2025-26 ROSTER

[dlarry]

23 minutes ago, OkieBilliken said:

https://x.com/madeformarch/status/1907815507073360368

 

Playing SEMO next year.  Didnt want to start a new topic

I prefer my cupcakes be local so I’m ok with this. 
Much rather see SouthEast Missouri on the schedule than NorthWest Wyoming or some other directional U. 

[HoosierPal]

43 minutes ago, OkieBilliken said:

https://x.com/madeformarch/status/1907815507073360368

 

Playing SEMO next year.  Didnt want to start a new topic

Buy games are now $100,000.  Yikes.  You could buy a decent player for that much coin.  But I'd much rather watch us play them than Billy Woods or Avila.

So SEMO, Grand Canyon, Frisco at home.  I'd like to see a few Valley teams added, H/H.

[almaman]

53 minutes ago, dlarry said:

I prefer my cupcakes be local so I’m ok with this. 
Much rather see SouthEast Missouri on the schedule than NorthWest Wyoming or some other directional U. 

100%

[okay]

Kellen Thames posted an instagram story of him in a hospital bed, starting treatment. Praying for his recovery!

[Cowboy]

51 minutes ago, okay said:

Kellen Thames posted an instagram story of him in a hospital bed, starting treatment. Praying for his recovery!

-Amen

[Old guy]

17 hours ago, okay said:

Kellen Thames posted an instagram story of him in a hospital bed, starting treatment. Praying for his recovery!

Not so fast. You can start treatment for some ailment without a need for hospitalization. All kinds of tests can be done in an outpatient basis and a firm diagnosis can be made outpatient with appropriate treatment started, all of this without hospitalization.

The fact that Thames needed hospitalization is significant. It means they have finally decided that whatever they were doing for him was not working, and they needed tests that could not be done in an outpatient basis. These tests can go from imaging to deep biopsies, to observation while being wired to sensitive instruments. Surgery to correct something is also possible. Whatever made this hospitalization necessary, it is not good or positive

Face it guys, call me a troll all you want but your knowledge of medicine and medical care, particularly as related to weird disorders like Thames appears to have, is totally inadequate to judge his condition. Journalists NEVER provide answers to medical issues. Journalism is based upon interviews and, of course Thames wants to keep playing, so everything you read is rose colored. The truth is that nothing they have tried has worked and now following rosy news of how well he is doing in practice, he winds up hospitalized. For what? This is not an expensive vacation he is taking, he does not want to be there either but the fact that he is proves that he is not better.

I am aware that prayer does not work. It did not work at the time of the black plague just as it does not work now. However, at this time all you can do is pray.

[CenHudDude]

2 hours ago, Old guy said:

Not so fast. You can start treatment for some ailment without a need for hospitalization. All kinds of tests can be done in an outpatient basis and a firm diagnosis can be made outpatient with appropriate treatment started, all of this without hospitalization.

The fact that Thames needed hospitalization is significant. It means they have finally decided that whatever they were doing for him was not working, and they needed tests that could not be done in an outpatient basis. These tests can go from imaging to deep biopsies, to observation while being wired to sensitive instruments. Surgery to correct something is also possible. Whatever made this hospitalization necessary, it is not good or positive

Face it guys, call me a troll all you want but your knowledge of medicine and medical care, particularly as related to weird disorders like Thames appears to have, is totally inadequate to judge his condition. Journalists NEVER provide answers to medical issues. Journalism is based upon interviews and, of course Thames wants to keep playing, so everything you read is rose colored. The truth is that nothing they have tried has worked and now following rosy news of how well he is doing in practice, he winds up hospitalized. For what? This is not an expensive vacation he is taking, he does not want to be there either but the fact that he is proves that he is not better.

I am aware that prayer does not work. It did not work at the time of the black plague just as it does not work now. However, at this time all you can do is pray.

I respect that you have much more medical knowledge than I do. However, I disagree with your conclusion that “Whatever made this hospitalization necessary, it is not good or positive”.  Your sentence immediately preceding this is “Surgery to correct something is also possible”.  Have you considered that thru all the outpatient testing they have come up with a firm diagnosis, and the solution to this is surgery?  If that is the case, he may already have had corrective surgery and has begun his recovery.

