Yogi's Picnic Basket

The notion that Drew has been on Romeo longer so its a wrap thing is overblown. Vandy has had more time knowing him, but the relationship didn't really pick up until after Archie had got here. I could argue that Archie has spent more time with him than Drew which no one seems mention. Relationships can be built over night. We all know sometimes recruits know a coach for a very short period before committing. All 4 of our '18 recruits prove that. It comes down to how each have spent their time with Romeo. I hear lots of things when it comes to Romeo & have talked to some close to him but its still not coming from Romeo himself so even though I feel good about IU's chances it leaves the door open for Vandy and Kansas. Where I'm going with this is everyone should take EVERYTHING with a grain of salt unless it is from Tim or Romeo.

Btw I'd still take Archie, but I said last year Beard reminds me of Knight. Their relationship rubbed off on him. Great coach and bright future. If I was U of L I would throw him a blank check over Mack. Just my opinion though. Mike White is still on my list of future stars in the coaching ranks as well. BTW how the neck hasn't the Loyola coach even been mentioned with any openings? Great run is usually the formula for a big new job. I don't know much about him though so who knows.

My Chris Beard inclusion on candidates for replacing Crean looks good. If anything one thing he does is beat Purdue lol.

Also Romeo is on Spring Break so he could be visiting sometime soon.

I actually talked to him the other night. Nothing seems to be serious right now and he didn't say much, but it is an option. He'd like to see if he could find somewhere he'd play more though it sounds like, but being an in state kid & walking on tuition wouldn't be that bad. It'll be something worth keeping an eye on.

Calling Vandy National Championship contenders with 2 five stars is laughable. Oregon isn't even talked of like that and they have a ton more talent.

Chris Beard would be their best option IMO.

Btw the tons of options but settling meant a lot of mid level guys will be interested but big names will probably stay away.

U of L will have tons of options here, but Bryce has been mentioned as a candidate. With the future still uncertain in regards to the FBI & NCAA, they may just have to settle for someone like Drew. So many on twitter keep saying Mack or Drew will get it and bring Romeo with him. No chance whatsoever!! I'd stick with Padgett if it were up to me.

Hahahahahahahaha

Not many people I talk to really pay attention to the GF news, but I have tried confirming it with people and haven't had much luck. As some have said though Juwan may not be decided on his decision before Romeo announces, but he is basing it off feel. I'd guess Archie will talk in depth with them about it and maybe even Juwan. I'm curious as to when he visits if he does. Sounds like that is still very much a part of the plan, but once he has it wrapped up and with the McDonald's game Saturday, we could be getting close. There is talk a decision could come sooner than originally planned because New Albany loss, but it won't be by much. Personally I like our chances at the moment though. Things could change but the Langford's seem to be very calculated in the way they have handled this, so I don't expect much to change from now and up until the announcement.

Just an average guy who loves IU. I usually cover IU football recruiting as most know, but I've been dipping my toes in the sand on the basketball front. I appreciate that though. Sorry I don;t get to stick around longer to discuss in depth much but Btown is what made me want to start writing. I've loved coming here for years and my Crean4president account should not be held against me lol. Namely the name itself. The least I could do is throw a few bones every so often though I can't give much more. Lots of new users on here which I welcome but the guys that have been on here for awhile and the mods made this place awesome and continue to do so. I'll be here as long as I'm welcome.

Rumor is Romeo will pay attention to one roster. He knows Kansas will have talent regardless whether Newman stays or not is not a factor as some have said. Grimes is a born scorer so if anything he would bother him more. At Vandy he knows what things will likely look like. He is curious about Juwan Morgan though. Most know Juwan wouldn't get drafted most likely but that hasn't stopped guys from leaving in the past. If he knows the chances of coming in with Morgan are high, IU looks A LOT more appealing. Most could've guessed that, but just sharing the rumors flowing that I came across today and that it could be a reason he is delaying things. Also not announcing at McDonald's game has gave them some freedom to not rush it. I've also talked to some people close to the Evansville program and they think Ryan Taylor will come down to Arizona, IU, Purdue, UCLA & of course it wouldn't be normal if the powerhouse Vandy wasn't in it. Point is if we land one of these guys, let alone both I think our chances of a B1G title run are high. PG: Rob Phinisee/Al Durham SG: Romeo Langford/Damezi Anderson/Vijay Blackmon SF: Ryan Taylor/Jerome Hunter/Zach McRoberts PF: Justin Smith/Race Thompson c: Juwan Morgan/Jake Forrester Not comfortable putting De'Ron in there yet until I know he will be ready and once he is our lineup would change. Devonte Green & Clifton Moore are wildcards depending on whether they stay or go.

