Morris Brown's woes worsen

Sports Illustrated senior writer Grant Wahl answers your college basketball questions every Wednesday. Click here to send him a question.

We could start with an obvious question this week. Something like, Why hasn't Alabama won a single game on an opponent's home court this season? Or, Is Rick Pitino finally back to being Rick Pitino again? Or, Why on earth was Missouri's Ricky Clemons, charged with choking his girlfriend, actually playing for the Tigers on Tuesday?

Instead, we'll start with something less obvious but no less important. Reader Jerry Hinnen of Auburn, Ala., asks if the 'Bag has heard about the situation at Morris Brown, and, sadly, we have. Morris Brown, you may recall, is the small, historically black college in Atlanta that jumped to Division I athletics three years ago in an ill-advised effort to raise its national profile.

Now MBC is in danger of closing its doors altogether -- in no small part because of the sea of red ink resulting from its move to D-I.

In 2001 I visited MBC to do a story for Sports Illustrated's college hoops preview. So bad was the Wolverines' financial situation that the basketball team was barnstorming the country playing guarantee(d-loss) games for $40,000 paychecks against foes such as Boston College, Oregon, Colorado and Marquette.

MBC's athletic department was in shambles. That year alone, it spent $3.5 million against $1.9 million in revenues. Coach Derek Thompson told me his minimal recruiting efforts had drained $1,500 from his own pocket. By the end of an eight-game road trip last year, Thompson was washing uniforms, sorting socks and taping ankles by himself. The reason: One of his assistants had resigned during the trip, the other was suspended, and the school (for budget reasons) had forbidden the manager and trainer from traveling with the team.

Now things are even worse. Last month Morris Brown, reeling from $27 million of debt, lost its accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. If MBC's appeal is denied in March, its students no longer will be eligible for the federal financial aid that 80 percent of them depend on for their education. Only half of the student body, which numbered 2,500 last semester, returned for the current term, which has been compressed to seven weeks (with class times doubled and extended into the evening) in a desperate effort to salvage credits before the March deadline on the school's accreditation appeal.

The move to D-I athletics isn't the only reason Morris Brown -- a proud, 122-year-old institution -- is on life support. But it's a big one. Last week the school fired football coach Sol Brannan, two of his assistants and three other athletic department employees. Brannan told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he had spent "close to $40,000" of his own money on recruiting.

Meanwhile, hoops coach Thompson is soldiering on through a 3-14 season that has included losses at Southern California, Rutgers, Tulane and Clemson. "We've been operating on the bare minimum anyway," Thompson said. "We're gonna keep working as long as the doors are open. If they close the doors, we'll still be able to get in, because the school can't afford to change the locks."

Don't blame current Morris Brown AD Russell Ellington for the problems. He's an MBC alum (and former Harlem Globetrotters coach) who merely came in to try to clean up the mess caused by former AD Gene Bright and former SWAC commissioner Rudy Washington. It was Washington -- the founder of the Black Coaches Association -- who approached Bright in 1999 with the idea of joining the SWAC and moving to Division I. But Morris Brown was caught holding the bag when the school jumped to D-I ... and the SWAC presidents denied MBC admission. (They later fired Washington as well.)

On Feb. 9, African Methodist Episcopal churches around the world will pass their collection plates for Morris Brown in hopes of raising at least $2.5 million for the school. The 'Bag -- who's wearing his MORRIS BROWN BASKETBALL T-shirt as he writes this -- would also suggest that movie distributor Fox 2000 donate a part of the $53.6 million in grosses it has made from Drumline, the new film in which Morris Brown's splendid marching band plays a central role. (Fox so far has done nothing to add to the meager $8,000 contribution it made to the school's scholarship fund before filming.)

We're not just talking about basketball, folks. We're talking about the survival of the only black college in Georgia founded by African-Americans.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming ...

At the beginning of the season everyone was predicting doom and gloom for Cal, but the team has looked pretty good. How have the Bears been getting it done, and do you think they can keep up this pace?
—Dominic Nguyen, Redwood City, Calif.

The surprising Bears are off to their first 5-0 conference start since the Pete Newell era heading into this week's home two-fer against the L.A. schools. All credit to coach Ben Braun and his players, who have survived the transfer of point guard Shantay Legans and the premature NBA departure of big man Jamal Sampson. Then again, Cal's top three scorers from last year (Joe Shipp, Amit Tamir and Brian Wethers) all returned to Berkeley, where they are making a huge impact. Shipp is averaging more than 21 points a game, Wethers provides solid production from the perimeter and Tamir is making a strong case for becoming the first Israeli to make the NBA.

At 6-foot-11, the 23-year-old former Israeli soldier is Cal's best (and most prolific) 3-point shooter, plus he's also starting to learn how to maneuver inside. That's important, considering most pundits expected Cal would be sorely depleted in the paint. Somehow Tamir, center Gabriel Hughes and the Bears slashers are doing enough to outrebound their opponents by three boards a game.

