Twitter Tuesday makes its return to Rivals as we head toward next month’s signing period. This week in the mailbag feature, national analysts Rob Cassidy and Travis Graf answer reader questions concerning priority targets for programs such as Texas, Syracuse, Arkansas, UCLA and Stanford in addition to a few other recruiting topics.
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Ron Holland feels like a Texas-Arkansas battle. Word is the Arkansas staff was starting to feel a little more confident a few weeks back, but this race has tightened up. I still don’t feel sure enough to log a FutureCast, as I’ve heard nothing concrete from Holland’s camp, but it’s safe to say UT is surging a bit. Holland’s recent return trip to Austin in an unofficial capacity shouldn’t be ignored, as Chris Beard remains a serious threat to swipe Holland away from the Razorbacks, which once felt like the wing’s leader. UCLA remains a dark horse player, but the Bruins feel like they are chasing the top two.
As for Andrej Stojaković, UCLA has long been seen as the front-runner and while I’ve not been told anything that makes me think that has changed, the fact that he hasn’t committed yet should give Bruins fans some level of pause, however.
The longer this stretches out, the more nervous UCLA should get, but my gut still says he’ll land in Westwood when all is said and done. Stanford and, to a lesser extent, Texas seem to have tightened the race as of late, however, and should be treated as serious. – Cassidy
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Yes. I mean, they have to, right? … don’t they? Syracuse is very much alive with four-star guard Mike Williams, who visited back in September and intends to narrow his list in the next two weeks. I’d expect both the Orange and LSU to be among the teams that make the cut for the Baltimore product. Whether or not he ends up playing for Jim Boeheim is another question, but there’s reason to be cautiously hopeful at the very least.
It’s also definitely worth keeping an eye on 7-foot-2 center William Patterson. According to sources, Syracuse feels like the slight front-runner to land Patterson, who has been to campus in an unofficial capacity for a camp and may well take an official this winter. TCU and Oklahoma State are also involved, but you can see how the Brooklyn native’s length and play style makes the Orange an intriguing option. – Cassidy
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Recruits will always sign financial aid agreements, so there will continue to be some pen-to-paper element to this. The future of letters of intent are a bit more complicated. Very few programs, at least on the basketball side of things, attempt to make those letters binding when an athlete decides he wants out. And, on the rare occasions that a coach does want to fight the public relations battle that comes along with enforcing the letter, the transfer portal is the trump card. There are plenty of prospects in recent classes that asked out of letters and were released without much of a fight, after all.
That’s all to say that, at least for now, most recruits still sign letters of intent, even if they are more ceremonial than anything else. Think of it as college athletics knighthood. Elton John is a knight, but he’s not going around jousting other knights to the death. He’s just in it for the cool ceremony, which is what “signing day” seems destined to become.
Remember, we’re talking about a process that still included fax machines until very recently. Putting pen to paper at a school assembly has become a rite of passage. Some form of it will continue, even if it means nothing. – Cassidy
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After striking out on guards in the transfer portal and having one game-ready ball handler on the current roster, I can see why Louisville fans would be antsy to land a commitment from a guard prospect. It seems like the Cardinals have had terrible luck with guards dating back to Sebastian Telfair.
Looking ahead, the most immediate high-level option for the Cards is five-star prospect AJ Johnson, a late bloomer who has all of the tools to be a very quality player at the next level. Sources close to the top-10 prospect tell me that this recruitment is expected to come down to Texas and Louisville, and right now I’d give Texas the edge. However, Louisville is still working out dates to get him on campus for an official visit after he had to reschedule this past weekend. – Graf
