Under a Broken Rim - The resurrection of Fast Eddie Chilton (DDS:CB)

[BYU 14]

I greet Donny Wiseman for our preseason goals meeting, thankfully the bar has been lowered a bit this year. The board expects me to

• Qualify for the NIT tournament
• Win the conference tournament.
• Finish above .500
• Improve School prestige.

Once this spoon of Caster Oil is out of the way, Donny hands me my schedule and I like it much better than last years.

2009 / 2010 Schedule

11/16 @ Sam Houston State
11/19 Charleston Southern
11/23 @ Cornell
11/25 Alaskan Classic – VS St Johns
11/30 Cal State Fullerton
12/03 @ Tulsa
12/07 @ DePaul
12/10 Florida Atlantic
12/13 BYU
12/17 Rice
12/21 @ Middle Tennessee State
12/31 @ Northern Colorado*
01/04 Montana State*
01/07 @ Northern Arizona*
01/11 Portland State*
01/14 @ Eastern Washington*
01/18 Sacramento State*
01/21 @ Montana*
01/25 Idaho State*
02/01 Northern Colorado*
02/04 @Montana State*
02/08 Northern Arizona*
02/11 @Portland State*
02/15 Eastern Washington*
02/18 @Sacramento State*
02/22 Montana*
02/25 @Idaho State*

Interesting we are going to Tulsa, I will be curious to see if Jermaine Dickens will be redshirted. I know if he had come to Weber State he would be in rotation for sure. But, water under the bridge. We follow that game with a trip to DePaul, which will be a challege, plus we have a tough draw in Alaska.

As I ponder the schedule I get a phone call........I can't help but let out a scream of joy. Erick Hampton, our top target is coming to Weber State next season!! He is a verstile Center and will allow me to start running some Princeton Offense when he is ready to play.

Later in the week the rejection comes as both Brad Michaels and Higgins Sasser turn me down. Now I have a decision. Do I offer another Center or go for one of my 2nd choices at another position?

I really gamble and offer a total wildcard on a tip a buddy gives me about a kid flying under the radar.

Rupert Hobbs SF – Lake Havasu, AZ
Rankings: Regional overall 136 – Regional position 30
Visit: No – Scholarship offer: Yes – Top ten list: Weber State N/R
Overall Scouting: C
Strengths: Passing B, Ball Handling B, Rebounding B
Weaknesses: Defense D, Shot Blocking D, Inside Shooting D

I really regret this after meeting with his parents as they are not impressed, which is maybe why he is still out there. (Interpretation, Mom and Dad are a pain in the ass) The time I spend with him costs me the other Kids still left, so I invite him to campus to see if I can swing him.

[BYU 14]

Practice starts this week (10/02/09) and with the new season comes our bright and shiny media guide. I wish they would have waited for me to smile before taking my picture.....

[BYU 14]

The kids are working hard and there have been some surprising developments in practice as JC transfer Ramal Moody is pushing Gaylon Lovitt for the starting SG position and may actually have an edge!!

I think I know why Alex Hare left St Mary’s. He is a trash talker and has already picked several fights. After telling him multiple times to stop, he keeps going, so I suspend him for two weeks. Go ahead and transfer again dumbass, but your not going to destroy this team chemistry. After some thought I pull the scholarship offer for Rupert Hobbs and offer it to C Clyde Diggs, who is still uncommitted as I don’t think Hare will be around next year at this rate. Diggs can not accept fast enough, so if Hare gets in one more altercation he is gone!! Sure enough it doesn't take long.


Three days later

A loud knock on the door startles me as I pour over scouting reports on Sam Houston.
Me: “Come in.”

Alex Hare: “You wanted to see me again?”

Me: “Not really, it is actually you that wanted to see me.”

Hare: “Huh?”

Me: “I think you know what I mean, three separate incidents since practice started and this one yesterday coming while you are already suspended and supposed to be staying away from the team.”

Hare: “Man….fools be trippin up in here..”

Me: “Fools are those that blame their folly on others.”

Hare: “Man, you got to speak English coach.”

