Houston vs. Bourrage
- Thread starter Hawkangler
- Start date
Both still have three more years so it’s hard to say. Bourrage is buried behind a lot of young talent ahead of her, but I do know LSU is still very high on her.
Doesn't matter Bourrage was never ever considering Iowa
Everything I read was she felt her star was too bright to be a Hawk. Journey seems very grounded and fits the Iowa team first model.
You are right still very early to tell. Another thing however going against Bourrage with playing time is that you know LSU will probably get a stud or two in the portal and sign another couple of 5 star recruits and is already behind so e freshman. My guess is she will finish her career closer to home but not at Iowa
To what? Message board conversations?
Did any of those comments get attributed to her or was it the ‘I heard’ reports?
If I recall and it has be awhile ago she said she wanted to play in the SEC because it was the best conference. HawkFan10 is correct, she showed very little interest in the Hawks even with a runner-up finish in the NCAA tourney.
I watched some of the LSU vs. USC game. I did not hear Bourrage's name called. After checking the box score, I saw she didn't play.
I never understand recruiting. Bourrage, then Lewis and Guy in 2028. Not sure why these top Iowa players leave the state.
As already stated too early to tell, LSU returns 6 guards next year. Going into next year seems like Fulwiley, Richard and Williams are set to be big cogs in the rotation. While not getting huge minutes Bella Hines seems to be getting the deep rotation minutes currently.
Might want to include McD AA Sahara Williams in there.
The Guy recruiting situation for Iowa is most likely similar to why Iowa didn’t offer the Joens girls - crazy father. In some cases it’s an Iowa is “Too white.”, thing. Sometimes it’s parents/players getting bad advice. I have no idea about what made Lewis’ decision but I never heard anything that she wasn’t interested in Iowa. We heard things about Divine having no interest in Iowa early on.
With Houston, Iowa already had a built in relationship with the family due to the years of recruiting Jinaya, and getting her commitment.
And that's why Iowa will struggle to land top tier recruits/guards.
Even though we had Caitlin Clark, more players like Bourrage, especially those of color, feel their "star is too bright" to go to Iowa.
This is a true f***ing story, btw.
And yet we blindly cry that our coaching staff (even Bluder when she was here) isn't getting the job done on the recruiting front.....................
I don't think it's players think their "star is too bright." Iowa is a good program, but it is in a heavily majority white state (4% black) and a heavily majority white university (3-4% black).
I would guess leaving Iowa and going to a place where you aren't in such a minority is appealing.
Journey top tier as well as Addie and McKenna. Ava and Chat maybe right behind. Iowa does need to get more.
It will be interesting in today’s free agency to see if this doesn’t change. Many players not willing to wait their turn are leaving these schools for greener pastures. The lure of $ is going to exacerbate this. Then again, perhaps money is not a problem and these schools will just pay them to sit.
One thing for sure is change is the rule of the game and that’s not going away. I hope that the addition of Journey and CCW and their success and popularity here will help change some minds!
Obviously any school that isn't Iowa is a worse choice.
A friend of mine taught both girls at North. He said between the two he’d rather have Houston because she would work hard and is more grounded. He said she would end up better as a player than Bourrage.
For what it’s worth Bourrage is buried on the depth chart and they have more star guards coming in at LSU. I bet she transfers out but she just burned a year of development since she really only played in mop up duty. We already saw Houston improve over the season and she’s playing meaningful minutes.
For what it’s worth Bourrage is buried on the depth chart and they have more star guards coming in at LSU. I bet she transfers out but she just burned a year of development since she really only played in mop up duty. We already saw Houston improve over the season and she’s playing meaningful minutes.
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I don't fault her for going to Stanford. Maybe she and her family cares a great deal about academics. Heck now that Stanford's basketball team is in the tank, maybe playing basketball won't be as demanding as before, and she can concentrate more on study.
And yet, Chit Chat apparently doesn't feel that way.
Correct. People prioritize different things when they make decisions.
My wife and I love little Chit Chat. Love her smile and bubbly personality. She is a very good interview. Bright and articulate. Glad she is a part of the Iowa family.
Think LSU gave her a ton of NIL to possibly get recruited over vs Iowa? Every time a recruit goes elsewhere does not mean it was for money.
Iowa's star is pretty bright...
LSU does have deep pockets but you never know why recruits pick one school over another. Some kids want to go off on their own, maybe LSU's culture fit her better, maybe she liked Mulkey's bling. One never knows. Glad Journey's a Hawk. Wish she was a little taller but if she develops her perimeter more, who knows what she can do
When Caitlin was making history Bourrage was liking snide comments about Caitlin being a brat and was agreeing with Cody Mcmahon's comments. I dont think money was the reason Bourrage didnt go to Iowa, it was simply she didnt care much for the homestate school.
I think race can be a part of it, but it's also largely about image and brand.
I tried an imperfect exercise in which I asked ChatGPT to give me 5 words that illustrated the way players and fans think and feel about the women's basketball programs at Iowa, LSU, and UConn. Here's what it came up with:
Iowa:
Passion
Selfless
Connected
Grit
Relentless
LSU:
Swagger
Confidence
Flashy
Fearless
Dominant
UConn:
Legacy
Discipline
Excellence
Precision
Championships
If there's any truth at all to this, I can see why some players, depending on their personality, might see a better fit at schools other than Iowa.
She's is NOT coming to Iowa.
She doesn't want to come to Iowa and Iowa doesn't want her.
Much like when Jan passed on Jada Williams the PG for ISU this season. Williams visited Iowa after entering the portal and there was mutual interest. But Iowa decided not to offer her after the visit because of a "lack of fit." After watching her at ISU this season, I understand why. (she's entered the portal again btw)
Jan isn't going to bring players into the program that she think won't be good fits when it come to the culture of the team. It surely means that Iowa will miss out on some talented players (or lose players like Emely R.) but that's how Jan runs things. For the most part, I'd say it's for the better