Cornell Basketball Recruiting War

I posted the article below on The Cornell Basketball Blog. Curious if anyone on here has any reaction to it. This is a recruit Cornell really, really wanted.



By ArizonaPreps.com
March 26, 2008

Desert Edge HS (Goodyear, AZ) 6-foot-9 senior forward Mitchell Watt reopened his recruitment after committing to Cornell University in the fall of 2007. Watt decided to explore his options in order to play a higher level of basketball at the next level.

This week, with the help of the Arizona Preps staff, Watt received an official offer from a school in the Big East Conference.

This past year Watt helped lead the Scorpions from Desert Edge to a 4A-Division-II state championship over the Santa Rita Eagles. While Watt spent most of the game in foul trouble and only finished with 7 points, many saw his potential and upside with the ultra athletic dunks and the rebounding clinic he would put on.

On the season Watt averaged 13 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks , 4 assists and 2 steals per/contest, en route to a 28-2 overall record (8-0 in region). In addition, Watt was selected to 1st Team All-Region and First Team All-State according to Arizona Hoop Scoop Magazine.

Today (Tuesday, March 25th), Watt was offered an official athletic scholarship from Head Coach Fred Hill and Rutgers University. After seeing various tapes of Watt and coming out of the tape sessions of the talented big man, they were very impressed and decided they wanted to get Watt in a Rutgers jersey. Assistant Coach Craig Carter worked diligently on recruiting Watt, leading to the offer put forth today.

Rutgers first heard of Watt's ability to play the game after assistant Craig Carter contacted the Arizona Preps' offices, in search of an unsigned low post prospect still on the recruiting board.

Rutgers has recently committed 6-foot-8 St. Benedict's HS monster post man Greg Echenique as their first class of 2009 commit to join signee's in 6-foot-3, 180-pound McDonalds All-American guard Mike Rosario, 6-foot-9, 270-pound center Christian Morris, and 6-foot-6, 200-pound forward Patrick Jackson for the future.

If Rutgers gets Watt to sign late in the signing period, he will join that talented 2008 class.

Watt is a 6-foot-9, 205-pound long and rangy forward that can stretch the defense in a real way. He has a very much improved post game and an ability to knock down the outside shot. In addition, he is a terrific passer with good court vision and an unselfish approach to the game. While he is still very light on the weight scale, his upside is ridiculous. He is fairly athletic and is only getting more athletic as he grows more comfortable with his body and footwork. With 15-20 more pounds on him he will be a serious factor at the next level. On the defensive end Watt is a swat machine and pulls down boards like a carpenter. Furthermore, Watt carries a 3.8 CUM GPA and is already an academic qualifier.

Watt has been quoted saying, "Rutgers would be a good home at the next level for me. The Big East is real and the education and network possibilities are endless. It would be nice to play there."

I have two thoughts on this, CornellFan. I'm the person ("david" who asked you about Watt on your blog forum, so you know that I think he would have been a solid addition. My first thought, therefore, is that I'm disappointed that he is not coming to Cornell (I'm confused about his verbal commitment--didn't know he had made one--and the role of ArizonaPreps.)

My second thought is about an article I read in Sports Illustrated about abusive college basketball fans. One student athlete (how did I type that phrase with a straight face?) committed to Illinois, then backed out and went to Indiana. The Illinois fans tortured him when IU visited U of I, with taunts that were obscene and just plain nasty. Another group of fans moved a player's grandmother to tears. It's a different situation, since Indiana and Illinois are conference rivals and Cornell and Rutgers are not. But I want to make sure that Cornell fans do not direct hatred towards this guy, Watt, as it serves no purpose and reflects poorly on Cornell. A little taunting on the Lynah level is fine, of course, but let's make sure not to step over the line, as the fans mentioned in the article did.

It seems unlikely (though certainly possible) that Rutgers and Cornell will play each other over the next several years, but I just want to be careful about being too vitriolic on message boards. The comments so far on the blog are respectful towards him, which is good. (Even though I do agree with the comments that he made a bad decision.)