Bozich was actually one of the guys that made me start towards wanting to write for IU, but things changed at ITH so quickly. I used to follow it like it was my job. I haven't had many personal dealings with him, but the sites success has changed him a lot basing on some convos I've had with some people. Everyone has their own opinions though and he could be a great guy no doubt, but taking a shot at a HS kid was a bad look. If he was trying to get on Romeo's good side with that, I'd actually say it probably hurt him in that regard. David Bell is one of Tom Allen's biggest targets period and I wouldn't doubt it if someone didn't speak to him about that at IU or hasn't already.

Appreciate the share CCGeneral!! Spent a lot of time on that article. I believe we have a stronger shot at him than most think and his ceiling is sky high. He told me the other day he will be visiting again, just not sure of a date yet.

Ryan Taylor would immediately become our biggest target once this one wraps. I believe we'd take him and Romeo but realistically if we got one of them, our team has a LOT better outlook next year.

After last night, Romeo talked with a few people about his high school career, but my understanding is he didn't want to discuss his recruitment. Sounds like the family wants to take a few days to gather themselves and will start locking in on wrapping this thing up. Rumor is he would like to visit IU after next weekend. The McDonalds game sounds like it'll be a release of sorts for him. Also would probably narrow his announcement to a New Albany or through ESPN kind of like how James Blackmon did it appears. Archie has done a great job and regardless deserves credit for how close he has gotten to landing Romeo. I get when there isn't news, theories are the only thing people can hold onto, but let's not go crazy with it. Everyone has the right to assumptions heck we all do it, but also remember it's his choice not ours. If he chooses Vandy or KU it's time to move on. It'll sting if we lose him and it will be awesome if we get him. It should be that simple. Non related, but I also want to give Alex Bozich a shout out for his tweet and when it completely backfired he didn't delete it. That is rare lol.

I agree 100% well 99.9% I won't say anyone's ours to lose on here anymore, but we have a great shot. My advice for some is stop getting bored and thinking of all these conspiracy theories with Romeo. Just enjoy it. I'm ready to be over this one too, but don't make this something it's not.

Edit** Also meant that people have talked themselves into Romeo is dragging IU along but knows it's Vandy. Plain and simple and read closely, he would've just announced at the McDonald's game of that were the case that he really knew. Why wait even longer? Though I have heard Tim will let Romeo announce somewhere like the high school or close or he could find a day that works for ESPN after all, but even so the McDonald's game would've been perfect for him.

I see some have talked themselves back into the "Romeo doesn't want booed" is why he hasn't announced yet. Romeo isn't scared of letting anyone down but himself or family. Last week I was told the one thing that's became crystal clear was, Romeo doesn't want to call Archie or Drew and tell them no. That doesnt mean Kansas is out of it, but he knows how important he is to either school. I've begun to worry about Kansas a little more recently not off anything I was told, but my gut feeling of a team besides IU getting him was Vandy but not it's mixed. I still believe we have a shot and Romeo may be at a decision now but only because that was the plan. Up to 2 weeks of knowing his decision and sitting on it has been the word for a long time, so maybe he does but it doesn't sound like it. Was told Tim Langford already feels bad enough for these schools for having to wait as long as they have and making them wait an extra week maybe longer. His words not mine either. I believe Garland used our visit to help his case with Romeo and I know Wilkes made a last minute visit to tell Crean personally but Romeo has a different feel than Wilkes. Idk I could be massively wrong but even then it's hard for me to see Romeo being worried about anything but state and his next team. He's heard boos before.

Once again IU made it known they were there tonight. Rob Phinisee being there for both games played a big role. Archie wants the Garland relationship to fall on the back burner. The last two weekends have shown him how much his potential future teammates support him and that was big. This is gonna be a fun few weeks. Also worth noting, got a text that said they overheard TJD congratulating Romeo & said, " please stay two years so we can play together". We made huge impressions all around the last 2 weeks. Archie isn't going down without a fight which with Garland he just gave up because he knew we weren't getting him so that makes these visits even better for my personal gut feeling.

I haven't heard anything about Green, but it just seems to be him everyone talks about when it comes to being disgruntled. DeVonte's minutes were all the over the place, but so were Durham's I guess. It's going to be an interesting few weeks. Romeo announcing, transfers, new targets, grad guys and other transfers hitting the market. This is gonna be a busy spring for us no doubt. Has anyone heard anything more about Jaelan Sanford?

Sadly I expect Green and Moore to be gone. That'll be a lot of spots to fill and Archie doesn't want to fill them all with freshman. Just kicking the tires on this kid, but idk much about him so who knows if it turns more serious. Juco and grad guys even regular transfers will be mentioned with IU & I'm fine with that.

Vandy guys have messaged me on twitter with little warning shots that Bryce Drew will be there this weekend too. Should be a very fun weekend I guess.

Archie should be there this weekend as well. My post about him last weekend was in reference to a text that said IU would be there. I assumed Archie, but 3 players seemed to work better for us. Romeo absolutely loved it. Will it make a huge difference? Maybe. Who knows, but that's another thing that has been going around in circles out in the recruiting world.