Like we did last summer when the July evaluation period opened, we'll still do a War Room on Friday and break down where everybody is but the period opens later today and I wanted to pass along a couple of notes.

What I've heard is that UVa is going into the first period (today through Sunday) with plans to watch the usual suspects. The two guys I've heard getting more attention than ever? Wenyen Gabriel and Jalen Johnson. Don't be surprised if Tony Bennett tracks them through the week. Also don't be surprised if things get a little more "focused" next week, especially as far as where Bennett goes, depending on what the staff sees this week.

Word around the campfire is that the Cavaliers still feel very, very good about where things are with Mamadi Diakite. And with good reason given what he's been telling other players. The only question is "when" and it sounds more and more like it'll be before the end of the month.

Gotten some questions about Tyus Battle from off the board and wanted to pass along what I heard last night: Don't get your hopes up....yet. Much like before his commitment to Michigan, sources say UVa is hearing good things but there's some skepticism about follow through. The lines of communication are open, though the feeling is still that Syracuse will likely find a place for him even though the Orange are full right now.

Wish he would have fell to 27th for the Lakers

He will be just fine in the pros.

And I have not been impressed with Russell. The knock about him was he didn't have great athleticism and I see that so far in summer league. Justin doesn't have that issue

Really cannot stand when the sports talking heads say how great some coaches are. Bla Bla they won so many games and championships.

Really how hard is it to win and recruit for basketball at duke unc and kentucky??? How hard is it to win and recruit for football at alabama, fsu, ohio state etc.

being vt and bama you can make an easier schedule too.

On a positive. It has been enjoyable to see Roy have to dig deep to recruit.
Whew rant over for now

You'll want to give this a read.

Login to view embedded media

So Goodman from ESPN wrote...

"Sources told ESPN that Virginia is high atop Nichols' list of suitors because of a connection between Nichols' former summer coach, Ernie Kuyper, and the family of John Paul Jones -- whom Virginia's arena is named after. Kuyper runs an event in Memphis called the Jack Jones Shootout."

Does this bug anyone else??? He writes that as if that could be the only possible reason he would be interested in UVA. I think its really crappy journalism.

my favorite so far is the 2 star kid from Colorado. He is extremely quick off the ball and has great feet. You cannot teach that!

There is a lot of great stuff. Sborz was untouchable, Waddell was a horse, Kirby's reemergence, Pavin's clutch perfomance, and the play by Towns to save a run, oh my goodness! The two out hitting was remarkable, also. But I am going to throw out a new one that just occurred to me and am hoping to here other opinions and maybe a couple new suggestions. I think the key stat was UVA holding Vandy to 2.33 runs per game. Vandy only scored 7 runs all series. They needed two performances like Fulmer (sp) gave them.....didn't happen!

Had Memphis not blocked UVa, looks like this thing was getting done.

Login to view embedded media

Nichols wants to transfer to UVA.
Memphis listed UVA as a restricted school because the two schools are in the same tournament.

It seems to me that UVA should just drop out of the tournament now and request that Memphis remove the restriction.

That puts the pressure on Memphis
Memphis is faced with two choices:
1- Maintain their stance (which would seem illogical as the two teams would no longer be scheduled against each other)
2- Allow Nichols to transfer to UVA

Unless Memphis is intent on punishing the kid (which would seemingly not play well with its current and future recruits), the school should allow him to transfer to UVA.

Worst case scenario, Memphis doesn't remove the restriction and we schedule a game or two in place of the tourney.

Am I missing something?

Virginia football's improving, whether it's easy to notice or not:

http://www.sbnation.com/college-foo...irginia-football-2015-preview-schedule-roster

Numbers always work out...

Login to view embedded media

Starting rb?

Good stuff from David Teel here...

Login to view embedded media

I'm looking forward to the season and cheering on the Hoos..

Login to view embedded media

According to yardbarker
By Dan Lyons

North Carolina will enter the 2015-16 season with one of the top teams in college basketball, but on the heels of the school’s recent academic scandal, NCAA penalties loom large for the Tar Heels. Head coach Roy Williams doesn’t seem too concerned, at least not when he’s out recruiting blue chip players to come to Chapel Hill.

The Charlotte Observer talked with five-star power forward Sacha Killeya-Jones, who recently spoke with Williams about UNC and the NCAA issues surrounding the program.

Killeya-Jones told The Observer that Williams does not think there will be penalties.

Whether or not he ultimately chooses to play for UNC might come down to the potential penalties the men’s basketball program faces as a result of the NCAA investigation, Killeya-Jones said.

“Coach Williams said he is 100 percent positive they’re not going to crack down on the men’s basketball team,” he said.

Killeya-Jones is still going to wait it out and not rush into a commitment in case UNC is hit hard by the NCAA.

“If they got a major scholarship reduction or something like that, obviously you don’t want to commit to any scholarship that might not be there,” he added. “I definitely don’t want to commit before any punishments come down, even though I’m pretty sure there won’t be anything.”

Time will tell how the Tar Heels fare, but it sounds like Killeya-Jones will do his due dilligence with his recruitment. He also has offers from Georgetown, Kentucky, Notre Dame, Virginia, and over a dozen other programs.

in the number of 3* football commitments with 12. Kentucky and Cal are tied for 1st with 15. Northwestern is 3rd with 14. Miami and Iowa are tied for 4th with 13. Of this group Miami also has 8 4*; Kentucky has 2 4*; and Northwestern has 1 4*. Unfortunately, it is early and many of the elite football schools have just started getting commitments.

Just a heads up:

There's a planned message board upgrade/update coming tonight that is scheduled around midnight that should last for about four hours.

The software for all of the message boards will be upgraded to the latest version during this window and each site will be unavailable for five to 10 minutes while it is upgraded. So if you see a forum maintenance page during that time, don't be alarmed.

Should be cleared up by tomorrow morning first thing.

While there's been some focus on other guys (Jalen Johnson and Brandon Robinson have really played well), word is that UVa has offered three-star Texas guard Andrew Jones, who has had a big first week of the month. Not sure yet where things stand in his process but something tells me he's going to have a big month...

Login to view embedded media

With this #2 ranked '16 player going to Duke, does that help us in recruiting anyone whose place he is taking at the blue devils?