A.C. Read...Coaching Chronicles (part 1)

[WarEagle13]

Prelude - Who is A.C.Read?

A.C. Read is from Minor High School in Adamsville, Alabama. Since starring as a 6'0" SG in high school, he received a full scholarship to Auburn University where he spent five seasons having been redshirted his Freshman year. Playing very sparingly his first three seasons after his redshirt freshman year he did see more playing time his senior season as the sixth man. This limited time awarded him the opportunity to sit and learn. Upon graduating in May of 2009, he immediately fell into an open chance to remain at Auburn as a graduate assistant for the 2009-10 season.

Late summer of 2010 he landed the job of third assistant for the University of South Alabama. With USA hiring of a new young coach, Read received the unprecedented opportunity at the young age of 24 to join the staff. While the first season was a rough road for USA finishing 12-16, the second season found more success going 17-12 and vast offensive improvements overall for the team. This awarded an opportunity for the teams first assistant to move on to greener pastures opening the door for Read to advance to the second assistant at the age of 26. During the 2012-13 season, in an injury plagued year for the team, they continued to show marked improvement from the bench and rallied late in the season to finish 17-13.

With the strong improvements in a short period of time and the dedication to practice with a youthful team, Read developed the reputation to being a "players coach" and with this came a good opportunity to fill first assistant on a very bad team across the state at Troy University. The previous year Troy finished 5-25, last in conference in all offensive categories. In Read's first season as first assistant there was slight improvements in the teams shooting, but a more notable one in team wins going 12-19. It was the second and third years that marked the great strides in not only the teams shooting, but a hard nosed defense that saw Troy climb to the top of the conference by the 2015-16 season. Read had been an integral part in helping Troy to turn around spinning off seasons finishing 12-19, 19-13, and 20-13 respectively.

With the noted successes and improvements to the two programs that Read was associated with helped land him on the coaches "hot list" for many mid-major programs by the end of the 2015-16 season. At the young age of 30 and the experience of six seasons going through the ranks, Read is poised to very likely become a head coach somewhere at the mid-major level.

[WarEagle13]

"Ruff Justice" - A New Dog's Court

April 18, 2016
Samford University wastes no time hiring A.C. Read as the new men's basketball coach

BIRMINGHAM – Samford University has announced the hiring of A.C. Read as head coach of the men’s basketball team on Monday. Read returns to his hometown, where he starred at Minor High School from 2000-2004.

"I am honored to become the next Samford basketball coach," said Read, a former player at Auburn University and assistant coach at both South Alabama and Troy. "I believe in this university and program and excited to jump on board with this athletic department. I want to thank the University for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to lead this team. I can't wait to get in the gym and start working with our team. We are going to play with fierce determination and heart, making all of our fans proud."

Read met with the Samford players on Sunday and immediately began to lay out the plans for the program.

"It's an exciting time to be a Bulldog," he said. "I can’t wait to get on the road and share what we've got going on here with recruits and their families. I know we are going to attract the talent, character, and passion required of the student-athletes who want to win championships.”

Read has become the youngest men’s basketball coach in Samford University history and the youngest current men’s basketball coach in NCAA Division I basketball. With the uncertainty of the ability for the youthful coach to lead a program, Read has inherited a Samford program that has struggled of late and not seen a winning season in the last eight years. Samford is currently projected to finish last in the Southern Conference for the upcoming season.

[PointGuard]

Good start..nice to have a new dynasty to "Read".

[WarEagle13]

April 22, 2016
Samford's Coach Read quick to announce new staff for the upcoming season

BIRMINGHAM - Coach A.C. Read has announced his staff for the upcoming 2016-17 season less than one week on the heels of his hiring by Samford University. Sources note that Davey Ayala, Ken Morlaye, and Chris Dampier will head up the young staff and begin immediately reporting to campus and work with Read. The initial focus will key heavily on breaking out the majority focus to each individuals role within the program. Davey Ayala (age 30) will be first assistant as the most experienced of the young three and will be in charge of assisting in team decisions, practice schedules, and player evaluations. Ken Morlaye (age 29) will be second assistant and will work closely with Coach Read in all aspects of recruiting and evaluating local and regional high school talent. Chris Dampier (age 28) will be third assistant and will manage staff in scouting. His main responsibility will be defining and finalizing upcoming scout reports on teams, coaches, and players.

Davey Ayala comes from Orlando, Florida and has a past working relationship with Coach Read. They both served as graduate assistants at Auburn University in 2009. Ayala walked on to the Auburn program in 2004 but his playing career was cut short with a knee injury during the 2005 season. Ayala most recently comes from Florida Gulf Coast University University where he served the past three seasons as second assist under coach Joe Dooley helping them into tournament play this past season. Ken Morlaye hails from the same town and high school as coach Read. Morlaye being two grades behind played high school basketball and remained in close contact with coach Read. Morlaye served as third assistant on the coaching staff at Troy University along side coach Read and was an integral part of the programs success the past two seasons. He was responsible in helping to bring in key young recruits that made an immediate impact at Troy and maintains strong ties and relationships within the state of Alabama with many of the local high schools. Chris Dampier is a former student-athlete of the Samford University basketball program. Upon graduating Samford in 2011, Chris spent his first two years chasing his dream in the NBA landing with the New York Knicks but never getting past D-League. In 2013 he played one season overseas in Italy before re-injuring himself. He came back home to Birmingham and Samford University as a graduate assistant the past two seasons. Coach Read has elevated him to the staff as he will be a valuable asset to the other incoming coaching staff members having been involved in the program with the current players, scouting the conference and other teams within the conference and region.

The Samford staff is expected to report to campus on Monday April 25, 2016. Coach Read has called for a university press conference to announce his staff and follow with the programs immediate plans and outline for the upcoming summer heading into the 2016-17 season.

[WarEagle13]

April 25, 2016
Samford's Read announces team is on a level playing field and the primary focus to start will be recruiting

BIRMINGHAM - In a press conference today held at Samford's Pete Hanna Center, Coach A.C. Read introduced his coaching staff and outlined his plans for the summer leading into his first campaign with the program. It was clear early on that the primary focus for him and his staff was to hit the ground recruiting.

"It is imperative that we begin recruiting hard, but more so in that we know what we are recruiting and where we are starting. We want to begin to develop a positive outlook to the local schools in Birmingham and around the state of Alabama," said Read. "With that said, we will not hesitate to uncover any stone to find the right athlete for our program and one that fills the academic needs for the student.'

With the entire team in attendance Coach Read also emphasized that everyone will be starting from a clean slate.

"Starting today everyone on this team is equal. No upper classmen is above an under classman and there will be no senior preferential treatment. If you are a Freshman, it will not be assumed that you will be at the back of the line and at the end of the bench. We will implement a vigorous training program and we will tirelessly evaluate every individual to make sure we position the team in the best manner to move forward and advance. Every aspect of our daily lives as it pertains to basketball will be about team and only team" stated Read.

While Samford's previous staff brought in a large signing class of five freshman, four on scholarship and one walk-on, it is not clear how this young group is receiving the new changes. Sources close to the program state that Coach Read is planning to not only meet one-on-one with every member of the team, but specifically spend extra attention on the incoming class to validate what they feel is best for them and their futures. With the depth at some of the key positions, this class could see ample playing time immediately and it is not unrealistic to think none of the five will be redshirted. PG Bobby Chouinard from Snellville, GA and SG Anthony McDonald from Hueytown, AL are two of the highest rated of the group incoming and projected to make the earliest impact.

With Samford coming off eight straight losing seasons and the looming projection of finishing last in the Southern Conference this year, a fan can only speculate and hope this is the guy to turn the program around. The alternative seems to be a revolving door of humility and mediocrity.

[WarEagle13]

May 15, 2016
Coaches Journal - Current Player Evaluations

PG
SR - Gerald Darby (Slidell, LA) - 6'1" / 180 lbs - 3.7 GPA Scholarship
Athletic with a good work ethic...likeable personality
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Outside Shooting, Free Throws, Ball Handling, Disciplined & Intelligent, Very good at controlling the game
Weaknesses - Passing, Aggressiveness defensively can lead to foul problems and limited minutes

JR - Wendall Brunson (Cincinnati, OH) - 6' 0" / 179 lbs - 2.9 GPA Scholarship
Athletic with good court vision...needs better work ethic
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Outside Shooting, Free Throws, Ball Handling, Disciplined & Intelligent
Weaknesses - Passing, Defense, Aggressiveness defensively can lead to foul problems and limited minutes, Caught gambling for steals too often