Well, not surprised. If a b'ball player can go "big time" and that's what he wants, so be it. Realistically we have to get players who want to win but expect the rest of their life is more determined by their education. So?

Jim Hyla
Well, not surprised. If a b'ball player can go "big time" and that's what he wants, so be it. Realistically we have to get players who want to win but expect the rest of their life is more determined by their education. So?

Considering how few roster spots there are in the NBA and how many college basketball players there are, very, very few will not need to depend on their educations after college. (No, I'm not going to quote that NC$$ commercial.)

Then again, the experience of playing high level sports has value in and of itself, even if it doesn't lead to a professional career.

In NCAA Basketball Tournament program, they had a page on what percentage of student-athletes go pro...

Men's Basketball........1.2%
Women's Basketball......1.0%
Football................1.8%
Baseball................9.4%
Men's Ice Hockey........3.7%
Men's Soccer............1.7%

Is Rutgers big time?

They have not appeared in the NCAA Tournament since 1991. The Scarlet Knights finished 2007-2008 with a miserable 11-20 overall record and 3-15 mark in the Big East, which included lowly losses to Rider and St. Peter's and narrow wins over Dartmouth (55-50), Princeton (54-50), Lafayette (90-79) and NJIT (65-55). (Cornell beat Dartmouth, Princeton and NJIT by larger margins.) Rutgers ended the season with a 211 RPI out of 341 Division I teams and also failed to qualify for the Big East tournament. Rutgers only draws about 5,000 fans per game, just half the capacity of the Rutgers Athletic Center.

Big time alright.

There is definitely a fine line between what is and what is not appropriate. I think we are taking a similar path that publishers on ESPN, Scout.com and Rivals.com take when discussing these recruits.

We are not attacking Mitchell personally--- just questioning the wisdom of a possible college decision.

I don't think that is inappropriate discussion.

That said-- he has not yet made a final decision. But it appears he will be wearing Scarlet Red instead of Carnellian Red.

If we lost him, and it's not to another Ivy, I feel much better about it. He's allowed to go where he feels his best opportunities are.

Rutgers is a quality school and he received a scholarship. He will get to play in the Big East and, since he is a player that was seriously considering the Ivy League, he is a lot more likely to see playing time than he would at one of the schools that routinely make the tournament.

It is a disappointment that he chose Rutgers over Cornell but I can't blame the kid for making that call.

CornellFan
Is Rutgers big time?

They have not appeared in the NCAA Tournament since 1991. The Scarlet Knights finished 2007-2008 with a miserable 11-20 overall record and 3-15 mark in the Big East, which included lowly losses to Rider and St. Peter's and narrow wins over Dartmouth (55-50), Princeton (54-50), Lafayette (90-79) and NJIT (65-55). (Cornell beat Dartmouth, Princeton and NJIT by larger margins.) Rutgers ended the season with a 211 RPI out of 341 Division I teams and also failed to qualify for the Big East tournament. Rutgers only draws about 5,000 fans per game, just half the capacity of the Rutgers Athletic Center.

Big time alright.

Did you not notice my quotes? The Big East is big time, Rutgers is certainly not. However, if as has been said, that's the competition he wants, so be it. He obviously doesn't value his academics as much as his athletics; if so he's better off not at CU.

Jim Hyla
Did you not notice my quotes? The Big East is big time, Rutgers is certainly not. However, if as has been said, that's the competition he wants, so be it. He obviously doesn't value his academics as much as his athletics; if so he's better off not at CU.

I'm not sure I value my academics enough to pay for Cornell instead of letting Rutgers pick up the tab. Rutgers isn't some fake college.

ugarte

Jim Hyla
Did you not notice my quotes? The Big East is big time, Rutgers is certainly not. However, if as has been said, that's the competition he wants, so be it. He obviously doesn't value his academics as much as his athletics; if so he's better off not at CU.

I'm not sure I value my academics enough to pay for Cornell instead of letting Rutgers pick up the tab. Rutgers isn't some fake college.

