Per Dave Schwartz from Kare11 Andre Mcdonald commits to Vandy

Donate To GopherHole
MNBadgerGuy said:
Isn't going to Iowa or Wisconsin going away for college though? People may not like it, but Iowa City and Madison are considered fun college towns (not saying dinky town isn't fun) and for a lot of minnesotans it's like going away for college with the ability to get home quickly.

I don't fault any kid for picking the school of their choosing (probably should have held off on his original commitment though).
Click to expand...

Yeah, so? I just don't like seeing local kids go to rivals. They have the right to go there. I have the right not to like it. That's all.
 

It's all good. I'd rather not have liars on our squad anyway.

At least the lying liar who lies didn't choose a Big Ten school. So that's good.
 

Texas-Gopher said:
Fine, go wherever you want. But why do major jocks care about academics? I'm not expecting to hear he's pre-med.
Click to expand...

I'm with Khaliq. I have no idea what kind of student McDonald is. If Vandy is recruiting him, my guess is he's a fairly intelligent young man with a solid academic record. Hopkins is a good school system, so he's got the foundation.

So few high school athletes make it to the pros. One ripped up knee and there goes the dream of playing on Sunday. Given this reality, don't you think a lot of high school athletes look for a balance between academics and athletics?

I would have loved to have McDonald here, but Vanderbilt is a beautiful in-town campus in one of the more picturesque parts of the country. Nashville is a great town. Can't blame him for making this choice.
 

I'm ok with it, his iowa fascination was confusing to me, if it's not here at least he went out of conference.
 

The U of M is a fine academic institution. I thought I heard that this years freshman class of approx 5,000 has an average ACT score of 27 and was chosen out of 40,000 applicants. If this kid wants to go to the football factory known as vanderbilt-so be it. His comments about iowa academic excellence always baffled me as well as the reference to wide receiver tradition.
 


My feelings are actually hurt by this decision.

Vanderbilt doesn't even feel like a college football atmosphere. It's like a womens' basketball game versus a mens'... and not when the women had Lindsey Whalen.
 

wels0081 said:
My feelings are actually hurt by this decision.

Vanderbilt doesn't even feel like a college football atmosphere. It's like a womens' basketball game versus a mens'... and not when the women had Lindsey Whalen.
Click to expand...
He's going to get a fantastic education and get to play against the greatest athletes in college football in the SEC. It's not like he's going to Middle Tennessee State.
 

Khaliq said:
He's going to get a fantastic education and get <strike>to play against</strike> annihilated weekly by the greatest athletes in college football in the SEC. It's not like he's going to Middle Tennessee State.
Click to expand...

FIFY
 

I just don't get it - Vandy is the Minnesota of the SEC before we had TCF Bank Stadium. I am glad he didn't pick Wisky or Iowa, but I would have understood that more than Vandy. And if it was education, why not Northwestern or ND or whatever? Just seems odd.
 




Lakeville Goldy said:
I just don't get it - Vandy is the Minnesota of the SEC before we had TCF Bank Stadium. I am glad he didn't pick Wisky or Iowa, but I would have understood that more than Vandy. And if it was education, why not Northwestern or ND or whatever? Just seems odd.
Click to expand...
Go South or West for college as the adage goes. It's a beautiful part of the country.
 

I would have loved him to be a Gopher, but it's his choice on where he goes to college. I wish he would have waited for Coach Kill to be out of the hospital before he announced. After all, he did commit with a lot of fanfare to Coach Kill and it would have been a respectful thing to do.
 

It doesn't surprise me that he didn't wait. The kid has proven to be a waffler and a flake before why would he do anything out of respect for anyone else now?
 



Arbogast said:
It doesn't surprise me that he didn't wait. The kid has proven to be a waffler and a flake before why would he do anything out of respect for anyone else now?
Click to expand...

YSTzG.gif
 

You people are idiots. IT'S NOT EASY TO CHOOSE A COLLEGE THAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU! It took me 5 months to decide between 3 schools.
 

It would have been nice to have McDonald come to the U, but you knew it wasn't going to happen once he started to waffle on his commitment. Coach Kill has always said that he only wants players that truly want to play for the U. He is not going to beg anyone to come here and he is not going to waste his time chasing someone who decommits. Sure he wanted McDonald to play here, but I bet once McDonald soften his commitment than Kill moved on. Even back in the summer camp McDonald said the coaches didn't really talk to him much, they were concentrating on players that wanted to play for the U. The last weeks of McDonald's recuitment seem like a player looking for school that will take him. I wish him luck, but wish he would have choose to be a gopher.
 

Jeez, some of you are a tough crowd. A 17 or 18 year changes his mind and some people are all over him. I know he didn't sign a piece of paper, and I doubt Kill made him take an oath of fidelity over the phone when he said he was going to be a Gopher. Hate to see how you people would react to someone who broke his marriage vow and got divorced.
 

Maybe some of us should remember what it was like when we were 17. Maybe some of us struggled to make the occasional life-changing decision as well. Maybe? Whadaya think? Possibly?
 

hendo59 said:
Maybe some of us should remember what it was like when we were 17. Maybe some of us struggled to make the occasional life-changing decision as well. Maybe? Whadaya think? Possibly?
Click to expand...
I do remember. I also know that my parents taught me to stick to my commitments verbal or otherwise. I personally don't care that he waffled either, I was just pointing out that no one should be surprised that he didn't come here after the "de-commit". I don't think he'll be missed in this next recruiting class anyway, it looks like we're pulling in some good WRs that WANT to be here judging from their statements.
 

