SBNation.com User Blog: Domin8ing the Big Ten(11)

Hackenberg Gets a 5th Star (scout)

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 19:08:08 -0000

Hackenberg Gets a 5th Star (scout)

Also rated the #2 QB in the nation now. Thought he looked pretty good in the UA game and excited to see him don the Blue and White in the coming years...

New Women's Pro Soccer League Forming?

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 22:24:08 -0000

ESPN Article claims that a new women's league is currently being formed that will feature 8 teams and is expected to get underway as early as 2013. Teams will include Boston Breakers, Chicago Red Stars, and New Jersey Sky Blue FC of the former WPS in addition to Seattle Sounder's Female USL team. The article is sketchy on details beyond that, but hopefully 3rd time's the charm on this one. Personally, I don't feel like they'd be doing this so soon to the collapse of the WPS unless they had something viable to work with, but maybe that's just my optimism.. Here's hoping Philly gets a team before all the National team players are poached!

William Fuller Decommits

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Sun, 05 Aug 2012 18:42:29 -0000

William Fuller Decommits

Hopefully this is the end of the defections, but I guess we'll have to endure another wave after the season is over..

Khairi Fortt to Cal

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 15:57:24 -0000

Khairi Fortt to Cal

I guess add him to the list.. didn't know he visited Cal last week

Ross Douglas De-commits

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 15:45:13 -0000

Ross Douglas De-commits

That makes 2 in 2 days... Hopefully this doesn't start a wave of de-commitments but with the sanctions coming down I guess some attrition is to be expected. Hackenberg said that he would only consider leaving if it was a lengthy bowl ban (what his notion of "lengthy" is I guess we'll find out soon enough).

NCAA "Sources" Claim PSU will NOT Get Death Penalty

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Sun, 22 Jul 2012 18:26:18 -0000

ESPN Article claims NCAA sources have said that PSU will NOT get the death penalty, but will levy sanctions and punishments that are "so severe, they may wish that it was just the death penalty". No clue what that exactly could be, though the article suggested severe limitations on scholarships, bowl bans, etc. What also made the article interesting (despite the source) is that former NCAA presidents weighed in on the topic and concluded that the NCAA would be out of its jurisdictional bounds by punishing PSU for the Sandusky scandal because "that's what criminal courts are for". Additionally, the article and those quoted within seemed to hint that should PSU get slammed by punishments from the NCAA, especially without due process, it would have an excellent case for appeal should it go to the appeals committee. All seemed to agree that NCAA President Emmert is operating outside the NCAA lines because the NCAA's job is limited to maintaining fair play among the school essentially and has no business weighing in on criminal cases. Lastly, they also think that if the NCAA does decide to go through with this anyway that it could create potentially dangerous precedent by opening the door (or forcing the NCAA to walk through the door) for all criminal cases involving universities in the future...

Union in Financial Difficulty?

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 15:46:37 -0000

This theory has been voiced by several people here and on the philly.com site, and the indicators seem to be getting larger in number. Based on the personnel moves of the last year and what we've gotten in return, phrases like "salary dump", "fire sale", and "financial move" have been used with frequency. Le Toux (allocation), Califf *(Lahoud making $165k less than Califf + allocation), Jordan Harvey (allocation), Mwanga *(Perlaza making $110k less), Kyle Nakazawa (international roster slot) are just a few examples of deals in which the Union either traded a player for some form of monetary compensation, received a player making less than the one traded, or in Naka's case gained a slot that until filled required no monetary compensation at all.

A recent article published in Philadelphia Sports Week also had this to say about the Union's current financial dealings with the city of Chester

"Linder points out that, under the deal that brought the Union here, the team is supposed to pay the city $500,000 a year in lieu of property taxes. But, he said, the team had fallen behind by $750,000 at one point and still hasn't made the $500,000 payment for 2010. The $500,000 payment for 2012 is due at the end of this month, according to Linder. The team did not respond when asked to confirm the figures."

Additionally, Union CEO Nick Sakiewicz has been quoted as saying the proposed tax hikes that the city of Chester wants to implement would "effectively put us out of business." That, of course, could just be posturing from a business perspective but certainly doesn't suggest financial health either. I am not a "sky is falling" kind of person and I really hope that this is all circumstantial and poor team management on the part of Nowak rather than money saving practices. I've been an STO since day 1 and love my team. I'm merely just pointing out that there is some evidence out there to suggest that the team may be in financial difficulty.

