5/4 Afternoon Roundup

[Jer]

5/4 Afternoon Roundup
Jeremy
CycloneFanatic.com

Here is the latest roundup of news & information relating to Iowa State Athletics.

• The Jiri Hubalek situation is laid out very well in a Des Moines Register article in today's paper.  It summarized what the athletic department knows and why an investigation is taking place.  While the family in question, Leon Shade and his wife, are Hawkeye fans, they did contribute monetarily to ISU for one season in the 1980's.  According to NCAA rules, once you give money or assistance to a program, you are forever a 'booster' of that program.  ISU has internally investigated the ordeal, as well as called for a separate review.  Those contacted at ISU continue to insist that there was nothing out of the ordinary in this case.  Jiri met some people when he came over from Prague and has maintained that friendship ever since.  There was no improper giving of gifts or money to Jiri in order to have him participate at Iowa State.  One of the biggest cornerstones of ISU's defense is that if Leon wanted to steer Jiri to a program, it would have been to Iowa, not Iowa State.
• ISU Football coach Dan McCarney is preparing a list of visits and offers for potential 07-08 recruits.  Sources close to the coaching staff expect to have one of the best recruiting classes the football program has ever signed when all is said and done.  ISU has already received a verbal commitment from Nebraska High School QB standout Philip Bates and is hoping to wrap up a couple more commitments by the end of next week.
• For the most part, the 2006-2007 Men's Basketball recruiting search has come to a conclusion.  I have been told that the coaching staff has their eyes set on one player, and if that player doesn't work out for any reason, they will not sign any additional players for the fall semester.
• With the 06-07 Men's Basketball recruiting class almost completed, the coaching staff has set their sights on the 07-08 and 08-09 classes.  Lists of possible candidates are being made in the hopes of catching up to the other programs for the recruiting cycles.  Iowa State will be a little behind schedule when they set out to talk to recruits, however, it is about 11 months earlier in the process than they were for the 06-07 class  While most of the 07-08 recruits are still uncommitted to any school, ISU will have to work extra hard to gain the trust of potential players to steer them towards Ames.  ISU is expecting a very solid 07-08 class and hopes to have the 08-09 class as the highest rated ISU Men's Basketball recruiting class on record.
• There is a lot of hope that the big AAU tournament that takes place in Ames this summer will be a great starting point for many younger players around the country to hear about Ames, IA and what it offers.  Coincidentally, Jake Sullivan is the Assistant Director of the 32-team Harvester National Invitational Tournament that will be held in Ames on July 12th-14th.

 

[cyclonedrew]

I bet they give Jiri a one or two game suspension and let him continue his relationship with the family... They sound like good people who just wanted to help out a kid.. Did not matter what he had across his chest or if he could play ball...

 

[ISUFan22]

Just can't help but feel for this kid...especially if he gets slapped with a suspension.

Sometimes the most sincere, honest intentions go awry.

 

[bootcy]

I have heard that this recruit might be Jon Leuer from Orono, MN, any truth to it?

 

[cyclonedrew]

Leuer is listed on rivals as an 07 recruit...

 

[tretz]

My heart certainly goes out to Jiri. He had no intentions of do anything to hurt his eligibility at ISU. The guy bought tickets & made one donation to ISU; does that mean he will always be an ISU supporter??? As I mentioned to a friend at work, in 1981 is was charged with disorderly conduct in my home town and paid a $$$ fine. Since I did something wrong in 1981, does that mean I am still a bad person 25 years later??? %-6

Give me & Jiri a break!!!

 

[CyinCo]

Sounds innocent enough from the article. DA even advised so it wasn't like the family didn't make an effort to find out from ISU what was the OK thing to do. I'm just really happy he didn't buy a car for Jiri. I think a pair of pants and some food sounds like something you might do as host parents but buying a car sounds a little extreme. I really hope this still comes down to no suspension or penalties for Jiri.

 

[clone33]

I think they said in the article they supplied meals? Good Grief! what do they think they did. "Go to ISU or i wont give you any tator-tot caserole! I might even throw in some dessert if you start!"

 

[Cloned4Life]

Yeah really, if the NCAA is really that strict, then there would have been no way I could have ever played college sports. (I don't, but I'm just trying to make a point.) Friends of my parents, also huge ISU fans and supporters, gave me $100 for my high school graduation, as a gift, to use for college tuition and spending money. Several other friends and family gave me money for the same reasons, because, after all, that's what people do when you graduate high school. What that have been a violation if I played basketball for ISU right now?? I mean seriously, where do you draw the line??