TicketsHeaded out to UC Pro Day this morning, so we'll keep the Breakfast brief.
Let's eat...
--- The story everyone will be watching closely this morning is Vidal Hazelton. In talking with Vidal for this story I wrote on Friday he resigned this could be the most important day of his life. Certainly the most critical for his career.
Hazelton's raw ability will land him in a camp somewhere, but if he wants to be drafted, this needs to be a fantastic day for him.
The kid doesn't lack confidence. He feels like his talent deserves early-round consideration, but appears to be coming to terms with the fact his lack of game film at the college level makes him an impossible risk to accept for teams at that level.
Being drafted only takes one team. Somebody should be willing to take on a high risk-reward prospect like Hazelton, but as probably the most unknown quanity in the draft, you never know.
What I do know? I will be rooting for Hazelton, whose been handed a long line of bad luck situations and conquered them with a smile on his face. Good guy who hopefully will enjoy some better luck. Starting today.
--- Tuesday marks the opening of spring practice. I'll be out there as well for that. Butch Jones has been making the rounds of the local media junket.
He was on all three Sunday night talk shows last night.
Most of those conversations go along the same lines of his Q and A with Brian Bennett. It's a two-parter Brian broke down. Here's Part I. And Part II.
--- Jones talked quite a bit about what he says has been a successful offseason to this point. Clearly, he's correct in the classroom, where the football team managed a 2.9 GPA as a whole -- an all-time record for one quarter at the school.
--- More deserved recognition for UC volleyball's Stephanie Niemer.
--- Sophomore soccer player Roger Thompson will be playing for the Canadian National U-20 team. They'll be competing in the World Cup qualifiers.
--- As for the Final 4 you all predicted in your brackets, I'll only say this one time so not to turn this into an unrequited love session of what-ifs. UConn and Kentucky look like the best two teams in the tournament right now. If you consider the Huskies the hottest team in hoops dating back to the remarkable BE tourney run, look at the seeds of the teams in the Final 4 and weigh how close UC was to beating the Huskies, perhaps we all underestimated how realistic it would have been for UC to still be alive today.
They're not. So we won't. But this team was closer than any of us probably even gave them credit for.
Oh, and stop listening to preseason rankings.
--- This is the first time the Final 4 hasn't contained a 1 or 2 seed and third time it hasn't contained at least one No. 1.
This is the highest number of combined seed totals in the history of the tourney (26), the previous high was 22.
--- Can you give enough glowing compilments to Brad Stevens and Butler at this point. Their back to back runs to the Final 4 may be the most improbable we've witnessed in the tournament. Here's a great piece by Nick Masulo.
--- Eric Angevine recaps the West Region and calls UC-UConn the "Game to Forget." UC fans would probably agree.
--- Some randomness...
--- New York Post ranked the top 150 jokes of the year through the eyes of comedians. I'll go with Dave Attell for now: "Am I watching Jersey Shore or just a really long Olive Garden commercial?"
--- This continues to be great news for me considering I still have a movie I rented from Blockbuster in 2008 at my house.
--- From the land of odd news, here's one of a town in Delaware attempting to take down basketball poles.
The quote from the son of a frustrated mother: "Just woke up, came outside, my mom was on the basketball pole sitting up there, trying to stop them from taking it down basically."
Pretty standard Saturday, really.
--- Blind support. Winning at all costs philosophy at its finest.