X's and Joe's

In Episode 67 of Xs and Joes, Bob and Mike preview Indiana’s 2026–27 roster and explore why its new construction could give Darren DeVries far more options this season.They discuss:The roster changes that could address several of last season’s biggest weaknessesWhy Marcus Burton may unlock a different version of Indiana’s offenseThe intriguing possibilities—and questions—surrounding IU’s revamped frontcourtHow the Hoosiers might replace Lamar Wilkerson’s productionWhich wings and freshmen could play their way into larger rolesWhy the statistical projections may not tell the complete storyWhat Indiana must show before this roster can be considered a legitimate threatThere are reasons for optimism, but also several important variables that won’t be resolved until the games begin. Bob and Mike sort through Indiana’s potential ceiling, its remaining concerns and the players who could determine where this season goes.

Bob Moats, Mike Wiemuth, and special guest Josh Burton from Everything College Basketball reunite to break down the rekindled border wars between Indiana, Kentucky, and Louisville as the three programs meet over consecutive Saturdays in December.Growing Up in Basketball CountryThe guys open with personal stories about how geography and family shaped their allegiances in the heartland of college hoops. Josh Burton shares his journey from a Kentucky-loving kid playing College Slam on Sega Genesis while his IU-fan dad looked on, to becoming one of the voices of Everything College Basketball.Josh's dad from Kentucky roots, moved to Indiana, raised UK fansThe "ugly girlfriend" Brian Evans comparisons at the Boys and Girls ClubGeography matters: South of I-64 = Kentucky rival, North = Purdue rivalEconomic migration brought Kentucky fans north decades agoThe Golden Age of the RivalryA walk down memory lane to when these matchups defined college basketball in the Midwest, featuring 50-50 splits at the Hoosier Dome and Freedom Hall that felt more like college football atmosphere.The Dome and Freedom Hall rotating neutral sites with perfect 50-50 ticket splitsBob Knight's late entrances causing entire stadiums to erupt (only 2% could see him)Mike Davis's 2002 incident liquidating 35% of his chip stack in one momentFreedom Hall's designated smoking room and nightmare parking lotThe 2012 Sweet Sixteen in Atlanta: IU-UK reunion on the way to UK's titleThe Modern Coaches: New Chapter, Same SynchronicityAll three programs now feature modern, uptempo coaches running similar five-out systems after years of divergent philosophies. The synchronicity creates potential for recruiting battles and on-court drama not seen since the mid-eighties.Kenny Payne: Possibly the worst major hire in 30 years (lost exhibition games to start)Pat Kelsey's beautiful flare screen offense at Louisville proving doubters wrongMark Pope's year-one home run at Kentucky vs. year-two injury crisisLamar Wilkerson recruitment: DeVries beats Pope for the elite shooter UK desperately needsFirst time since mid-eighties all three programs are nationally relevant togetherBreaking Down IU vs. LouisvilleThe hosts dissect Saturday's Indianapolis matchup with tactical depth, focusing on Louisville's 36 three-point attempts per game and IU's rebounding challenges.Sananda Fru as the X-factor: relentless rebounder who gets all his points within three feetWhy this is a Sam Alexis day, not Reed Bailey dayMikel Brown vs. Conerway/Enright: Can IU frustrate the talented but sometimes immature freshman?Long rebounds from 36 three-point attempts require boxing out 3-4 feet beyond the rimFoul trouble could doom IU's seven-man rotation against Louisville's 10-deep benchKentucky's Crisis and the UK-IU PreviewJosh Burton provides honest analysis of Kentucky's early-season struggles, from the Louisville loss to getting boat-raced by Michigan State and North Carolina, while explaining why Pope isn't on the hot seat despite fan outrage.Three marquee losses in three different ways: quit when opponents throw haymakersThe connectivity problem: Do these players even like each other?How injuries have devastated Pope's shooting-based systemWhy 50% of Big Blue Nation needs to "shut the hell up" on TwitterStill 15th in KenPom at 5-3 with incredibly difficult scheduleThe weekend ahead: IU-Louisville at 2:15pm in Indianapolis, followed by IU-Ohio State Big Ten Championship at 8:17pm - potentially the craziest IU sports weekend ever.On the mics: Bob Moats, Mike Wiemuth, and Josh Burton (Everything College Basketball)This episode brought to you by the Back Home Network and Homefield Apparel.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bob Moats and Mike Wiemuth assess which college basketball coaches are playing with house money and which are one bad loss away from the unemployment line in today's volatile college hoops landscape.IU's Dominant DebutThe Hoosiers opened the Darian DeVries era with a statement win, completely eliminating mid-range jumpers in favor of modern offense. Bob breaks down film showing the conceptual principles that make this system fundamentally different from the past decade.• Zero mid-range jumpers: the long two is officially dead at IU• Tucker DeVries diving into opponent's bench, Conway's elite passing• Rose 9 spots in KenPom after demolishing Alabama A&MThe Chip Stack FrameworkBob and Mike introduce their coaching evaluation model that replaces the outdated "four-year plan." In the portal era, coaches are playing Texas Hold'em, not building dynasties.• Why the 4-year grace period is dead - it's all-in poker now• The five tiers of success and where programs expect to be• The "Earl Bruce Syndrome" - stuck at 20 wins with no upsideCoaches in Serious DangerFour high-profile coaches face make-or-break seasons with dwindling chip stacks. From Carolina to Rutgers to Kansas State, these are the hot seats getting hotter by the day.• Hubert Davis at UNC: From Final Four to 15-20, lost key transfers• Steve Pikiell at Rutgers: The five-star experiment backfired badly• Jerome Tang at Kansas State: Can't recapture year-one magic• John Calipari at Arkansas: The perpetual talent churn continuesOn Thin Ice & High StakesThe guys examine coaches ranging from Butler's Thad Matta (stabilization hire gone stale) to Vanderbilt's Mark Byington (skipping levels on the way up). Plus, why football budgets are now eating basketball money at dual-sport schools.• Micah Shrewsbury's boring Notre Dame after Penn State's offensive genius• Porter Moser trapped in the Earl Bruce 20-win zone• Mark Byington's high-risk, high-reward Vanderbilt entertainment• Why midseason firings are the new normalComing up: A Moneyball conversation about roster construction in the NIL era and a potential IU-Kentucky-Louisville preview with Everything College Basketball.On the mics: Bob Moats and Mike WiemuthThis episode brought to you by the Back Home Network and Homefield Apparel.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