 

[okay]

Jax and Luke would be our Pikaar replacement. With his spot open, we could probably do with an extra guard. 

[ACE]

2 minutes ago, okay said:

Jax and Luke would be our Pikaar replacement. With his spot open, we could probably do with an extra guard. 

With 3 spots to fill, one of them should go to a big with college experience. I'm fine with the other two being guards.

[okay]

26 minutes ago, ACE said:

With 3 spots to fill, one of them should go to a big with college experience. I'm fine with the other two being guards.

Yeah, 1 big, and 2 shooter/guards and I think we have a decent roster. Based on our current players I won’t be surprised if we have one of the highest 2 point FG percentages like this year 

[Dr. Holly Hills]

Heard we have another big signing.  Either signed or verbal commit (with agent approval).  I don't have any other details.  Hopefully it gets released soon.

[ACE]

Back on topic, so this thread doesn't get hijacked. Here is the roster...

Schertz has wasted little time. Here is the latest roster now on 4/3 after starting this thread a few weeks ago...

 

In his post-game comments Schertz talked about "overhauling" the roster this offseason. More athleticism is what he kept going back to. The current roster is not good and there is a lot of uncertainty with some injured players. A lot of work needs to be done. Next year will be a 15-man roster. Here is how it stands heading into portal season...

1) Avilla

2) Anya - Good defender and rebounder, but limited offensively. Got a lot more playing time than originally planned due to Casey and Thames injuries. Hopefully he goes down to about 15-18 mpg next year. Still a valuable player

3) McCottry - Rough around the edges, but the upside is very exciting. Athletic and versatile. I think Schertz should have given playing time sooner when Thames went down, but he did get valuable experience down the stretch. A key player heading into next season, gotta keep him. With a bigger role, he should really help our defense.

4)  Thames - Who knows. I hope they figure out what the deal is. I feel bad for the kid. I really liked the potential he flashed early in the season. I will feel much better about the roster if he returns and is back at 100%.

5) Dotzler - Another injury question. Not really sure what we have since he didn't really play much. I would like to see him back. (GONE)

6) Casey - You can learn a lot of by listening to Schertz interviews. In the preseason, he would often talk about Thames and Hughes (returning players) - of course he said positive things about all the players, but he talked a lot more about Thames in glowing terms than Hughes.. that's when I figured he wasn't very high on Larry. In the same way, he would often talk about the two new transfer bigs at the same time (Anya and Casey). He was much more positive about Anya. This is a long way of saying, even before the injury, I don't think Casey was going to have a big role. Now with the injury, I'm fine if we free up the scholarship. GONE

5) Warlick - I think he's a good "glue guy" to keep in the system for a while - I think Schertz likes him, although he doesn't have the "athleticism" Schertz has talked about needing on the roster. I hope he stays, but not crushed if he leaves.

6)  Pikaar - I liked the potential he flashed in the William Woods game, but then again it was William Woods. On the season averaged just 1 ppg and 1 rbg. With the lack of depth, there were opportunities for Max to get some PT, and Schertz didn't give it to him. I'm fine seeing what he can do in year two, but Schertz is bringing in two other skinny bigs next year. I think if Schertz believed in his upside, there was an opportunity for more minutes throughout the season, especially with all the injuries on the roster.

9) Brockhoff - I just don't see anyway he's coming back. If he couldn't get playing time on this depleted roster, it's not likely to happen in the future.

6) Hutson - He had a big HS season, he could be a nice scorer off the bench. The kid seems like a winner

7) Laczkowski - Seems like a little shorter Pikaar type player. I never expect tall skinny freshmen to contribute their first year and just hope I'm wrong

8. Kerr - Same expectation for tall, skinny freshmen

9. Otieno

10. Jones

11. Green

12. Brown

13. Open

14. Open

15. Open

I see a minimum of 4 available scholarships and as many as 7. (It turns out there have been 7 scholarships to fill, could we exceed my high end projections?)

One big and a couple of guards seems to make sense - a ballhandling, playing making guard, and a 3-point sniper.

