Muskie
08-27-2018, 10:52 AM
From the Athletic (https://theathletic.com/491235/2018/08/27/selling-success-xavier-assistants-hit-the-ground-running-on-recruiting-trail/)
One month after being hired away from the basketball staff of his alma mater at the University of Georgia, Xavier assistant coach Jonas Hayes landed a dynamite commitment in class of 2019 small forward Elias King. It was a major coup for Hayes, head coach Travis Steele and the entire Xavier program, as King decommitted from Georgia between coaches and declared the Musketeers’ program a “perfect fit.”
Then, a bombshell. King, who lived in Louisville until seventh grade, knew Xavier point guard Quentin Goodin and made an official visit to XU in early August, pivoted on his verbal pledge last week. He announced via Twitter that he was decommiting due to family reasons and less than 140 characters later, Xavier’s next class changed dramatically.
Such is life on the recruiting trail, where strong relationships between coaches and recruits are painstakingly developed and nothing is official until players’ signed National Letters of Intent reach the schools. Losing King was not an isolated incident, even since spring. Xenia’s Samari Curtis (https://theathletic.com/458609/2018/08/04/heres-what-former-xavier-commit-samari-curtis-can-bring-to-the-bearcats-in-19/) committed to Xavier under Chris Mack last February, reopened his search in May and later landed at the University of Cincinnati.
One month after being hired away from the basketball staff of his alma mater at the University of Georgia, Xavier assistant coach Jonas Hayes landed a dynamite commitment in class of 2019 small forward Elias King. It was a major coup for Hayes, head coach Travis Steele and the entire Xavier program, as King decommitted from Georgia between coaches and declared the Musketeers’ program a “perfect fit.”
Then, a bombshell. King, who lived in Louisville until seventh grade, knew Xavier point guard Quentin Goodin and made an official visit to XU in early August, pivoted on his verbal pledge last week. He announced via Twitter that he was decommiting due to family reasons and less than 140 characters later, Xavier’s next class changed dramatically.
Such is life on the recruiting trail, where strong relationships between coaches and recruits are painstakingly developed and nothing is official until players’ signed National Letters of Intent reach the schools. Losing King was not an isolated incident, even since spring. Xenia’s Samari Curtis (https://theathletic.com/458609/2018/08/04/heres-what-former-xavier-commit-samari-curtis-can-bring-to-the-bearcats-in-19/) committed to Xavier under Chris Mack last February, reopened his search in May and later landed at the University of Cincinnati.