FR - Bobby Chouinard (Snellville, GA) - 6' 0" / 199 lbs - 3.1 GPA Scholarship
Very athletic...needs to become more team oriented
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 3-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Outside Shooting, Free Throws, Excellent Ball Handling
Weaknesses - Passing, Defense, Tends to over focus on Offense

SG
SO - Terry Ware (Anniston, AL) - 6' 4" / 210 lbs - 3.2 GPA Scholarship
Very athletic...durable, disciplined, and intelligent
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Great at drawing fouls, Ball Handling
Weaknesses - Improve shot selection, too assertive at times

FR - Anthony McDonald (Hueytown, AL) - 6' 3" / 181 lbs - 3.7 GPA Scholarship
Excellent outside shooter...can be disruptive at times
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Shuffle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-3-1 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Good movement on the court
Weaknesses - Too streaky of a shooter, prone to turnovers

FR - Antonio Harper (Tuscaloosa, AL) - 6' 0" / 183 lbs - 2.8 GPA Walk-On
Solid Free Throw Shooter...can be disruptive
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Shuffle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Outside Shooting, Durability
Weaknesses - Streaky Shooter, Lacks great vision and passing ability

SF
SR - Caron Francis (Calhoun, GA) - 6' 8" / 213 lbs - 3.2 GPA Scholarship
Good work ethic...very likeable
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Athleticism and Intelligence
Weaknesses - Streaky Shooter, Not a huge leaper for blocks

JR - Rashad Pearson (Homewood, AL) - 6' 3" / 211 lbs - 2.8 GPA Scholarship
Athletic and durable with good court intelligence
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Very explosive and strong on the boards, Outside Shooting
Weaknesses - Forces shots too often

FR - Burkhard Gerstlacher (Esslingen, Germany) - 6' 8" / 240 lbs - 3.0 GPA Scholarship
Strong Outside Shooter...Athletic and Durable
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Good shooting form
Weaknesses - Rebounding

PF
SR - Michael Romano (Rye Brook, NY) - 6' 6" / 209 lbs - 2.9 GPA Scholarship
Athletic...good work ethic
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, 1-3-1 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Free Throws, Blocking Skills
Weaknesses - Streaky scorer, lacks quickness and reflexes

JR - Antoine Weeks (Holly Pond, AL) - 6' 6" / 199 lbs - 3.1 GPA Scholarship
Great Work Ethic, Durable and very likeable
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, 1-3-1 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Decent Blocking skills, Athletic, Ball Handling
Weaknesses - Forces Bad Shots, lacks quickness and reflexes

FR - Ricardo Pelt (Memphis, TN) - 6' 6" / 221 lbs - 2.7 GPA Scholarship
Very Durable and likeable...Disciplined
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, 5 Out
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Blocking skills, Drawing Fouls, Athletic
Weaknesses - Lacks quickness and reflexes

C
SO - Jay Frist (Butler, AL) - 6' 10" / 263 lbs - 2.8 GPA SCholarship
Very likeable...Good outside shooter for his size
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, 2-3 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Drawing Fouls, Rebounding
Weaknesses - Free Throws, lacks explosiveness for blocks

SO - Tank Josey (Lepanto, AR) - 6' 10" / 236 lbs - 2.1 GPA Scholarship
Durable with good work ethic...Likeable, but needs to improve GPA
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, 3-2 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Rebounding, Very Athletic, Inside Shooting
Weaknesses - Free Throws, lacks explosiveness for blocks

SO - Kyle Fidler (Monroeville, AL) - 6' 9" / 235 lbs - 2.8 GPA Walk-On
Work in progress
OFF Proficiencies - Motion, Flex, High Post, Triangle
DEF Proficiencies - M2M, 1-2-2 Zone, 1-3-1 Zone, M2M Press
Strengths - Court Intelligence, Discipline
Weaknesses - Pushing off on Offensive end, Blocking

[WarEagle13]

June 26, 2016
Coaches Journal - Summer Recruiting

Heading into July and approaching the summer camps, we have been extremely busy with the staff building our recruiting target lists. We have completed our assessment of the team to acknowledge our strengths and weaknesses. Unfortunately our weaknesses far outweigh any strengths we have. What few areas of strengths that we have we lack in depth to cover those areas.