Arbogast said:
I do remember. I also know that my parents taught me to stick to my commitments verbal or otherwise. I personally don't care that he waffled either, I was just pointing out that no one should be surprised that he didn't come here after the "de-commit".
Click to expand...

So Coach Kill had a contract with Northern Illinois which I believe indicates a level of commitment and ends up here. Are you okay with that "de-commit"?
 

zambam said:
You people are idiots. IT'S NOT EASY TO CHOOSE A COLLEGE THAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU! It took me 5 months to decide between 3 schools.
Click to expand...

It took you 5 months to decide so we are idiots. Nice.
 

Mulligan said:
So Coach Kill had a contract with Northern Illinois which I believe indicates a level of commitment and ends up here. Are you okay with that "de-commit"?
Click to expand...

You would have a point if Benedict McDonald paid us $600 k (or whatever it was) when he decommitted.
 

I'm glad Mcdonald went out of conference, but I will never defend his behavior.

17-18 year old kids are alot smarter and alot more savvy than most of us give them credit for.
He either should have stayed uncommitted in the spring, or stuck with his commitment to the U after going to every paper, media outlet, etc hailing the U as his final choice and a great fit, etc.
His decommitment showed unbelievable immaturity and a serious lack of character.
I'd have been damn embarrassed to be a coach or family member and have to explain why he went from all in at the U, recruiting other kids to commit, excited to build something with coach Kill, etc, then have him decommit and shop around for schools all summer.

I refuse to accept the 17 year olds don't know any better excuse.
BTW I coach HS kids, they know better, they might not always do the right thing, but they know right from wrong.
 

Meh. Whatever. I've said this before, but I'm continually shocked at how many people are talking about "how tough it is to make this decision," and wishing McDonald the best. I hope he has a long and successful life, but I hope, now that he's not going to be a Gopher, that he's an embarrassing failure on the football field. Why wish anybody who's not a Gopher success? It's not like he's a hard-luck story, or anything. It's a kid who decided to go to Vandy. Fair play to him, they've got good academics, and a terrible football team. If he wanted to go there, that's his prerogative. But I don't have to root for him. I hope Minnesota kids who go out of state fail miserably (only at football), because it won't affect the play of future Minnesota players, but it just may make other schools think twice about recruiting here. And that's good for us. So, Andre, I hope you have a long, successful life as an investment banker, and I hope you never win a game or catch a TD with the Commodores.
 



Mulligan said:
And you'd have a point if the kid signed something.
Click to expand...

Here's what I'm saying:

Kill signed a contract with NIU. He broke it. He was fully within his rights to do so, and his penalty was a monetary sum.

McDonald made a verbal commitment to Minnesota. He broke it. He was fully within his rights to do so, and his penalty is the scorn, ridicule, and name-calling from Minnesota stakeholders who think he was a chowderhead for doing so.

Khaliq said:
Seriously?
Click to expand...

Yes. Go wherever the hell you want. I don't care. Just don't make my University (and yourself) look stupid in the process. That's what some people don't seem to be getting. It wasn't what he did, it was how he did it. I don't like decommitments, period, whether it benefits my school or not. If it does benefit my school, I still don't like it, but of course I'm going to support the player as long as he wears my school's colors. What am I supposed to do, say, "GTFO my campus"?

Notice how I've never said a bad word about Michael Floyd, Seantrel Henderson, Ryan Harris, Willie Mobley, John Carlson, etc., etc. I don't agree with the choices they made, but I respect the fact that they took their time and made the decision with the appropriate amount of consideration, rather than jumping on something that wasn't right for them, and making everyone look stupid in the process.
 

dpodoll68 said:
Here's what I'm saying:
Yes. Go wherever the hell you want. I don't care. Just don't make my University (and yourself) look stupid in the process. That's what some people don't seem to be getting. It wasn't what he did, it was how he did it. I don't like decommitments, period, whether it benefits my school or not. If it does benefit my school, I still don't like it, but of course I'm going to support the player as long as he wears my school's colors. What am I supposed to do, say, "GTFO my campus"?
Click to expand...
So to be clear, if Dante Fowler Jr. decided he wasn't happy with the direction Jimbo Fisher was taking Florida State in and decided to sign up with the Gophers instead you wouldn't like it?
 

Khaliq said:
So to be clear, if Dante Fowler Jr. decided he wasn't happy with the direction Jimbo Fisher was taking Florida State in and decided to sign up with the Gophers instead you wouldn't like it?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't like the fact that he decommitted, but I'd be glad that he was coming here. Like I said before, am I supposed to be angry with him because he decided to join my team?

I have been on record that I wasn't happy with either Michael Carter or Keanon Cooper switching out to come here, but I will support them as players as long as they are Gophers.
 

zman said:
It took you 5 months to decide so we are idiots. Nice.
Click to expand...

Ya that is totally what I was saying. I was obviously using my life as an example to why it's not easy to choose a college. You sir are an idiot for not being able to tell that.

I completely understand what Andre did. He realized he had made a mistake and he backed off. I'm sure Coach Kill understands too.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom