Not To Jinx Us But | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Not To Jinx Us But

Johnny one-note checking in again...

if you are intending to choose a school because of its pre-med program, generally speaking the most vigorous academic school is NOT the best bet for you. you will be in classes (organic??? oh no!!!!! the pre-med killer!!!!) with many of the most competitive students in your school and, because virtually all science courses are graded on a curve, your grades mercilessly reflect your class rank in the course. There is no escaping that most of the "normal" pre-meds make their calc, bio and chem courses their highest priorities in life. And yet, here you are doing those courses on top of the 5 hrs or so that you're putting into lifting and practice and then physical/mental recovery afterwards. Moreover, your friends are your teammates, but the "normal" pre-meds have pre-med friends to study with and buck up their morale when they get a 43 on a math exam which is actually a "B."

If you are a pre-med D-1 athlete, you are so very much better off going to a decent, though not top, academic school, where you at least stand a fighting chance at getting better science grades relative to your classmates and have pre-medical advisors who don't look at you as a lost cause. How many elite D-1 athletes does anyone here know of who has actually gone to med school (not just declaring pre-med, but getting into med school)? High schoolers with these aspirations say things which please themselves and please their parents, and the coaches love to hear it if it helps the kids make the "right" decision, but they are not, in fact, making the best decisions for themselves. Far from it.
 
CocoHusky said:
Might not have been the academics. Under that coach with the three initials that calls opposing players by their numbers has any player really "achieved"?
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I don't know of course. She compiled some pretty impressive stats, but never met my eye test on foot/hand speed and positioning, despite her big # of blocks. Too lazy to look at her TOs, but I recall her being pick prone.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
I don't know of course. She compiled some pretty impressive stats, but never met my eye test on foot/hand speed and positioning, despite her big # of blocks. Too lazy to look at her TOs, but I recall her being pick prone.
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How many times did you see her play in college?
 
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triaddukefan said:
How many times did you see her play in college?
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Wild guess, somewhere between 15 and 25. I had this I can't look away thing for JPM's team and during basketball season I have the zillion sports channel package. PAC conference ruined it for them with their own network a couple of years ago.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
Wild guess, somewhere between 15 and 25. I had this I can't look away thing for JPM's team and during basketball season I have the zillion sports channel package. PAC conference ruined it for them with their own network a couple of years ago.
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Between reruns of MASH and Falcon Crest... how do you find the time? :)
 
bags27 said:
Well, Nixon went to Whittier undergraduate and only to Duke Law School (which wasn't very good back then anyway), and Carter transferred TWICE, I think, before going the Annapolis, and Obama transferred to Columbia from Occidental, and Trump transferred from Fordham to Penn, and of course Bush only got into Yale because of family connections. So what that shows is ambition more than anything else.

But here's a better quiz. Putting aside Bill Bradley, how many graduates of the most competitive D-1 athletic programs in WCBB, MCBB, football, lacrosse and hockey have had obviously famous careers over the past (say) 40 years, aside from those related to sports? Back in the day, Gerald Ford, Whizzer White and Stephen Ambrose played football, but those were very, very different days. Ambrose was 2nd team All-Big 10 tackle at, I think, around 210 pounds!!!

My point is that if you're an elite high school athlete in these sports who wants to have a successful career at an equally elite level, most likely that career will be related to sports. So, you might as well go to the school that gives the best shot at being famous at that sport in college. In WCBB, is there really any place other than UConn? It's the Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and Princeton of WCBB rolled into one. (But I'm preaching to the choir on that!)
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Perhaps you've heard of Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Alan Page (ND graduate). Or Bruce/Caitlyn Jenner. Dwayne Johnson (Miami). Jon Runyon. Dave Bing. Steve Largent. JC Watts.
 
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bags27 said:
preference for strong academics....

