kids were actually concerned about the degree and job, they would go to Minneapolis, which is consistently ranked as the best city for jobs. I'm not trying to rip the city, I'm just saying that Minneapolis makes more sense.

With that said, I think the problem is pretty simple - Hoiberg connects better to recruits.
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I know it may be hard to believe, but Iowa State might be seen by some as having better programs for them than the U. In addition, the Interstate goes directly from Ames to Minneapolis and many Iowa State grads do in fact get jobs in the cities. Plus, if we are talking about division I basketball recruits, I doubt many have job location after graduation very high on their list of priorities anyway.
 

Captain Puerto Rico said:
Better facilities, better coaches, coaches with NBA ties, bigger crowd at games, and probably the most important, a better team.

You don't seem to realize what a college town is actually like. There are 31k students at ISU with another 4-5k DMAC kids living in Ames. The population of Ames is somewhere around 60k, making it that well over half of the population is of college age. When you are 18-23, it's an extremely fun environment.
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How do I not seem to understand what a college town is like?
 

Winasota Gopher said:
Could you please provide one example of a selling point that Iowa State would have over the U?

Not saying there are not any, just curious why you didn't list any.
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Ask Kyle.

Here's one. ISU's winters are shorter and less harsh. :)
 

Meh. I think he'd have been a very nice get, and I'm sorry we missed out on him, but onward and upward. Kyle, I hope you get a good education, and I hope your basketballing career is abysmal.
 

jmag21 said:
Meh. I think he'd have been a very nice get, and I'm sorry we missed out on him, but onward and upward.
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It is a little worrisome because it doesn't seem like we're going after anyone better than him except for maybe E.C. Matthews. I hate to harp on Tubby's recruiting too much because his fall recruits have for the most part turned out just fine, and I expect Buggs and Ellenson to contribute eventually, if not so much this year, but it doesn't seem like we really have a legitimate shot at any 4-star guys except Matthews. Considering we will have four open scholarships, I just hope we don't end up with a couple of plan-B 2 or 3 star guys in the fall, and then fill up the remaining two scholarships with marginal spring recruits simply for the sake of filling scholarships. I'm really starting to hope we leave at least one scholarship open for the 2014 class; managing to somehow get the top 3 guys in the state of Minnesota for 2014 would be one helluva recruiting class.
 



Cayman said:
It is a little worrisome because it doesn't seem like we're going after anyone better than him except for maybe E.C. Matthews. I hate to harp on Tubby's recruiting too much because his fall recruits have for the most part turned out just fine, and I expect Buggs and Ellenson to contribute eventually, if not so much this year, but it doesn't seem like we really have a legitimate shot at any 4-star guys except Matthews. Considering we will have four open scholarships, I just hope we don't end up with a couple of plan-B 2 or 3 star guys in the fall, and then fill up the remaining two scholarships with marginal spring recruits simply for the sake of filling scholarships. I'm really starting to hope we leave at least one scholarship open for the 2014 class; managing to somehow get the top 3 guys in the state of Minnesota for 2014 would be one helluva recruiting class.
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I think we bank for 2014 before signing the scraps basically. Depending on the feel Tubby has for where Tyus, Vaughn, etc. are leaning.

Does suck to lose Washington, but I will say that is a very peculiar list.
 


Gopher Warrior said:
He has only been arrested, why has Hoiberg suspended him?!?! You must be outraged!

Maybe the guilt will be guiltier?
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Your obsession with Trevor continues to grow. What DNA evidence did they have against him (Trevor) again?
 

Jerry Kill-A-Brew said:
Kyle has trimmed his list to Marquette, OSU, Washington, Baylor, ISU, NC State, and Louisville.
Via NY2LAsports
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Wow, that is one eclectic list.

If we didn't even make that list, then it's pretty clear his MN ties aren't what everyone assumed and he never gave serious consideration to coming back here. It makes a little more sense now that others are reporting that his family is moving east and so, in addition to not living here for several years, he'll have no family left here.

P.S. Why are we still making veiled references to Trevor Mbakwe? Sheesh. Dude's going to be all big ten if he doesn't get hurt. And to the newbie posters who think ISU is going to be a better team than Minnesota, I'll take that bet.
 

JDGopher said:
How do you figure? Not saying I have any idea, but you imply that you actually do know something... Why do you feel like this?
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Lol, you see even though I'm 15, I read deep into words and make assumptions. Sometimes I'm wrong, most the time I'm right. Basically I'm good at reading deep in between the lines.
 

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