In the cold gray light of early April, the thoughts in Turtleland look both back and forward.
Back is sunnier. 7 years ago we were National Champions. As I said to Mason (who is 7 years of age), “wow seven years is a lifetime in basketball.”
Even that Natty, as some folks came to calling it, had a rival. In 2004 we won the ACC Tourney in spectacular fashion over Duke. Yes, in this gray light, those we the sunniest of times in College Park. I would say that ACC titles brought more tears of joy than did the Natty.
Now we can continue to be optimistic at this point or take the darker path. Lets stay upbeat for a moment and say that the Terps have gone to the NCAA tournament for 2 of the last 3 seasons.
For those looking for the darker story, the Turtles parlayed all that 2001 through 2004 glory into a string of disappointments. Three trips to the NIT and two W’s to go along with two L’s in the NCAA tournament. Not national level stuff.
So does the tale end well? The next few recruiting classes will go a long way to making a happy ending or ensuring the slippery path to mediocrity.
For those enrolling this fall, there are at least two studs. Jordan Williams, Connecticut player of the year and James Padgett. James is the center on the same team as Lance Stephenson. Both Williams and Padgett are center/forward types who look to play serious minuted immediately.
If no current Terp leaves the team, that is all the open scholarships. Dave Neal is graduating and David Pearman is off scholarship. David gets free tuition anyhow, as his father is an employee of the University. The third spot may belong to Greivis Vasquez for now. There is no guarantee that he will go pro for real.
So if the Terps bring in another player, someone gets kicked to the curb. Popular consensus points to Braxton Dupree as the odd man out if it comes to that.
Who could the extra player be? For the longest time we thought Lance Stephenson was the mystery man. Born ready, as he is known, seems to have narrowed his choice of University to Kansas, Maryland and now possibly Kentucky. All three schools would have to pull someone’s scholie to get BR on the team.
We now have two more candidates for coming onboard. If we land any of the three, hearts in Turtleland should be elated. Candidate #2 is Terrell Vinson of St Frances Academy in Baltimore. He is a top 100 player and is believed to have the Terps on the top of his list. A 6-6 small forward, he is a larger version of current Terp Shawn Mosely.
Candidate #3 is Darnell Dodson who is coming to the big leagues from a year playing JUCO ball. He is local and verballed to Memphis before Coach Cal moved to Kentucky. He is a big time scorer. At a reported 6-7 he has played almost every position.
Maryland needs a take it to the rim scoring threat. Chances are Greivis will not return. Dodson and Born Ready both fill that need. Terrell is a Gary type player that will be here for four years.
The Terps now have their first 2010 commit, Terrell Stoglin. This scoring point guard from Arizona was said to have a firm offer for about 24 hours before he decided to come to Maryland. Stoglin is a 6-1 point guard who looks to shoot first and pass second. This is a really big get for the Terps. He is 3 star and rated the #126 player in the US.
The 2009 and the upcoming 2010 class will define that last years of Gary’s legacy. Make the right moves and the sky is the limit.