I've watched in recent weeks as posters have written about this recruit and that potential recruit and who is on what list etc.

Now a growing theme is that it's too bad that Mike Puzey is leaving the program but he saw the light. PT was going to be limited in 2002 so off he goes into the sunset (sacrificing a season) for ONE season at Utah State! What's wrong with this picture? Puzey plays two seasons at Utah, goes to class and busts his butt in practice without ever complaining. He's happy to be a Ute. Then all of a sudden Puzey decides he give up a year to go to UTAH STATE!

Jon Godfread commits to Utah early, redshirts for a season, works real hard to improve (and does) his game and is ready to contribute to the Utah program in 2002. But wait, he has a change of heart and decides to transfer after a meeting with COACH. Just like Puzey, after a meeting with coach.

Now rumors are swirling around the Huntsman Center that Trace Caton is ready to transfer out of Utah, even though he has already devoted two years at Utah. His brother graduated at Utah. If he thought that he wasn’t going to get PT don’t you think he would have seen it and transferred to another school after coming off his mission?

These moves (and the possible Caton one) come off of the leaving of Gary Colbert, Greg Barrett, Jordie McTavish, David Jackson, Tyson Johnson, and Ashante Johnson in the past couple of seasons. Some of these players struggled in class or just didn’t fit into the program. But this year’s group is different. They all are succeeding in the classroom. They all were team players. They all busted their butts in practice and in Caton and Puzey cases, contributed. And Caton & Puzey both suddenly ‘decide’ to leave after a meeting with Majerus?

It’s time too look in the mirror because other programs aren’t losing players at this rate including players who have been with the program since day one and are model players. Rather than boast about the new recruits and potential recruits and who is visiting the campus, it’s time we all look in the mirror. There are major flaws with the Ute BB program and most if not all on this board are ignoring the obvious.

Ute84

Your concerns about the team are valid, but I think you may be looking at the wrong things. I too am concerned about the transfers and what the team may end up looking like. But some of your arguments clearly do not make sense. Your central premise is that Rick is pushing out some of the recruits in order to bring in new recruits. But under the NCAAs 5 and 8 rule, Rick is smart enough to know that he can't bring in 10 new guys every year, and if you remember back a couple years ago, when the Utes had all the injuries, Rick stated that he would never be short on scholarships again. Now I ask you why would Rick force out a guy when he knew that he would not have the requisite scholarships to replace that player?

Second, how many people know the true stories. Why is Godfread leaving? He was a redshirt freshman, he never touched the court, how does anyone know what kind of minutes the kid would be getting in three years. Why would Rick throw away a 6'10" kid that can shoot from the outside? My answer is that he didn't. For whatever reason Godfread decided that he was not comfortable here. My guess is that he looked at the team and decided that we was not going to be that many and wanted to go somewhere where he thought he could be. Now is anyone going to fault Majerus for bringing in Chris Jackson? Do you think Chris Jackson was the reason why Godfread is leaving? It shouldn't because if I remember right when Majerus recruited Godfread he told him that he was recruiting him as a C/PF and if he signed one or the other Godfread would play the other position. Can anyone tell me what power forwards we have in the system right now? Godfread is leaving for his own personal reasons, not because he was forced out.

On to Puzey. Of course I liked his hustle, guts and ability to pay through pain. But is he better that any of the players we put on the court. What is wrong with being honest and telling a player, "I am sorry you are a role player and you are only going to get 10 minutes a game." How many of you want an inferior player on the court just so he will be happy about his minutes. The fact is Puzey is a role player that can play 5-15 minutes a game and do some good things in those games but that is it. If he thinks he can be more on another team, I wish him the best, except when he plays the Utes. The same is true for Caton. How many times when he was in games this year could anyone look at Caton and say, boy is he playing well. He clearly did not play as well as his freshman year. How many of you say that he should play more than Jacobsen? Caton too can be a quality role player and I don't think he is being forced out, I hadn't even heard the rumor of his departure until today. The fact is you get playing time by being better than the other players on the team. If you are not better you get fewer minutes. Rick never promises anyone minutes. His statement is that you will get what you deserve and what you work for.

So what is my point in this long rambling -- put some responsibility on the players. Most of these players know when they come in that they are not as good of players as others on the team, and once that happens it is time for them to suck it up and play their roles on the team, be ready to play when the Jacobsen's and Britton Johnson's of the world are off or in foul trouble, be their to help the team win when you are called on, and I guarantee that each player will be called on at one time or another. If the players aren't willing to accept that role, then they should be gone, because every team has to have those role players and if someone isn't willing to accept that role than do you think the team will do well when that unhappy player is finally called upon.

So before you go lambasting Majerus think about why each player is leaving, are they really being forced out or just being told he have a player that is better than you so you will be coming off the bench? Also don't keep throwing Jackson's name out there, he was a whiner who wanted to be the man, and wasn't good enough to be the man at Utah, he left because he wasn't given complete freedom to put up 25 shots a game. The only player I feel sorry for that left was McTavish, he really wanted to stay and was forced out because of skill level.

With all that being said, I think there is a problem and that problem, from what I have seen on this board, may very well be Hunsaker. He seems to be a deceptive person who has alienated several players on the team. That may be the reason these players are leaving, not because of the perception of recruiting "better players."

