Romeo Langford

[dbmhoosier]

9 minutes ago, milehiiu said:

Agree.  Why did he spend literally hours after his season ending games, signing autographs..... for IU fans ?  If Romeo wanted to alienate IU fans.... he could have just left the gym after the games, and got on the bus so his teammates would not have had to waited hours for him.

Maybe it's a combination of 2 things.  One that he is looking to avoid backlash but two is that he is also looking to build his brand and is keeping this going to attract all the attention that the IU fanbase brings.  That's really been my thinking all along.  I've been saying Vandy and I still think Vandy but that's just my opinion.  One thing I do feel very strongly on is that Romeo has known exactly where he's going for months now.

And I'll say one more thing in that if Romeo is going anywhere but IU the Langfords have handled this recruitment about as poorly as possible.

[Hoosierdave]

17 minutes ago, milehiiu said:

Fake news.  Perpetuated by Vandy fans.

The fact that they are potentially looking to announce at Romeo's high school or in the city of New Albany pretty much proves that. If Romeo was so concerned about backlash, then idk why he would drag this out till the very end, continue to give Archie & fans the impression they have a shot, and then ultimately decide that the climax of his recruitment would be in front of all the Indy Media/IU fan base. That's the worst gameplan imaginable lol. I'm sure he would use the national coverage of one of these all-star games to announce (especially if he's alongside Garland or Grimes) instead then.

I think if he decides to commit in his hometown, it would definitely be IU. While Zion's had the largest national attention, Romeo's recruitment dominates from a state/local perspective. You would probably hear a lot of dead air if he left the Hoosier state.

 

[milehiiu]

2 minutes ago, Hoosierdave said:

 

I think if he decides to commit in his hometown, it would definitely be IU. While Zion's had the largest national attention, Romeo's recruitment dominates from a state/local perspective. You would probably a lot of dead air if he left the Hoosier state.

 

Not just local or Indiana.  Romeo's recruitment is the talk of the nation.

Here is just one example :

If Indiana gets Romeo Langford, Archie Miller could have better Year 2 - ESPN

[IUCrazy2]

19 minutes ago, dbmhoosier said:

And I'll say one more thing in that if Romeo is going anywhere but IU the Langfords have handled this recruitment about as poorly as possible.

That is where I am at.

[BGleas]

39 minutes ago, dbmhoosier said:

Maybe it's a combination of 2 things.  One that he is looking to avoid backlash but two is that he is also looking to build his brand and is keeping this going to attract all the attention that the IU fanbase brings.  That's really been my thinking all along.  I've been saying Vandy and I still think Vandy but that's just my opinion.  One thing I do feel very strongly on is that Romeo has known exactly where he's going for months now.

And I'll say one more thing in that if Romeo is going anywhere but IU the Langfords have handled this recruitment about as poorly as possible.

I have two thoughts on your post. 

On point one, building his brand through IU fans and the attention that brings for him only works if he goes to IU. If he goes somewhere else than all that brand building was for nothing. Damon Bailey isn’t Damon Bailey in Indiana if he had gone to UCLA or TCU (crappy program I can equate to Vandy). 

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s had in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in the Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

Edit: Caveat on point 2 though is that I really do think he wanted to watch IU/Archie this season, see how Archie coaches and get to know the staff better. So there is that aspect to waiting, which is real and gives me hope IU is the choice. 

[dbmhoosier]

Just now, BGleas said:

I have two thoughts on your post. 

On point one, building his brand through IU fans and the attention that brings for him only works if he goes to IU. If he goes somewhere else than all that brand building was for nothing. Damon Bailey isn’t Damon Bailey in Indiana if he had gone to UCLA or TCU (crappy program I can equate to Vandy). 

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s at in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

He's been getting more attention than any of the other top recruits for some time now and it's purely because he's the only one uncommitted.  It doesn't matter if he goes elsewhere.  Everyone and their grandmother has done nothing but talk about him for months now. 

[BGleas]

1 minute ago, dbmhoosier said:

He's been getting more attention than any of the other top recruits for some time now and it's purely because he's the only one uncommitted.  It doesn't matter if he goes elsewhere.  Everyone and their grandmother has done nothing but talk about him for months now. 

Not really. In IU-land, yes. For the most part, Langford is basically unknown nationally. 

[HoosierSadaseci]

Well since it's going to be a month until he announces his decision kind of lends itself to the fact that maybe he really hasn't decided yet.  I really don't get putting off making his decision known if he knows where he wants to go.  And no, I'm not buying any bunk about fear of backlash, I trust that he is following his process.

[cohete15]

34 minutes ago, BGleas said:

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s had in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in the Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

From everything I've read here, and a paid site, Tim Langford is sold on IU. 

Knowing this, and assuming it's true..which I believe it is...we can look at the situation in 2 ways...