A large emphasis we have placed on ourselves to improve upon is defense, rebounding, and ball handling...particularly passing. These are the glaring weaknesses we need to fill voids in and quickly. It is very likely that we may be entertaining looking at some JuCo prospects that might help early.

Overall our team is balanced in position coverage. The three seniors graduating are at the position of PG, SF, PF. Overall we are young at SG and C. Going to be looking hardest at filling a PF or a player that can move into that role (large SF). Secondly we will look to a SF and lastly a PG to finalize the three scholarships we have to give. This will not be a hard coded attitude and do not feel we are married to any of these decisions...as recruiting presses forward all circumstances can change our thought process on the fly. Especially as we get deeper into practices and the early part of the season continuing to learn our teams capabilities and limitations.

Our initial target recruit lists consists of 27 overall recruits that we are aggressively reviewing. 24 regionally (17 of these within Alabama), 2 Nationally (TX, NJ), and 1 Internationally (Germany). Having a kid on the team from Germany lays hope that we might could fill a need in that regard if it was made readily available.

The top rated recruit that we have on our list is NAT#445 PF Jarian Logan - 6' 8"/227 (Jacksonville, FL). While he has expressed some interest in Samford we are not sure how seriously we will remain on his radar. The overall two recruits that we are hard keying on is NAT#809 SF Jervis McCoy - 6' 8"/242 (Mobile, AL) and NAT#972 PF Clemond Anderson - 6' 6"/209 (Selma, AL). Both have expressed above average initial interest and with McCoy's size he could fill either a SF or PF role. We are scheduled to play host to McCoy this week for a campus visit. The additional other two recruits that we are looking hard into are NAT#1135 PF Keydron Hall - 6' 8"/233 (Huntsville, AL) and NAT#1354 PG Silas Ahmad - 6' 0"/179 (Luverne, AL). Ahmad may be the dark horse of the group

Our call lists are set and we will continue to vigorously keep in contact as much as possible to gain more information to track the status of the recruits as well as our placement in their minds. We have asked for and received film on several recruits from their high schools and coaches as well as receiving some being sent in to the office. We will be hosting three visits to campus this week. NAT#740 PF Marcus Bailey - 6' 6"/219 (Tarrant, AL), NAT#809 SF Jervis McCoy - 6' 8"/242 (Mobile, AL), and NAT#1136 SF Detron Lockes - 6' 8"/196 (Pinson, AL). We reached out to two others but were declined, unsure of the reasonings and we plan on continuing to keep in contact with them. They were NAT#932 PF Germayne Monroe - 6' 11"/211 (Columbus, GA) and NAT#1450 PF Kewayne Carter - 6' 7"/210 (Lexington, KY)

We are quickly trying to ramp up for the next couple of weeks heading into the holiday for 4th of July and the Georgia Superstar Camp that will last for three days in Atlanta, GA. A lot to get done prior to heading there and a lot to review upon returning after the three day event.

Go Dogs, and Ruff Em
#SamfordStrong #RuffEm

Coach A.C. Read - Samford Bulldogs

[WarEagle13]

July 31, 2016
Coaches Journal - Post Summer Camps - Recruiting Status

Just finished getting out of the National and Regional Summer Camps that we chose to attend. We went to the National Camp in Atlanta, GA and the Regional Camp in Memphis, TN. We got to see in action a couple of recruits on our radar that was invited but for the most part we were looking at a lot of new kids, most of which would be long shots for our program in its current state. We have targeted plenty and will see where these kids may end up down the road and if they are possibly still available after early signing in November.

We have been really busy the past month with the camps taking up almost a full week and trying to review quite an influx of film along with burning up the roads scouting. We have hosted many recruits that have accepted invitations to visit the campus. I am very happy that out of 16 invitations sent only four declined our requests. All four of these were out of state recruits and a couple of those considered longshots for the program. Pretty excited in the fact that we had positive feedback from ten of the twelve that visited.

