National Signing Day

[Dr. Cornelius]

It’s not a great sign. 
 

Seems like a reversal to the last few years Sutton was here.
 

Striking out or not even offering recruits then grabbing random guys last minute before the season starts. 
 

Mills was able to have success because he prioritized recruiting and built the team methodically by getting ORU’s name out there and making a lot of offers.

Hope I’m wrong but I don’t see signs of the progress Mills made continuing.

[Eaglefan 21]

I'm going to try and spin this in a positive direction... Coach Springman has technically already brought in his first class and I think it was pretty strong, especially from a high school rating standpoint. I don't know how many of these guys were people ORU was watching while Mill's was still in charge but I'm just going to assume it was all Springmann

Jailen Bedford- Came from a juco, I don't recall seeing that we offered him prior to him announcing on twitter. He's looked really good in the first few games and could be the 2nd leading scorer on the team by seasons end. His defense looks good too!

Ashton Smith- If he doesn't play this year, I'm guessing he could still have 3 years of eligibility. We know next to nothing besides some very athletic looking plays from his high school days. Was a 3 star prospect and was ranked as high as the #10 player in the state of Texas in 2021. Signed by Texas A&M and also heavily consider Syracuse.

Braedon Moore- Had something like 30 division 1 offers coming out of high school and many of them were blue blood programs. We've only seen him play a few minutes but I'm guessing he will be a solid stretch 4. Was a 3 star prospect out of high school.

Jalen Miller- Play sparingly two years at Rutgers. Was a 3 star prospect and a top 5 player in the state of Maryland in 2021. Two years of eligibility left and looks like a solid player and strong defender. He was starting to put things together when he got injured.

Pablo Navarro- He's been injured, we don't know much. Great Size!

Miller, Moore, and Smith all had offers from ORU prior to signing with the school they chose out of high school. It's not over until it's over.

To summarize, in essence, we signed three 3 star players, two of whom are virtually freshman with a lot of eligibility left, 1 juco who looks like a great find, and a euro who may develop into something. If all of these players were signed as freshman, we would be over the moon just on ratings alone. It's a strong class with a lot of potential. It's also worth noting that Springmann also retained nearly the entire roster which is a feat. It's not uncommon for 10+ players to leave when a coaching change occurs. 

Lastly, My prediction is that we will not see a lot of November signings for the next few years at ORU. The Dakota schools will still sign High school players early as they are not generally strong destination for transfers but ORU seems to be. Like I said in a previous post, I think there is a strong chance that several players we pursued in high school that didn't sign with us will come back through the portal and stay for 3 or 4 years. I'll make a list below and we can look next summer and see if any of them come home, lol.

Connor Dow- Freshman at OSU- He is getting some playing time as a freshman but if Boynton gets canned then coming back to the Tulsa area may not be out of the question.

Joy Ighovodja- Freshman at Wichita. Also getting some playing time but with a full season under his belt I'm betting Mills will re-tool that roster and ORU might be a familiar place to land if he doesn't get much playing time.

Dayton Forsythe- Will not a freshman at OU until next year. Small school star in Oklahoma

Ma' Shy Hill- Freshman at Abilene Christian, A top 25 player in Texas and is only playing mop up minutes at ACU. I don't know if he's injured or just not ready but with Coach Bostic now on the bench at ORU... you just never know.

Matt Reed- Freshman at Tulsa. I believe we were in his final 4. Someone on this board knows his family, I remember seeing the thread from a year or so back. He is starting for them currently. 

Parker Freidrichsen- Freshman at Wake Forest, originally from Bixby. He's getting some playing time at WF.

Finley Bizjack- Freshman at Butler. We were in his final few schools. He's playing a little bit at Butler. Has one of the best names in college basketball.

