http://www.chapelhillnews.com/107/story/6793.html

Quote :

"Even the best can be sucker punched By Eddy Landreth Recruiting is a fickle business, even for the best recruiters. University of North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams has a knack for recruiting. His secret is that he loves it. He enjoys meeting the kids, their families and developing relationships. He loves to watch the guys play summer ball. Travel may be another matter. Former football coach Bo Schembechler once said that toward the end of his career he found himself sitting on the edge of a bed in a hotel one day, thinking that if he had to go beg another 18-year-old to attend Michigan he would get sick. Williams may one day say he's tired of airports or rental cars or spending so much time away from home, but it is highly unlikely he will say that he's tired of dealing with recruits. Instead, Williams says, he is often the first person to arrive at the gym and the last one to leave at some of these summer prep tournaments. He does a lot of hands-on recruiting, probably more than a lot of other head coaches. All of this has enabled Williams to become second to none when it comes to closing the deal with top players. Just look at the freshman class he brought to campus this past season. It's clearly a premier group, meeting much of the hype that preceded it. UNC has had the last three Atlantic Coast Conference rookies of the year: Marvin Williams, Tyler Hansbrough and Brandan Wright. Just about any coach in the country would have given nearly anything to have any one of those guys. But even the best recruiter can hit a snag here or there. Television commentators like to say that Williams and Mike Krzyzewski, like John Wooden and Dean Smith, "don't recruit players; they select them." That simply is not true. The truth is more akin to sales. Around 20 percent of sales people close 80 percent of the deals in the business world. Everyone else plays catch-up. No basketball coach can simply wave his hand and have kids automatically brush aside other offers. There are plenty of other coaches working these guys, too. Schools have to battle for just about every student-athlete they sign. Williams has heard the word "no" before. So, when a recruit decides to go somewhere else, Williams doesn't normally get too upset. What he prides himself on, though, more than sizing up talent or wooing a kid to Carolina, is assessing the character of the kids he recruits. Sometimes, Williams will fall in love with a kid whom he believes has great character, even if that kid's game is slightly less than another recruit's. That is why sources close to Williams said he was so disturbed when 6-foot-7 forward Delvon Roe of Ohio recently chose Michigan State instead of UNC. Another possible recruit, 7-foot Ty Walker of Wilmington, also surprised people recently by picking Wake Forest. Walker apparently had said he would be willing to wait on an official offer from UNC, but, just as Williams appeared to be ready to extend an offer, Walker pledged to the Demon Deacons. Go figure. Williams will not lose any sleep about Walker. The young man has size, but he is still a bit of a project. Just recently, he got pushed around by stronger players at the Boo Williams tournament in Virginia. Roe is the one that has Williams second-guessing his judgment. Williams figured Roe for being a truly great kid. He just loved him. Now, Williams is trying to figure out how he misjudged Roe's intentions and, perhaps, Roe himself. This is not because Roe chose another school but because he told Williams several times he was coming to UNC. According to sources close to Williams, Roe had spoken with Williams within a week of making his decision and said everything was OK. He was coming to Chapel Hill. Then, just days later, he calls Williams and says he is going to Michigan State. Speculation all along was that Roe's parents preferred a school closer to home than Carolina is. During his press conference to make the announcement official, Roe cited family as the reason for his ultimate decision. All of that is fine, but why tell Williams it's going to be Carolina up until the last minute? The problem for the Tar Heels is they now have to scramble after other kids who play Roe's position, kids with egos who know Williams had Roe first on his list. Williams doesn't recruit with a scatter-gun. He zeros in on specific players, especially if those guys signal that they are keenly interested in Carolina. In the end, the Tar Heels will be fine. Williams will continue to recruit and sign the finest players in the country. But, the next time Dick Vitale screams "Roy Williams selects, baby. He doesn't recruit," just remember, as with so many of the things Vitale says, that simply is not true. Even the best can still get sucker-punched."

I found this on the MSU boards.

http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?S=175#S=175&F=1101&T=430691

Pretty funny that one of their members, MSUelite313, hates the entire state of North Carolina, when he has probably never even been 10 miles away from the state.

Quote :

"roy williams is such a baby. i cant stand the entire state of north carolina and the bball teams they have. -MSUelite313"

4/22/2007 7:00:36 PM

i dunno how that article makes roy williams a crybaby. The Tarheel nation? Yes, but not so much Roy Williams. It didnt even have a quote from Roy in there.

