TSU88

1 hour ago, mat1992 said:

On schedule

"Anytime you open on the road three weeks in a row. You look at that and go, ok, what do we have to get done. The good news is that two of the games are in the state of Maryland (Morgan, Md). Opening up with an opponent in Norfolk State, not knowing what they are going to do is interesting. I know a little bit about what they're going to do offensively because Brian Sheppard (former OC) is their OC and was with us the last two years. Defensively, not sure it's what they did at Florida Memorial or different places. Not having film of what they've done in the past is difficult. Excited about a Thursday matchup and there's a lot of excitement about Coach Vick being there."

On the new OC

"New system. Completely different way of doing things. Fresh new start. (will be more involved with play calling)."

On QB situation

"It's as open as there can be. You have two guys who have started eight+ games. That's re-assuring knowing that you have experience there. We've had a limited amount of time that the NCAA gives us in the summer. We've given guys opportunties. (Freshman Andrew Inrdorf) is very advanced for a high school quarterback. Wants to learn and grown. Has had a very good summer. Great arm."

On offensive issues last season

"Number one, the purpose of offense is to score more points. We've been at 24 or 25 points per game. We need to score more points and get better on third down. That would take care of a lot of our issues."

At WR

"We returned Jaceon Doss, John Dunmore, Perkins, Reynolds and Londono. We have a handful of guys who play the position well. (UConn transfer) Jarvis (Jones) gives us depth. Cleveland Charlton (redshirt) will help out as well on depth."

TE

"Tight end is a wide open spot for us. Lose an All-American is a big void. Bryce Butler from Ohio has done a good job. Jack Mahoney, a true freshman, has done well. Excited about the depth. Butler is not 6-6 but he can put his hand on the ground and play in the backfield. Carter played 60% in the wing position. It will be similar."

At RB

"Al Wooten has done a great job. Both freshmen joined us later. Look at their HS stats and what they were able to produce and it's exciting. Ike (Daniels) had a strong spring."

On OL

"Playing with that and trying to see what the best five are. (KJ Brooks) played about 18 games at right tackle. We have some nice combinations there. We returned (Volpe, Germain, Brooks), Ian Miller played a lot for us at center. Joden Nelson and Bhular. We have some really good competition to find the next best guy. Mike (Williams) has done a nice job of getting comfortable. (Cousar) did a really good job. Exciting to see how this plays out."

On defense

"I thought our defense did a great job. We chopped our points down. We got better on third down. I want to see us get better on third downs and give up less explosive plays". 

On Defensive line

"Treyvon Adams, JT Black, Wyatt Draeger were three great additions as transfers. They've come in and worked their tail off this summer to put themselves as a great spot for us. Hammond (big freshman) is a big body at 6-5, 285 and looks the part. Black has been very impressive against whomever he plays against. Probably 6-0, 280 and moves well. Aaron Clark and the guys who went through the spring (Stegall and Boyd) had a great summer. It's a position where we had pretty good depth and should be pretty good."

On linebackers

"We lost some productive guys, but I love who we brought in and love what they're doing. Feel very good about that position again and getting guys in the right spot and direction. Myler Turner (6-1, 255) is an inside linebacker. (UMass transfer). Both freshmen, Ben Kumpon and Seth Chestnut can help us. On the outside, TJ Sands will be playing some nickel and CJ McClendon played last season at nickel. We have a deep group that has experience and youth."

On secondary

"Brodie has done everything right and just has really improved. Xavier Terry has played a ton of football for us. Kaden White played a lot for us. Jasin Shiggs played a lot for us and Emiril Gant played a lot. Shiggs, White at safety, Great competition there. At corner, Emiril, Za Brown, Kavon McKinney as a true freshman. Cody Williams at safety. Meeko Lodge will be a nickel."

On third season

"We have a lot of guys in place who understand how we're doing things. Probably best run summer that we've had. Guys are dialed in. Liked the culture of the team. Excited to add the new guys. Most of them have been here this summer."

On first recruiting class

"Those guys are now apart of everything we're doing."

On CAA departures

"Every conference has had (FCS, FBS) has had change. A look at different conferences and go ok, what they thought was a bad situation and two years later, it turns out well. We're in a fluid situation and we're just going to keep plugging forward."

First preason practice is July 28

 

Well, so much for bringing in an FBS QB. Interesting that he threw bouquets at the incoming freshman QB from Miami, Indorf, but nothing in Mat’s article about him mentioning Watkins, the RS freshman QB.