1. Both Tim and Romeo are sold, but want to visit IU to inquire about things in regards to his college life in Bloomington...academics, living facilities, schedule, etc. Don't feel comfortable committing without gathering all of that information and making plans. I doubt during his other visits to Btown, he was too focused on the normal life college student stuff. Seeing as how the Langford's have executed their plan all along, this would not surprise me...and in fact, I would expect it.

2. Tim is sold on IU, but Romeo is still torn...with maybe his heart in Nashville (who has been recruiting him longer) and his head (and part of his heart) in Bloomington. In which case, listen to your parents, Romeo!

[5fouls]

There are 9 of the top 100 in the ESPN ranking still uncommitted, including #7 (Anfernee Simons) and #16 (EJ Montgomery).  Let's stop pretending that Romeo is the only one who has not yet committed.  It happens every year, and he's not the only top player in this class still considering his options.

http://www.espn.com/college-sports/basketball/recruiting/playerrankings

 

 

[Indykev]

1 hour ago, BGleas said:

I have two thoughts on your post. 

On point one, building his brand through IU fans and the attention that brings for him only works if he goes to IU. If he goes somewhere else than all that brand building was for nothing. Damon Bailey isn’t Damon Bailey in Indiana if he had gone to UCLA or TCU (crappy program I can equate to Vandy). 

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s had in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in the Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

Edit: Caveat on point 2 though is that I really do think he wanted to watch IU/Archie this season, see how Archie coaches and get to know the staff better. So there is that aspect to waiting, which is real and gives me hope IU is the choice. 

The best post in this thread!! Point 2 is spot on.

[Hoosierdave]

I will end my night of posting on an optimistic note.Using the facts we have to date, let’s imagine the absolute worst case scenario…Would Romeo use the unofficial visit just to tell Archie, a coach who prioritized him so much that he burnt all of his visits quicker than coaches who had a year+ to recruit him, thanks but no thanks? Would Romeo then follow that up with announcing in his hometown, in front of the fans who woke up at 5 am just to stand in line to see him, and the opposing schools’ student sections that dressed up in all IU attire, and the little kids who waited hours for a picture/autograph, that he’s taking his talents elsewhere? Would he invite the mayor, a known IU alumnus, to help him reveal that he will be disappointing everyone?

I like our chances, people. Go Hoosiers!

[PoHoosier]

1 hour ago, BGleas said:

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s had in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in the Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

Edit: Caveat on point 2 though is that I really do think he wanted to watch IU/Archie this season, see how Archie coaches and get to know the staff better. So there is that aspect to waiting, which is real and gives me hope IU is the choice. 

This decision could set him up for life.  I get taking time on it.  As mentioned, RL's relationships with CAM and staff are relatively fresh, the delay allows for the opportunity to build those up.  So many reasons to me the lean grows in IUs favor.

Edit: outside of visits, what are the limits on communication?

[ArchieBall13]

1 hour ago, BGleas said:

I have two thoughts on your post. 

On point one, building his brand through IU fans and the attention that brings for him only works if he goes to IU. If he goes somewhere else than all that brand building was for nothing. Damon Bailey isn’t Damon Bailey in Indiana if he had gone to UCLA or TCU (crappy program I can equate to Vandy). 

On point two, I agree. Langford can make his decision anyway he sees fit. Who are we to tell him what to do. But with that said, I just can’t fathom how he doesn’t know at this point. It’s a huge decision of course, but it’s also not that hard. I mean, he’s had his list whittled the 3 for what 5+ months? He’s visited all 3 schools for official visits and IU and Vandy for unofficial visits as well. He’s had in-home visits, he’s been able to watch the programs all season. I could understand the indecision if he didn’t cut his list in the Fall and was taking his officials during the season, but other than player movement, I just don’t know what else there is to know?

Edit: Caveat on point 2 though is that I really do think he wanted to watch IU/Archie this season, see how Archie coaches and get to know the staff better. So there is that aspect to waiting, which is real and gives me hope IU is the choice. 

On point 2, the stubborn fan in me wants to agree with you...just make up your mind Romeo (and commit to IU )! However, I think there could be legitimate reason to delay from the info Mile relayed along, among other factors. Looking at it from Romeo's perspective under the hypotethical assumption he's an IU lean:

List trimmed to 3 at the beginning of the season...put us in his final 3 due to a solid relationship with Archie and wants to see how we progress under him during the season (i.e. jury still out on IU). IU season ended a week ago so the full body of work was only just recently wrapped up. He liked what he saw from Archie this season on the progress we made (over and above Vandy's crappy season under Drew). Has time to reflect on this fact and recently decides to plan a follow-up B-town visit to make sure academics/fit feels right before pulling the trigger. Pushes out a couple more weeks becuase his bball schedule/life is a bit hectic right now, etc.

