Here's my very speculative take on it. Everyone has their own priorities.
His were obviously a degree from an excellent academic school and probably most important, location.
Looks like he wanted to get a degree at an excellent school (he paid in-state tuition just under 9K) and the bonus was he stayed close to home. He had the grades but not the the basketball bonafides to snag a scholarship at a top basketball program. And, he practiced for 4 years with a number of future NBA players.
There are lots of academically excellent state schools whose athletes might not get in without sports. Michigan and Virginia immediately come to mind. UNC falls into this category as well.
I think this makes perfect sense if his goal was to stay close to home, get a degree at a great school in his desired major, maybe start his grad degree at Monmouth (and get that paid for) and finish it at another top tier school (maybe paid by his eventual employer).
We can speculate all day about his motives, but they are his choices to make. There are no right or wrong answers.
I agree, all the speculation in the world doesn't make up for the fact that he (not we) is the one who has to make the decisions. We should all be so lucky to have choices like this, right? Anyway in thinking about this situation it is interesting to refer back to the choices that both the Olander brothers had to make a decade or so ago. Both of course were talented players performing for E.O. Smith High School who were offered scholarships to play at D-1 schools. And while Ryan came here and had a very productive career where he got to play a lot minutes and impact a lot of games, in contrast Tyler accepted the opportunity to perform at a place where he knew he wasn't destined to see a lot of time on the court. But that said, he also knew and I'm sure was intrigued by the fact that he might get the chance to contribute to a high level program on a national stage even if only in a minor role. Yes maybe he might have decided to come to a Fairfield or other school team where he could have put up similar numbers to his brother. But in the end I think it worked out well for Tyler who got to be a part of two NCAA championship squads (he jumped center at the start of both final games BTW), and at the same time I don't think Ryan regrets his decision to come and be a very important part of what would become one of the best periods of Stag basketball history. So it certainly worked out well for both those kids and their very proud parents I think.
Last Edit: Jun 20, 2021 8:57:44 GMT -5 by nashvillestag
Post by Stagophile on Jun 20, 2021 10:29:14 GMT -5
I understand the tradeoff of limited play while earning a UNC degree. I sort of understand the Monmouth move now for playing time and the King Rice UNC connection. But let's be honest for a smart kid I am surprised he would dilute his academic credentials like this.
Last Edit: Jun 20, 2021 10:33:42 GMT -5 by Stagophile
I understand the tradeoff of limited play while earning a UNC degree. I sort of understand the Monmouth move now for playing time and the King Rice UNC connection. But let's be honest for a smart kid I am surprised he would dilute his academic credentials like this.
I think some of you guys may have rather antiquated notions about academic credentials and their relative importance in life... and of course all of the varying ways people find "success."
Post by Stagophile on Jun 20, 2021 12:25:46 GMT -5
I haven't encountered any Monmouth graduates in my long business and legal career in New York, Boston and DC. On the other hand, I have encountered many impressive and highly successful Patriot League and Ivy League graduates. You can define "success" as you see fit but I firmly believe a Patriot League or Ivy League degree is a excellent indicator of future professional success.
Last Edit: Jun 20, 2021 12:28:46 GMT -5 by Stagophile
Haha. In my long career, the only two people I ever had to fire over job performance graduated from Yale and Harvard. Where you graduate from may help open a door or two but certainly not indicative of future success.
Haha. In my long career, the only two people I ever had to fire over job performance graduated from Yale and Harvard. Where you graduate from may help open a door or two but certainly not indicative of future success.
Post by naplesstag on Jun 21, 2021 10:20:41 GMT -5
Denigrating other colleges is inapproprite. Seems like I'm reading comments from the last presidential campaign. We are better than this.(I would hope) Lets celebrate a persons graduation from college no matter where..... We are Jesuit educated aren't we?
Let’s not be so sensitive. Stating that Monmouth is not as good academically as the ivy’s, Patriot schools or UNC is not denigrating . It is only stating the facts. That does not mean that a Monmouth graduate will not be just as successful or even more successful then a graduate of the Ivy’s, Patriot league schools or UNC in their chosen careers.
74, I must agree with naplesstag. There are a lot of guys that just make asinine comments about other schools. It is just classless in my humble opinion. Maybe I am just old fashioned , the Jesuits made a great impression on me. I assume some of the posters perhaps slept through some classes🙀
My point was that many people fall into using stereotypes in regards to graduates of more elite vs. lesser universities. Intelligence does not always translate to on-the-job competence. I never hired anyone from Monmouth but the most successful woman i met in my career had simply a bachelors degree from St. Cloud State.
74, I must agree with naplesstag. There are a lot of guys that just make asinine comments about other schools. It is just classless in my humble opinion. Maybe I am just old fashioned , the Jesuits made a great impression on me. I assume some of the posters perhaps slept through some classes🙀
We’ll ‘68 this is a board based on opinions. So your opinion as well as others are all valid!
I'm surprised the Ivy's are allowing grad transfers. He is the kind of kid who might have made a good fit for our last scholly being a guard who has proven he can shoot/score, but good for him going back to Dartmouth, and good for Dartmouth.