Well, unless he turns the keys over to a true freshman (which I find hard to believe) it’s Brown and/or Kent. Not very inspiring, but hope springs eternal I suppose.

Also, did I read correctly that our OC from last season is now the OC at Norfolk State, our opening game opponent? A grudge match in addition to Vick’s debut as a HC 

9 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

https://www.madehoops.com/made-society/articles/2026-guard-stephon-ashley-wright-chooses-towson.aspx

Ok, a few things. Is the author of this article the kid’s advisor? I mean I’m not so sure this young man is “one of the nation’s most coveted high school athletes.” (I think that’s the quote). 

Having said that, he does have an impressive resume in the Philly Catholic League (I assume that’s what it’s called) which I would think is a very competitive league, in terms of the quality of players.

Admittedly, I’m not as excited about this get as the recent one, but that’s probably because this kid didn’t have the quality or quantity of offers that the other one had. Also, I’m a little concerned about his small stature, as I worry bigger PG’s might be able to use their size advantage against him. But, if he can drive to the hoop and shoot from the outside, I’ll take it.

Interesting that the 2 recruits both are out of Philly, which marks a return to Skerry harvesting the city of Brotherly Love (Zane Martin, John Davis, Betrand and Hicks). Obviously, the results have been mixed, but past performance is not always indicative of future results.

Also interesting how Wright references Sajid’s commitment to Towson. When you get a recruit of that caliber, it can have a ripple effect in terms of other recruits.

This kid is nicknamed “Munchie,” so our student section should have a sign to the effect of “we’ve got the Munchies.”😂
 

51 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

 

For a second there, I thought it read JoJo Hunter 😂

41 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

Solomon Uyaelunmo, Jeff Prophete

Two names that live in infamy 

1 hour ago, mat1992 said:

 

Love this get. Kid had offers from East Carolina, Xavier, Temple, La Salle, Penn State, Albany, St. Joe’s & Bryant, with schools like Minnesota, Notre Dame and Georgetown sniffing around. 

An athletic 6’5 SG who can shoot. How long have we been waiting for a guy with this kind of potential? 4-star recruit, per some recruiting services. I think I read that 24/7 has him just on the outside of the top 100 recruits nationwide. 

Say what you will about Skerry, but he’s really stepped up his recruiting game, with kids like Tejada, DWill, Womack etc 

 

39 minutes ago, sr16 said:

Was just thinking... Do we have a QB?? 

Sean Brown is presumably the incumbent, seeing as he was the starter last season. I wrote earlier in this thread that he threw too many INT’s last season. In fairness, he only threw 8 INT’s, but also only threw 11 TD passes, which is a pretty meh ratio. He also finished the season with negative 33 rushing yards. Now, sacks in college football get counted against a QB’s total rushing yards. Still, I don’t think there’s any question that he was incapable of making plays with his legs last season. I also seem to recall some very in opportune fumbles. Unless he’s made significant strides in the offseason, I’m not sure if he’s the guy who’s going to lead us to a playoff spot. I was hoping that the coaching staff would bring in an FBS transfer to compete with him. I mean, I guess it’s possible they have, since the fall roster has yet to be released, but Mat is pretty good about catching announcements like that on social media, so my assumption is that we haven’t brought in such a transfer.  Other than Brown, it’s Nathan Kent (I think he’s still around) and some completely untested guys who are either redshirt freshman or fresh out of HS freshmen 

46 minutes ago, RundaPower said:

Hmm..They missed most of the incoming transfers. No mention of the new JMU, Ohio, Kent St, UMass, UConn, ODU or Rutgers/ Duquesne or San Diego State etc. players

At the risk of oversimplifying, the QB play will go a long way in determining how we do this fall. I’m surprised/concerned we didn’t bring in an FBS transfer QB. I would think there were plenty out there. The QB last season had his ups and downs; too many INt’s as I recall & showed little if any ability to make plays with his legs. I assume it’s his job to lose, as all that’s behind him is Kent (no thanks, I saw that movie in 2023 & I know how it ends) and a couple of freshmen. 