Also, in regards to freshman signee's. Check out the link below, 247 sports rates ORU's highest ranked recruits. Caleb Green is 13th... I don't know how they calculate those ratings but Larry Owens is #5 and is the only STAR level player in the top 10. I'll let you guys check it out for yourselves and see who #1 and #2 are.... Scroll to the very bottom of that link.

https://247sports.com/college/oral-roberts/Season/2024-Basketball/Commits/

[Old Titan]

2 hours ago, Eaglefan 21 said:

I'm going to try and spin this in a positive direction... Coach Springman has technically already brought in his first class and I think it was pretty strong, especially from a high school rating standpoint. I don't know how many of these guys were people ORU was watching while Mill's was still in charge but I'm just going to assume it was all Springmann

Jailen Bedford- Came from a juco, I don't recall seeing that we offered him prior to him announcing on twitter. He's looked really good in the first few games and could be the 2nd leading scorer on the team by seasons end. His defense looks good too!

Ashton Smith- If he doesn't play this year, I'm guessing he could still have 3 years of eligibility. We know next to nothing besides some very athletic looking plays from his high school days. Was a 3 star prospect and was ranked as high as the #10 player in the state of Texas in 2021. Signed by Texas A&M and also heavily consider Syracuse.

Braedon Moore- Had something like 30 division 1 offers coming out of high school and many of them were blue blood programs. We've only seen him play a few minutes but I'm guessing he will be a solid stretch 4. Was a 3 star prospect out of high school.

Jalen Miller- Play sparingly two years at Rutgers. Was a 3 star prospect and a top 5 player in the state of Maryland in 2021. Two years of eligibility left and looks like a solid player and strong defender. He was starting to put things together when he got injured.

Pablo Navarro- He's been injured, we don't know much. Great Size!

Miller, Moore, and Smith all had offers from ORU prior to signing with the school they chose out of high school. It's not over until it's over.

To summarize, in essence, we signed three 3 star players, two of whom are virtually freshman with a lot of eligibility left, 1 juco who looks like a great find, and a euro who may develop into something. If all of these players were signed as freshman, we would be over the moon just on ratings alone. It's a strong class with a lot of potential. It's also worth noting that Springmann also retained nearly the entire roster which is a feat. It's not uncommon for 10+ players to leave when a coaching change occurs. 

Lastly, My prediction is that we will not see a lot of November signings for the next few years at ORU. The Dakota schools will still sign High school players early as they are not generally strong destination for transfers but ORU seems to be. Like I said in a previous post, I think there is a strong chance that several players we pursued in high school that didn't sign with us will come back through the portal and stay for 3 or 4 years. I'll make a list below and we can look next summer and see if any of them come home, lol.

Connor Dow- Freshman at OSU- He is getting some playing time as a freshman but if Boynton gets canned then coming back to the Tulsa area may not be out of the question.

Joy Ighovodja- Freshman at Wichita. Also getting some playing time but with a full season under his belt I'm betting Mills will re-tool that roster and ORU might be a familiar place to land if he doesn't get much playing time.

Dayton Forsythe- Will not a freshman at OU until next year. Small school star in Oklahoma

Ma' Shy Hill- Freshman at Abilene Christian, A top 25 player in Texas and is only playing mop up minutes at ACU. I don't know if he's injured or just not ready but with Coach Bostic now on the bench at ORU... you just never know.

Matt Reed- Freshman at Tulsa. I believe we were in his final 4. Someone on this board knows his family, I remember seeing the thread from a year or so back. He is starting for them currently. 

Parker Freidrichsen- Freshman at Wake Forest, originally from Bixby. He's getting some playing time at WF.

Finley Bizjack- Freshman at Butler. We were in his final few schools. He's playing a little bit at Butler. Has one of the best names in college basketball.

Also, in regards to freshman signee's. Check out the link below, 247 sports rates ORU's highest ranked recruits. Caleb Green is 13th... I don't know how they calculate those ratings but Larry Owens is #5 and is the only STAR level player in the top 10. I'll let you guys check it out for yourselves and see who #1 and #2 are.... Scroll to the very bottom of that link.

https://247sports.com/college/oral-roberts/Season/2024-Basketball/Commits/

What a great post (at least in my mind), standing in stark contrast to the sunshine-pumping responses from the Athletic Department trolls AND the "sky is falling" diatribes I so often post in late-night attempts at sparking conversation.

