Much of
the 2009-10 season will hinge on whether Rick Stansbury's great gambit
-- signing Renardo Sidney amidst eligibility suspicions after Sidney's
attempts at landing at USC and UCLA failed -- works or not. Thus far,
things aren't looking good. The Bulldogs are two games into the 2009-10
season, and Sidney is still ineligible. The NCAA wants more documents from the Sidney family in order to prove they weren't receiving money for their mortgage while
they lived in California; meanwhile, Sidney's lawyer, Don Jackson, seems more intent on making a name for himself than doing right by his client ,
whose best interests involve playing basketball as soon as possible.
Whether Sidney can't get eligible and Jackson knows it or Jackson is
merely stalling in an attempt to raise his own profile is as yet
unknown. What is known is that the Bulldogs need Sidney, and Sidney
needs the Bulldogs. They need each other, and soon.
2. Of course, Sidney
would merely be the icing on an already pretty tasty Bulldog frontcourt
cake. Mmm. Bulldog frontcourt cake. This cake is primarily composed of
Jarvis Varnado, who led the country in blocks and block percentage last
year. Varnado is a future NBA draft pick who -- get this -- offered to give up his scholarship, play his final year as a walk-on, and pay the $5,000 or so for tuition so Stansbury could have enough scholarships to sign Sidney and fellow center John Riek, a four-star recruit in 2008 who couldn't play at Cincinnati last year thanks to academic issues.
Varnado's family's selflessness gave Stansbury the chance to load his
team just in time for his senior's final farewell. At least Riek is
cleared to play; Varnado's gift hasn't been a complete waste.
3. Look at the content of
this Hunt. Thus far, the interesting things have been about Rick
Stansbury and Jarvis Varnado's equally risky decisions to open their
Bulldog arms to a player who may or may not even be eligible to play.
This is a shame, because the Bulldogs -- with or without Sidney -- are
legitimate SEC contenders. Only Kentucky and Tennessee have better
talent, and Varnado's ability to change team's game plans defensively,
along with a trio of outside three-point shooters ( Barry Stewart, Ravern Johnson and Phil Turner combined for 36 percent from the field last season ),
give the Bulldogs a legitimate chance at SEC supremacy. Look at it this
way: Mississippi State returns all five starters, and the only Bulldog
anyone talks about might never put on the uniform.
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