Sleepless Monday nights

December 11, 2007

Drew Champlin

As you know, Auburn offensive coordinator Al Borges was let go Monday.

The hot rumor is Troy offensive coordinator Tony Franklin to Auburn. But right now that’s all we have - message board fodder, since it’s almost 1 a.m. and people who you call for stuff like this, well, aren’t awake (or have their phone off). So, to me, until I can get it verified, it’s still a hot rumor. We had a nice little ethics seminar at work Friday discussing things like this and how various media outlets had egg on their faces (see:  TV stations in Arkansas about Tuberville, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit re: Les Miles to Michigan).

This news didn’t break until after 10 p.m., and after leaving the office after covering prep basketball, I went to the grocery store. Got home about 11:30 and found out about it.

I can guarantee I’ll try to find out what I can on it, as will Opelika-Auburn News AU beat writer Collin Mickle. The Eagle and the OA News are sister papers in Media General, so we all work together on stuff like this. In fact, our paper runs their Auburn stuff and the OA News runs our Alabama and Troy stuff.

Check out the OA News’ AuburnVersus.com, as it could have some stuff, as well.

In the meantime, I hope to get a few hours of sleep. Maybe I can find something out before you head off to work (then I can go back to sleep!) Desk duties tomorrow night. Gotta love it.

Pre-recruiting/spring look: WIDE RECEIVER

December 10, 2007

Drew Champlin

This is the first look at the 2008 Trojans. It’s never too early to speculate on the next season, especially since Troy’s 2007 season is over. Most of these will not focus on 2008 recruits as no one has signed on the dotted line yet.

Note: Players are listed in class based on what they will be in 2008.

WHAT TROY IS LOSING: Two-time All-Sun Belt selection Gary Banks graduates and also Josh Allen, who stepped it up for his senior year. (Note: Gerald Tate is listed as a SR on the Troy web site, but he’s a JR. How do I know this? Well, before the North Texas game when he was still injured, I was talking to him and mentioned, “Man, I hate that you got injured your senior year,” to which he responded that he’s a junior on the football field.). That’s two guys who were starters for most of the year, Banks at the Z and Allen at the Y. Both were the top two pass-catchers among receivers and Banks’ 61 catches for 698 yards were far ahead of the rest of the pack.

WHAT TROY IS RETAINING: Actually, a lot, and several different guys who stepped up at one time or another. At the X, senior Kennard Burton had good games against Oklahoma State and Georgia and went from someone who wasn’t even in coaches’ plans at the end of the spring to one of the team’s better receivers. Senior Mykeal Terry didn’t have the breakout year that some thought he would, but he’s still an option because he does all the right things off the field and isn’t so bad on the field. Junior Justin Bray saw some action and is fast, but might be better suited to move back to defensive back. At the H, senior Gerald Tate made a remarkable transformation to his body and became a player this year, coming up with some big catches in the FAU game with others out to injury. Junior Andrew Davis is a guy who can run but he wasn’t as visible as other receivers this year. Sophomore Patrick Cherry saw spot duty when Tate got hurt midway through the season. Redshirt freshman Stanley Jones will get some more looks. At the Y, sophomore Austin Silvoy looked to have a breakout freshman season before injuries derailed part of that. Silvoy missed several games due to concussion and a knee injury, but the 6-foot-3 Silvoy should have a good year if healthy. Junior Cornelius Williams won’t wow the scouts, but he catches balls and gets into the end zone. He’s not very fast but has good football savvy. At the Z, senior Fred Turner returns but he’s more of a special teams guy. Junior Zack Marcum will find a place on the field because of his willingness to run through a brick wall and he came up with a big touchdown catch against FAU. Now, who is the leading returning receiver? That would be Jerrel Jernigan, who caught 30 passes his true freshman year. He could start at the Z and see several of the screen passes thrown to him that were thrown to Banks, as well as some deep balls. Jernigan was more of an inside guy this year, but the sophomore could emerge as the team’s best next year no matter where he plays. At tight end, junior Travis Boyd returns as a reliable option.

Look for the Trojans to add four guys who could contribute next year. One of those will be Richie Henderson, who signed last February but was a grayshirt. He’ll become a part of the team in the spring and will get a chance to show what he can do.

