Recruits 2025 and Beyond

[Big Dingus]

Point is they could have stayed for 4 years and didn't. People graduate in 3 for a reason. The graduating vs non graduating isn't really the main factor to discuss here

[BearLover]

Point is they could have stayed for 4 years and didn't. People graduate in 3 for a reason. The graduating vs non graduating isn't really the main factor to discuss here

They almost certainly would have stayed for four years if not for COVID, though. There was extreme uncertainty when/if the Ivies would go back to playing hockey, so these players accelerated their coursework and graduated early.

[Big Dingus]

Not completely sure about that - but I agree COVID was a main driver of it

[scoop85]

Even forgetting NIL issues for a moment, keep in mind that if Robertson or others don't qualify based on family income for full grant coverage for their Cornell tuition, there are plenty of good options where they can go on full scholarship. The fact this has happened so rarely in the past is a tribute to the program's culture. But we're seeing this change for the worse across all D1 athletics, and it's something we'll need to expect more of. As but an extreme example, I saw the current Tulane QB who just transferred in (and is in some legal hot water) is now at his 5TH college; I'm sure he's highly focused on his academic career ::bang::

[BearLover]

Even forgetting NIL issues for a moment, keep in mind that if Robertson or others don't qualify based on family income for full grant coverage for their Cornell tuition, there are plenty of good options where they can go on full scholarship. The fact this has happened so rarely in the past is a tribute to the program's culture. But we're seeing this change for the worse across all D1 athletics, and it's something we'll need to expect more of. As but an extreme example, I saw the current Tulane QB who just transferred in (and is in some legal hot water) is now at his 5TH college; I'm sure he's highly focused on his academic career ::bang::

Though it's true this is happening elsewhere, it needs to be said that if it happens to Cornell hockey, we will cease to be nationally competitive. What's held this program together the last few years has been guys not transferring out/leaving early even though those options were on the table.

[Iceberg]

Incorrect. Both Regush and Tupker graduated from Cornell. Says so right on their LinkedIn pages. Regush attended Miami for his master's degree in accounting. Tupker graduated from ILR and then went to Union for a graduate degree in economics.

This is something Regush could have done at Cornell, but as others have said or implied, a lot of it came down to COVID and uncertainty about whether the Ivys and many other schools were even going to participate in sports or allow grad student athletes

[Big Dingus]

And it also came to them not wanting to stay the full four years or take a fifth year

[Trotsky]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

[ugarte]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

i think it historically has been about how the ivy league wants to incorporate athletics into the larger academic picture. it is intentionally indifferent to whether it affects competitiveness at the national level. i'm not making a value judgment about it but the people who created the rule certainly were. given the increasing profile of college sports, and the ivies very clearly being intentional about wanting to be competitive in the current landscape, it will be interesting to see how the irresistable force of tradition takes on the immovable object of capitalism.

[Chris '03]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

i think it historically has been about how the ivy league wants to incorporate athletics into the larger academic picture. it is intentionally indifferent to whether it affects competitiveness at the national level. i'm not making a value judgment about it but the people who created the rule certainly were. given the increasing profile of college sports, and the ivies very clearly being intentional about wanting to be competitive in the current landscape, it will be interesting to see how the irresistable force of tradition takes on the immovable object of capitalism.

This is thread drift adjacent but this former penn basketball player has thoughts about the ivy league taking itself out of contention. http://www.thedp.com/article/2025/04/penn-basketball-fixing-a-non-problem

[Swampy]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

i think it historically has been about how the ivy league wants to incorporate athletics into the larger academic picture. it is intentionally indifferent to whether it affects competitiveness at the national level. i'm not making a value judgment about it but the people who created the rule certainly were. given the increasing profile of college sports, and the ivies very clearly being intentional about wanting to be competitive in the current landscape, it will be interesting to see how the irresistable force of tradition takes on the immovable object of capitalism.

Have you been following the news? Columbia, Harvard, Penn can hardly raise the white flag fast enough. ::deadhorse::

[ugarte]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

i think it historically has been about how the ivy league wants to incorporate athletics into the larger academic picture. it is intentionally indifferent to whether it affects competitiveness at the national level. i'm not making a value judgment about it but the people who created the rule certainly were. given the increasing profile of college sports, and the ivies very clearly being intentional about wanting to be competitive in the current landscape, it will be interesting to see how the irresistable force of tradition takes on the immovable object of capitalism.

Have you been following the news? Columbia, Harvard, Penn can hardly raise the white flag fast enough. ::deadhorse::

i know that they are similar but the venn diagram of fascism and capitalism aren't a *perfect* circle

[scoop85]

allow grad student athletes

What is the given rationale for this Ivy rule, BTW?  I mean, I get that everything we do is to polish the snobbery discriminator that makes idiots in Mineola pay 5x the tuition for an undergrad business degree they could get at SUNY, but why do we shoot ourselves in the dick on graduate students of all people?  They are, by definition, good scholars.  I think it actually works against the brand to so publicly fuck them.

i think it historically has been about how the ivy league wants to incorporate athletics into the larger academic picture. it is intentionally indifferent to whether it affects competitiveness at the national level. i'm not making a value judgment about it but the people who created the rule certainly were. given the increasing profile of college sports, and the ivies very clearly being intentional about wanting to be competitive in the current landscape, it will be interesting to see how the irresistable force of tradition takes on the immovable object of capitalism.

This is thread drift adjacent but this former penn basketball player has thoughts about the ivy league taking itself out of contention. http://www.thedp.com/article/2025/04/penn-basketball-fixing-a-non-problem

Not that this is original thinking, but it seems apparent that it will be increasingly difficult to the Ivies to maintain D1 level competitiveness in basketball and hockey as pay to play takes over as the prevailing model. The only way to have a chance to avoid that trend will be for the Ivies to at least some semblance of NIL policies that can help lure and retain D1 quality athletes. I don't get a sense that the Ivy leadership in inclined to take that path.

[David Harding]

I'm also really worried about Robertson's decision setting a precedent for non-graduates transferring out, which never happened at all under Schafer.

Justin Milo, Mike Regush, Joe Leahy...I'm sure there are others I'm not recalling at the moment.

Not counting those who transferred out during the canceled season. Also, I believe Regush and Leahy graduated. I said "non-graduate."

Regush transfered after his junior year (the COVID season). He was a senior at Miami Ohio, not a grad student. And yup: Ben Tupker is also in the same boat.

Incorrect. Both Regush and Tupker graduated from Cornell. Says so right on their LinkedIn pages. Regush attended Miami for his master's degree in accounting. Tupker graduated from ILR and then went to Union for a graduate degree in economics.

I'm sure I knew that at some point, but I apparently forgot. Carry on.

I wonder whether any of the accelerated graduations were aided by credits earned while playing in the USHL after graduating from high school.

[billhoward]

Senor Ugarte — I was fast clicking through this oh-yeah=sez-you thread, then you crashed the party and made a common-sense point. Gad, so jarring.