Mid-Major Dive 2.0

Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina

From SoCon champions to losing their two highest scorers including Fletcher Magee. Also losing forward Keve Aluma as he transferred to Virginia Tech, their biggest loss could arguably be head coach Mike Young. Young began at Wofford as an assistant coach in 1989 and in 2002 finally became the head coach. To say he knew what kind of program Wofford was and how to coach them is an understatement. However, was he really that great of a coach? When you dive into the numbers behind you find he has a record of 299-244. 55 Games over 500 and that is not that bad, especially as a mid-major like Wofford, but could be better. He only won four SoCon conference championships, along with four coach of the year titles. And from all that, 5 NCAA tournament appearances, with only one win. And that sounds about on par when you compare mid-majors at a SoCon conference level. However, ONE NCAA tournament win in 17 years in a bit confusing. It was not until 2017 in the famous win over UNC that he got his first win over a top 25 team. But things are looking up for the Terriers.

The upcoming season presents a giant grey area for the Terriers. Yes they lost Fletcher, Cam, and Keve. But Nate Hoover is returning, Chevez Goodwin looks unstoppable(and probably will be in the SoCon), and Storm Murphy is ready for a bigger role. These are the three “big-name” players if you will on the team, but you look down their roster and every guy seems like he is capable of preforming and making up for the offseason losses. I’ve been fortunate enough to grow up watching Steph Curry in college, and I’ve also been able to watch Bob McKillop coach and run a 3 point shooting team. You might question what that has to do with Wofford, and here you go in a couple of points. 1. Nate Hoover can flat out shoot the damn ball. It is unbelievable the way he shoots it. The nation needs to be on watch for this kid. 2. Coach McAuley is going to run one of the best motion offenses in the NCAA this year. This will also translate into one of the highest 3 point percentages in the NCAA. 3. And finally, Chevez Goodwin is going to make a name for himself as one of the best defensive players in the NCAA. This guy is an absolute animal.

As for predictions for how their are going to do this season? It’s tough to say. Marquee games against Butler, Duke, and North Carolina are going to set the standard if the Terriers can hang with tournament teams. I have the Terriers going 20-9 and losing in the SoCon tournament to unfortunately not get a bid into the NCAA tournament. ETSU looks to strong this year but it will come down to either Wofford or ETSU, and even then it is a toss up. I can easily see the Terriers making it back to the big dance, and don’t be surprised when they do. Also, if they could potentially win 2 of the games against North Carolina, Butler, and Duke, then go undefeated in SoCon play like they did last year, an at-large bid would not be out of the question. Expect the Terriers to fight and play extremely well. Don’t be surprised when you see them near the top of many stat lists.