Nostalgic questions thread.

[scuba lou]

I've been a UCONN fan since 98 and a lurker on this board for about five years.
I am a men's basketball fanatic and spend countless hours reading articles and different message boards.
I'm creating this thread for help from some old timers who have info and opinions that I respect. I would like use this thread to ask questions that I can't find out by googling.

First questions I have are what was UCONN'S fan base's perception on Caron Butler before he got to UCONN. Also was he highly recruited?
Question number two is why did Edmund Saunders leave uconn early? I grew up in Waterbury and loved having him on UCONN. What was the fan base's perception on him as a player?

 

[Gurleyman]

I've been a UCONN fan since 98 and a lurker on this board for about five years. I am a men's basketball fanatic and spend countless hours reading articles and different message boards. I'm creating this thread for help from some old timers who have info and opinions that I respect. I would like use this thread to ask questions that I can't find out by googling. First questions I have are what was UCONN'S fan base's perception on Caron Butler before he got to UCONN. Also was he highly recruited? Question number two is why did Edmund Saunders leave uconn early? I grew up in Waterbury and loved having him on UCONN. What was the fan base's perception on him as a player?

Caron was a huge get. We followed his recruitment very closely and had a lot of angst over it - he took a visit to UNLV after he committed to us which we thought was the end of the world. We knew he had a troubled past, but I don't think we knew the depth of it. He was a top 10 recruit but a post grad so ineligible for McDonald's game, so he was very highly recruited but some teams stayed away due to his past.

Edmund was a Prop 48 so he lost a year of eligibility under the rules of the time. You'd be able to get that year back if you graduated, which i believe he did, but I'm never 100 percent sure of those things being reported accurately. Either way I think he was one player who didn't see eye to eye with JC - they were both stubborn - and they were ready to move on after his senior year. The fan base had a mixed perception of him. We probably liked him collectively if it was a yes/no question, but he took over at PF for Kevin Freeman who was revered for his hustle and work ethic and I think Ed was held to that standard and didn't always measure up, so he became a bit polarizing. Time has been kind to him - we remember the dunk over Loren Woods and the plays in 77-74 more than the lean senior year, which I think is fair.

 

[Palatine]

Caron was a highly touted recruit.

Everyone knew his story before he came to UConn. But he had to prep for a year and stay out of trouble for Calhoun to bring him on board. So during that prep year, it was kind of wait and see if he really ever becomes a Husky.

As a player he was a beast and played as hard as anyone on the team.Very clutch player.

 

[RichZ]

I was never much on paying attention to recruiting. Just wait for the season and see who JC had loaded the bus with. The two exceptions to that were Caron and Charlie V. Both were highly sought recruits (Caron was the #1 prep school player in the country) with questions on their background and potential eligibility issues that kept some programs at bay. Once Caron signed, there were still eligibility issues to deal with, and there was still the whole deal with his background. With all the questions, it's pretty amazing how quickly he became a fan favorite. I still remember his saying it was the dairy farm that sealed the deal for him.

In retrospect, the entire process was screwed over by one Max Good. The Maine Central Institute coach who left ahead of the NCAA investigation of his program, and went to UNLV as an assistant. Persistent rumors that he got that gig based on a promise to being Caron with him. Caron was stuck in the middle. Was it Good who helped turn his life aorund? Or was it the isolation and basically rural setting of MCI that did the trick? It may have come down to Good vs. Caron's mom as to where he was going to go. He left the UNLV visit verbally committed to both schools. Once out of Good's influence and under the mother's, UNLV became an afterthought. For an interesting take on the timeline, peruse these three articles in order.

http://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/oct/26/prep-star-may-be-ready-to-commit-to-unlv/
http://articles.courant.com/1999-11-15/sports/9911150062_1_unlv-taliek-brown-oral
http://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/nov/18/butler-nixes-unlv-opts-to-sign-with-connecticut/

