AP Wisconsin blinked.
After days of hearing criticism from college basketball pundits and fans, the school decided redshirt freshman Jarrod Uthoff can transfer to any school outside the Big Ten.
The 6-8 forward was granted a release last week, but Wisconsin had placed the entire Big Ten, ACC, Iowa State and Marquette on a restricted list. It was an unusually harsh move – schools usually only restrict contact to other programs within their conference – and one that prompted fair amounts of criticism on the school and coach Bo Ryan.
(A school must request permission to speak with the transferring player. If that permission is not granted, the player can’t go on scholarship for one academic year if he transfers to that school. He also must sit out a season, per NCAA transfer rules.)
But as more details emerged about Uthoff’s transfer request, it became clear that public sentiment overwhelmingly considered Uthoff to be treated unfairly. Ryan came off as a bully when he defended his stance and caught more heat, though he tried to clarify those comments later when he spoke to Mike DeCourcy. He says he was bothered by the way Uthoff put in his transfer request.
By the time Ryan went on the ESPN radio program “Mike and Mike’ on Thursday morning, the sentiment crested to the point where Wisconsin decided to give Uthoff more freedom.
It should be noted, however, that this is only the second player to transfer during Ryan’s tenure that began in 2001.
Uthoff had a visit scheduled to Creighton, but will now likely visit Iowa State as well, which isn’t far from his Cedar Rapids, Iowa, home.
You also can follow me on Twitter @MikeMillerNBC.
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- lv00799 - Apr 19, 2012 at 4:41 PM
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Bo Ryan left UW-Milwaukee for Madison after just 2 years. Was his contract up? Was his “commitment” satisfied? Should HE have been blocked?
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- jrdave2304 - Apr 19, 2012 at 6:32 PM
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It was written into Bo Ryan’s contract with UWM that he would leave for Wisconsin if the job opened up and was offered the job. So no, he should have been blocked.
Know your facts.
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- lv00799 - Apr 22, 2012 at 6:03 PM
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You need to be blocked from this site because you are a complete idiot.Keep yourself busy.Go empty your cats litter box.
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- florida727 - Apr 19, 2012 at 4:41 PM
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If you heard Bo Ryan on “Mike and Mike”, he sounded like a whiny little girl that’s mad at her boyfriend that just dumped her. If I was an attorney and they’d stuck to their ban, I’d have represented him for free to get him the freedom to go wherever he wants. Why? Because colleges could (though I know very few do) revoke a scholarship any time they want. It’s typically a year-to-year commitment. You want a better commitment FROM the athlete? Make a better commitment TO the athlete.
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- seanb20124 - Apr 19, 2012 at 5:44 PM
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The new Wisconsin QB from Maryland said c’mon coach let him play
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- Derek Johnson - Apr 19, 2012 at 6:56 PM
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Bo Ryan’s worst mistake was telling Uthoff he couldn’t go to Iowa State; yes, there’s even something of an argument to block him from an ACC school, but Wisconsin isn’t scheduled to play Iowa State and doesn’t have to play Iowa State. That just shows Ryan wanted to keep Uthoff from going anywhere but Madison; here’s my full post: http://derekjohnsonmuses.com/2012/04/19/filibuster-bo-ryan-reacts-to-jarrod-uthoffs-request-for-a-divorce/
Keep up the good work here.
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- advantageschneider - Apr 20, 2012 at 12:51 AM
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In order to be fair here is Bo Ryan’s point of view.
http://www.espnwisconsin.com/corp/page/04%2F19%2F12_Transcript%3A_Ryan_explains_ordeal_/596
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- iowahbr - Apr 20, 2012 at 8:33 AM
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This whole deal show how badly college sports are screwed up. If Ryan would like to get the cost of last year’s edcuation from the kid fine. but what is all this worry about where else he plays? I thought colleges were worried about the future of their students and not about their future b-ball rivalries.
Ryan looks like the idiot he probably is in all this and if the folks in Madison haven’t got bigger issues to consider it certainly is a good school for cheese heads.In fairness to Ryan he hasn’t changed the dull style of ball that he coaches since the kid was recruited so either the young man isn’t that smart about b-ball or there is another issue at hand. Don’t shoot it yet, there are 2 second left on the possession clock.
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- gatorguru - Apr 20, 2012 at 9:42 AM
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Alvarez told Ryan to shut up and lift the restrictions.Can’t stand watching the badgers play,and as a player,wouln’t want to play there.Would rather have bamboo inserted under my fingenails that sit through a Wisconsin game.
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- kmartinson - Apr 23, 2012 at 10:33 PM
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I’m not a huge fan of the way WI plays but at least it’s basketball with some defense….unlike the SEC(not including Kentucky) or the ACC(excluding Duke) where the teams actually play defense. Look at your lockdown defenders in the NBA—they’re all from the Big 10 or a small school where all around basketball players are groomed. I cannot stand a 94-90 college game without any defense…..kind of like watching Baylor score 60 points in football…..it’s a joke.
