Pistol

The first segment of this one is a nice companion piece to the Hughes interview. Things we didn't get to on our list, things we were surprised by, things we decided not to ask, possibly bringing up some lingering feud with Nelly, etc.

This was a special one for me. Started watching him play when I was a kid. Thanks everybody who has checked it out so far.

For real, though, how do these fit when you have washboard abs and are used to sleeves ripping when you wear a medium?

*premiere

This is true, but they also don't shrink much (if at all), if that helps anyone.

I mean, "down the street" is nice but there are plenty of other programs located very close to MLS teams. Xavier and NKU are both within 15 minutes of FC Cincinnati, to use my local example. Is there a formal partnership between STL City and SLU?

Bayern was the other.

Darius could be in some trouble. He's one of the 18, along with some other recognizable names shared in the thread below that tweet.

The women's team landed two solid commitments on Monday. Nicastro is from St. Charles West and is a 2022 wing. Donarski is a 2023 PG from Wisconsin. Getting an early commitment seems key in that one.

It would also help to find a make-up date for Central Arkansas (RPI 17). There were some early good results for the conference, like Davidson beating High Point to start the year, but some of those other teams that got some votes in the poll have since come back down to earth. Fordham was even ranked in the first Top Drawer Soccer poll but had two blowout results against ranked teams to start the year. Rhode Island is probably the third best team in the league, and that's the last regular season game. That would be a quality win, too (45 RPI). It would be nice for the NCAA to switch over to this year's RPI rankings, by the way.

Zyree Collins - PG, - St. Louis, MO (St. Mary's) - AAU: Brad Beal Elite (Nike EYBL) - Twitter: @zyree314 Offers: Saint Louis. Interest: Oklahoma, Southeast Missouri. Latest News: Collins received an offer from SLU. (10/6/21) Scouting Report: Collins is a skilled point guard who plays like he's older than he is. He's an excellent playmaker with high-level passing ability and outstanding vision. He scores on three levels and is shifty getting to the basket, able to change speeds and get around larger defenders, finishing with either hand. He can also has deep range on his shot. He's the younger brother of SLU PG Yuri Collins. Aaron Rowe - PG, 6-0, 145 - Columbia, MO (Father Tolton) - AAU: MOKAN Elite (Nike EYBL) - Twitter: @a_rowe_3 Offers: Saint Louis, Tennessee, Missouri State. Interest: Texas A&M, Missouri, Loyola-Chicago, Drake, Illinois State, Southeast Missouri, SIU-Edwardsville. Latest News: Rowe received offers from SLU and Tennessee. (10/6/21) Scouting Report: Rowe is a very skilled, athletic point guard with a complete game. He's extremely quick and moves in traffic and in the open court. He scores on three levels. He's got long arms and finishes everything, also manages to be disruptive on defense. He's a deft passer and has great handles. He's an elite athlete and also plays with smarts well beyond his years. He also has an incredible work ethic.

Yep, thanks. Also signed up for American Outlaws, which gave me another round in the lottery. $30 and it came with a shirt and American flag bandana, as if I didn't already have a dozen of those around. I went to the USWNT-Paraguay match here a couple weeks ago, which obviously wasn't much of a game but made it clear that this is going to be a great venue for the Mexico game. I like the idea of playing in these smaller, soccer-specific stadiums for important qualifiers. Without a national stadium, we don't have that home field advantage. The playing surfaces in the recent games played in NFL stadiums have been garbage, too. Only downside is SLU plays EIU that night. Given the late start time of the USMNT-Mexico game (9:10 pm), I still might be able to catch some of it, though.

The lottery was super confusing for Cincy tickets, as well. I didn't get picked but 3/4 of the other guys in our group trying won, so we have a total of 10 seats for the 11/12 game. Looks like we're using 8 and selling 2 at this point.

I was in rural Vermont for a few days so I'm out of the loop on most things, but that was brought to my attention. The main point I'll make is that having interest and making contact are not the same thing and Bol is a 2024 recruit. All contact has to go through his coach and/or legal guardian, which in this case is Wilson. Bol has gone from relative unknown to nationally recruited player in a very short amount of time. There was a ton of uncertainty around his future when STLCA folded. Hopefully he continues to stay in STL and at CBC - for a big-time prospect without deep roots here, there's going to be no shortage of prep school poachers swirling. I'm not concerned about SLU's approach to his recruitment at this point.

Agreed. 14 is already big and conferences don't kick teams out. No point in adding unless we're adding to the top half. Things can always change but we're still in the best place for us right now.