True, but like Cornell it's big enough that there's a wide range of academic opportunities (some more challenging than others) available to students. Regardless of where the guy falls on that spectrum there's (as you point out) certainly some allure to having someone else pick up the tab.

CornellFan
But it appears he will be wearing Scarlet Red instead of Carnellian Red.

Wait... first Cornell, then Rutgers, and now you say he's going to BU?

ugarte
It is a disappointment that he chose Rutgers over Cornell but I can't blame the kid for making that call.

Of course you can blame him!

ugarte

Jim Hyla
Did you not notice my quotes? The Big East is big time, Rutgers is certainly not. However, if as has been said, that's the competition he wants, so be it. He obviously doesn't value his academics as much as his athletics; if so he's better off not at CU.

I'm not sure I value my academics enough to pay for Cornell instead of letting Rutgers pick up the tab. Rutgers isn't some fake college.

But it is in New Jersey.

CornellFan
We are not attacking Mitchell personally--- just questioning the wisdom of a possible college decision.

I know. That's why I said this:

djk26
The comments so far on the blog are respectful towards him, which is good. (Even though I do agree with the comments that he made a bad decision.)

Here's another question: What is ArizonaPreps, exactly, and why do they care if he goes to Rutgers, Cornell, or any place else? I visited their website, and it looks like they promote high school basketball players from Arizona. Fine. Do they think that the state of Arizona will be better off if the player goes to Rutgers? I just don't understand what it is they do.

djk26
Here's another question: What is ArizonaPreps, exactly, and why do they care if he goes to Rutgers, Cornell, or any place else? I visited their website, and it looks like they promote high school basketball players from Arizona. Fine. Do they think that the state of Arizona will be better off if the player goes to Rutgers? I just don't understand what it is they do.

It looks like ArizonaPreps' interest is in promoting Arizona high school basketball to recruiters. They identify and promote talent that may be slipping below the radar of the top conferences and help get those athletes more eyeballs. Getting Michael Watt to Rutgers is part of a larger strategy of getting the Big East and other eastern power conferences to scout and recruit in Arizona.

It is funny (and a bit off topic) but I just read the original article for the first time instead of skimming it. I noticed that Craig Carter was an assistant coach at Rutgers. He graduated from Bx. Science a year ahead of me and was the star of the basketball team. He was the first player to get a Division I basketball scholarship in a long time from our little nerd village and I haven't heard of anyone doing so since. I'm sure he faced a similar dilemma to Watt, and he chose to go to Rutgers. For some reason I remember him being buried on the bench in college but with a little bit of Google I found out that he had a great college career. He was a starting guard that helped take Rutgers to an A-10 tournament title (1989), an NIT final 8 (1990) and an at-large NCAA berth (1991).

ArizonaPreps is part of the Rivals.com network of websites.

First-- they are publishers/journalists.

Second-- they host camps/clinics/tournaments.

They have a vested interest in getting Arizona kids into the top conferences. because the more recognition the State of Arizona receives as a hotbed for talent, the more colleges and fans will subscribe to ArizonaPreps.com's content and attend their events (camp/tournaments).

It is all about the money, not getting these kids the best education possible.

Obviously, if the financials make it difficult/impossible for a kid to go the Ivy route, then god bless them-- take that scholarship to the mega sized state school.

If you are a legit NBA talent--- then god bless you, go play against the best in the Big East.

But if you are not an NBA player (and Mitchell Watt is not) and you are lucky enough to get admission to Cornell (something all of you may take for granted everyday of your lives), you owe it to yourself to try and make ends meet and get that top caliber education.

Anyhow--- ArizonaPreps just wants to get Arizona kids into the BCS conferences to increase the prestige of the state's talent level so more and more coaches and fans will look to ArizonaPreps for scouting information.

Ugarte:

YOU ARE EXACTLY RIGHT on the ArizonaPreps analysis.

With respect to Carter-- I followed his career closely.

