:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/6596517/20130105_jla_ax1_187.0.jpg)
Day 2 of MM revival is decidedly happier than Day 1, even if that's a relatively low bar to climb. Hey, I'll take what I can get. The topics du jour: Nick Faust at the point, a new football commitment, and the Big Ten maybe changing their division names to something that actually makes sense.
Maryland considering Nick Faust at point?
It was only a matter of time before this discussion began in earnest, given that it was clear that Mark Turgeon's not exactly psyched with Pe'Shon Howard at the point and Seth Allen is far from ready. The only other option? Nick Faust, who ran point for much of last year, albeit with mixed results.
It'd be at the very least an interesting option, and could cause some problems for opponents in terms of length and athleticism, although I'm not sure how serious Turgeon is with it. I'll try to dig up some old numbers on how Faust performed at point for a later post, but if my memory serves me: while Faust was turnover-prone and up-and-down at the point, he was also more effective offensively (generally speaking) and Maryland ran their offense better with him running things at the end of the year.
Remember the Faust at the end of last year, aggressive but sensible and looking like an even better option than Terrell Stoglin offensively? If him "running point" - and I use scare quotes because he clearly wasn't a traditional point guard - gets that back, then it's worth a shot.
Florida defensive end Chandler Burkett commits to Maryland
Consensus two-star, formerly committed to Florida International but flipped after visiting over the weekend. Bit of a strange take at this point, but Edsall's never been shy about taking his guys. He's listed as a defensive end, but at 6-4 and 225 I can't help but think he's more likely to fill the WILL rush 'backer spot. Either way, I'm entirely on board with adding more and more kids from the Sunshine State.
Highlights are here; he doesn't look particularly quick out of the blocks but seems solid in pursuit and a good nose for where the ball's going to be.
N.C. State game is a sell-out
That's a very positive sign, and a big crowd will be a huge help in trying to upset the Wuffies. But after losing two in a row, I can't help but wonder how many will actually show.
Gottfried previews State-Maryland
The ACC coaches teleconference was yesterday, so we get a few quotes from Gott on tomorrow's game. He's very complimentary, as you'd expect, but does go out of his way to mention that he "has a team that's been through the wars of this league." I imagine that came up when talking about Maryland's inexperience compared to State's relative experience, and it's one of the biggest reasons I'm wary about tipping this as a potential trap game. Maryland's biggest shortcoming right now is their lack of experience, which leads to a lack of composure. We saw the difference against FSU and then again against Miami, and I have a feeling it may be a deciding factor yet again against N.C. State.
Big Ten to consider renaming Legends, Leaders divisions, Jim Delany says
That's good news. Nay, great news. I'm never going to keep Legends and Leaders straight. I could hardly do it with Atlantic and Coastal.
He says that if they're not going to have purely geographic divisions, then they still won't have geographic names, but as the league becomes more stretched, there's a very good chance that they will need geographic divisions, even if that means shaking things up. Maryland and Rutgers are worried about travel, so there's no chance they're going to be split, and they'll push (and be backed up by the fans on this) to have the conferences aligned more sensibly, perhaps with Illinois and Wisconsin shunted out to West/Legends and Michigan joining the East/Leaders. They seem to be wedded to the idea of keeping Michigan and OSU separated, which would kill the possibility of pure geographical divisions, but if they cave on that point I imagine the names will change as well.