4/22/2007 7:31:42 PM

people from michigan suck...maybe thats why he's at a loss for words on this one.


I dont give a shit though. Fuck Roy.

4/22/2007 7:41:20 PM

^^hence the ? in the subject line. Eddy Landreth though seems like he's crying about UNC missing out on Roe.

4/22/2007 7:55:47 PM

when I hear Roy Williams, the UNC head coach is the 3rd one I think of

4/22/2007 8:07:01 PM

Lion WR, Cowboy DB, Carolina HC

atleast my train of thought

4/22/2007 8:34:35 PM

this thread does not deliver.

i'm not going to act like a hardass like the rest of you. my first thought goes to the carolina coach.

[Edited on April 22, 2007 at 8:48 PM. Reason : too bad he can't win with his own players! AMIRITE!?]

4/22/2007 8:38:40 PM

my train of thought goes

TX/Det WR -> OK/Dal DB -> anyone else have this name? -> oh yeah, the bball coach.

4/22/2007 8:42:20 PM

wolfpack2105 winz this thread.

4/22/2007 8:46:42 PM

Quote :

"wolfpack2105 winz this thread."

sweet, do i get to do a victory lap waving a Jamie McMurray flag?

4/22/2007 8:49:55 PM

mine is Roy Williams safety, then Roy Williams WR, then the coach

4/22/2007 8:50:29 PM

well I'm from this part of the country, ACC country, not Big XII country.

When I hear Roy Williams I think:

1) UNC basketball coach
2) Former Texas WR
3) Former Oklahoma DB


Besides the Roy Williams the basketball coach is way more known nationally than those players. I mean he's the head basketball coach at the #2 most winningest basketball program in NCAA history, and won a National Championship just 2 years ago. That Roy Williams was famous before those other two had even began to make a name for themselves in the college ranks, by being the head coach at one of the #3 most winningest basketball program in NCAA history. Argue all you want, but more people know who Roy Williams the Carolina basketball coach is than the two NFL players. If the three were in NYC's Times Square, I bet he would be recognized by the people there before the other two.

I didn't think I'd need to clarify which Roy Williams it was in the subject line, b/c this is ACC country, and an NC State message board, which caters to the fans of UNC's rival school.

4/22/2007 8:59:07 PM

4/22/2007 9:04:39 PM

as much as I hate the tarheels and everything they stand for, Roy doesnt seem like such a bad guy to me

4/22/2007 9:04:45 PM

^ *agreed*

He doesn't reek of douchebaggery to me.

4/22/2007 9:08:05 PM

^^^^ I'm from SEC country (SE Louisiana) and white Roy got his name... at a Big XII school. Just like the other two.

4/22/2007 9:18:24 PM

^^^^hahaha, classic.

4/22/2007 9:34:30 PM

It wasn't a swipe at the Big XII. I even gave credit to his time at Kansas. I was simply noting that in this part of the country, when you mention Roy Williams, most people think of the UNC coach. Now that may be different in Texas, Oklahoma, and Michigan, but outside of those three states, I'm sure it's safe to say that most people think of the basketball coach. Now if I was posting on a UT/OU/Lions/Cowboys message board I would have specified that it was the UNC basketball coach.

[Edited on April 22, 2007 at 9:43 PM. Reason : ]

4/22/2007 9:38:16 PM

well the cowboys' safety does come off as a bit of a beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeitch to me

4/22/2007 9:55:16 PM

Quote :

""roy williams is such a baby. i cant stand the entire state of north carolina and the bball teams they have. -MSUelite313""

ahahahaha, that's cause they CAN'T WIN...

4/23/2007 9:51:40 AM

Of course they hate us, the ACC (and the state of NC) owns the BigTEN (and the state of MICH)

jealousy begats hate (as we NCSU fans know all too well with the Holes recent bball success)

4/23/2007 11:27:39 AM

I always think of Patrick Roy

4/23/2007 12:10:34 PM

Quote :

"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. I sense much fear in you."

- Yoda on the Big Ten's fear of the ACC.

[Edited on April 23, 2007 at 12:30 PM. Reason : ]

4/23/2007 12:28:40 PM

I keep coke in my office, for when I choke.

4/23/2007 12:49:40 PM

basketball is a nice little hobby when football isnt on

4/23/2007 1:16:27 PM