Good stuff - thanks for the well-researched contribution!

[ORUTerry]

Nice post, @Eaglefan 21   We need to keep things in perspective. The results will be apparent in the next year or two. We obviously don’t know what is going on behind the scenes

[Dave Connor]

On 11/27/2023 at 10:31 PM, ORUJason said:

I would disagree with you about Max.  Max was a great player his freshman year.  Even in the scrimmage at Arkansas Fort Smith before the regular season started , it was clear Max was a stud.

I concur. Here's a brief summary of Max as a freshman:

2019-20 (Freshman)

• 2019-20 Summit League All-Newcomer Team
• T-Seventh most 3-pointers made (87) in a single season in ORU history
• Seventh most 3-pointers attempted (238) in a single season in ORU history
• Eighth highest scoring average (14.5 ppg) for a freshman in ORU history

One of only two ORU players to start all 31 games ... Closed the year 39th in the NCAA and one of two freshman to rank in the nation's top 40 for made 3-pointers (87) ... Ranked third on the team scoring 14.5 points per game reaching double figures 23 times, including nine performances of at least 20 points ... Was the highest scoring true freshman in The Summit League totaling 448 points, including a season-best 27 points against North Dakota (1/11) ... Led The Summit League averaging 2.8 3-pointers per contest, while his 37 percent (87-238) shooting from distance ranked second in the conference ... Drained six 3-pointers on three occasions with the last coming in the quarterfinals of The Summit League Championships versus Omaha (3/8) ... Finished second on the team totaling 32 steals, including a season-high four at Chicago State (12/17) ... Shot 41 percent (158-384) from the floor and 82 percent (45-55) at the free throw line ... Registered 2.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game posting season bests of five rebounds and four assists, while adding seven blocks.

[GoldenEagleFan]

On 11/27/2023 at 11:39 PM, Old Titan said:

Come to think of it, everything is great; it's wonderful that ORU signed no one in the Early Signing Period; freshmen aren't worth the trouble to recruit; who needs four-year players; "pay no attention to that man behind the curtain", yada, yada, yada.

Haha who said this? If you read my original response I actually agreed with you…

 

On 11/27/2023 at 7:04 PM, GoldenEagleFan said:

My personal opinion… there will be end up being 4-5 scholarships open for 2024 and ORU missed out on taking a HS kid as insurance. 

I was wrong on Obanor. I thought you said freshman year not redshirt freshman year. And while I don’t necessarily agree that Max was great as a freshman, I can respect anyone who has that opinion. Greatness is always judged differently in different circles. 
 

I think great programs are built on the backs of 4-year (or at times 5-year) players. I also know there’s a spring signing period. I don’t think there’s a rush to sign HS kids in the early period when:

A) there’s only 2 scholarships to get and

B) a lot of HS kids are going to be overlooked in the spring due to the emphasis on the transfer portal… this would give schools like ORU a chance to sign a HS kid who might get passed over by a bigger school. 
 

Early signing periods are great, but if I’m a HS recruit and I look at this roster and I see the potential of McBride, Bedford, Miller, Williams, Navarro, Moore, Amboree all returning I would be hesitant to sign in the fall. But do I know?!

[Dr. Cornelius]

7 hours ago, GoldenEagleFan said:

B) a lot of HS kids are going to be overlooked in the spring due to the emphasis on the transfer portal… this would give schools like ORU a chance to sign a HS kid who might get passed over by a bigger school.

This is a good point @GoldenEagleFan. The landscape and demand for high school players has shifted.
 

A lot of P5 coaches aren’t even looking at high school players unless they are can’t miss Top 25 guys. The Athletic ran an article about this with an interview with Izzo a few months ago.

There will be a trickle down effect and programs like ORU could benefit in the spring.

 

[Old Titan]

This reminds me of a lot of previous arguments, such as ORU refusing to play in MTE tournaments, or insisting on so many non-D1 opponents, where ORU comes out looking bad but the company line is, "Oh, you just wait, we know what we're doing, we've got a plan," blah, blah, blah.

