News and Notes

Okay, there's just too much content out there right now, so here are a bunch of links to get you caught up.

Interviews
Didn't catch the Jim McIlvaine Q&A yesterday? Check it out here (or scroll down). Also, Kevin uploaded Homer's interview with the injured Joe Fulce (or scroll down).

Buzz managed to make time for a nice interview on ESPN Milwaukee's The D-List. The direct audio file can be found here. It's worth spending the ~20 min to listen. Have even more free time? Catch the repeat of the "Marquette Basketball Hour with Buzz Williams" on the Marquette Podcast landing page. Careful, the audio is reflective of a noisy background location.

Recruiting
Today is the first day of the national signing period. Marquette is hosting a press conference later this evening to discuss what should be a banner 2009 recruiting class -- Junior Cadougan, Erik Williams, Jeronne Maymon, Brett Roseboro and Dwight Buycks. Will there be more to announce (Colvin, Snaer, Smith, Wright)? And now rumors persist that Jamil Wilson is once again considering Marquette. While he might not commit today, Wilson seems determined to decide during the early signing period. Very interesting...

Previews
The Sports Nut at Milwaukee Magazine has a season preview of Marquette. He compares Buzz favorably to Bob Stoops of Oklahoma.

In the "looking for pessimism" category, Pat Forde from espn.com says that the bottom may fall out on Marquette. He also predicts Georgetown and Villanova as potential candidates to hit the skids in what promises to be an historically tough BIG EAST season. Take it for what it's worth... a throwaway line in a column covering lots of D1 names of which Marquette is one of three teams that might not do as well as expected.

Other news that's relevant
Finally, The Big East has a New Commissioner. It's John Marinatto (formerly of Providence). I'm sure that there will be more on this story in the future. Here's another link and some commentary.

This won't be the last of the content from Cracked Sidewalks... Stay tuned shortly for our season predictions.