RE: Wes Miller
Sales Pitch: Ranking the American Athletic Conference recruiting jobs in tiers
1. Memphis
2. Houston/Cincinnati
Under Mick Cronin, Cincinnati was one of the most consistent programs in college basketball. The Bearcats finished in the top three of the AAC standings every year under Cronin, winning two regular-season titles and reaching the NCAA tournament all six seasons Cronin coached in the American.
Since Cronin left, it hasn't quite been the same. John Brannen won 20 games in 2020, but was fired this spring following an internal investigation into the program. New head coach Wes Miller is walking into a pretty good situation, though; Cincinnati still has outstanding history and tradition, great fan support and a pretty strong brand in the Midwest.
New coach Wes Miller walks into a good recruiting situation at Cincinnati.
"I think it's their brand and their commitment to facilities," one coach said. "They probably have the best 'athletic village' setup in our league. Nobody has the setup that they do in our league, as far as football, baseball, everything. They've done a great job as an athletic department in terms of putting a really nice product together for all their sports. You get a kid on campus, you have the ability to raise some eyebrows."
One thing that sometimes makes it difficult to gauge where Cincinnati stacks up as a recruiting program is that Cronin rarely went after a slew of top-100-caliber prospects. He pursued a certain type of player, one that fit his system at both ends of the floor.
"Mick Cronin was never landing 'dudes.' He was getting blue-collar, nasty, three-star guys. It's not like [former AAC player of the Year Jarron] Cumberland was the No. 1 player in the country," one coach said. "They kept finding Mick Cronin-type guys that fit him and made it easy. I think Wes is terrific. We'll see what direction he goes."
The Bearcats' location in the middle of several college basketball powerhouses can pose problems on the recruiting trail, although Cronin consistently went to the Northeast to take a few players and Miller might have to do something similar.
"There's so many kids in the Midwest. Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana. Cincinnati does yeoman's work in that part of the world," an AAC coach said. "It's such a powerful brand. They've done a great job of getting kids off the East Coast. And now Wes Miller is so beloved in the state of North Carolina, he can run to Carolina and get some things done.
"But Cincinnati, anywhere you look -- east, west, north south -- programs have gotten it going," the coach continued. "Xavier is in their own city, so you're not even the local school. You don't even get a Cincinnati kid without a local fight. That makes it tough for both programs. Both have had such awesome recent successes, but you don't even get to dominate your city."
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