Rutgers, as you noted, was A-10 back then. Further, the A-10 was pretty damn bad in those years. So--- Carter's choosing Rutgers back then was not the same as Watt choosing Rutgers today.

CornellFan
Further, the A-10 was pretty damn bad in those years.

Really? I remember Temple and UMass as elite teams with Sweet 16 appearances from GWU as well. They weren't the Big East but they weren't the SWAC either.

Thanks, CornellFan. Your explanation makes perfect sense: it comes down to money for Rivals.com.

I still wonder exactly how ArizonaPreps helped steer Watt to Rutgers. It's almost as if he had a for-profit agent getting him to a college. That strikes me as odd.

I have to object to the common sentiment around here. No one is under any obligation to pay for the most expensive, 'elite' education possible.
Going to a less expensive, but still academically respected public or smaller school does not mean you care less for your education. And it may actually be a wiser choice than starting yourself out with $100K in debt. Even without basketball in the picture.

Perhaps he was considering Cornell because he couldn't get any more reasonably priced, but still academically good institution to give him a chance to play D-I. When Rutgers finally took notice, the chance to play D-I ball without wracking up $40K of debt a year on your parents or yourself may have made perfect sense - and gotten him to a higher tier of athletics.

Every year people decide not to apply to - or not to accept the offer of - highly expensive, elite colleges due to the burden of the tuition. And that's only for a lower tuition elsewhere, not for a free ride. And without the opportunity to play a higher level of their chosen sport in the mix.

It does not mean you don't value academics. And to imply otherwise comes off to me as disturbingly elitist.

He has not committed yet--- but the article seems to indicate that is the direction he is headed.

DeltaOne81
I have to object to the common sentiment around here. No one is under any obligation to pay for the most expensive, 'elite' education possible.
Going to a less expensive, but still academically respected public or smaller school does not mean you care less for your education. And it may actually be a wiser choice...

Denying yourself the opportunity to be a member of the Lynah Faithful (even Faithful in absentia while playing other, less interesting winter sports) could never be considered a wise choice.

DeltaOne81
I have to object to the common sentiment around here. No one is under any obligation to pay for the most expensive, 'elite' education possible. Going to a less expensive, but still academically respected public or smaller school does not mean you care less for your education. And it may actually be a wiser choice than starting yourself out with $100K in debt. Even without basketball in the picture.

Not everybody pays list price to attend Cornell. We (as parents of a HS junior) heard an interesting off-the-cuff remark at a college night from a financial counselor: For the average student, Cornell works out cheaper than Virginia in dollars actually paid. UVa starts out cheaper (list price) but offers less need-based aid. Not every player on the Rutgers basketball team draws a full scholarship, so need aid plays a role, too. The NYT series on colege sports scholarships earlier this month notes that it's pretty common to athletes to get partials of say $2,500 or $5,000 rather than a full ride. To be fair, that's probably in addition to need-based aid.

Rutgers isn't a lousy school. But most people would rather have the sheepskin say Cornell. Life will probably work out better for Topher Scott with his Cornell degree once he's done dabbling in the minors, unless he becomes the next Martin St. Louis.

I have a big problem with the assumption that choosing Rutgers (or almost any other school) over Cornell implies that a prospective student doesn't value academics.

There are many reasons why a student -- recruited athlete or not -- might make that choice. Rutgers has several departments and programs that are superior to Cornell's equivalents (or that Cornell lacks entirely). The student body is far more diverse than Cornell's. And many prospective students would find New Brunswick's proximity to both New York and Philadelphia pretty damn enticing. Those are just a few reasons I can think of right off the top of my head; I'm sure there are dozens of others.

Mitchell Watt is not picking Rutgers because its philosophy department is rated 6 spots higher than Cornell's or because he would be just a short 45 minute ride from NYC.

He has clearly stated that this about the Big East conference. Never once did he mention money as an issue. In fact, we know it is not an issue because he gave Cornell a verbal commitment in November (when he had scholarships to some low level programs).