Why does Jarvis Hayes not get any pub for player of the year? He has great stats despite being probably the most unselfish stud in college basketball. The guy is a lock for the first round of the NBA draft but is never mentioned for any of the awards. What gives?
—Jake, Kennesaw, Ga.

It's a shame the nation didn't get to see Hayes' explosion in Georgia's loss to Florida a week ago. Those who did, like me, saw a guy who should definitely be considered a player-of-the-year candidate. The fact is, though, Hayes hasn't been on national TV much, and he hasn't played particularly well the few times he has appeared. (Witness Georgia's season-opening loss to Texas.) I hate to say it, but that hurts his recognition nationally. The way Georgia is playing, though, we'll get to see plenty of Hayes in March. By the way, NBAdraft.net, which has Hayes going No. 5 overall, is an enlightening/maddening site for college hoops followers who dare enter the parallel universe of the NBA, in which Boston College's Troy Bell is valued more than Creighton's Kyle Korver.

I know much of the season remains, but after its win over Alabama, does Auburn look like a solid contender in the SEC?
—Jack Mann, Birmingham, Ala.

We'll know more about what Auburn is bringing to the table when the Tigers meet Kentucky Wednesday night in Lexington. Even a respectable loss will say a lot for the resurgence of Cliff Ellis' team, led by the sensational Marquis Daniels. The reason I love conference season (and why I bemoan the death of true round-robin league slates) is that nobody can hide anymore behind inflated media predictions and favorable home-court scheduling in the nonconference season. Example 1: Auburn is 4-0 in the SEC West, while favorites Alabama (2-3) and Mississippi State (0-3) are floundering. Example 2: In the Big Ten, the only undefeated teams are Michigan (4-0), Iowa (3-0) and Purdue (3-0), while favorites Michigan State (1-3) and Illinois (2-2) can't keep up.

After Will Bynum left Arizona rumors had him headed to Oklahoma State, where he would hook up with former high school teammate and current Cowboys leading scorer Tony Allen. But now he's at Georgia Tech. Why the change of heart?
—Anthony Fortelney, Stillwater, Okla.

Strangely, Bynum took some sort of glee from defying the press reports that had him going to Stillwater. Though Bynum said nobody got his side of the story in the first place, his inability to return calls to reporters asking for clarification reveals a guy who may not have it together these days. Bynum may turn around his career at Georgia Tech, but even before the season started Arizona coaches were telling me that they were surprised by his lack of readiness for elite college basketball.

Lord knows there's been enough criticism of the many, many awful color commentators doing college basketball games, but who would you say is/was your favorite/the best? Personally, I miss Derrick Dickey more than words can say -- no gimmicks (like one hair-deprived analyst), not too much second-guessing (like another hair-deprived analyst), and a pleasure to listen to.
—Mike Gordon, New York

I don't recall Dickey's work, but I will say I like ESPN's Jay Bilas (explains the game better than anyone; should be doing strictly color commentary instead of sideline work) and Jimmy Dykes (who usually does the late Big Monday game). Regrettably, college hoops is still waiting for its version of golf's Johnny Miller, a guy with a sense of humor who names names and points out that not every coach is "doing a great job." The NFL has one (Cris Collinsworth) as does the NBA (Charles Barkley). Why not college hoops?

Where's the WATN feature? I love it, and I haven't seen it in the last couple of 'Bags!
—Steve Ewing, Jackson, Mich.

Well, this is getting sort of "meta" now, isn't it, Steve? A Where Are They Now for ... Where Are They Now. I love tracking guys down, too, but the sad fact is that my SI duties come first, and I don't have as much time these days to make a dozen phone calls to find U.S. Reed. I already put way more time into the 'Bag than other SI writers do for theirs, so all I can say is: For the love of Alan Ogg, I'm sorry.

I apologize for the short-sighted Richmond fans who got all worked up about your Xavier comment last week. On the plus side, it made me think of the soccer-hoops couplings you made last year. My thoughts for this season:

Xavier = U.S. Both have climbed steadily the past 14 years or so. Both seemed ready for breakout years in 2002-03.

Richmond = Costa Rica. Always fun in the Big Dance. Upset kings. Both seem on the rise and wear red and blue.

Temple = Mexico. Been good the last 20 years, but never quite reach their potential.

Fordham = Suriname. Considering the talent coming out of these locations, why aren't they powerful squads?
—Matt, Jacksonville, N.C.

Got a lot of heat from Richmond fans for acting so surprised about the Spiders' win at Xavier. Granted, Richmond did something Xavier couldn't (win at Stanford) and is tied with Xavier at 4-1 for second in the Atlantic-10 West (behind 4-0 Dayton). But given the X's preseason hype, you never would have expected a home L like that.

As for your hoops-soccer analogies, I'll answer your Fordham = Suriname question by pointing out another analogy: St. John's = Holland. Both sides hoard talent like the colonial powers that they are.

Three random things