Me: “OK, let’s see how this sounds….You are done at Weber State.”

Hare: “What you mean done?”

Me: “Finished, kicked out, 86’ed, sayonara, auf weidershan, buh-bye.”

Hare: “You can’t kick me out, I been here a month..”

Me: “That’s the point Hare, one month and you have already created a careers worth of disruption and I’m not having it here. The paperwork releasing you from your scholarship is in administration. Best of luck to you and hopefully your next stop will be a bit more permanent.” Hare stood there staring at me. “Am I not clear, get the hell out of my office, pack your stuff and stay away from the team until you have travel arrangements!”

Hare stormed out of my office muttering profanities and other nonsense I didn’t bother to listen to as he made his way out of the athletics building….good riddance!

[MacroGuru]

Great read so far! Keep it up...and onto dominating the Big Sky!

[BYU 14]

The opener fast approaches and the pre-season magazines predict we will finish 2nd in the Big Sky. Strong faith considering we lost 2 of our top 3 scorers and only return 2 starters. NAU is again picked to finish 1st, while Northern Colorado is picked 3rd. A big surprise to me is the fact that Montana is picked 8th, despite returning the Big Sky Player of the Year in SG Chris Elder and SF Will Hyle who was 2nd Team all Big Sky. I promise you, this team will not finish 8th.

The only real battle as we finish pre-season practice is at SG and after much agonizing I tab Ramal Moody to start in the opener. Gaylon Lovitt takes the news well and knows he is the first man off the Bench. I will say it again; I am very impressed with his complete 360 attitude wise since last season.

I call the Ogden Standard Examiner and release my Line-up for the 2009 Season (Returning Starters in Bold)

Starters
PG – Geoff York Jr – 6’2 203
SG – Ramal Moody Jr – 6’0 197
SF – Eddie Blackmon So – 6’5 200
PF – Robert Crenshaw Sr – 6’7 195
C – Ed Cleveland Sr – 6’10 256

Bench
PG/SG – Gaylon Lovitt Jr – 6’4 216
PG/SG – Neil Miller Jr – 6’1 201
PF – Sam Thompson Fr – 6’8 237
SF/SG – Cortez Frazier So – 6’7 201
C/PF – Benjamin Gainous So – 6’9 228
SF/PF – Jay Wilcox Jr – 6’8 214
PF/SF – Keith Davis Fr – 6’7 233

November 16th, 2009 – Weber State 0-0 @ Sam Houston State 1-0
All positions are rated even except for PF where Robert Crenshaw has the edge and Bench, where they have the edge. Schin Brooks is their best player and he scored 11 in their opening game win. They run Flex on O and Man to Man on D. I am going to stay balanced until I get a feel for the team and the flow of the game and back off a bit on the pressure.

We start strong behind Ramal Moody’s shooting, but he is also appears turnover prone, which allows Sam Houston to stay close. Geoff York matches Moody’s output as both have 5 points apiece as we lead 14-11 at the 11:21 mark of the 1st. As mentioned though, Moody also has 3 of our 4 turnovers and that gets Gaylon Lovitt into the game quickly. It is a typical opener and we don’t really seem to have our legs as Sam Houston climbs in front 22-18 with 5:17 to go. I do notice however that they are not going very deep into their bench, so I turn up the pressure on Defense. It has the desired effect as we jump back in front 30-28 at the half, though a huge contributor to that is the fact that Sam Houston State is 0-4 from the foul line. Eddie Blackmon has 9 points, while York, Moody and Crenshaw all have 5. My most pleasant surprise however is the play of true frosh Sam Thompson who has 4 points and 5 rebounds off the bench in only 7 minutes.

