Between The Eers: Battle & Farrakhan Choose to Play
Between The Eers: Battle & Farrakhan Choose to Play
Transcript
00:00 Hey, hey, hey, I'm back.
00:11 I lied.
00:12 Not the final Between the Ears episode of the week.
00:15 We've got one quick one here.
00:16 It is an emergency podcast, a reaction, if you will, as West Virginia interim head coach
00:24 Josh Eilert just announced that Raekwon Battle and Noah Farrakhan will indeed dress and be
00:30 available to play tomorrow against UMass in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Springfield.
00:37 This is massive news.
00:39 This to me, again, probably gives them, I think they have a good feeling about that
00:47 ruling that's going to happen on December 27th.
00:51 That's going to be the more permanent solution as to what the NCAA can and cannot enforce
00:57 in regards to the transfer rule.
01:00 I think they had this feeling all along, but I think too, it's also going to be a good,
01:06 I think, visual and also a data point for the judge too, to see Raekwon Battle out there
01:13 playing the moment he gets the opportunity because he has been saying for so long that
01:19 him playing basketball is a big part of his mental health and taking care of his mental
01:24 health.
01:26 For him to show that, "Hey, I don't care if I'm risking it or not," I think that's a good
01:33 sign.
01:34 Now, the judge, Judge Bailey, put that restitution rule into order or whatever they're calling
01:42 it so that way the NCAA doesn't go back and penalize the athletes or the schools for participating
01:50 in this 14-day window.
01:51 The NCAA came back out and said a day after the hearing on Wednesday that they could still
01:58 lose a year of eligibility if they play in a 14-day window if the ruling gets reversed.
02:06 That is not what the judge intended for that ruling to be on Wednesday.
02:12 That's not at all what he was saying or what he had ruled.
02:16 I think that also goes against the NCAA and it's for West Virginia.
02:23 I think really the NCAA is lost.
02:26 Like I said two weeks ago, anytime the NCAA goes to court, they're going to lose.
02:31 I think that's going to be the case here in less than two weeks.
02:36 But again, still a little bit of a risky move to play Raekwon, to play Noah.
02:41 This was their choice.
02:44 I think for West Virginia, if you want to get to the NCAA tournament, you can't keep
02:51 going with what you've got even if it's four or three more games because as we've seen,
02:57 they can lose each one of these next three games without these guys.
03:02 I'm not saying that with these guys, they're automatically going to go 3-0, but it certainly
03:06 gives them more of a chance, gives them a chance to play more up-tempo, play to the
03:11 style that they intended to at the beginning of the season, and it gives them more depth.
03:16 Here's the statement that Josh Eilert released just a little bit ago.
03:21 He says, "We had many conversations with a variety of parties since Wednesday's court
03:26 ruling in Wheeling, but most importantly, we have had extensive discussions with Raekwon,
03:32 Noah and their families.
03:34 They've expressed their desire to compete with their fellow teammates and represent
03:37 WVU on the court.
03:40 This was their decision to compete.
03:42 As I've said, we will always fully support them and certainly look forward to having
03:46 them on our active roster."
03:49 So there you have it.
03:51 Raekwon battle, Noah Farrakhan making their WVU debut Saturday evening against UMass in
03:57 the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Springfield, Massachusetts, home of the Basketball Hall
04:04 of Fame.
04:05 That one will stream and be televised on ESPNU.
04:09 We'll have the postgame coverage for you here on the Mountaineers Now postgame show with
04:13 Christopher Hall and myself.
04:15 Be sure to hit that subscribe button on YouTube at Mountaineers Now.
04:19 Hit the follow button on X at the same handle and we'll talk to you guys then.