*Salary figures collected from spotrac.com, because I didn't know where else to go to get them.

A recent article published in Philadelphia Sports Week also had this to say about the Union's current financial dealings with the city of Chester

"Linder points out that, under the deal that brought the Union here, the team is supposed to pay the city $500,000 a year in lieu of property taxes. But, he said, the team had fallen behind by $750,000 at one point and still hasn't made the $500,000 payment for 2010. The $500,000 payment for 2012 is due at the end of this month, according to Linder. The team did not respond when asked to confirm the figures."

*Salary figures collected from spotrac.com, because I didn't know where else to go to get them.

Le Toux Angry With Novak, Union Front Office

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:38:06 -0000

Le Toux Blasts Novak/FO I know this article was already linked in previous comments but I think it definitely merits its own post on here. Now, having read the article its difficult to say if this is all 100% fact or if its just sour grapes or a mix of the 2 but its definitely troubling from a few angles in my opinion. The first thing that really jumps out at me is that, according to Le Toux's side of the story (which is admittedly only 1 side of the story) Novak seems to be a bit tyrannical when it comes to the decisions he makes. If Le Toux is to be believed, it seems like Novak's mind was already made up that Seba wasn't coming back to the Union no matter what the circumstances were (Bolton or another MLS team) and nothing was going to change his mind. Le Toux seems to feel like he was run out of town which, if true, is extremely disappointing and troubling. A player and a person like Le Toux should not be run out of town, especially by his own coach.

Issue number 2 that jumps out at me is that Le Toux feels like he was run out of town strictly for money. According to him, Seba asked for an increase to around $400k which I believe he earned through the last 2 years of work and production. If this is the case and he was let go strictly for money than I am more than a little concerned about the financial well-being of the organization. Another $225k (or so) is not bank breaking by any stretch of the imagination, especially with how much Adu is being paid for such little production last year. If you can't find a way financially to keep your best and most popular player than what does the future hold for this team? Can we now assume that every "young player" (since this is the story that's being jammed down the fan-base's throats as to why Le Toux was traded) that develops into a great player will be traded away for allocation before they become too expensive? If so, how is that a recipe for success? Always preparing for the future, as Novak states, can very often lead to the sacrifice of the present...

Greg Schiano Bolts Rutgers for Tampa Bucs, leaves recruiting wreckage in wake (hopefully)

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:29:42 -0000

Schiano to Tampa Bay Bucs - Impact on Recruiting? Warning: ESPN article but linked only to substantiate my post. So if you're boycotting ESpin, then don't bother clicking on it. The gist of the article is that Schiano accepted the HC job for Tampa Bay Bucs and his assistants had no clue this was going down. To make matters worse for Rutgers, he stood up his coaches and a couple recruits at Don Bosco Prep to finalize negotiations. While this is basically an eleventh hour defection of the HC in terms of recruiting, does anyone think this will have an impact on any Rutgers commits wanting to come to PSU now? Junny, I'd be curious to hear what you have to say on the matter...

2 International Roster Spots Shed For Union... Independence Add Lori Chalupny

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:19:23 -0000

Philadelphiaunion.com article says that houapeu, Langley, Richter, and Tait all had their options declined and were released today. This sheds 2 international roster spots from our team which I believe gets us out of the red heading into training camp in terms of international roster spots.

Philadelphia Independence sign WPS all-star and former National teamer Lori Chalupny from the Atlanta Beat. Chalupny will be an awesome addition to the midfield and great veteran leadership as she was the captain for Atlanta before coming here. Welcome aboard Lori!

Discussion Question...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 23:57:49 -0000

So I was thinking about all the moves that the Union have made over the last 2 years between player acquisitions, drafts, and even a few trades.. and I kind of thought to myself that it'd be really neat if the Union had their Roy Halladay Trade moment and went out and got a really big name currently in MLS via trade... So I'm throwing it out to the group. It being the holiday season, who would be the one player you'd love to see the Union unwrap? It can be any player currently in the MLS, but you can only choose one..

For me, I'd go with Brek Shea (I know, I know, pile it on all you want). I like his creativity, his ability to make plays develop and can dish it as well as shoot it. Additionally, you can move him around and play him in different positions and has decent height and speed (something the Union lacked this year). If I could only choose one, I'd pick Shea... You???