I keep the pressure high to start the 2nd half and the refs suddenly become whistle happy! With 16:24 left we have a 35-32 lead…..and 6 fouls!!! The coup de gras is 2 quick fouls on Robert Crenshaw before I can even get a sub to table and he is done for the night with 5. I am livid but keep my cool and hope the freshman can get it done up front. Things stay tight as they tie it up, before Ramal Moody, fresh off the bench drains a three to put us up 45-42 with 8:36 to play. Being thin up front I gamble by putting Cortez Frazier at PF, so Sam Thompson can get a blow. Ed Cleveland also picks up his 4th foul, so we are tiny up front now. With 4:30 to go and Geoff York also on the bench with 4 fouls they tie it 49-49. The refs are killing us and we need to get to 3 minutes so I can put the big boys back in. Unfortunately, nobody takes the challenge to step up and we implode down the stretch. York fouls out, we make poor choices on offense and they start hitting their foul shots, as we lose our opener 64-60. Eddie Blackmon leads us with 16 points, while Ramal Moody has 9. Gaylon Lovitt adds 8 off the bench and Sam Thompson grabs a team high 6 rebounds. Having our big men in foul trouble was devastating as we gave up 12 offensive boards and 22 fouls for the game, which the refs hear plenty about heading off the court.

As I break down film I really need to thank Sam Houston State for developing the Blueprint for our opponents this year. Get Cleveland tired and Crenshaw in foul trouble and then take advantage of the freshman PF and an undersized C playing out of position. We will have some growing pains, but we will get better and have a lot to look forward to in the future.

November 19th, 2009 – Charleston Southern 0-1 @ Weber State 0-1
Hopefully we get better this game, as we have a good edge at PF, but Charleston has the edge at C and Bench. Not good!! The Buccaneers best player is C Brian Turner and they run a flex. On defense they press a lot, so I may up the tempo offensively.

Eddie Blackmon starts fast, though the rest of the team lags behind and Charleston stays right with us. Ramal Moody is cold, so I bring in Gaylon Lovitt who sparks the offense with 6 points and with 9:32 left in the 1st half we lead 17-14 and have no fouls!! Little used Jay Wilcox makes the most of his minutes as the half winds down and his 5 points help us to a 28-20 lead with 3:30 left to play. The rest of the 1st half is somewhat sloppy and we take a 33-23 lead into the locker room. They are only shooting 31.3% and only 4 points in the paint. Guess they didn’t watch our first game. Eddie Blackmon leads all scorers with 12 points and Geoff York has 4 assists, 6 rebounds and only 1 turnover.

No changes to start the 2nd half as Ramal Moody (13 points) and Eddie Blackmon (15 points) suddenly decide to see who can take the most shots. Their efforts extend our lead to 47-33 with 14:48 to play, but Moody is only 1 of 6 behind and arc and can’t even spell pass, so in comes Gaylon Lovitt. We get some great play from our Bench led by Jay Wilcox with 10 points midway through the 2nd half and with 7:22 to go, we now lead 64-42 and appear headed for a comfortable win. Fortunately appearance is reality and we coast home to a 75-51 victory in our home opener. Eddie Blackmon leads all scorers with 20 points, while Ramal “I idolized AI as a Kid” Moody adds 17 points on a team high 18 shots. Jay Wilcox is stellar off the bench with 10 points, while Geoff York grabs 10 rebounds from the PG spot. A good win and we are back on even footing.

The next day things only get better as I receive LOI’s from my twin towers Erick Hampton and Clyde Diggs. After one week of play Montana’s Chris Elder picks up where he left off, winning the first Big Sky Player of the week award.

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

Great read so far! Keep it up...and onto dominating the Big Sky!

Thanks Dennis, glad to have you following. This year may be a little tough as we aren't that good inside, but with the twin towers coming in it should get better.

[BYU 14]

November 23rd, 2009 – Weber State 1-1 @ Cornell 0-2
We actually are thought to be better for a change as the pregame touts give us the edge at SG with the Gunslinger Ramal Moody and Robert Crenshaw at PF. The Big Red get the edge at PG, where Colt Coleman is their best player and the Bench as well. They play man to man a lot, so I increase the Offensive freedom a bit to let my athletes create. This means Moody may take 30 shots.