Who knows what's going on in the kid's head, but if you look at it through rose-colored glasses...everything he's done fits nicely with that narrative.  

[FKIM01]

I'm not nearly as convinced that he's made up his mind.  I think he's absolutely leaning toward a school, but I think he still wants to answer a few questions before he says for certain.  I don't believe for a minute he wouldn't announce if he were already 100% sure.

[hoosierBGH]

13 hours ago, milehiiu said:

Not sure your guys take on JMV.  But I love him.  He and I used to trade some great recruiting "intel" back in the day.  I found him to be very informed, and cordial... always willing to talk to this old smuck out of Colorado.

Now I don't know about this Rakestraw character.  However, I will say this.  He needs to get some new sources.

The Langford family has been the most tight lipped family of any recruit I have kept track of. Anyone saying there is a lean, did not get it from the Langford family. 

Rakestraw is all Butler all the time. He has good connections with the Butler program and may have some sources on their recruiting. When it comes to IU, he just takes the most prevalent rumors at the time and claims they were from one of his sources. I've always gotten the impression that he resents having to talk about iU at all. 

[Seeking6]

1 minute ago, hoosierBGH said:

Rakestraw is all Butler all the time. He has good connections with the Butler program and may have some sources on their recruiting. When it comes to IU, he just takes the most prevalent rumors at the time and claims they were from one of his sources. I've always gotten the impression that he resents having to talk about iU at all. 

Yep. They have a few at 1070 that aren't the most dialed in....even locally. I still listen to shows in background if nothing else on but I listen to Rome at Noon and I honestly like Query and Schultz show much better at 3pm on 1260. Both those guys went to IU but are the furthest thing from homers. Almost remind me of Kitchell. They go out of their way to be critical to try and show how objective they are.

 

 

[CrimsonV]

55 minutes ago, hoosierBGH said:

Rakestraw is all Butler all the time. He has good connections with the Butler program and may have some sources on their recruiting. When it comes to IU, he just takes the most prevalent rumors at the time and claims they were from one of his sources. I've always gotten the impression that he resents having to talk about iU at all. 

Rakestraw sounds like your typical Butler fan - using any possible negative to chip away at big brother.  I’m not buying it.

[cybergates]

15 hours ago, mchenry34 said:

I don’t see how pushing back the announcement avoids “backlash” given the season would have been over anyway...

especially since this moves the announcement into the state of Indiana rather than out of the state like an earlier announcement would have done.

i don’t think people close to Romeo are talking about this at all, my guess is that all perceptions are being received from the staffs at each respective school.

Sources say that the Langfords fear the backlash so much that they are looking for properties in both Lawrence and Nashville (because Romeo hasn't decided between the two schools yet, but obviously has eliminated IU since he hasn't announced yet) and lining up movers so the movers can move all of their possession the night before the announcement. The family is so scared in fact, that they have forced Romeo to take an additional unofficial visit to IU, to keep their fans believing they have a chance until they can make their exit from the state immediately after the announcement. Lastly, if Romeo makes the NBA as predicted, he will refuse to play for the Indiana Pacers and at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for a visiting team, for fear of his life. I'll let you know if BS, I mean my source, has any additional information. 

[dwtaylor1055]

2 minutes ago, cybergates said:

Sources say that the Langfords fear the backlash so much that they are looking for properties in both Lawrence and Nashville (because Romeo hasn't decided between the two schools yet, but obviously has eliminated IU since he hasn't announced yet) and lining up movers so the movers can move all of their possession the night before the announcement. The family is so scared in fact, that they have forced Romeo to take an additional unofficial visit to IU, to keep their fans believing they have a chance until they can make their exit from the state immediately after the announcement. Lastly, if Romeo makes the NBA as predicted, he will refuse to play for the Indiana Pacers and at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for a visiting team, for fear of his life. I'll let you know if BS, I mean my source, has any additional information. 

I hope this is sarcasm speaking lol Because that would be silly to pack up the family and move out of state for a college basketball decision IMO

[cybergates]

7 hours ago, FKIM01 said:

I'm not nearly as convinced that he's made up his mind.  I think he's absolutely leaning toward a school, but I think he still wants to answer a few questions before he says for certain.  I don't believe for a minute he wouldn't announce if he were already 100% sure.

^This

If he was forced to make a decision today, he probably knows who he would choose so in a way he has his mind made up, but given this is a huge, once in a lifetime decision for this young man, he isn't making that decision today, he's making it in April after he's done focusing on and trying to lead his team to a state title, playing in multiple all-star games, making any necessary last visits, gathering any additional information, waiting for his finalist rosters for next year to be finalized, etc. 