I apologize for the long rambling post.

Go Utes!

I'm willing to let the Caton thing stand for a moment as unconfirmed rumor, but even if he had limited playing time next year, don't you think that he (and Puzey for that matter) would have playing time coming out their ears their senior year after Burgess, Spivey, et al, graduate? How much foresight is there in these meetings Rick has with the players?

In the past, you could identify the player(s) who weren't going to cut it, who weren't fitting in. That pattern ended with Adam Sharpe. Now it isn't so obvious. In my mind, Puzey would have been the LAST person I expected to leave. If you expand this course exponentially, the day will come when Rick "encourages" a Roderick Rhodes-type to enter the NBA draft even if he wasn't ready (for those who remember when Pitino did that at Kentucky) to make room on the roster to add Ron Mercer (some may feel this is a good problem, but my sense of ethics don't see it that way, but that's just my opinion).

Part of watching Utah basketball that has been so fun for me is seeing guys that shouldn't, because of less physical talent, go kick ass and leave their opponents staring in disbelief at what just happened. Guys like Puzey, Sharpe, Hansen, Ben Caton, the Rydalch's, Cain, and others where to perfect foot soldier in the trenches of these hoop wars. Guys who know and accepted roles, and executed without fail. UTAH BASKETBALL NEEDS FOOT SOLDIERS TO BE SUCCESSFUL!!

This has been a strange, strange year of hoops. How much more insanity will follow?

Jeromy in SLC

My first thought when the situation arose was, “I’m tired of defending Majerus in these situations. Of course, he doesn’t really need my defense, so I’ll just keep my mouth shut.” Well, that was the original plan, and probably still the best response.

Now, I’m all for a little debate. In fact, that’s what makes this board so great. For the most part, even when the posters disagree with each other, they do so with some measure of civility. Furthermore, the posts in these debates are generally well reasoned and the arguments are logically presented – well, until Michelle inevitably comes aboard on one of her many Prozac and Twinkie-Cream induced stupors.

But this current issue has brought about an impending Hatfields vs. McCoys and the lines are clearly being drawn. I figured it’s probably best to go ahead and weigh in, choose my side, and take the resulting flaming like a man. Unfortunately, I still don’t know which side I’m on.

Here’s my logic – in case it really matters:

First of all – I’m all over the Hunsaker sucks bandwagon. I actually liked the guy as a coach until I heard what he did to Britton Johnsen after the BYU game. I believe that as much as the team can’t be composed of all superstars, the coaching staff needs role players as well. There really does need to be a player’s coach on the sidelines along with the HC. After watching Coach Jackson on the bench last season, I think he could fit that role well if he’s given Shelton’s spot.

Secondly - The Utes can have 13 players on scholarship. With Cullen, the Utes actually have 14 players who can make a claim for minutes. However, the games are still only 40 minutes long and only 5 players can play at a time. Anyone who does the math can see that there are going players who are unhappy with their minutes.

Quality depth is great, but I can’t think of any team in the NCAA where the 11, 12, and 13 guys are solid contributors. It’s nice to have quality players in this position in cases of foul trouble or injuries, but if you really look at it, the biggest role these guys play is to increase the quality of the scout team. The fact is, if Rick’s bringing in all of these top-notch recruits each year, people leaving in search of playing time is inevitable EVERY SINGLE year. Therefore, I don’t find it at all difficult to believe that Puzey, Godfread, or even Caton would leave in search of more playing time. In fact, if that actually IS the case, we should be proud that our #’s 11-13 players would be in the top 8 in other programs. It’s a statement to the quality of player Rick is bringing in.

However, it has been stated numerous times that – at least in Godfread’s case – the players aren’t leaving by choice. I can easily see how Godfread was asked to leave, and though I don’t agree with it ethically, business is business. A scholie had to be freed up. But, I simply don’t see the motivation by Majerus to run all three of them out of the program. Is Rick replacing these guys with superstars? If he is, or even if he’s replacing them with guys who think they’re superstars, we should go ahead and brace ourselves for this situation rearing its ugly head next year, and the year after, and the year after, etc.

OK, I can potentially see Jackson as more of a contributor than Godfread. But who is taking the scholies of the other two? Goettsche? Honestly, does anyone on this board see Goettsche contributing more as a bench-sitting skinny 6-8 freshman than Puzey would as a bench-sitting skinny 6-8 junior? And who is the high quality player – who hasn’t yet been snatched up by another program mind you – that is just itching to sign with the Utes as a back-up 3 to take Caton’s spot? It just doesn’t make sense.

That said, I’ve never known Runnutz to be wrong in situations like this. I also haven’t seen him post that Puzey and Caton were run off. If he did and I missed it, I’m still inclined to believe him. But it really makes me wonder what the heck Rick is doing. If they did/do (I guess Caton hasn’t left yet.) leave on their own accord so that they can play more, I wish them luck and I personally have no hard feelings. But if they’re being asked to leave I REALLY have to wonder why.

I guess, if nothing else, I have positioned myself strategically to draw fire from both sides. I’m prepared to make that sacrifice. Sometimes, a war against a common enemy can reunify divided troops. The only thing I ask is that no matter which side of the fence you come at me from, you come at me with a united battle cry –

GO UTES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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