After the most disappointing moment of this offseason to date, I've had time to sleep. Manny Ochenje is not going to be playing for the Mocs next year. He won't be redshirting either.
Initially, the reaction to this was only negative. It made me feel a little sick inside. And I began to feel like things were never going to break the Mocs way.
But then I thought more about it. Could Ochenje still come to the Mocs next year? Absolutely. From a "glass half full" perspective, he can absolutely still show up on the Mocs roster in 2012-13. His academic problems should be taken care of.
What is the biggest flaw in Ochenje at the moment? It's that he is thin and has not grown into his body yet. He needs at least a year to grow into his body. At least, that's how it appears from where I am sitting. With a year off, he will have time to grow into that large body. He will have time to hone his skills more. That's why it would have been good to redshirt him a year. If he still comes next year, then it will be like he redshirted this year, without having him on scholarship or redshirting him this year.
On top of that, Ochenje could also redshirt next year- and then will play in 2013-2014 as a redshirt freshman. That means he could have two more years to grow into that body and get his game refined.
Of course, the positives here are hinging on whether or not Ochenje still signs here in the fall. I hope he does. I think he could. But we'll have to wait and see. That is the only negative. But it sure is a massive negative. A really gigantic negative.
But, here about 24 hours later, the world looks a little bit brighter than it did. Maybe this can work out.
Maybe.
GO MOCS!
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