2022 stats: 300-993
2023 stats: 297-1058
2024 stats: 257-832
2025 stats: 289-826
Bottom line is Hines is the same player he was when he walked on campus........which is still a good player, just no improvement at all. I think we expect too much out of guys like this. Other than the overpayment of NIL (which is not exclusive of just Hines), he's not really that deserving of so much criticism. We all just expect for older guys, who started early, to just naturally be leaders, and often that's not the case. I often compare him to Kellum Clark:
2021 stats: 237-850
2022 stats: 257-925
2023 stats: 299-939
While his stats slightly increase where Hines' slightly decrease.....point is, they were freshman starters who we expected to keep improving and eventually explode by the time they are juniors, and they simply don't. Wes Rea was kinda like this too.
So why don't they make the jump? They get plenty of reps. My answer - overcoaching in high school and dependence on metrics in recrootin. But even still, the problem is relying on these guys to be your bellcows....the guys who will be the 330 type hitters as juniors. That is where Lemonis specifically has failed.....signing those guys.....the athletic types, who make jumps. He did get Dakota Jordan, I'll give him that, but he was a 2-year guy and guess what, his second year we were a pretty good team.
These guys can't come from the portal either. They need to be developed in your program.
ETA: I do realize Jake Mangum was also the same player he was his senior year as his freshman year, but when you are that good, you don't need to improve, he was a once in a generation player and culture driver...
2023 stats: 297-1058
2024 stats: 257-832
2025 stats: 289-826
Bottom line is Hines is the same player he was when he walked on campus........which is still a good player, just no improvement at all. I think we expect too much out of guys like this. Other than the overpayment of NIL (which is not exclusive of just Hines), he's not really that deserving of so much criticism. We all just expect for older guys, who started early, to just naturally be leaders, and often that's not the case. I often compare him to Kellum Clark:
2021 stats: 237-850
2022 stats: 257-925
2023 stats: 299-939
While his stats slightly increase where Hines' slightly decrease.....point is, they were freshman starters who we expected to keep improving and eventually explode by the time they are juniors, and they simply don't. Wes Rea was kinda like this too.
So why don't they make the jump? They get plenty of reps. My answer - overcoaching in high school and dependence on metrics in recrootin. But even still, the problem is relying on these guys to be your bellcows....the guys who will be the 330 type hitters as juniors. That is where Lemonis specifically has failed.....signing those guys.....the athletic types, who make jumps. He did get Dakota Jordan, I'll give him that, but he was a 2-year guy and guess what, his second year we were a pretty good team.
These guys can't come from the portal either. They need to be developed in your program.
ETA: I do realize Jake Mangum was also the same player he was his senior year as his freshman year, but when you are that good, you don't need to improve, he was a once in a generation player and culture driver...
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