Currently we still have 29 recruits listed on our aggressively sought after list. Having thirteen of these kids listing Samford University in their top ten to sign with, and nine of those thirteen in the kids top 5 listing. Our current top ten recruit list from the staff's perspective for what we feel will be the best fit for the Samford program are as follows :

NAT#0809 - SF - Jervis McCoy - 6' 8"/242 (Mobile, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 3 - We just recently extended a scholarship offer
NAT#0952 - C - Todd Blodgett - 6' 9"/238 (Odenville, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 8
NAT#0972 - PF - Clemond Anderson - 6' 6"/209 (Selma, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 2
NAT#1027 - SF - Darrell Seales - 6' 5"/210 (Gadsden, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 10
NAT#1135 - PF - Keydron Hall - 6' 8"/233 (Huntsville, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 3
NAT#1136 - SF - Detron Lockes - 6' 8"/196 (Pinson, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 6
NAT#1354 - PG - Silas Ahmad - 6' 0"/179 (Luverne, AL) - Currently not on the recruits list
NAT#1438 - SG - Joey DeFelice - 6' 3"/190 (Ozark, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 3
NAT#1491 - SF - Jamarcus Trotter - 6' 6"/209 (Beatrice, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 5
NAT#1511 - C - Nate Markson - 6' 8"/278 (Foley, AL) - Listed as the recruits top 5


A secondary listing for recruits that we feel will fit the program but are longshots for a multitude of reasons are :

NAT#0445 - PF - Jarian Logan - 6' 8"/227 (Jacksonville, FL) - Recently has increased interest in our program. Accepted invitation to visit
NAT#0681 - SG - Delvin Johnson - 6' 3"/191 (Fairdale, KY) - Recently has increased interest in our program.
NAT#0816 - SF - Demetri Collison - 6' 4"/232 (Tuskegee, AL) - Interest appears to be slipping of late
NAT#0886 - PG - Brandon Broward - 6' 5"/194 (Rison, AR) - Interest has increased, but declined an invitation to visit.
NAT#1035 - SG - Landry Whitesale - 6' 2"/183 (Birmingham, AL) - Recently has increased interest in our program. Accepted invitation to visit
NAT#1400 - PF - Cortez Davies - 6' 7"/219 (Athens, AL) - Has high interest, not much correspondence. Accepted invitation to visit


Heading into the month of August and a long "Quiet" recruiting stretch for the next five plus weeks until mid-September. This will lead into a full four week "Contact" stretch and will we likely begin to see many cards fall into and out of place. Also awaiting a meeting with our Athletic Director this upcoming month to discuss scheduling out of conference games for the season


Go Dogs, and Ruff Em
#SamfordStrong #RuffEm

Coach A.C. Read - Samford Bulldogs

[WarEagle13]

September 11, 2016
Coaches Journal - Fall Recruiting

Coming out of the summer quiet recruiting phase and straight into the fall contact recruiting phase, there have been some interesting developments on our recruiting board. We have seen several players slide in the national rankings while many others have improved.

One recruit that we have become extremely excited about is NAT#532 - C - Todd Blodgett - 6' 9"/238 (Odenville, AL). He is a local kid to the area and comes from a smaller high school just outside Birmingham from the small town of Odenville. While his initial national rankings weren't shabby at all and was in the national top thousand at #952, he since has drastically improved in two cycles to #602 and most recently at #532. Even though the center position is not one we need immediate help with, we feel we are flexible to move one or two of the other kids to PF and allow Blodgett some time to see what he can do at the C position. He is an aggressive, strong kid with good inside play and scoring ability. He can provide some much needed defense in which we are very lacking as a team. Location seems to be of major importance to him and his parents and we have recruited him heavily in this regard along with academics and playing time factoring. We currently have a scholarship offer on the table for him and a scheduled visit in his home at Odenville, AL this week. Currently we rate as his top choice, but also competing against Louisiana Tech, Central Florida, and Troy.

Our current only other scholarship offer on the table is to NAT#1113 - PF - Jervis McCoy - 6' 8"/242 (Mobile, AL). He is one of the first kids we focused on immediately due to his defensive ability and had the offer out in June when he was nationally ranked #809. He has tended to slip in the national rankings due to what is likely caused by a lack of work ethic. While this has gotten the staff's attention, we still feel the upside of his defensive play along with above average rebounding skills is something to continue to watch closely. In the past two ranking cycles he has slipped to #940, and lastly to #1113. Samford currently rates as his #1 school, but not sure which others he is interested in or ones that are seriously interested in him.