Cornell is a team that can shoot and we have a hard time dealing with their backcourt of Coleman and Dusty Fields. Fortunately for us, they don’t play very good defense and have no answer for our perimeter game as we race to a 24-16 lead with 11:23 to go behind the dynamic duo of Eddie Blackmon (13 points) and Ramal Moody. (9 points, 2 steals) With our two high scorers taking we are able to actually extend the lead to 31-20 with 6:01 to play, thanks to some solid defense and some aggressive play inside by Ed Cleveland. Inexplicably, once Blackmon and Moody re-enter the game we can’t buy a basket and our sudden ineptitude allows Cornell to slice our lead to 41-36 at halftime. Thankfully their 8 turnovers offset 52% shooting, which is pretty much the difference. Ramal Moody has 13 at the half to tie Blackmon, who failed to score over the final 6 minutes. Geoff York is again taking care of the ball well, but has 3 fouls, so Neil Miller will start the 2nd half at PG.

I go as long as I can with Miller, but the offense just doesn’t click and when they cut our lead to 49-47 with 13:50 to play Geoff York comes back in. Moody now has 17 points and I should rest him, but he is carrying the team right now, so he will have to suck it up. We are now in a dog fight and I hope we can hold them off while Moody gets a blow. Fortunately, Eddie Blackmon gets his groove back and he nails a trey to put us up 63-61 with 7:10 left in the game. With 3:36 left we are in the penalty and both York and Miller have 4 fouls and the game is tied at 68. Ramal Moody then puts the team on his back again and with 51 seconds left we lead 75-72 and have the ball, though Neil Miller has fouled out. I put my best free throw shooters in and we nail 4 straight to seal the win 79-72 and move to 2-1. Ramal Moody is just ridiculous, shredding the nets for 33 points on 13 of 21 shooting. Eddie Blackmon chips in 18 and Geoff York and Neil Miller both have 5 assists. On a down note we only got 8 points from our bench and that has got to improve.

November 25th, 2009 – Weber State 2-1 VS St Johns 3-0 (First round – Alaskan Classic)
What a brutal piece of scheduling!! We go straight from the East coast to Alaska for the privilege of playing unbeaten St Johns. The Red Storm, led by SF Brandon Harris (19.0 PPG and 8.7 RPG) has the advantage at PG, SG and SF, with the rest being even. They play a lot of 2-3 zone, so our only chance is to focus outside and hope we are hot..

I start a small lineup that includes Eddie Blackmon at PF and Cortez Frazier at C and it works well enough as we lead 10-9 with 14:43 to play in the 1st. At that point I go back to a more conventional lineup and we actually extend our lead to 9, before St Johns goes on an 11-2 run to tie it up at 20-20. Ramal Moody is again doing his part with 10 points and Eddie Blackmon has 6. Nobody gets more than 4 points ahead the rest of the half and we enter the locker room tied 33-33 and I couldn’t be prouder of the team. Both teams are shooting 50% or better and we are led by Ramal Moody with 13. Our bench is already better than the Cornell game with 12 points and we are doing what we need to do making our outside shots. We can win this!!

I start Jay Wilcox at PF in the 2nd half to give us another outside threat, but we have cooled off and start to lose ground. Add some whistle happy Zebras to the equation and we find ourselves down 46-38 with 13:04 to play and St Johns shooting fouls the rest of the way! I have no answer as you can see fatigue finally start to hit us as our legs go. With 3:58 to play we trail 72-51 and I clear the bench, frustrated, but understanding. It was a tall order and the kids gave it all they had. We continue to battle, but end up losing 80-60 as we get 18 points from Ramal Moody and 16 points, plus 7 rebounds from Eddie Blackmon. Gaylon Lovitt adds 9 off the bench Geoff York gets 5 assists.

After a long flight home, I give the kids a day off and start to prepare for Cal State Fullerton, who will be in on the 25th. I get word the Ramal Moody was selected as the Big Sky player of the week for 11/26/09. A well deserved honor as he took over the Cornell game. Hopefully his consistency will improve a bit, but his career as a Wildcat is still young.