Not saying that Duke and Stanford aren't great universities and obviously "stronger" academically than (say) UConn. Different missions, different endowments, etc. But who has ever actually evaluated precisely what courses athletes (specifically WCBB players) have taken, how well they've done in them, and what they do with those degrees post-graduate? I haven't either. But my strong sense is that playing top-level D-1 sports significantly limits academic opportunities (for example, no afternoon seminars; lower course loads and therefore make-up credit summer courses that are usually much less challenging and usually not taught by line faculty, etc). Also, elite teams tend to hang by themselves or only with a small circle of friends, so it's not like you profit from the social networking at academically "elite" schools.

You can get a fabulous education at a "less elite" school and a crappy one at a "top" school. It depends on you. But if you're committed to a life in which one thing is prioritized about all other (basketball), everything else is necessarily going to be a compromise. Thinking that you're going to get a "better education" at Duke or Stanford because they're more highly rated academically means that you somehow think you're going to be "smarter" just by going there. Breathing the air, right? Actually, it's drinking the Kool-Aid.... Rebecca Lobo didn't. Too bad she never amounted to anything....
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Bags, my friend, you've nailed it again.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
If basketball is not the number 1 career priority should UConn want that player?
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Oh Rocky! I trust you said this in jest. Connecticut may have the most players that make it into the pros but they still make up a small minority of those who don the Husky uniform.

For those outstanding players below the Maya's and Diana's, their decision is hopefully a blend of wanting top caliber basketball experience and a solid education.

I agree with those who argue that you can get a great education at a "decent" school and a decent education at a great school.
 
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RockyMTblue2 said:
For those of you like Charlie who really know this stuff: Who are we going to get (Other than Charli) during the signing period?

Is it really down to Nelson-Ododa, Williams and Scott-Grayson?

17-18 Recruiting thread is broader than this little itty bity question of little consequence. :rolleyes:
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Definitely jinxed us... Wow!
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
For those of you like Charlie who really know this stuff: Who are we going to get (Other than Charli) during the signing period?

Is it really down to Nelson-Ododa, Williams and Scott-Grayson?

17-18 Recruiting thread is broader than this little itty bity question of little consequence. :rolleyes:
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JINX!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
bags27 said:
Where we differ, Coco. You say they prioritize academics, and I say they prioritize academic reputation. To me, there's a world of difference. You prioritize academics only in how much time you actually devote to your studies. Why can't you devote the same number of hours to your studies at UConn as at Stanford? I just don't get it. We all (and I'm #1 at this) fall for reputation. But it's all smoke and mirrors, and what remains is a kid sitting in a classroom and taking notes and then going back and studying what she's learned. Can do that just as well in Storrs as in Palo Alto....
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It kinda depends. I'm an ancient Uconn alum. It wasn't my first choice, but financially it was the only choice. I encountered a ton of really gifted students and profs. When my 3 sons were picking colleges, they all had great everything, grades, scores, talents. They all applied to UConn as a fall back. I told each of them that don't go thinking UConn is a place for dullards. You'll find plenty of kids who would manage the "elite" schools quite well and many excellent instructors. I told them you get out of any school what you put into it. Maybe the % of "serious students" is a bit higher at elites, but as to teaching, you're as likely to get good educators at UConn as at an elite. Often what distinguishes faculty at elites is more renown in their field than it does teaching quality.

Well, none went to UConn. The objective reality is that only one of them could have had the same major at UConn that they did at the schools they chose. The unknowable about him is whether or not he could've gotten into the same law schools he did with similar grades at UConn. There is a reslity that undergrads school reputation can matter if a student plans to go on to more degrees. It can matter in certain job markets. But as to pure quality of education, UConn students aren't shortchanged. In fact in the crazy expense of attending elites, any difference in academics is diminished. Of course full ride athletes dont have the same affordability issues.
 
At the end of the day, if you have great talent, if basketball has become your life, if you want to play pro ball, if your aren't afraid to work your off to improve your game and actually be coached, if you want a degree, and if you value team wins/championships over individual stats - UConn is the only choice. Not many girls in that category.
 
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