Bulls hope 6-foot-11 Swindle is a big steal

USF men's basketball coach Stan Heath's first commitment for 2008 is a big one -- 6-foot-11, 260-pound center Gene Swindle from Miami's Gulliver Prep. With senior Kentrell Gransberry set to graduate after this season, he looks to be the Bulls' center of the future.

"I thought it was the best fit for me," said Swindle, who committed Monday night. "It's close to home, and I love the Big East, being from Miami. I think it's one of the better basketball conferences in college basketball."

Swindle, rated a two-star recruit by both Scout.com and Rivals.com, drew interest from Virginia, Virginia Tech and Penn State and had turned down offers from Nebraska and Old Dominion. He was impressed that USF brought him in for a campus visit last month on the first weekend visits were allowed, making him feel like a priority in their recruiting.

"They've been with me since they could first bring me in, and told me I was their top recruit at the time," said Swindle, who averaged about 13 points and eight rebounds a game as a junior.

His weight has fluctuated quite a bit -- he said he weighed as much as 310 pounds his sophomore year, then made it a goal to get in shape last season and dropped down to 237 before getting into the weight room and adding muscle to his frame. He said 260 is "a comfortable weight" and one he'd like to play at as a college freshman.

The Bulls lost out on forward Ken Gabriel, who committed Monday to Auburn, but remain in the hunt for Charlotte (N.C.) point guard Damier Pitts, who will visit Marshall this weekend. Check back for more basketball updates ...

Comments

[Steve Stacy]

Wow! He's 6'11" now? If this guy keeps growing an inch per day, he'll be an ten footer by the end of the season!

[G.A.]

He says he's 6-11, so that's what I have to go with until somebody at USF puts a tape measure on him next fall. Both recruiting sites now list him as 6-11.

[G.A.]

Just noticed that I'd called him 6-10 in the headline last night, but had him 6-11 in the story. All I can say is that he grew in the time it took me to go from the headline to the story itself. Technically, it's true, and entirely possible.

[G.A.]

You'll probably notice his weight has changed, too. Yesterday's weight was from the coach; today's is from the kid. Again, without driving down there with a scale, it's kind of what we have to do with recruits.

[Dave]

I saw Anthony Mains listed at 6'2" 220, 6'6" 240, and 6'7" 193. Apparently he either has good size, great size, or is McHugh Mattis.

[G.A.]

Waiting on a call back from Mains' coach at Golden Gate. I think the 6-2 is a few years old, and the 240 pounds a bit generous. If I were guessing, I'd say he'll show up as 6-7, 200, which means Mattis is stealing food off his plate.

[Dave]

How on earth is a guy that skinny going to play on the D-Line in the BEAST? He's really going to have to hit the weight room hard. He's even too skinny for TE. Could you get a shuttle-run time for him? Maybe he's a WLB in the future.

[Reality]

Greg, any word on if the 6'5" kid from Port charlotte is still interested in the Bulls?

This recruit that committed is what we like to call a STIFF. I hope Stan picks it up. Sadly, without Gransberry it will be imperative that this guy play. Could get ugly.

Sidenote: Cee, a 2 star recruit!!!!

Fun to be thinking about BB too. Looking forward to this season--I expect a modest improvement each year from the Heath teams.

[Dave]

Reality- was that Dago Pena you were referring to? Anyways, I saw somewhere that he and an AAU teammate of his picked FAU. Kind of sad if we were pursuing him hard and he picked FAU over us (I make that from a competitiveness standpoint, not a dig at FAU, but really, BEAST or Sun Belt?)

[Reality]

That is the kid Dave. Very sad that he chose FAU, I hope that Heath is on him until signing day. Local kids that are actually good enough to play d-1 are hard to find for usf, and morrison from Lakewood needs to be brought to campus and shown the love.

[Harry]

Question for "Reality", Have you actually seen any of these guys play? You come across as such an expert so you must know *ahem*. I mean, these local kids MUST be Big East caliber players right. I mean if you actually know some coaches or people in the area, let me know cause right now you strike me as the type that believes everything those ridiculous recruting mags tell you and you really dont know jack. I'll withhold judgement till I see these guys on the court.

[Reality]

Harry,

Don't you worry about Reality. He is one of the few people in this area who has seen a basketball game. I actually am dating a Lakewood graduate, and have attended MANY Spartans games. I even have played pickup games with many Spartans including Brian Ligon, who USF missed completely on, and had a nice run at Butler. Sidenote, by going to Butler, he actually got to go to the tournament. So, I don't blame kids one bit for leaving town, but the coaching staff needs to explain to the kids that they need to stay home in order for us to make the tournament.

I am sure I will never see another post from you Harry, but have a good day.

[You Know]

"I even have played pickup games with many Spartans including Brian Ligon, who USF missed completely on, and had a nice run at Butler." Ligon avg. 3.4ppg and 3.2rpg how did USF miss out on him as a recruit?

[Reality]

Yes, numbers always tell the whole story of a player.......idiot. Guys like Brian do much more than score and rebound. Maybe if you watched basketball before, then you might understand. How many tournament games has USF been in lately?