[BYU 14]

November 30th, 2009 – Cal State Fullerton 1-3 @ Weber State 2-2
A game we should win at home, as we are better at SG, they have a better Bench and we are dead even everywhere else. They are led by PF Colin Kent 7.0 PPG and 5.0 RPG and run a slow paced triangle offense. They like to press and will play a 3-2 zone, which helps us, since we are much better from the perimeter. Ramal Moody will have to stay hot and Ed Cleveland will have to step it up on the boards.

Not really the start I had imaged as we fall behind 14-5 real quick, but Ramal Moody spurs a 7-2 mini run to pull us to within 16-12 with 12:45 left in the first half. Moody has 9 of our points, but has also taken 7 of our 10 shots. We have got to spread it around better and on top of that, we also have 5 team fouls already. Things don’t get much prettier as the half goes on as we never get closer than 6 over the final 10 minutes and trail 33-25 at the break. We are shooting 38.5% and they are blistering us for 50% and we have 0 offensive boards!! Ramal Moody is our leading scorer with 11 points, but is only 5 for 14, which will see him on the bench with the second half starts. Nobody else has more than 4 points and we need somebody to step up!

I go small to start the 2nd half, starting Jay Wilcox at C and we turn up the pressure. The move pays off and with 12:15 to play in the game we have fought back to tie it at 42-42. Eddie Blackmon comes out strong, as he so often does, and now has 9 points, while Gaylon Lovitt has 6 off the bench. Ramal Moody re-enters the game and does his best to keep Cal State Fullerton in it by promptly going 1 of 4. I get Lovitt back in and we immediately start to play better offensively, finally taking the lead 54-52 on a long three by Eddie Blackmon with 4:58 left. The Refs suddenly get whistle happy, which coincides with me questioning a call….coincidence?? The end result is a 58-54 deficit with 1:43 to play and we go on to finish in style, turning it over on 3 straight possessions and falling to the visiting Titans 62-56 in a miserable offensive display. Ramal Moody leads us with 13 points and 6 rebounds, but is 6 of 19 from the field! Eddie Blackmon gets 12 points and Jay Wilcox plays well off the bench with 4 points and 6 rebounds.

As November ends and we sit at 2-3 two things are apparent. We have no leadership on the floor right now and when Ramal Moody is in, it totally disrupts our flow. The catch 22 is, when he gets in a groove he can take a game over in a big way. I have a lot to think about as we enter the second month of the season.

[BYU 14]

Not the start I had hoped for and the reason is we are not playing as a team. We have two scorers in Moody and Blackmon and everybody else seems to go out of their way to let them shoot. We really need to develop an inside game or it could be a long season.

[BYU 14]

December 3rd, 2009 – Weber State 2-3 @ Tulsa 3-3
We head to the Midwest to face the Golden Hurricane and it looks like another fairly even matchup. We get the edge at PF and Tulsa has it at C and Bench. They run a slow paced offense, so I am going to harass them. They love to press, so we will also turn up the offensive tempo. Jermaine Dickens is deep on the bench as a true freshman averaging 4 minutes and 2 PPG. You could have been playing more with us Jermaine.

We come out handling their press fairly well and the faster tempo on offense seems to be a big reason as we lead 15-12 with 10:33 to play in the half. Ramal Moody has 7 points, but is only 3 for 9 and I put Lovitt in for an extended stretch. Our bench doesn’t give us a lot and we fall behind by as much as 4 before rallying in the last 1:36 to take a 34-31 lead into the locker room. We have an edge in most facets of the game, but we are missing some open shots. Ramal Moody is main culprit in this area at 6 for 15, but he does lead us with 14 points. Eddie Blackmon has 6 and I pull him aside and tell him to shoot more.

We struggle on defense out of the locker room and I can’t really ratchet things up since we have whistle happy refs. Tulsa is hitting over half their treys and that is the reason they lead 53-49 with 9:38 left in the game. From there it is another patented 2nd half collapse as we are outscored 20-8 the rest of the game and lose going away 73-57!! Ramal Moody has 19 of the most worthless points you will ever see on 8 of 23 shooting from the floor!! I am losing patience with him rapidly! Eddie Blackmon adds 10 and Geoff York 9. Jermaine Dickens did not play for Tulsa and we exchange a warm greeting after the game, though it is forced on my part, I am so upset with the team.

