Murray State University Athletics
Cronin Anxious To Hit Recruiting Circuit
7/3/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
July may mean fireworks and barbecues at home with the family for most Americans, but for college basketball coaches it's time to hit the road and watch other people's kids.
Murray State basketball coaches will spend the Fourth of July weekend packing bags and confirming hotel reservations in anticipation of the July recruiting period which begins next Tuesday. The 10-day period in July translates into a mad dash from city-to-city, tournament-to-tournament and camp-to-camp in search of talented basketball players.
"I love it," first-year Racer head coach Mick Cronin said of the approaching 10-day adventure. "I look forward to seeing friends and watching some basketball. I've really enjoyed the meet and great tour of western Kentucky - getting to know the community and meeting fans - but I'm ready to get out and work."
Cronin and his assistants - Ryan Wolf, Chris Goggin and Matt Grady - will leave Monday to begin the process of evaluating high school and junior college players. Since only three coaches from each Division I staff can be on the road at the same time, Cronin estimates that there will be nearly 1,000 college coaches flocking to various summer camps and AAU tournaments.
"We'll be together some, but very rarely in the same gym," Cronin said of his staff's plan of attack.
For Cronin, his odyssey begins on Monday when he'll travel to Indianapolis so he can be in place when the curtain goes up on Tuesday morning, the beginning of the evaluation period. After spending three days in Indy at the Hoosier AAU Tournament, the Nike Camp and the JUCO Showcase, Cronin will head to Louisville for two days to watch the Kentucky Hoop Fest. From there it's on to Augusta, Ga., for an AAU tournament before wrapping up the trip in Kansas City at yet another AAU event.
Though the whirlwind tour would seem to be exhausting, Cronin said it's the best way to evaluate nearly 1,000 kids, as well as being cost-effective for college hoop programs.
"It would be devastating if the NCAA took the July evaluation period away from us," said Cronin, who spent the previous seven years recruiting for Bob Huggins at Cincinnati and Rick Pitino at Louisville. "You get to see a large number of players at a single venue.
"Plus, you're not practicing or playing games so you can fully focus on
recruiting."
After returning to Murray on July 18, the Racer staff will have four days of rest before getting back out on the road.
"When we get back (on the 18th) we'll meet and decide where we're going the next week," said Cronin. "It depends on the guys we see in the first ten days, who we like, and who we want to see more."
In August, the coaching staff will get together and sift through the names and begin to put their list of prospects together. "We'll decide who we want to sign, who we can sign and start to set up on-campus visits for the fall.
It's a lot of phone work," Cronin explained.