[dlarry]

44 minutes ago, Dr. Holly Hills said:

Heard we have another big signing.  Either signed or verbal commit (with agent approval).  I don't have any other details.  Hopefully it gets released soon.

I would bet that commitment triggered the Pikaar movement. 

[LarryB]

Maybe Nitu? Is he an upgrade over Max?

 

 

[billikenfan05]

24 minutes ago, LarryB said:

Maybe Nitu? Is he an upgrade over Max?

 

 

He made less 3s than Max.

[DeSmetBilliken]

1 hour ago, Dr. Holly Hills said:

Heard we have another big signing.  Either signed or verbal commit (with agent approval).  I don't have any other details.  Hopefully it gets released soon.

You know that Trey Green and Dion Brown have already been reported as commitments, right ? Is that who you’re talking about?

[okay]

6 minutes ago, DeSmetBilliken said:

You know that Trey Green and Dion Brown have already been reported as commitments, right ? Is that who you’re talking about?

I’d assume not since neither of those two are bigs 

[Dr. Holly Hills]

10 minutes ago, DeSmetBilliken said:

You know that Trey Green and Dion Brown have already been reported as commitments, right ? Is that who you’re talking about?

There was a scholarship dinner yesterday evening and CM stated “more big news on a portal signing”.  I would assume he already knew that the green brown news had been simmering all day and meant another one.

[DeSmetBilliken]

13 minutes ago, Dr. Holly Hills said:

There was a scholarship dinner yesterday evening and CM stated “more big news on a portal signing”.  I would assume he already knew that the green brown news had been simmering all day and meant another one.

Chris May’s target audience is largely people who aren’t likely to be up to date on recruiting news, so I think it’s pretty likely that he assumed that they hadn’t heard the Green/Brown news, as it wasn’t official yet, other than Stu’s announcement.

[TheA_Bomb]

[ACE]

2 hours ago, LarryB said:

Maybe Nitu? Is he an upgrade over Max?

 

 

That thought crossed my mind. When we landed Schertz I had my eye on Nitu as a guy who might follow him here. After he went to FSU, then we got Pikaar. They look like similar players - not sure who was more highly regarded coming out of HS.

[Lord Elrond]

Question: with the new 15 man limit on the roster, are we now at the limit including walk ones from last year? Does this mean a new player coming on via the portal requires us to push someone off the roster?  Is there a date the roster has to be in compliance by? Just wondering.

[brianstl]

32 minutes ago, Lord Elrond said:

Question: with the new 15 man limit on the roster, are we now at the limit including walk ones from last year? Does this mean a new player coming on via the portal requires us to push someone off the roster?  Is there a date the roster has to be in compliance by? Just wondering.

I wouldn’t count the walk ons in the roster total.  If someone can help and the money is there to sign, there aren’t going to pass because they want to save a roster spot for the walk ons.  
 

The good thing about the signings we already have is that it gives the program the ability to be very selective about anyone they might add from here on out.  They will have to be a clear cut talent upgrade.

[TheA_Bomb]

It's strange that they allow 15 roster spots then that includes walk ons? How is that different than before? 

It's unclear how it would all work with revenue sharing.  Speculation is that teams could have a practice squad. 

 

https://www.si.com/fannation/name-image-likeness/nil-news/saving-walk-on-athletes-why-ncaa-roster-limits-need-practice-squads#:~:text=The NCAA's preliminarily approved House,their dreams without financial aid.

[Lord Elrond]

28 minutes ago, TheA_Bomb said:

It's strange that they allow 15 roster spots then that includes walk ons? How is that different than before? 

It's unclear how it would all work with revenue sharing.  Speculation is that teams could have a practice squad. 

 

https://www.si.com/fannation/name-image-likeness/nil-news/saving-walk-on-athletes-why-ncaa-roster-limits-need-practice-squads#:~:text=The NCAA's preliminarily approved House,their dreams without financial aid.

I thought the new rule was a hard limit of 15, including all scholarships and walk ons in that limit?  I thought the purpose was to prevent teams from loading up with players. Or am I mistaken? Or, is it like everything else the past few years, just a court case away from completely changing?