We didn't end the season all that great (16-12, no postseason). However, the core of that team comes back, and I won what turned out to be a crucial battle to end my recruiting.

Shaun Ropp (#76 SG) - Like with a few prior recruits, if you see Ropp as a guard, you'll be disappointed. His speed is just so-so, and his low passing (to start) is a problem. However, turn him into a SF, and he becomes a far, far better prospect. While he won't become a better shooter, he's already a very good one, and he'll also turn into a strong defender and, way down the line, an efficient passer for a SF. He'll play a lot as a freshman as our #2 SF, as I promised him 15 minutes (which he'll get). I think he'll turn into a very efficient starter once he tops out everywhere.

Ropp wasn't my first choice. I lost a 50-50 battle with Dartmouth for someone who probably would've been a hair better. I didn't have a lot of cash left, so I had to sweat out a battle with Vermont, which I won in a 71-29 flip. Ropp was my second choice, and I didn't really HAVE a third choice, so I'm grateful I snagged him to salvage this group.

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

Not much to glow over, but a lot of bullets were dodged. Prater's going to be a very good frontcourt player. I, of course, wish he was a better scorer, but everything else about him is as good as a C- prestige program is going to do. Ropp will see lots of time right away and should develop reasonably well, while Childress will redshirt and be a long-term prospect for way, way down the line.

GRADE: B-/B. It's tough to be too enthusiastic in the short term, but long-term, these guys'll be okay.

We won 16 games all of last season with a young roster. We currently sit at 17-6 with three regular-season games to go. I may have overscheduled the non-league schedule a bit, as we went 4-6 before running off 13 straight wins in the Ivy League.

The best part is that I only have to fill two spots in recruiting (and only lose one starter). Here's the first recruit to sign...

Robert Goldberg (#77 PG) - Fun fact: I used to be a sportswriter in real-life and this kid's alma mater is one of the schools I covered. I think that's sort of cool.

Anyway, Robert Goldberg replaces Scott Ellerbee, our primary backup at SG, and he's a dead-eye shooter. In that respect, he'll be a factor right away, but he's far from a finished product. He's not a good defender right now, but given his high work ethic, that'll change pretty quickly, and he'll also turn into a very good rebounder for his position, which is nice to have. I do also wish he was a better athlete and floor general, but he's not slow and he does have a lot of room to improve his passing (though his mediocre ball handling might be a problem down the road).

I expect Tarek Herrman to play the lion's share of minutes as our backup PG/SG next season, which is his senior year. However, Goldberg likely slides in right behind him at the SG spot, which means he'll play a bit right away. He won't be a star, but he'll be a very nice role player for us once his defense gets up to snuff.

And just like that, we're done recruiting!

Pedro Sanchez (international so unranked) - Sanchez comes to us from Puerto Rico and replaces Sidney Barfield, who graduates after establishing himself as our starting power forward. However, our frontcourt returns Ivy League POY candidate Ernest Henderson and a bunch of underclassmen, so the depth chart may be a bit crowded.

For that reason, Sanchez will almost certainly redshirt, and that's a great thing for him long-term. His athleticism is as good as I've had in a frontcourt recruit, and that, coupled with him turning into a top-tier inside scorer and a good (though not great) rebounder, will make him a legitimate weapon on both ends of the floor. His lone limitations are speed and stamina. However, he'll have ample time to work on his conditioning during his year off, and once he does, I see him turning into a very strong low-D1 starter.

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

This was quick and relatively painless. Once again, the guards within 500 miles of Columbia were pretty brutal (seriously, WIS, no quality guards in New York City multiple seasons in a row is a pretty giant problem). However, Goldberg will be fine, and Sanchez has "Ivy League monster" potential given the redshirt year he'll almost certainly be taking. Add in that all of this got handled about as fast as can be expected, and I think there's plenty to like.

GRADE: B/B+. Goldberg is probably a B-, while Sanchez is in the A-/A range.

We finally made the NT last season and gave Michigan State a game for about 25 minutes before Sparty ran us off the floor. This season, unfortunately, we've underachieved (at least to my eye). We're 15-9, 11-3 in Ivy League play, and probably in the midst of my last season here. We lose three high-impact starters and our sixth man, and this crop of recruits was...not good. Add in the last few were nothing special, either, and it becomes a tricky landscape to navigate.

Recruiting, however, is underway. Let's take a look at the first signing...

Arthur Cardoza - When high schoolers stink, recruit JuCo's. That's the logic here, at least, and while Cardoza almost certainly won't start, he'll be a valuable reserve. He's already an excellent scorer, a capable rebounder, and a decent passer/ball handler for a big man, and his defense still has plenty of room to improve. Add in that he knows the M2M set and was five miles from campus (so a very easy, very inexpensive recruit), and he makes a lot of sense.

If I'm still here, I may go big in my lineup and start a PF at SF. If that happens, Cardoza will likely see significant playing time as the backup PF. If not, he may not play a ton, but he'll fit in when he does. He won't be a star, but with McDaniels, Espinal, Prater, and Sanchez coming back, this team doesn't need him to be one.

Recruiting rolls on with two signings and a pretty sick beat.

Jeremy Lewis (#93 PG) - Once again, the pool of guards is putrid. This time around, it made for particularly lousy timing. My starting SG and backup PG/SG are both seniors, and my starting PG is a junior.

Still, Jeremy Lewis isn't a bad get. He's already a very good passer with some more room to improve, and he'll also turn into a very good shooter and ball handler. His defense isn't great to start, but that'll also improve with time. His main weakness is that, while he's not slow and his athleticism is in a good place, he won't get any faster or more athletic. The only so-so speed isn't ideal, but his solid athleticism should help mask some of that.

