2013 F/C Akoy Agau (Louisville Verbal Commit)

[gtmoBlue]

Geoff and Akoy would split time in the post, Artino playing PF with Doug?

[section221jay]

Rivals has an article about Agau "weighing in on the Miles hire". I don't have a subscription but I was browsing a husker site and several people a) said he's NU's to lose (delusional?) and b) he's basically dead set on wanting to play in the Big 10 or Big East (per that rivals article).

Does CU have a shot at Agau?

[DEK]

Not from the looks of that article. Apparently UCONN is his dream school and he reportedly just thinks the world of the Big East & Big Ten. Apparently, the Creighton vs. UNC game really showed him the difference in talent levels between the two teams.

Considering they have 6 McDonald's All-Americans, um yeah Akoy, there is a big talent difference there. UNC has top two talent, so I think he is the delusional one...UNC would have beaten the majority of BCS conference schools by 14 the way they played against us.

[section202jay]

Just read the rivals article. Said he's leaning big ten or big east. He also went on to praise Jim Calhoun and that UCONN is his dream school. If these quotes are true, Creighton has no chance at him. And to be honest, I don't want him to be Jay. He's just a kid though. Most kids will think this stuff. The story was done by Sean Callahan, so take it for what it's worth.

He basically took a few shots at the Valley and said that the competition gap is huge. He said watching UNC vs. Creighton was very telling to the competitive gap.

[LynchMob]

UNC is also in the ACC, as long as we are pointing out the obvious.

If he truly believes the talent level at Nebraska or Providence is higher than at Creighton, I'm not sure we want someone that dense on our team.

[Here'sToMe]

The story was done by Sean Callahan, so take it for what it's worth.

The quoted text is all I need to know about the article. Rivals is essentially a propaganda site, and Sean Callahan is the Nebraska equivalent of Matt Perrault, except Callahan has better writing skills and isn't mostly despised by his target audience.

Perhaps everything Agau said was true, but I also wouldn't put it past the writer of a Nebraska fan site to embellish a few items to paint the other in-state basketball program in a negative light.

If Agau was quoted perfectly, and he dreams of going to UConn, good for him. If I was the Superintendent of a school district, I'd rather go to Omaha Public Schools than the hick-town district that I grew up in. I'm certainly not going to hold it against a 17-year-old for chasing a big-school dream.

[AttyAlum]

If there is one thing that Doug's selection as a first team AP all American teaches us, it is that you will still get plenty of national recognition if you go to Creighton.

If he has always wanted to go to UConn, so be it (although I do legitimately wonder how much longer Calhoun will be the HC there). However, if he thinks he needs to go to a BCS program to get national recognition, he's truly mistaken.

[FreddyMac]

This kid has been talking UCONN for years so he's definitively not Nebraska's to lose. Yes, that is delusional. Personally I wish we'd just cut our losses on him. It kind of pisses me off when you see him getting free tickets to our games and also practicing on our campus when he doesn't act like he's even going to give us a thought when it comes to playing here. It was the same thing with Matt Hill. Drive to Omaha to work out on our campus with our players and then go to Texas. The only difference is that I don't blame Matt at all for that. He'd have been a Jay if it were up to him.

[blueblood]

This article means nothing. Not a thing. Oh he may end up at UConn but thats a long time from now. High school kids are all about the wow factor. The kid is going to be the state champ 4 years in a row. The kid is playing the number one team in the country next season. When he is asked by his class mates or the media where he is going to college why the hell would he say to the school 3 blocks down the road? For that matter why would he say he is going to the one 50 miles down the road? Where is the wow in that? He is going to say the big boys want him. Duh. Now if Mac talks to him he will tell him what he wants to hear and same goes for huskers illusttrated. Keep the wow in him factor going. Duh.
Kids that are juniors at Prep that don't even play sports don't want to say they are going to Creighton or unl. No, they are looking at KU and SLU and all the others. Then they end up at CU and nu. Its early and he is living the wow factor. He may end up at UConn but CU is still in the game.

[Bluejay Bilas]

Based on other comments, not the premium article:

I sort of agree with the cut our losses comment. Although, if we have any chance, or like our chances with one or two of his Eagles teammates, it probably doesn’t hurt to keep him close.

I think there is some truth to the idea that any talented high school kid wants to talk about non-local and non-regional prospects. Surely, that’s especially true with someone who is being touted as the best Omaha prospect in years. Plus, UNL and CU offers presumably carry very little weight among the top-level AAU guys.

With respect to the UNC game, the UNC team that beat us by 14 had more NBA talent than the entire B1G, and more than any Big East school, by far. UNC also had more NBA talent on that one team than UNL has had in its history. At times, the talent gap between CU and UNC was pretty obvious, especially in terms of length and speed. But, echoing another comment in this thread, the game they played probably would have beaten all but 1 or 2 of the teams in the tournament, if not all of them. Nonetheless, had our shots been falling, and had we taken fewer shots with their bigs in prime defensive position, we would have had some chance at the upset. So, it would be ridiculous if Agau actually had some sort of epiphany during that game. I sense that he’s never had any intention of playing for CU, so it’s probably just a combination of him explaining his reasoning about wanting to play in a power six conference, being asked leading questions, and Callahan looking for red meat to feed to the Husker fans.

As for UConn, that program could be looking at a fairly seismic long-term decline, the likes of which are not seen that often in major college sports (like Georgetown post-Iverson and pre-JT3, but bigger): No tournament eligibility for a year; A good chance of at least Lamb and Drummond declaring for the NBA, which when added to the transfer of Oriakhi, makes their short-term prospects seem poor; Calhoun unlikely to be around for much longer; Negative changes to the Big East. The Huskies very well might prove me wrong, but things look bleak to me. Whatever the case, I’m sure several coaches will use these issues to paint a negative picture of UConn hoops to his family and him.

As for the Huskers, it would be strange if he did not say things that were favorable to the local state school. Mike Gesell said plenty of things to give both local fanbases some hope prior to his Senior year. That is what seems to happen with virtually every big recruit. And I am sure that if Matt P. interviewed Agau this afternoon, Agau would say enough good things about CU to allow Matt to write the Bluejays equivalent of Callahan’s piece. An recruiting fluff article changes nothing about the myriad drawbacks to UNL from a high school star's point of view. Also, as is likely true with UConn, I’d be surprised if some recruiters did not highlight these negatives when trying to pry him out of the state. With respect to the Husker Hoops Central guys, they badly want the Nee days to return, and would love to beat Creighton at something other than the occasional game at the Bob. Agau to Nebraska would be a major victory to them, regardless of what he does on the court.

If Agau is as good as advertised, he’ll get much more attention this summer. If his dream school is UConn, there is probably a zero percent chance he’ll end up at CU or UNL, and a good chance he'll commit to a mid to upper tier team in the B1G, Big 12 or Big East.

I get that kids want exposure and are told that playing in a tough conference will help their professional chances, but insofar as that has ever been true, it is not today. If you have any skills, have an NBA body, and play organized ball anywhere in the world, the NBA will find you. Frankly, a decent argument could be made that playing in the MVC or A-10 gives you at least as good of a chance to in The League as playing in a power-six conference, since you’ll almost certainly have an easier time shining in the former. For example, had Jimmer played for Syracuse, it is unlikely that he would have done enough in college to become a lottery pick. For taller guys, think Adam Morrison, Adonal Foyle, or even Patrick O'Bryant.