Nowak looking to add 3 or 4 more offseason acquisitions...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 16:32:17 -0000

Union hunting for 3 or 4 more players in the offseason According to Nowak in this Philly.com article. He says he wants to get bigger and stronger along the backline and have more cohesion between the midfield and forwards. Let the speculation begin I guess.. Do you think he means an LB or do you think he's actually searching for Califf's eventual replacement (will be 32 in March)? Or maybe just some additional depth since our team now only has 3 true defensemen (Williams, Califf, Valdez)... Scott, any rumors floating out there about possible targets? I love that Nowak is acknowledging the team needs to get deeper in terms of talent and is addressing (in my opinion) obvious needs of speed and height on the team. I just hope its not too much turnover that hurts the teams chemistry.. What do you guys think?

"Martinez Not Going To Be a Designated Player" ~ Nowak

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 21:11:45 -0000

Martinez not a DP ... according to Nowak in this article from the Union's website. Should be interesting to see how they're going to manage that financially. Must have a lot of allocation money to buy it down?? Any thoughts on that? I also like the Nowak mentions he's not finished with adding pieces and that "every position but keeper" is still being looked in to for improvement. I am also encouraged with the speed thats being added in Martinez and Khalfan.. Now if we could just get some tall players!

Convey Off The Table..

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:18:39 -0000

Well, so much for the big homecoming... Convey picked up by Sporting KC for International Roster Spot . Thats a shame too because I think he could have been a potentially valuable addition to the team, even if we're a bit glutton at the mid-field spot at the moment. Convey's a good crosser and smart with the ball heading down the wing, and you can never have enough of those. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to the next few moves the Union make, and definitely hoping for some defensive depth and a few more attacking options up top. A little speed and height wouldn't hurt either!

Union are "dirty players"

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 02:40:33 -0000

http://blog.chron.com/soccer/2011/11/dynamo-must-keep-cool-against-dirty-union/

Waa Waa Waa the Union are dirty players... I seriously considered not posting this for the sheer fact that I don't want to drive this guy's blog hits up any more than they already are... But I suppose it is relevant and worth discussing, even if I think its little more than whining from an author with little else to write about.

http://blog.chron.com/soccer/2011/11/dynamo-must-keep-cool-against-dirty-union/

Bob Bradley Fired As USMNT Coach...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:16:53 -0000

Tannewald over at philly.com with the press release...

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/thegoalkeeper/US-national-team-coach-Bob-Bradley-fired.html

Any thoughts on who is next in line? I can't imagine they'd just up and fire Bradley a few weeks before a game against Mexico if they didn't have someone else lined up.. right? lol.. No names were mentioned in the press release, its basically just Gulati saying thanks for your service, we have tremendous respect for Coach Bradley, blah blah. The only way this move makes sense to me is if they feel like they are bringing in someone better. Otherwise, why bother to re-sign him less than a year ago just to fire him now? I'm sure they had to buy out the rest of his contract as well. Only time will tell I guess. Let the speculation begin!

Tannewald over at philly.com with the press release...

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/thegoalkeeper/US-national-team-coach-Bob-Bradley-fired.html

Getting The Independence to PPL Park

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 21:53:34 -0000

So I've been doing a lot of reading and thinking lately about the success of the Women's World Cup in terms of winning over non-soccer and casual soccer fans, and whether or not that success would help get the WPS onto stable footing financially. In regards to the Independence specifically, it seems like they're hamstrung by the fact that they have to play at Widener in a stadium that's capped at 4,000 seats which I'd have to imagine stunts their financial growth. Obviously I'm not privy to estimated projections of what that number could be at a larger stadium, but weren't the Charge pulling in 7,000+ when they were at Villanova? I am a season ticket holder for The Union, but have been to a few Independence games and really want to see them succeed, as I'm sure most other soccer fans in this area would. My question to everyone is this: Is there anything holding back the Independence and Union from doing double-header packages at PPL? If not, would people be interested in such a thing? Personally, I'd love to see something like this happen, even if its just once or twice. What are your thoughts on this?

SEC and Oversigning Changes?

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 20:43:54 -0000

ESPN Article details the possible changes coming for the SEC in regards to oversigning athletes. Apparent attempts to limit the number of annual signings to 25 are ruffling a few feathers in the good ol' south.. Petrino's stance is especially cavalier, and it doesn't appear that he or a few other SEC coaches are too worried about what happens to the players that slip through the cracks. No mention of the educational aspect or responsibility of the programs from what I saw either. The comments under the article are pretty interesting too.