11 hours ago, dbmhoosier said:

Maybe it's a combination of 2 things.  One that he is looking to avoid backlash but two is that he is also looking to build his brand and is keeping this going to attract all the attention that the IU fanbase brings.  That's really been my thinking all along.  I've been saying Vandy and I still think Vandy but that's just my opinion.  One thing I do feel very strongly on is that Romeo has known exactly where he's going for months now.

And I'll say one more thing in that if Romeo is going anywhere but IU the Langfords have handled this recruitment about as poorly as possible.

Couldn't disagree with this more. Why build a brand with fans you're going to piss off? Waste of time.

I think the Langfords have handled this recruitment as well as possible and his choice doesn't change that. Why do you think they've handled it poorly, only if they don't choose IU? Doesn't make sense to me. Message board rumors don't count for/against the Langfords. For example, if he chooses Vandy, but the backlash rumor is false he just wanted to play for Drew and with Garland and Shittu, how does that reflect poorly on the Langfords handling of the recruitment?

It all should be a moot point when he picks IU, so guess it doesn't really matter to debate it, but honestly wanted to know your thoughts on why you said that.

 

[Henryville Hoosier]

Another possibility that he is waiting is that he wants to sign his LOI when he verbals, that would eliminate people trying to change his mind. (GARLAND)

[IUCrazy2]

25 minutes ago, cybergates said:

^This

If he was forced to make a decision today, he probably knows who he would choose so in a way he has his mind made up, but given this is a huge, once in a lifetime decision for this young man, he isn't making that decision today, he's making it in April after he's done focusing on and trying to lead his team to a state title, playing in multiple all-star games, making any necessary last visits, gathering any additional information, waiting for his finalist rosters for next year to be finalized, etc. 

Couldn't disagree with this more. Why build a brand with fans you're going to piss off? Waste of time.

I think the Langfords have handled this recruitment as well as possible and his choice doesn't change that. Why do you think they've handled it poorly, only if they don't choose IU? Doesn't make sense to me. Message board rumors don't count for/against the Langfords. For example, if he chooses Vandy, but the backlash rumor is false he just wanted to play for Drew and with Garland and Shittu, how does that reflect poorly on the Langfords handling of the recruitment?

It all should be a moot point when he picks IU, so guess it doesn't really matter to debate it, but honestly wanted to know your thoughts on why you said that.

 

Honestly, I think anyone dragging out a decision this long is either A)extremely indecisive or B)is part of a struggle going on where parents are really pushing one option and child is thinking another.

So from their perspective they may be doing their due diligence but the longer they drag this out, the more they suck in the hometown fans.  Think of it this way, when you were younger and a girl just flat out rejected you out of hand, pretty easy to move on.  When you spent time building a relationship with a girl and she was signalling interest but when the time came she rejected you, more hurt feelings.

When Langford was a kid who was thought to be a lock for Louisville, he was getting the same type of attention that Kris Wilkes got.  Mostly local and about zero IU fan buy in.  After the whole Garland fiasco where people feel like the Indiana fans were taken advantage of to build a hype train, if he picks Vanderbilt, I think there are going to be hard feelings.  Nobody likes being strung along and whether your intentions are good or not, if you spurn the home team after all of this?  Well, I think it will be much worse than just getting rejected out of the gate.  And that blowback will fall on the kid and his parents.

Not fair but that is the way this stuff goes.

[CrimsonV]

3 minutes ago, RoadToZion said:

Honestly, everyone is overthinking this. From the start, he was going to decide in the spring. Now, his team is making a deep run in the tournament, thus pushing his timetable back so he can strictly focus on basketball right now.

After the season, he will sit down with parents, visit IU one more time, play in a couple basketball showcases.......and then decide. What am I missing? 

Not a thing.  You nailed it.

[IUCrazy2]

36 minutes ago, RoadToZion said:

Honestly, everyone is overthinking this. From the start, he was going to decide in the spring. Now, his team is making a deep run in the tournament, thus pushing his timetable back so he can strictly focus on basketball right now.

After the season, he will sit down with parents, visit IU one more time, play in a couple basketball showcases.......and then decide. What am I missing? 

You are missing nothing other then his timetable has been pushed back 2 times now and the most heavily invested fan base has absolutely nothing better to do from a basketball standpoint because their team missed the tournament (again).

So all of this can be completely rational and he could be having a hard time making up his mind, he could be looking to avoid distractions, etc. but the cold, hard, and unfair reality is that the longer this plays out, the worse it will be if he goes to Kansas or Vanderbilt.  He has the home crowd buying in right now and that is going to build even more over the next month.  That is a bunch of people being set up for a potential letdown.

With these things, the behind the scenes of the family's decision really will not matter.  We are at the point of blushing bride or jilted lover with Romeo and the IU fan base.  In my experience jilted lovers are much worse to deal with than a never was.