So--- if we want to discuss his decision, lets discuss Ivy vs. Big East--- not New Brunswick vs Ithaca.

I hear you, CF. I was only responding to someone higher up who made a comment about Rutgers and academics. Being a Temple guy now, I've become kind of sensitive to that stuff. Maybe oversensitive.

Watt clarified his position. He says he turned down Cornell because of the lack of scholarship. However, he does not explain why he would commit to Cornell in the first place when he knew a scholarship would never be a possibility.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]

Maybe Watt read all those Canadian newspapers stories about hockey players getting "scholarships" to attend Cornell.

Maybe he's got some issues if he thinks Buffalo is a good-looking place.

If he's looking for a rout [okay, the author's transcription], maybe he could recommit to Cornell and we could get to play Stanford again next year. If he wants high institutions, we could change it to "high above Cayuga's ..." >>> I'm getting full ride offers from high institutions," he said. "I'd rather go that rout. I'm also looking for some challenging basketball that will challenge me and possibly take me to the next level."

If Watt really thinks he's hot stuff in hoops, then you can't argue against the level of competition he'd see at Rutgers. Good luck to him. Let's check back after his sophomore year and see how he's faring.

Beyond that, Cornell hasn't even released their financial aid decisions yet. So he would have no way of knowing how much need-based financial aid he would receive.

Or maybe his family is just well-off and he knows he won't receive any need-based financial aid.

metaezra
Beyond that, Cornell hasn't even released their financial aid decisions yet. So he would have no way of knowing how much need-based financial aid he would receive.

Or maybe his family is just well-off and he knows he won't receive any need-based financial aid.

Generally the coaching staff can estimate that reasonably well.

Actually, the athletes do get tentative financial packages before the rest of the student body.

metaezra
Beyond that, Cornell hasn't even released their financial aid decisions yet. So he would have no way of knowing how much need-based financial aid he would receive.

He could always go to the Princeton financial aid website, use their online tool, and interpolate as to what his Cornell scholarship might be. It would be even easier if Cornell had a similar tool on their website...

Mitchell Watt ends up committing to U. Buffalo over Cornell and Rutgers. Odd decision.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]

CornellFan
Mitchell Watt ends up committing to U. Buffalo over Cornell and Rutgers. Odd decision.

[cornellbasketball.blogspot.com]

That just doesn't make any sense.

Read the latest story on The Cornell Basketball Blog. ArizonaPreps.com is now reporting that Watt backed out of his verbal because "Cornell lost interest in Watt."

Just speculating--- but wondering if this was an admissions issue.

I think that's the only way Cornell would have lost interest in Watt.

Glad to know the admissions office is still playing by the rules.

Well, our source close to the situation told us that Mitchell was admitted during the fall. So--- we are doubtful that it was an academic issue. It could have been a battle over his financial aid and that his family felt that Cornell was not interested enough "to up" the award package. Again, just speculation.

But doubtful that this was an issue of Cornell losing interest in his talent. I mean... even Davidson was going after this guy (with a Big East offer already on the table).

CornellFan
Read the latest story on The Cornell Basketball Blog. ArizonaPreps.com is now reporting that Watt backed out of his verbal because "Cornell lost interest in Watt."

Just speculating--- but wondering if this was an admissions issue.

Regardless of why Cornell didn't pan out for him, I remain baffled by why he'd pick UB over Rutgers. (Unless he has family in the Buffalo area or something, I guess.)

Josh '99

CornellFan
Read the latest story on The Cornell Basketball Blog. ArizonaPreps.com is now reporting that Watt backed out of his verbal because "Cornell lost interest in Watt."

Just speculating--- but wondering if this was an admissions issue.

Regardless of why Cornell didn't pan out for him, I remain baffled by why he'd pick UB over Rutgers. (Unless he has family in the Buffalo area or something, I guess.)

He may start as a frosh in Buffalo.

If he's not getting a full ride, maybe Buffalo was cheaper costs to the family than Rutgers.

Too many variables to guess, really.