10 hours ago, TuTigers2012 said:

The last two years there has been an extremely favorable schedule. Though with this league it would be best that the best teams play each other multiple times and on national tv.  
A Filled Trask and TD look good on tv

I hasten to point out that we had a nearly filled arena our last 2 home games last season, with an electric atmosphere 

3 hours ago, TuTigers2012 said:

Even the guy who will be 25 in the middle of conference play next season?!?! 😂

Sure, why not? It won’t be long before 25 will be young for a D1 MBB player. Besides, one would think he could have followed Wil Wade to NC State, but he chose to remain in Lake Charles 

6 hours ago, mat1992 said:

 

I just listened to this and would urge others to do likewise, as it provides some insight as to why each of these guys, especially, from our perspective, Tejada, opted to return. All in all 3 impressive guys who should be commended for returning to their respective schools. I’ll be rooting for all 3 young men this upcoming season 

3 hours ago, mat1992 said:

 

No doubt KU wants to scout Tejada in person, after the successful Nick Timberlake era in Lawrence 

20 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

The old 30,000 rule doesn't matter anymore. Kennesaw State moved up to FBS and they just started playing football in 2015. Their stadium seats 10,200. Does Delaware have the resources? In the CAA, nearly every game is a plan trip now. Campbell, Elon, NC A&T, Bryant, UNH, Maine, Charleston, UNCW, Northeastern, Albany, etc. We're spending millions on facility enhancement. We're adding another weight room, a kitchen and dining hall for the athletes, more video and film room in the field house, new offices for football, indoor practice facility for the indoor and outdoor sports. It doesn't make sense to stay in the CAA where the schools (esp. football) don't have the same resources. 

Well, let’s move to C-USA ASAP. Seriously, if we can write the check for the transfer fee, and assuming they extend us an invite. Not sure how Skerry would feel about being in a basketball conference that top-to-bottom is probably better than the CAA, but you can’t please all the people all the time 

8 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

Some dreams do come true.

I hope you’re right. I really, truly do. For us to move up, someone has to write a pretty hefty check (what’s it, 5-6 million) to cover the mandated fee for such a move. With our attendance, I just don’t know. And while we could expand seating, that would involve more costs without any certainty that attendance would increase. And if we’re talking FBS, which conference would take us? I heard the Sunbelt is not interested. There’s C-USA, where our friends from up I-95 went, but do we have the resources to pay for the travel costs associated with being in a conference that is quite literally spread out across the country, as far west as Las Cruces New Mexico?

At the risk of oversimplifying, let me endeavor to sum this football situation up: (1) we’re in a 10 year mediocrity spin cycle; (2) attendance is not good; (3) we’re in a conference that used to have anchor stores like Saks, Bloomingdale’s and Lord and Taylor, and is now anchored by K-Mart; (4) moving up is a fantasy that only the most ardent TU fan could indulge in; (5) moving to the Patriot League is almost certainly out of the cards; and (6) while the demise of CAA football as we once knew it begun in earnest several years ago, we seemingly have sat idly by and appear content to hope we can rise to the top of the conference over the bodies of schools like Hampton and Campbell. 
 

Have I missed anything? 

5 minutes ago, Dan Steenkamer said:

https://x.com/MattBrownEP/status/1930296409804169392

I am still trying to learn how to embed a tweet on here 🤔

So, Albany to CAA for basketball, to backfill the vacancy left by Delaware?

26 minutes ago, Tiger93 said:

I am sure it was discussed, but because of what we are I am not sure the options were any more extensive than they are now. This program needs to raise its level of success if it wants to be in a better conference.

By my count, we are 56-58 and 38-42 in conference play since playing in the national title game. With our lack of attendance and fan support it doesn't exactly scream out to anyone that we are an attractive get for any conference. We wanted a new coach and we got one. With two full recruiting cycles for Shinnick, year three is really put up or shut up time in terms of raising the level of the program in a conference where the quality diminishes every year. 

Well put. (As an aside, your posts are always well thought out and often serve as a voice of reason amongst some of the more hyperbolic posts here, including mine 😂). 

Now that I’m finished throwing bouquets, you are correct in your assessments that: (1) we squandered the momentum from the 2013-14 Frisco run and (2) it is imperative that Shinnick start winning (that is to say, making the playoffs) starting this upcoming season. And you’re also correct that other conferences probably aren’t clamoring to take us in, as since the 2014-15 season, 7 W’s is basically our ceiling, with 1 playoff appearance during this decade, which resulted in being soundly thrashed at home by that perennial powerhouse, Duquesne. 

The writing was on the wall several years ago, when JMU’s exodus opened the floodgates. That’s when we should have been thinking about our own exit strategy. Instead, I suspect we did next to nothing & are now content try and be the big fish in the little CAA football pond. I know one thing, we better damn side start dominating. As it is, with the lackluster conference home games we’ll be having, attendance doesn’t look promising, even if there’s a sea change on the field 

I wonder how long UNH & Rhode Island are going to stay? And Maine too. Just wondering if those 3 NE schools could cobble together a New England centric conference, that they may bolt too.