[BYU 14]

December 7th, 2009 – Weber State 2-4 @ DePaul 3-3
Pregame – DePaul runs the Triangle at a moderate pace on Offense and a 1-2-2 on defense. I will play more zone to start and be patient on offense (Hear that Moody?)
PG – Even
SG – Even
SF – Advantage DePaul
PF – Advantage Weber State
C – Even
Bench – Advantage DePaul

1st Half
One of the game keys was to get Ramal Moody going early and he did do that taking 10 of our first 12 shots, but missing 7 of them, which let to an early 12-9 deficit with 11:52 to go in the half. At least our defense was playing fairly well. That soon changed as DePaul promptly nailed 4 straight treys and we suddenly couldn’t hit a Cows ass with a handful of peas and they outscored us 25- 13 the rest of the way. Ramal Moody led us with 7 points at the half, while Geoff York chipped in 5 points. Eddie Blackmon had only 1 basket, but did grab 5 rebounds.
Half Time Score – DePaul 37 Weber State 22

Second Half
We just had no answer for DePaul SG Nick Freymond, who was lighting us up from behind the arc. Moody is not a great defender, but he ate up Gaylon Lovitt as well. Geoff York fought vainly to keep us in the game with 11 points and 4 assists, but it was not enough to stave off the Blue Demon attack and we trailed 59-35 with 10:25 left.
Our kids did pick it up down the stretch, led by Benjamin Gainous off the bench who finished with 9 points, but the mountain was just to big to climb. Ramal Moody was 5 for 7 in the 2nd and finished with 17 points, while Geoff York pitched in with 13. In the end Nick Freymonds 23 points (which included 7 threes) helped do us in.
Final Score – DePaul 76 Weber State 62

December 10th, 2009 – Florida Atlantic 4-3 @ Weber State 2-5
Pregame – The Owls run the Triangle and I am going full zone to start, they play man on defense and we have to get some mismatches. After starting 4-0 they have lost 3 straight.
PG – Even
SG – Even
SF – Even
PF – Advantage Weber State
C – Advantage Florida Atlantic
Bench – Advantage Florida Atlantic

1st Half
Geoff York gets 2 quick fouls, so I put Gaylon Lovitt in at PG and increase the offensive freedom a bit. I notice a smoother flow and we get out to a 17-10 lead with 10:17 to play. Scoring is balanced early as Moody has 5 and Blackmon and Crenshaw check in with 4 each. This is what we need! We suddenly catch a cold spell and can’t defend the three, which allows them to pull ahead by three at one point. It was here that Ramal Moody took over. He looked like Kobe out there and finished with 22 first half points on 9 for 9 shooting!!! This is the Ramal I like!!
Half Time Score – Weber State 37 Florida Atlantic 33

Second Half
FAU hung tough early, but the difference today it that every time they made a move, we answered back. With 9:43 left we were up 52-40 thanks to some clutch shots from Eddie Blackmon and Robert Crenshaw (6 boards) doing a good job on the glass. We played great defense down the stretch, holding them to 27.3% for the game and gradually pulled away leading by as many as 27. Ramal Moody led the charge with 28 points, while Eddie Blackmon knocked down 13. Robert Crenshaw did a little of everything with 6 points, 6 assists and 9 rebounds. My only criticism was we gave up 11 offensive boards.
Final Score – Weber State 74 Florida Atlantic 53

Ramal Moody, largely on his effort against FAU, gets his second Big Sky player of the week award for the week ending 12/10/09. I sit wracking my brain trying to think of how to get him more consistent. He is a bit of a head case and talks himself out of making shots when it is going bad. The bad new there is, he also shoot more when it is going bad.

[MacroGuru]

So, how goes things here?

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

So, how goes things here?

On vacation while I do my MMA diary

With that save file corrupted this will likely start up again though.

[nfg22]

I just read through....looks great..illbe keeping up.