DREW’S PREDICTION: If junior college recruit Chris Todd wins the quarterbacking position, then a lot more balls will go to the receivers than during the Omar Haugabook era, as Haugabook was a dual-threat guy. In that case, I still look for a Troy receiver to be All-Sun Belt, though I don’t know who it will be. There will be more depth and numbers this year, but guys like Burton, Tate, Silvoy and Jernigan will have to step up, stay healthy, and be very good for Troy to be good again.

Troy-ASU basketball observations

December 09, 2007

Drew Champlin

***There was a lot to like about the win. It was the most team-oriented game I’ve ever seen Troy play and I’ve been covering them since Feb. 2005.

***It helps when everyone is healthy. Why they struggled early was because guys like Mario Telfair, Mike Vogler, Tom Jervis and Jarvis Acker were either hurt or ineligible. Three of the four missed at least one game, as did Kenny Ware, who didn’t go to Ole Miss because he had a night class that night and a project due at 8 a.m. the next morning. Coaches left him behind because of that.

***In speaking with coaches on recruiting, they didn’t just offer scholarships for the sake of doing so in the early period. They went after a few guys who were longshots to come to Troy, but were good players. I don’t know who they were because I don’t think they can tell me. They’ll sign at least 3-4 in the spring period. There are good players out there, they just have to locate them. They feel like Richard Delk will be one of the top players to ever play at Troy when he’s done. The 6-4 guard can play a number of positions and do a number of things.

***Still not sure that this team has as much talent as most Sun Belt teams, but its 10th and 11th guys are better, in my opinion. They all play anyway so that’s how they’re getting better. They also compliment each other in great ways. At the 4 spot, Trayce Macon plays bigger than he’s listed and can step out and hit the three (as he hit a big one in the second half) while Mario Telfair thrives against physical one-on-one matchups.

***Look at the other positions. At the point, Jerome Odem hit some big shots while Mike Vogler seems to have great poise and control out there (though he lost the ball a couple of times) and can shoot. Josh Williams is an energy guy who is 110% every minute he’s out there. At the 2, O’Darien Bassett has emerged as the leader and go-to guy on this team and Brandon Hazzard is 10 times better than he was last year. He comes off the bench with confidence and can hit some big shots. At the 3, Justin Jonus is that other big-time scorer, though he really struggled vs. ASU. He’s a guy that has hit big shots at the end of the game. Meanwhile, Kenny Ware comes off the bench and is more of a defender, but he hit a big 3-pointer in the first half. At the 5, Jarvis Acker starts and he’s still the Jarvis of old, doing a few boneheaded things here and there, but he’s all effort, all intensity and he can shoot and jump. Tom Jervis, the 7-footer, has a nice touch, is getting tougher down low as he fights through a calf injury, and is pretty good guarding the inbounder on the full court press.

***Still not sure how high they’ll finish, but it’s a team that really plays like a team and is fun to watch. Great crowd Saturday night and if you’re in or near Troy, come check them out on game nights. Trojan Arena is a tough place to play for visitors even when it’s half-full.

The word on Blakeney to Houston

December 08, 2007

Drew Champlin

It’s not going to happen.

I didn’t talk to Troy head coach Larry Blakeney, but Troy SID Ricky Hazel did and he passed along the message.

He hasn’t heard from Houston, hasn’t made contact with Houston, and isn’t interested in Houston. He thinks it was just started by some people to hurt recruiting.

So they were what they were - rumors.

Troy-ASU hoops

Drew Champlin

At the half, ASU leads Troy 37-36.

ASU has more talent, but Troy has had several shots rim out. Last year, Troy fell victim to the SWAC officials in the ASU gym. This year, Troy’s gotten a few more of the “swing” calls, but they’re going to need a little more than that.

Mike Vogler looks pretty good at PG but seemed to tire late in the half. Troy has no answer for 7-footer Chief Kickingstallionsims, who has only played 9 minutes but scored 9 points. Troy is also having trouble with ASU’s Brandon Gordon (9 pts) and Jamarr Sanders (8 pts)

Troy’s O’Darien Bassett went into the locker room with 3 minutes left in the half, but is back with a bandage on his chin, so he probably got cut under there.