In the long run, Lewis will be a good starter, and I like him just fine. He just needs a little bit of time and will probably play more than he should as a freshman and sophomore.

Brian Stepp - Stepp is totally unranked, which baffles me a bit as he's not a bad low-D1 prospect by any means. Still, rankings are entirely cosmetic, and a reminder of that every once in a while isn't the worst thing in the world.

Stepp is already a very good ball handler, and once his passing is maxed out, he'll be a decent pass-first point guard. Unlike Lewis, he's got room to grow athletically, which is a plus. On the other hand, he won't ever be more than a mediocre defender, and he's certainly not a scorer. He does have good potential in the scoring areas, but he starts off at low points in both categories. If he grows a ton, that's great, but I'm not betting the house on it.

I can see Stepp topping out similarly to this year's sixth man. He won't be a star, but there are worse things to be than a solid pass-first guy on a motion team.

And now, the one that got away...

Thomas Carl (***, #107 overall, #24 SG) - This was a total moonshot on my part. Carl is going to develop into a NBA-type talent. He has high potential in almost every key area, and the only reason I even had a chance is because he's ineligible right now. I backed up the proverbial truck for him, promising him a starting spot and 25 minutes per game as a freshman (had he become eligible, he'd have gotten that, too).

Initially, the fight was with my former school, Central Connecticut State, and Rutgers. Rutgers fell off, but on came A+ prestige UConn to blow everyone's doors off. Had they had another cycle or two, Carl probably would've been part of the Huskies, for sure. However, UConn lost a 50-25-25 roll, as Carl signed with CCSU.

Carl would've been an absolutely amazing signing, even if he sat out a season. Alas, the moonshot fell short.

All told, we wound up just fine this season. Columbia won the Ivy League CT for the second year in a row before running into Kentucky in the first round, giving the Wildcats a game for a half, and then getting blown out of the gym. I can live with that.

Jobs are open, and I got turned away from Texas, which I sort of had to at least apply to because of its A+ prestige and talent coming back. I'd say it's 60-40 in favor of me taking another job, because we lose a lot, and I mean A LOT, of talent this offseason. Columbia is up to a C+ prestige, and the cupboard isn't totally bare (especially compared to the vacant jobs that are out there), so staying isn't the worst thing in the world. However, I'm definitely looking around.

With that in mind, here's a better picture of what we lose with the first senior retrospectives in a few seasons.

Ernest Henderson - There's no better place to start than with one of the best frontcourt players in Columbia history. Henderson redshirted in his first season, and that gave him time to turn into an absolute terror. Twice an Ivy League POY, he's all over the record books, and while we've got frontcourt depth, replacing a player of his stature will not be easy.

Records: 1st in rebounds (857), 7th in minutes played (2,995), 7th in blocks (139), 9th in points (1,381), 9th in FG% (53.4%)

Oleg Repinski - Repinski was a three-star recruit, which a program of Columbia's prestige just isn't supposed to get. I got him because his potential was limited, but he was a four-year starter and turned out to be a terrific complementary player. He wound up being the "glue guy" who was always on the floor and filling stat sheets in fun ways, and there's a lot of value to having steady guys like that. Fun fact: Repinski is one of only two players in Columbia history with 1,200 points, 400 assists, and 200 rebounds.

Records: 1st in minutes played (3,543), 6th in assists (433), 15th in points (1,278), T-19th in steals (146)

William Bernard - Originally a SG, Bernard joined the list of guards converted to SF, where low ball handling and/or passing numbers aren't nearly as much of a problem. He turned into an all-around offensive threat, and he could've been a starter far sooner if not for the presence of two-years-older Jeffery Stewart, who was the Ivy League's leading scorer as a senior. He didn't make the record books, but he finishes as a two-time All-Ivy League First Team selection with more than 1,100 points.

Tarek Herrman - Herrman was a safe recruit that topped out pretty early and was passed on the depth chart by George Gustafson once that one got his defense up to snuff. However, Herrman was a solid starter as a sophomore and transitioned to a sixth-man role as a junior and senior. He had his limitations (namely his defense and just-OK outside shooting), but that role fit him like a glove and allowed him to play a lot off the bench.

ESPSports.com10/21 02:15 AM

bomberball accepts head coaching position at Richmond. Columbia searching for replacement...

Once Richmond's coach moved on to Boston College, I had to apply for this job, and I wound up getting it. Columbia was fun, but the A-10 is probably the perfect conference for the way I like to play the game, and a B- prestige is going to be a blast to play with.

I'll keep this updated with senior stuff for the recruits I've brought in. Hopefully the program doesn't go Sim, but I'm not betting the house on that.

All Columbia needed to go on a run was for their idiot coach to leave.

After I took the job at Richmond, Columbia somehow won a three-way roll for a four-star guard I was at "very low" with during the first phase of recruiting. That gave the Lions instant backcourt depth to go along with a starting lineup that had some talent. As a result, they went 28-4 and advanced all the way to the Sweet 16.

Senior retrospectives...

George Gustafson - When I recruited Gustafson, I beat out an A10 program, one I went against three times over at Richmond. I'm very thankful he went here, because he turned out to be a terrific low-D1 point guard. His main weakness coming in was his defense, but that got rectified and he turned into a pretty complete player. He started for three years, and his graduation leaves a pretty big hole.

Records: 5th in assists (483), 18th in minutes played (2,894).

Theodore McDaniels - McDaniels was never going to be an offensive standout, and I said as much after he signed. However, he made a definite impact on defense. He averaged 10 rebounds a game as a junior, and while that number slipped to 8 and change as a senior, he was still an elite rim defender for the level. Had I stayed and kept him in the same role, he might've wound up challenging Henderson's career rebounding record, but he still wound up doing plenty.

Records: 8th in rebounds (779), 17th in blocks (123).