More PSU Soccer News

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 15:28:09 -0000

The MLS soccer combine will be held in the beginning of January, and like every year only a few selected players from across the nation get invited (58 in total I believe). These players are the best college seniors and underclassmen declaring for the draft this year. To earn an invite to the combine alone is quite an honor, though this in no way guarantees being drafted. The following PSU player has earned an invite and will attend the 3 day combine event...

Matheus Braga, Penn State, Midfielder

The invitees will compete in a series of scrimmages that will also include members of the Generation adidas class (underclassmen) and select players from lower division schools. A notable omission from this list is PSU Forward Corey Hertzog, who was a semi-finalist for the Hermann Trophy. Details haven't been fully released yet, but there could be a number of reasons for this including the fact that he is a Jr. and therefore could have bypassed the invite to partake in his senior year, felt his draft status was solid enough and declined, or could potentially be pursuing options overseas. Still, congratulations to Matheus Braga!

Matheus Braga, Penn State, Midfielder

4 Star OG Mangiro to Announce Sunday

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 17:54:35 -0000

4 Star OG Mangiro to Announce Sunday

Scout premium subscription needed, but Angelo Mangiro is set to announce on Sunday, and its down to Rutgers, (s)Pitt, Ohio State, and Penn State. I've been reading around the dis-reputable rumor sites and we seem to have a pretty good shot at this kid. Consider that Neither Pitt nor Rutgers has the Prestige PSU has, and OSU is flush with high quality interior O-lineman already in this class and seems to be wrapping up their efforts (they're currently at 17 commits I believe).. and he is one of only a very few PSU O-line offers, which I would imagine means we've been on him pretty hard. Already met with JoePa (Italian roots angle) prior to announcing his final 4, and I gotta say I like our chances. I'd wager its down to RU and PSU for his committment... just guessing...

P.S. No premium content was divulged in this post

Nice article on various PSU offseason topics...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:46:35 -0000

QB Competition, Early Enrollees, etc.

Nice little article from Timesleader.com about Penn States QB competition being wide open for next fall (Good news for the QBs, not so great news for the team). Also talks about PSUs 6 early enrollees including PJ Jones and Silas Redd, among others (I didn't know the list was that long, but good for their development). And a VERY interesting story about LeSean McCoy's recruitment and his reasons for picking Pitt over PSU (You'll like it, trust me).

QB Competition, Early Enrollees, etc.

Big Ten Serious on Expansion to 12th Team

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 17:54:21 -0000

Rittenberg on the call..

I guess I'm a little surprised to hear this, considering that Delany was dead set against this back in the spring. We know JoePa has been stumping for this for a while now, but I'm wondering if any of the other coaches have jumped on board also, since Alvarez is talking about a significant faction of coaches that want to take this to the Big 10. Apparently they've been in talks with other schools for some time now, so let the speculation begin...

Rittenberg on the call..

Poll

Which school would be the best fit to become the 12th team in the Big Ten?

Notre Dame

124 votes

Missouri (Rittenberg's top pick)

46 votes

Cinncinatti

23 votes

Rutgers

23 votes

Other (Sorry for the lack of imagination on more)

32 votes

248 votes | Poll has closed

Khairi Fortt To Decide After This Weekend...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 00:18:13 -0000

As per a report on Scouts website (free content), 4 star linebacker Khairi Fortt out of CT will take an official visit to U. of Georgia this weekend, and then make his decision. Fortt has long been believed to be a Penn State lean, particularly because good friend and PSU commit Silas Redd has been in his ear for a few months now. However, Georgia is rumored to have made a late push for Fortt's services and I don't like the fact that they're going to get the last shot at him before he decides. True enough PSU is loaded at linebacker and always seems to get 1 or 2 good ones a year, but Fortt would be a fine addition to our defense and a nice recruiting win over an OMG SEC school. Here's hoping he's already decided on PSU and is just taking one last look to make sure he's comfortable with his choice....

Fortt to Visit UGA

CB Devin Fentress Not Returning ...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 15:42:53 -0000

CB Devin Fentress Not Returning ...

Its a link to a premium article, so you can read it if you are a member. If you aren't, you can still read the 1st line which says what you need to read... Senior CB Devin Fentress will not be returning for his final year of eligibility. While not crippling, it certainly doesn't help the already shallow depth at that position....

Add Glenn Carson's Underage Drinking to list of off-season screw-ups...

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 16:38:08 -0000

Add Glenn Carson's Underage Drinking to list of off-season screw-ups...

Glenn Carson, middle linebacker from last years recruiting class was also busted recently for *underage drinking*. While this won't hurt our Mariana Trench worth of depth at the LB spot, its certainly not a good way to start your PSU career...