All I know is this:  everyone else is playing in MTE tournaments, eveyone else is playing fewer non-D1 opponents, and everyone else is signing high school prospects in November.

[GoldenEagleFan]

6 hours ago, Old Titan said:

All I know is this:  everyone else is playing in MTE tournaments, eveyone else is playing fewer non-D1 opponents, and everyone else is signing high school prospects in November.

And yet ORU was the one with 30 wins and a 12 seed in the tournament last year… glad we aren’t like “everyone else”!

And I think the other summit league teams are recognizing the non-D1 scheduling philosophy of ORU and making it their own!

[Old Titan]

2 hours ago, GoldenEagleFan said:

And yet ORU was the one with 30 wins and a 12 seed in the tournament last year… glad we aren’t like “everyone else”!

And I think the other summit league teams are recognizing the non-D1 scheduling philosophy of ORU and making it their own!

LOL - MONTHS AGO we went round and round about how flat-out LUCKY it was that, despite the absence of ANY P5 opponents on the schedule, ORU's seeding was nonetheless buoyed by so many of their mid-major foes sporting curiously high NET ratings.

The NCAA noticed as well:  they tweaked their NET algorithm in the off-season in hopes of avoiding such anomalies in the future.

It's too early this season for the official NCAA RPI rankings, but it's probable when they come out that ORU's non-P5 opponents will be sporting more predictably-middling NET rankings, leaving the P5 teams on ORU's non-conference slate to assume any role in propping up ORU's ranking.  Sure glad they're on the schedule this year!

[Old Titan]

UPDATE:  Spring Signing Period for men's basketball starts in about 60 days (April 17th to May 15th).

• Seriously, where do things currently stand for ORU? 
• Is ANYONE committed yet? 
• When might fans expect to hear about any commitments? (realizing commitment news can't come from the school, but still...) 
• Or, will the first that anyone hears about any new players occur only once these mystery men are signed? (if then)

Officially the strangest - and scariest - recruiting season I can recall in recent ORU Basketball history.  

WORST CASE SCENARIO:  not a word until after the season ends, then a handful of ORU bench players entering the portal in March and early April (and/or going later to NAIA schools), followed by STILL no news on new players even into mid-April, concluding in May (and mid-summer) with signings of one or two or three of what's left of the recruiting scraps.

If so, hardly a textbook approach to building a winning program... 

[Eaglefan 21]

I've been going back and forth on this topic quite a bit. Is the lack of recruiting news cause for concern or not? Below is the breakdown of what is going on in the Summit League and how ORU stacks up to our conference foes.

ORU- We have 9 open offers with no commitments. 2 Juco and 1 high school SR for 2024, 6 offers for the class of 2025. We know for sure we are losing Kareem and DJ. Mcbride and Phipps are seniors but I think they can technically play one more Covid year.

Omaha- Also 9 offers with no commitments. 3 juco, 1 HS class of 24, 5 offers to class of 2025. 1 senior (Nick Davis).

Denver- 1 offer to a HS senior, 3 high school commitments for 2024 (all guards). They have 3 seniors ( Brenchly, Bruner, Addo-Ankrah). No known offers for the class of 2025 and beyond.

Kansas City- 3 HS senior signings and 2 juco guards signed for next year. Somewhere around 25 existing offers for a mix of juco, 24, 25, and 2026 recruits. (they have 4 senior players) Who knows what they are doing there....

St Thomas- 4 signings, all HS seniors. No other offers for any other years. They have 7 seniors.

South Dakota- 2 signings both HS seniors. 2 graduating seniors on the team. 1 other offer for a recruit in 2026.

South Dakota state- They have 4 high school senior signings. 6 or 7 offers for players in 2025 and 3 seniors on the roster. (Mims, Easly, and Appel) I think those guys have been playing since 2014...

North Dakota- No signings for next year, 6 or 7 offers for 2024 and 2025. 3 seniors but I believe Ihenacho will be back on a Covid year.

