Decided to start a thread tracking my new D3 team. The plan is to recruit and build the fastest, most athletic, and best defensive program in D3. But, as everybody knows,  nothing goes according to plan in Gulf South country :)

Returning roster. I cut one player to balance the classes

Name	Yr.	Pos.	A	SPD	REB	DE	BLK	LP	PE	BH	P	WE	ST	DU	FT	TOT
Dale Rayburn	Sr.	PG	35	84	11	15	4	25	49	82	79	58	90	61	B+	593
Frank Chaney	So.	PG	23	82	1	17	2	18	62	61	70	49	66	68	C-	519
John Hooks	So.	PG	22	70	2	33	1	1	75	45	61	47	83	46	C	486
Russell Zuberbuhler	So.	SG	34	66	13	29	12	14	61	45	55	61	70	67	C+	527
John Smith	Sr.	SF	29	41	40	31	40	51	44	26	40	27	80	84	B-	533
David Fontenot	Jr.	SF	54	50	26	56	13	58	38	48	30	28	59	61	C+	521
Brian Cox	Sr.	PF	68	41	64	62	48	43	1	28	38	79	74	54	B-	600
Ricky Patterson	Jr.	PF	62	44	46	44	50	66	5	26	36	60	76	32	C+	547
Kenneth Wilken	So.	C	28	11	67	21	67	76	1	2	24	65	72	68	C-	502
Averages	-	-	39	54	30	34	26	39	37	40	48	53	74	60	-	536

Signing #1:


He'll play the 2 guard for Piedmont. I'm gonna try to redshirt him, since we already have 3 young guards here.

Signing #2:


Ath, speed, and defense are at a premium here at Piedmont, and this kid fits the bill. His rebounding is low, but he'll still play at the 3 spot. I'm hoping that his combination of ath/spd and p/bh will lead to numerous easy scoring opportunites in the press.

Signing #3:


This guy's the jewel of the class. I sat praying that he would drop down to me. Of course, as soon as he did an A prestige Gulf South team jumped on him. I was strapped for cash, so offered promised minutes and a start thinking that the battle was lost. Miraculously, that was enough to get him to sign. Chalk that up to Piedmont 1, Gulf South 0   ;)

Time to sit and wait for the season. I'll probably end up losing a couple of non-con games due to having a true freshman in the starting lineup, but it's well worth it. The expectations here at Piedmont are a NT berth every season, hopefully I'll live up to them

5 games into the season and I'm already feeling the effects of starting a FR. I've been competitive vs. very good teams, and I'm not saying that I would have won if Butler wasn't starting, but having an experienced senior at the end of the games could have pushed me over the edge. I'm optimistic that this team can do some damage in the postseason, however.

3-7 after non conference. Can't say I'm dissapointed with the record, but my rpi is lower than I hoped it would be (149). We will only get better as the year goes on, though. On to conference play

4 games into conference play, we're now 7-7 and our RPI has improved considerably. We're sitting at rpi 51 and sos 15. Hopefully it will continue to rise as we keep winning conference games. I'm not sure how long the SOS will remain at top level, but I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

On a side note, freshman Kendall Butler dropped 23 points in WE after sitting out a couple games. He'll be in the starting lineup for good now, until the postseason starts, that is.

Went 16-0 in conference play and won the CT. Got a 7 seed in the NT and lost in the second round to #8 Blackburn. I'm definitely happy with the season. Hopefully my prestige stays at an A.

Looking forward to next season, we won't be the best team in our conference (that title goes to Averett). Expectations will still be high, though. Time to sit and wait for recruiting to come around

Season #2 here at Piedmont. Our prestige stayed at an A, thankfully.

Going into recruiting, we needed to sign 2 guards (a PG and a SG) and 2 bigs. The state of Georgia proved to be full of talent (unlike last season), so much so that several schools from the northeast and other far-off places took notice. Fortunately, I was able to sign my all of my initial targets (for the first time ever). I'm very happy with my class, although I had to spend pretty much my whole budget in order win a couple battles.

Signing #1:


2-year JUCO player. He should add some beef to my junior class while maintaining the class structure (I cut a simAI-recruited JR to sign him). I'm hoping that he can become a low post scorer that I can lean on next year. I had to outbid a certain D2 school in North Carolina to sign him.

Signing #2:


The second big man. I found myself having to choose between a slew of so-so big men (in comparison to other top D3 signings) and this guy came out one top. He has high-high in LP and Reb, so despite his poor ATH he won't be too bad. He'll have plenty of time to improve, since he won't see the starting line-up until at least his junior year.

Signing #3:


I love his combo of ATH/SPD/DEF/STA. His passing and perimeter will also be assets. He'll be redshirted this year, only because Craig Akers (redshirt from last season) is also a SG. He'll certainly be an asset in our press defense.