Apparently Colorado State and Air Force are going to leave the Mountain West for the American. Which is a baffling move to me. MWC will be stronger than the AAC in both football and basketball moving forward. It's being reported that there are rumblings of little faith in the MWC commissioner. Everyone in the league wishes they'd get a Big 12 or Pac 12 invite, but most of them have no shot at either and would be much better off staying together.

Had SLU interest but no offer. We were never really in it. Committed early to Louisville today. Kaleb Glenn - SF, 6-6, 200 - Louisville, KY (Male) - AAU: Brad Beal Elite (Nike EYBL) - Twitter: @ka1ebglenn Offers: Louisville, Wake Forest, Indiana, West Virginia, Iowa State, Tennessee, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Western Kentucky, Georgia Southern. Interest: Saint Louis, Dayton, Xavier, Butler, Virginia, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Illinois, Purdue, Northwestern, Kansas, Texas Tech, Kentucky, LSU, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt, UCLA, Oregon, Arizona, Utah, Memphis, Tulsa, East Carolina, Murray State, Eastern Kentucky, Valparaiso, Illinois State, Ohio, Toledo, Bowling Green, Ball State, Furman, Southeastern Louisiana, Bellarmine, Stetson, Lipscomb, Liberty, Morgan State. Latest News: Glenn has upcoming visits to Indiana, Louisville, Texas A&M. (8/13/21) Scouting Report: Glenn is a broadly built wing with high-level athleticism. He can take bigs off the dribble, shoots from the perimeter, and punishes smaller defenders in the post. He attacks the rim and is an explosive finisher. He's a strong rebounder at both ends and is a very tough defender. He's a relentless worker. His parents went to Louisville, where his dad played football. Rankings: Rivals - 66, Prep Hoops - 78, 247Sports - 44, Future150 - 45.

I don't keep just a straight-up scholarship chart, no.

There will be a transition period but I still think they're a top-3 Valley team long term. Belmont would win the Valley this season.

A new conference is probably the toughest ask unless the AAC just falls apart completely. Too many teams paying too many exit fees. Some of the schools we'd want right now have football and seem committed to it, at least for the moment. As for the bottom half of the A10, I agree they're no help. But we're still better off in the A10 than the MVC and I think the same thing is true about the two conferences as with the AAC, i.e. that the A10 programs likely outspend MVC programs with a few exceptions. Taking another look at the Valley - to me, anyway - would require some more pieces to move. The top half of the A10 still makes it the better home for now. I don't think anyone thinks of them as a power. If Loyola does slide to a mid-Valley team for an extended period, they're obviously less attractive as a conference mate. I think they'll still be solid, though. They're outrecruiting the other teams in the conference.

I didn't realize this. I'm guessing there's no clause that says the fee is contingent upon the conference existing in its form when they entered 4 years ago? I've been searching but it seems like $10MM is a hard number. This is a good piece about the AAC vs. the Valley, albeit before Belmont joined. In short, every AAC school outspends every Valley school on basketball (except Loyola is right above East Carolina). They argued WSU is still probably better off in the American. However, those budgets are going to change once the long-term impact of the AAC's departures sets in. The next broadcasting deals aren't going to be as favorable, for instance.

Whether or not they can get Wichita State back, I would pursue Murray State. If WSU's only options are staying in the AAC or going back to the Valley, here's what they're looking at: Memphis SMU Tulsa South Florida Temple East Carolina Tulane vs. Loyola Belmont Drake Illinois State Indiana State SIUC UNI Evansville Bradley Valpo Missouri State It's tempting to stay in the first, smaller group and try to remain a strong 1-2 punch at the top with Memphis, but we all know Memphis is gone at the first opportunity. Question number two is if there's a conference with Loyola, Belmont, and Wichita State at the top, does SLU's view of the Valley shift again? I've been a hard no on this since as far back as the CUSA days, but what if WSU goes back and the Valley is willing to go to 14 with SLU and Dayton?

I could see that being a good fit for him.

Went with 6 items. Homefield sent us a couple shirts early (below), and I'm saving another one to go with the hoodie when it's back in stock (for free shipping, good call @RUBillsFan). Discount code knocked $32.70 off the $218 starting price. Plus I had a $100 gift card to use (my wife gave it to me as a Father's Day gift shortly after the original announcement), so it wound up being $99.74 after tax and shipping.

I don't think we can say whether they'll add more or not. Just that once a design is live, it stays available on a permanent basis. Like Zac said, it's a sourcing issue if something is out. If the gray hoodie in L is out (which is frustrating because it's my size), they're trying to get more gray hoodies in general. It isn't design-specific. They have an option to be notified when something is restocked, too. My plan was to order one of everything so I'm wondering whether I should wait for that or order the rest now.