X's and Joe's Episode 40: Data vs Drama - A View of Modern RecruitingBob Moats and Mike Wiemuth welcome special guest Stephen Ragsdale, creator of IURecruiting.com, for a deep dive into how data-driven analysis can cut through the emotional chaos of following college basketball recruiting.Meet Stephen Ragsdale and IURecruiting.com[00:00-17:00]Stephen introduces himself as a third-generation IU fan who turned his Excel spreadsheet tracking into a comprehensive recruiting website. His journey from casual follower to creator of IURecruiting.com stemmed from wanting better tools to understand the recruiting process. The conversation touches on early season optimism around IU basketball, with Trent Sisley's viral shot from above Five Guys on Kirkwood symbolizing a new era of offensive philosophy under Darren DeVries.The Recruiting Bingo Card[17:00-30:00]Mike unveils his famous "Recruiting Miss Bingo Card" - a collection of predictable fan responses that appear on message boards after every recruiting loss. Classics include "We don't want him anyway," "This just proves we don't cheat," and "I only want kids who want to play for IU." The group discusses how these responses transcend fanbases, with Stephen noting Purdue fans' fixation on the cheating angle and Notre Dame supporters emphasizing academic standards. The card highlights how fans often rationalize losses by suggesting the coach nearly made a catastrophic mistake, but thankfully the recruit had the sense to go elsewhere.The Recruiting Funnel Framework[30:00-45:00]Mike introduces the corporate HR recruiting funnel model adapted for college basketball. Using Kansas's 2019 recruitment of Jalen Wilson as a case study, he demonstrates how successful programs move from many offers (10) to fewer official visits (3) to one commitment. The concept of "traction" becomes crucial - can you get elite kids interested enough to visit? Stephen shares how this framework was eye-opening for him, shifting his perspective from Mike Woodson's "fall in love with one target" approach to understanding roster building as a numbers game requiring multiple irons in the fire.IURecruiting.com Deep Dive[45:00-75:00]Stephen walks through his website's functionality, showing how it tracks offers, visits, and commitments across multiple recruiting classes and positions. The tool includes funnel comparisons with Kentucky, Kansas, and Arkansas - three programs with distinctly different recruiting philosophies. Key insights emerge about IU's 2026 recruiting:• Strong conversion rates at center position (3 visits from 6 offers)• Limited point guard targeting mirroring industry-wide trends toward portal guards• Critical Anthony Thompson recruitment coming down to IU vs Ohio State• The site reveals patterns that individual recruit tracking missesThe discussion highlights how Bill Self casts the widest net with offers while someone like Coach K was more selective, and how understanding these different approaches helps contextualize IU's strategy.The Modern Recruiting Landscape[75:00-End]The group examines how recruiting has fundamentally changed with the portal era. Key observations:• Elite programs like Florida, Louisville, and Michigan now build rosters with 1-2 elite high school players and multiple high-end portal transfers• Point guard positions especially skew toward experienced portal additions rather than 18-year-old freshmen• International recruiting (IU's two Yugoslav players) represents another talent stream• The "win first, then recruit" fallacy gets debunked - you need elite talent to win, not vice versaMike provides critical context about the Moneyball aspect of NIL: five-star freshmen rarely saturate winning metrics like Box Plus Minus. Only four five-stars made the top 50 nationally in BPM last season (Cooper Flagg, Khaman Maluach, Kon Knueppel, and VJ Edgecombe). The sweet spot kids and elite transfers dominate those leaderboards, suggesting programs should be more strategic about where they invest NIL dollars.The episode concludes with cautious optimism about DeVries's early recruiting indicators and why the Anthony Thompson recruitment looms as a key test.On the mics: Bob Moats, Mike Wiemuth, and special guest Stephen RagsdaleSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.