Meanwhile, the PL is going to have a helluva football conference, with all these CAA additions. I’d beg them to let us join, for football, but I doubt they’d take us.

I hate to be gloomy Gus here, but at the moment I’m not bullish on the future sustainability of TU football. We can’t go up (I forgot to mention earlier that FCS programs now have to pay like a 1 time multi million dollar fee to move up to FBS. Even if we wanted to do that, which I doubt, where’s that money coming from?) 

The cost of maintaining a football program has to be daunting, especially when the program doesn’t generate any revenue on its own. We’re not too big to fail. There are other universities with good sized enrollment (can anyone say George Mason) that eschew football in favor of focusing more resources on basketball. Forget GMU, we don’t have to look any further than C of C and UNCW as examples. 
 

23 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

The ship be sunk. 

Great homage to Michael Ray Richardson 

I hope there’s a plan because by my way of thinking, we’re in purgatory-we can’t plausibly go up, what with attendance avg around 6K a game and we wouldn’t be accepted in the Patriot League because we don’t fit their academic profile. Meanwhile, the CAA is a shell of its former self. I guess UNH & Rhode Island are the crème de la crème, with us & Stony Brook somewhere in the mix. Yikes.  What other options are there? I don’t see any special cache as to the SoCon. Maybe that would be a slight upgrade, but if that’s the case, what’s the point? 

Whither football at TU 
 

1 hour ago, mat1992 said:

Official 

 

Love that it’s before thanksgiving. That’s also a very good mid-major bracket we’re in. Should be a good barometer of what kind of team we have, and will hopefully make us a bit more battle tested once we hit conference play 

3 hours ago, mat1992 said:

While I really don't care that he called us "Towson State", it might have been the SOT/TSU jinx that got ole Hyder. That was the last straw. That and being 13 games under .500.

His calling us Towson State has spawned him being trolled on the internet, though someone actually asked me today if this was true 

19 hours ago, mat1992 said:

PS brought this up at the end of the podcast I posted and considering we're headed to the dog days before football pre-season in August, let's talk some hoops. I know I've done these types of teams before but I don't think I just separated by coach. Not even going to use the accolades because most of us know. Also trying to go by position but after DWill, there are no point guards worthy of top 15 status. 

First team

C Jerrelle Benimon

F Tyler Tejada

F Cam Holden

PG Dylan Williamson

SG Nick Timberlake

 

2nd team

C Charles Thompson

F W. Adala Moto

F John Davis

G Mike Morsell

G Brian Fobbs

 

3rd team

C Bilal Dixon

F Justin Gorham

F Marcus Damas

G Mike Burwell

G Zane Martin

That 1st team is pretty damn good. I like the 2nd team, although it doesn’t have a PG (which, as we all know, has been the bane of Skerry’s existence). I loved Fobbs’ game. It’s a shame he only had 2 years here. And I think Morsell doesn’t get enough credit. He stayed all 4 years and finished with what, around 1,300 points, putting him in the top 10 in scoring in school history (I think). 

3rd time isn’t too shabby, as far as 3rd teams go. We could have used a guy like Dixon last season and ZM might have finished as the leading scorer in school history if he had stayed around. I do agree there’s an argument to swap Dixon out for TPR, if for no other reason than the former was only here for 1 season while the latter played 4 seasons 
 

1 hour ago, TuTigers2012 said:

Inherited a disaster. 

Sounds like another coach we know. And Hyde’s postseason record is even worse, as I believe his next playoff win will be his first. If they keep up their putrid performance …well, you know the old saying, you can’t fire 25 players 

2 hours ago, Blazer49 said:

Figure this baseball chain would be the best place to put this. Tell the O's manager to 1) Figure out why his team is in last place and have been just awful so far this year and 2) know your community:

Orioles’ Brandon Hyde when asked about Gunnar Henderson’s struggles against left-handed pitchers this season: “You have to remember, Gunnar is 23 years old. … That’s a fifth-year senior in college. So, there’s probably guys at Towson State that are the same age as Gunnar.”

Yet another reason Hyde should be fired. Maybe he should keep our name out of his mouth, and focus on his crappy squad, which has the 4th worst record in MLB, and is barely ahead of the CWS and Pittsburgh. I’m not sure Adley Rutschman (AKA Matt Wieters with better hair) could even make the “Towson State” roster.