Morning report 2024-06-20

How many days until LATE NIGHT in The PHOG! ?
and other dates of interest... *Estimate based on first Friday in October. Official announcement expected in July 2024.

RECRUITING CALENDAR DATES for D1 MEN'S BASKETBALL
2024-05-01 thru 06-30: quiet period, except as noted below†
..2024-06-16 and 06-19: dead periods†
..2024-06-21 thru 06-23: evaluation period†
..2024-06-28 thru 06-30: evaluation period†
2024-07-01 thru 07-31: dead period, except as noted below†
..2024-07-11 thru 07-14: evaluation period†
..2024-07-19 thru 07-21: evaluation period†
..2024-07-23 thru 07-25: evaluation period†
2024-08-01 thru 09-03: quiet period, except as noted below‡
..2024-08-06 thru 08-20: dead period‡
2024-09-04 thru 2025-04-30: recruiting period, except as noted below‡
..2024-11-04 thru 11-07: dead period‡
..2024-12-24 thru 12-26: dead period‡
..2025-04-03 thru 04-10: dead period‡
Recruiting Calendars linked below contain detailed info and explanation of recruiting periods.
† NCAA.org: 2023-24 NCAA RECRUITING CALENDAR Division I Men’s Basketball
‡ NCAA.org: 2024-25 NCAA RECRUITING CALENDAR Division I Men’s Basketball

KU ATHLETICS

✦ KU MEN'S HOOPS -
All quiet on the KU Men's Hoops front.

Latest recruiting "dead" period (no contact with recruits allowed, on or off campus) is over.

Today is a "quiet" period day (in-person recruiting contacts allowed on campus, no recruiting activities allowed off campus).

Tomorrow begins an "evaluation" period (on campus recruiting allowed, plus staff can be off-campus evaluating -- e.g., attending games to watch recruits -- but no off-campus in-person recruiting contacts allowed).

The next full "recruiting" period, where both on & off campus in-person contacts are allowed, begins SEP 4.


✦ KUFB -
Here is 247Sports projected final season records for Big 12 teams this fall. KU is projected 4th best, but of note is that the article up front states "There is no clear-cut favorite with an obvious path to the championship game".
247Sports.com - Nagel: Predicting every Big 12 football team's updated final record, order of finish for 2024 season
Really hoping Jalen Daniels can stay healthy this season. If so, I like KU's chances to win it all.
Based on historical results, that one issue is a mighty big "if".
Fingers crossed!

✦ KU Athletics -
• 247Sports.com - Swain: Travis Goff credits alignment between Kansas AD, University as keys to KU's continued ascension

• In a 247Sports.com VIP article, Swain reports the gist from a follow on, almost 40 minute one-on-one conversation with AD Goff
→ A quick rehash of the previous article
→ Re: college athletics future, Goff is excited, says it's good that athletes will get a share of the revenue, and it will come down to the department for most guidance on how to share until NCAA guidance on the subject is developed.
→ Big 12 and Private Equity - no confirmation or denial, just noting that Yormark is doing a great job exploring options and moving the conference into the future.
→ Gateway District Phase I is on time and on budget ($450 M). Phase II contract expected to be finalized in a few weeks, again on plan, on schedule. Final capacity TBD by fan interest and support. Goff is looking forward to "watching KU athletes and KU fans enjoy the stadium that everyone deserves."
→ There will be student buses for the Arrowhead games. Nothing was mentioned re: the Children's Mercy Park non-con games against Lindenwood and UNLV. I am looking for more info on that.
→ AFH renovations: on schedule to be ready for hoops season. No hints or photos to be released. Per Swain, "it's going to be much different while keeping the soul of Allen Fieldhouse." NB: no central AC, but improved air flow for fan comfort -- although part of the magic of Allen Fieldhouse (and its home-court advantage) is that it isn't always going to be perfectly 70 degrees in there all the time (Swain paraphrasing Goff).


ELSEWHERE -
A quintet of links to ESPN articles.
• ESPN+: 2024 men's NCAA basketball transfer portal: Winners, losers KU up top.
• ESPN - Lunardi: Still way too early 2025 men's NCAA Bracketology KU #1.
• ESPN - Rogers: When, how will robot umps arrive in MLB?
And finally, two articles on the legendary Willie Mays
• ESPN - Kurkjian: Why there will never be another MLB player like Willie Mays
• ESPN - Schoenfield: Willie Mays was even better than his all-time great stats


The Lawrence forecast calls for periods of sun and clouds with a significant chance of afternoon thundershowers (there goes finishing the fence -- letting the concrete cure on the new posts), followed by a humid but mainly clear night. Chance of precipitation goes from 88% during the day to 6% overnight.
High of 90F (32.2 C) and an overnight low of 69F (20.6 C).

That is all for now.

Hope you have a GREAT day!

ROCK CHALK!

✦ Thought for the Day
"Don't waste your time in anger, regrets, worries, and grudges. Life is too short to be unhappy."
— Roy T. Bennett