PSU Lands 4 star OT Tom Ricketts..

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:42:27 -0000

PSU Lands 4 star OT Tom Ricketts..

WARM UP THE SIREN! WOOOOOOOO!!!

Wasn't sure if I should post this seperately or in the recruiting post so I did it seperately... sorry if I'm messing up our/your system...

June Recruiting News

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Sat, 30 May 2009 16:36:37 -0000

[For the background and rationale on this thread, please see my comment below. Continue to post links and opinions on recruiting issues in the comments, and if you haven't already, rec this post so it remains in the Recommended Fanposts section of our front page. One other note, comments on this post will close in 26 days from now, or 6/29/09. We'll start a new recruiting post for July. Let's see if this actually works. -- RUTS]

Sooo, for those who can stomach recruiting updates this early in the year... Maryland DT Anthony Ferguson (Not Ego Ferguson) is set to make his decision this Sunday, and its down to PSU and Iowa. I like our chances, but mostly because I would never understand why someone would choose Iowa period... In other news, Corey Brown (Pa. RB, Cardinal O'Hara) has narrowed his list to 10 and PSU made the cut.... K I'm done now...

PSU 2010 recruiting class ranked 5th

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:13:54 -0000

5th in the nation with just 5 committments. That says a lot about the quality of players we've landed to this point. We're even ahead of Alabama (who has more than double our committments) and USC. I know its very early in the season to get even remotely excited, but its atleast SOME kind of barometer as to where our class stacks up to date. Of course, Texas already has its entire class for 2010 committed and is scouting 2011 already... sheeeesh

www.pennstate.scout.com

Corey Brown back in play for PSU

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 16:57:23 -0000

http://www.nittanynetwork.com/index.php/component/resource/article/241-brown-reverses-field,-psu-in-the-mix

Corey Brown, RB, Cardinal O'Hara HS, Springfield Pa. is a top 5 junior in the state and has an impressive offer list, including several SECheat schools. PSU only just recently re-entered the picture for Brown, intially leaving PSU off his top 8. He has since tossed out the list and is wide open again in his recruiting and will visit PSU in March.

Class of 2010 commitment #3 on the way?

Domin8ing the Big Ten(11) — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 22:16:32 -0000

Commitment No. 3 might be Harrison City (Pa.) Penn-Trafford offensive lineman Luke Graham.

The 6-foot-6 and 255-pound Graham was a starter at offensive tackle his sophomore and junior seasons.

And had this to say about his upcoming PSU visit...

"I definitely want to make a decision before the start of the football season,” Graham said. “I want to stay close to home."

Keep an eye on this situation over the next week or 2, whenever he gets a chance to visit....

SBNation.com User Blog: Domin8ing the Big Ten(11)

Hackenberg Gets a 5th Star (scout)

New Women's Pro Soccer League Forming?

William Fuller Decommits

Khairi Fortt to Cal

Ross Douglas De-commits

NCAA "Sources" Claim PSU will NOT Get Death Penalty

Union in Financial Difficulty?

Le Toux Angry With Novak, Union Front Office

Greg Schiano Bolts Rutgers for Tampa Bucs, leaves recruiting wreckage in wake (hopefully)

2 International Roster Spots Shed For Union... Independence Add Lori Chalupny

Discussion Question...

Nowak looking to add 3 or 4 more offseason acquisitions...

"Martinez Not Going To Be a Designated Player" ~ Nowak

Convey Off The Table..

Union are "dirty players"

Bob Bradley Fired As USMNT Coach...

Getting The Independence to PPL Park

SEC and Oversigning Changes?

More PSU Soccer News

4 Star OG Mangiro to Announce Sunday

Nice article on various PSU offseason topics...

Big Ten Serious on Expansion to 12th Team

Which school would be the best fit to become the 12th team in the Big Ten?

Notre Dame

Missouri (Rittenberg's top pick)

Cinncinatti

Rutgers

Other (Sorry for the lack of imagination on more)

Khairi Fortt To Decide After This Weekend...

CB Devin Fentress Not Returning ...

Add Glenn Carson's *Underage Drinking* to list of off-season screw-ups...

PSU Lands 4 star OT Tom Ricketts..

June Recruiting News

PSU 2010 recruiting class ranked 5th

Corey Brown back in play for PSU

Class of 2010 commitment #3 on the way?

Add Glenn Carson's Underage Drinking to list of off-season screw-ups...