We have a third scholarship to offer, but have not been impressed enough to decide and send one out this early in the process. I think it is imperative to get to the early LOI signing period to get a better feel on what other talent becomes available due to the lack of offers extended. The other recruits that were and still high on our watch list are NAT#947 - PF - Clemond Anderson - 6' 6"/209 (Selma, AL). He took a national jump on the previous cycle but most recently fell back to where he was rated early in the summer. Because we have our only two offers out to a C & PF, we are in a waiting pattern to see where we fall with one or both of them. The two guards we are very high on, NAT#1117 - PG - Silas Ahmad - 6' 0"/179 (Luverne, AL) & NAT#1408 - SG - Joey DeFelice - 6' 3"/190 (Ozark, AL), have maintained national expectations and we feel that our third offer needs to go to this position. As a staff, we have not reached an internal decision that seperates either one from the other.

This week our travels plan on taking us to home recruit visits for the following kids :

NAT#532 - C - Todd Blodgett - 6' 9"/238 (Odenville, AL) - Samford rated as his top school.
NAT#947 - PF - Clemond Anderson - 6' 6"/209 (Selma, AL) - Samford rated as his top school.
NAT#1113 - PF - Jervis McCoy - 6' 8"/242 (Mobile, AL) - Samford rated as his top school.
NAT#1408 - SG - Joey DeFelice - 6' 3"/190 (Ozark, AL) - Samford rated as his third school.


With boots on the ground over the course of the next few weeks, the smoke should clear somewhat and we will see where we stand heading into the quiet recruiting period before early LOI signing week. We will continue to call, watch film, scout, visit and review national rankings to adjust any last minute thoughts or needs we feel that we should. Our mindset and hope is that we may fill two of our three positions coming out of the early LOI signing week, but as a worst case feel we have to land at least one of our targets with the time and effort expended upon the process.


Go Dogs, and Ruff Em
#SamfordStrong #RuffEm

Coach A.C. Read - Samford Bulldogs

[WarEagle13]

October 2, 2016
Samford's Coach Read has his first commitments

BIRMINGHAM - With the beginning of official team practices starting today, Coach A.C. Read has his first two commitments as a head coach. Late Friday evening Todd Blodgett from Odenville, AL announced his intent to sign with the Samford Bulldogs. Blodgett, a 6' 9" / 249 lbs Center from Odenville, AL had been heavily recruited by Read and his staff midway through the summer as his national stock began to rise after solid play in summer camps. A late injury may have seen that stock drop as many other teams interested began to lower him in their recruitment. However, Read remained steadfast and to the plan.

Read stated, "We stayed with Todd and committed to him that we would. We feel very strongly about his defensive skills and rebounding abilities and those are two areas we have to immediately improve upon. He is a strong aggressive kid with good inside play on the offensive end. He is young and needs some polishing but we feel that he can make an immediate impact coming through in next years class." He continued by adding, "While we know Center was not a grueling need as we have three young kids on the team we feel can contribute, the versatility of a couple of these kids to move around on the floor can open up minutes for Todd to contribute immediately as a freshman."

Shortly after Read's first verbal commitment for the 2017-18 season, it was followed up by a second in as many days. Jervis McCoy made it known that he will be signing with Read and the Samford Bulldogs. McCoy, a 6' 8"/ 242 lbs SF from B.C. Rain high school in Mobile, AL was heavily recruited within the state of Alabama and surrounding areas but chose Samford largely in part for the academics offered by the university and also for the fact he wanted to remain in state and around family. Like Blodgett, McCoy can offer some much needed defense and rebounding that A.C Read has communicated on several occasions could likely be the Achilles heal this year for the Samford team.

Read expressed, "I have made it no secret that our number one focus coming into practice for the upcoming season will be defense. I feel this is primarily our weakest point and needs the most improvement if we are going to be competitive in the Southern Conference this year and in the future. While I know this alone does not make up the balance of this team and we have many other areas that I am excited about, recruiting the players to come in and help with this focus will be additional building blocks to build our house. Our house can only be as big and strong as what our foundation will allow."

The team will begin practice today in the Pete Hanna Center on campus. The season for the Samford Bulldogs is scheduled to open at home on Tuesday, November 15 against the Texas State Bobcats of the Sun Belt Conference.