North Dakota state- 3 high school SR signings for next year, no other offers at all. Only 1 Sr on the roster (Skunberg)

So, what does this tell us about the state of ORU basketball? Are we gambling on the transfer portal instead of signing high schoolers? Will we work the JUCO angle harder as our first signing (Bedford) has been a success? Our Summit League foes still seem to be keeping things the same and signing HS's during the early signing period. Are they behind the times or are they doing it the right way? Technically ORU is in the bottom third of signings for the future along with North Dakota and Omaha.

I don't have answers to any of those questions but I have some thoughts. I think ORU is uniquely situated geographically, institutionally, and maybe even spiritually for transfers from other schools. The Dakota schools probably aren't a popular option for transfers outside of those kids who grew up in that region. Almost all of the transfers that did go to the Dakota schools were originally from cold weather states. ORU's 3 transfers from last year were from Texas, Tennessee, and Maryland, geography doesn't appear to play into it at all. Another consideration, does Springmann find it more valuable to sign players who redshirted or played sparingly as freshman on Power 5 teams to be further ahead in their development than a high school senior? Are JUCO players more interested in just having a shot to show that they can play then chasing high NIL deals? I'd be interested to hear all of your thoughts.

Ultimately, wherever we are recruiting from, the coaches need to develop them into whole players or none of it really matters.

 

 

 

[Keenan Henderson]

I think it is good that ORU is leaving their options open.  The Eagles have shown the ability to find good players at so many different levels: transfer portal, juco, international, and high school.  Right now they only have two scholarships open: Thompson and Weaver run out of eligiblity but everyone else could come back.  So, with only two spots open you want to be very careful in whom you bring in and weigh your options.

Of course when the portal opens anything could happen.  It could tear the team apart or maybe just guys who never play leave.  It makes recuriting such a mystery because a coach has no idea what will happen each year.  The biggest question for me: will McBride return or enter the portal.  It would be a huge win for Springmann if he can retain the all-star.

 

[Old Titan]

1 hour ago, Keenan Henderson said:

Thompson and Weaver run out of eligiblity but everyone else could come back.

You say that like it's a good thing.

I would say it's a subject for debate.

 

1 hour ago, Eaglefan 21 said:

I've been going back and forth on this topic quite a bit. Is the lack of recruiting news cause for concern or not? Below is the breakdown of what is going on in the Summit League and how ORU stacks up to our conference foes...

Fantastic and well-researched post (again) on this topic.  I've seen details on a couple of those SDSU and St. Thomas high school recruits - they are studs. 

The Jacks continue to impress with their high school recruiting; man-child power forward William Kyle III standing as the latest example.

[Keenan Henderson]

Just for fun and discussion then let us say all 11 guys come back.  The good with this is that they have experience with Coach Springmann and his system.  The bad is most of them have struggled but hopefully with another year they can develop.   On a personal note: I like the guys coming back because you know them and have already been rooting for them all year long.  I also think it helps team chemistry but it would be shocking if all 11 return.  McBride will get offers from a few Power 5s and even Bedford may get some interest from say teams at around the SMU level.

[theeagleman5]

All 11 guys come back???  Perish the thought....agree with Old Titan that its not a good thing.....this team has many serious flaws that are not likely to change...we need BETTER PLAYERS who will HUSTLE, REBOUND and DEFEND.....if all 11 return then TheEagleman might need to consider his options......

[Keenan Henderson]

ORU needs McBride, Bedford and Herron to return and they can build around that.  Those are the core players they must keep.   

[Eaglefan 21]

20 hours ago, Old Titan said:

You say that like it's a good thing.

I would say it's a subject for debate.

 

COULD is the word I used, not SHOULD come back. I actually think that top to bottom this team is above average and relatively talented. We have all seen some ORU teams in the last decade that were devoid of talent. However, they just don't play with enough urgency, drive, and desire. One small bright spot is that I have noticed several times that when Demari Williams is standing next to his teammates, he looks to be just slightly shorter then Sir Issac at 6'9. He will be a nice addition next year.