West Liberty Hilltopper Basketball

[Scrub]

Just for comparison, I looked up Sancomb's roster from this past year at Cal--a roster consisting of 14 players--and a randomly selected roster from his days at Wheeling U. I randomly picked 2013-14--a roster that consisted of 24 players.

Rest assured that Mike Lamberti isn't going to stuff 26 dudes in Hilltopper jerseys this year. It's part of the private school playbook. A move Sancomb--as just one example--obviously didn't take with him when he made the jump from a private to a public.

[boatcapt]

Why do you think these schools have every sport under the sun? More heads. More beds. The vast majority of our "non-revenue sport" athletes are paying mostly their own way.

Add them all up and it becomes a nice chunk of tuition money.

D3 Football is the poster child. Some of those rosters have like 150 players. But, some kid with wealthy parents can say he played at Mt. Union (as the 149th player).

Yup. I would add that pretty much all sports at the DII level are "non revenue producing!"

[IUPbigINDIANS]

All true. But "paying customers" (ie non schollys players) effect the schools bottom line no matter weather the school is private or public. Don't think 8 "paying players" would be the difference in most schools closing or staying open, but in these days of declining enrollment, you take students wherever you can get them!

Why do you think these schools have every sport under the sun? More heads. More beds. The vast majority of our "non-revenue sport" athletes are paying mostly their own way.

Add them all up and it becomes a nice chunk of tuition money.

D3 Football is the poster child. Some of those rosters have like 150 players. But, some kid with wealthy parents can say he played at Mt. Union (as the 149th player).

[boatcapt]

Don't forget that Coker is a small private. Those places often use extended rosters to add more "paying customers" who dream of playing ball in college to the tuition ledger. Very few public schools do that. I would be shocked if Lamberti had a roster that big at WLU. That was likely more institutional in nature. Remember the days when Wheeling U would have a team picture that looked like it had a varsity and JV squad?

All true. But "paying customers" (ie non schollys players) effect the schools bottom line no matter weather the school is private or public. Don't think 8 "paying players" would be the difference in most schools closing or staying open, but in these days of declining enrollment, you take students wherever you can get them!

[TopperNation]

Being most of them were paying their own way Wheeling would have probably preferred to have 40 in the layup line. It's just a money grab.

Yeah, that explains a lot then. Kids paying to live out a collegiate dream.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Yeah that's going to be a big change here if we have more than 12 or 13 players. I remember laughing at Wheeling Jesuit years ago when they would show up with like 20 + players in the layup line.

Being most of them were paying their own way Wheeling would have probably preferred to have 40 in the layup line. It's just a money grab.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

That does seem to be a difference between our former coach and Mike. Mike appears to like larger rosters while our former coach typically kept his roster in the 12-13 player range.

He was likely highly encouraged to sign as many players as possible -- with the notion being crystal clear players 13 and beyond are simply there to pay their own way, boost enrollment and get to say they play college basketball.

Follow the money. It's a common charade amongst schools that size.

[Scrub]

That does seem to be a difference between our former coach and Mike. Mike appears to like larger rosters while our former coach typically kept his roster in the 12-13 player range.

Don't forget that Coker is a small private. Those places often use extended rosters to add more "paying customers" who dream of playing ball in college to the tuition ledger. Very few public schools do that. I would be shocked if Lamberti had a roster that big at WLU. That was likely more institutional in nature. Remember the days when Wheeling U would have a team picture that looked like it had a varsity and JV squad?

[TopperNation]

That does seem to be a difference between our former coach and Mike. Mike appears to like larger rosters while our former coach typically kept his roster in the 12-13 player range.

Yeah that's going to be a big change here if we have more than 12 or 13 players. I remember laughing at Wheeling Jesuit years ago when they would show up with like 20 + players in the layup line.

[boatcapt]

Their 2024-2025 roster shows 20 players. I'm not sure how many played at all (or even dressed).

That does seem to be a difference between our former coach and Mike. Mike appears to like larger rosters while our former coach typically kept his roster in the 12-13 player range.

[boatcapt]

Are there any more players left at Coker? I mean is the team manager coming too, lol? I was joking earlier when I asked if we should be called the West Lib Cobra's, but now I may actually get some shirts made up.

In the words of Bill Parcell - "You are what your record says you are." We were a 30 win Elite 8 team that won the MEC regular season title last year and we lost most of our top tier talent to graduation and transfer. We brought in a new HC and a large number of his players from a 19 win team that did not make the NCAA Tourney and finished tied for third in their conference regular season.

Every season is a new season so you don't know how the players will mature but it's just a difficult stretch to believe that a simple change in uniform and location will be the difference between a 19 win team and a 30 win one, regardless of what the advanced stats say.

I'd be ecstatic if we win in the low 20's and sneak into the NCAA tourney as a #7 seed.

[Topper_Hopper]

Are there any more players left at Coker? I mean is the team manager coming too, lol? I was joking earlier when I asked if we should be called the West Lib Cobra's, but now I may actually get some shirts made up.

Their 2024-2025 roster shows 20 players. I'm not sure how many played at all (or even dressed).

[TopperNation]

Are there any more players left at Coker? I mean is the team manager coming too, lol? I was joking earlier when I asked if we should be called the West Lib Cobra's, but now I may actually get some shirts made up.

[boatcapt]

Hahahaha, well let me book my hotel room for downtown Indianapolis then, who wouldn't sign up for an undefeated season Boat!

Who knew all we needed to do was get rid of Howlett, hire Mike and recruit the players he recruited at Coker! Could have had TWO National Championships and looking to a "threepeat" this coming season!!

[Columbuseer]

Add Xavier Harris from Coker

6-2
jr 2 yrs to play
24 mins per game, 6.5 ppg
3.4 assist to turnover ratio
4 rebounds per game
46 steals on season