Edmund Saunders was another interesting story. He was instrumental in the 99 championship game, especially when he and Souley shut down Brand on two consecutive trips. But my most vivid memory of him is from the next season. The play in which two players earned their nicknames in one 4 second sequence. Edzilla and Mister Softee. AZ ranked #2, UConn #6. First game of the Great Eight tourney. Game was tight with 3 and a half left. Then we went on a run, fueled mostly by Albert Mouring. I think we had upped the lead to 6 or 7 points when Albert stole the inbounds pass and threw it to Edmund, who caught it in full stride headed toward the rim. And the 7-1 Loren Woods. Woods cowered. He looked like he was trying to protect himself from a physical attack! Edmund soared and stuffed. Edzilla vs Mr. Softee. For all intents and puposes, the game was over.

 

[ctchamps]

I was never much on paying attention to recruiting. Just wait for the season and see who JC had loaded the bus with. The two exceptions to that were Caron and Charlie V. Both were highly sought recruits (Caron was the #1 prep school player in the country) with questions on their background and potential eligibility issues that kept some programs at bay. Once Caron signed, there were still eligibility issues to deal with, and there was still the whole deal with his background. With all the questions, it's pretty amazing how quickly he became a fan favorite. I still remember his saying it was the dairy farm that sealed the deal for him.

In retrospect, the entire process was screwed over by one Max Good. The Maine Central Institute coach who left ahead of the NCAA investigation of his program, and went to UNLV as an assistant. Persistent rumors that he got that gig based on a promise to being Caron with him. Caron was stuck in the middle. Was it Good who helped turn his life aorund? Or was it the isolation and basically rural setting of MCI that did the trick? It may have come down to Good vs. Caron's mom as to where he was going to go. He left the UNLV visit verbally committed to both schools. Once out of Good's influence and under the mother's, UNLV became an afterthought. For an interesting take on the timeline, peruse these three articles in order.

http://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/oct/26/prep-star-may-be-ready-to-commit-to-unlv/
http://articles.courant.com/1999-11-15/sports/9911150062_1_unlv-taliek-brown-oral
http://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/nov/18/butler-nixes-unlv-opts-to-sign-with-connecticut/

Edmund Saunders was another interesting story. He was instrumental in the 99 championship game, especially when he and Souley shut down Brand on two consecutive trips. But my most vivid memory of him is from the next season. The play in which two players earned their nicknames in one 4 second sequence. Edzilla and Mister Softee. AZ ranked #2, UConn #6. First game of the Great Eight tourney. Game was tight with 3 and a half left. Then we went on a run, fueled mostly by Albert Mouring. I think we had upped the lead to 6 or 7 points when Albert stole the inbounds pass and threw it to Edmund, who caught it in full stride headed toward the rim. And the 7-1 Loren Woods. Woods cowered. He looked like he was trying to protect himself from a physical attack! Edmund soared and stuffed. Edzilla vs Mr. Softee. For all intents and puposes, the game was over.

Really nice job. Can't imagine the type of meltdown this forum would have gone through if those events for CB were happening this year.

 

[Husky1]

I graduated in 1982 and have had season tix since but still remember great games at the field house. Anyway,
Caron was heavily recruited and my recollection is that it sort of came out of nowhere. I remember he committed early but there were many issues and always the rumor that he was going elsewhere. Once he got here, he always said that he was always firm and it was all the hanger's on and comments of others that created questions. He really loved JC and UCONN - can't wait to read new book.
What I mainly remember about Edmund is that at some point he was ranked like th #1 or 2 8th grader in the country (yes, I can't believe they had those rankings, but he was). I think he was like fully grown almost by that age with skill. He was a huge get for us, and I would say probably never quite lived up to expectations although he certainly had his moments. I was always confused by him not coming back with a year of eligibility and chalked it up to academics, work ethic or just lost the love for the game - would love to know the whole story.

 

[joober jones]

I believe Saunders played professionally in Finland for a while then became an assistant coach at Post University. These days he's employed by Waterbury Hospital, but I'm not exactly sure what the specific position is.