Congrats to Derek and Hannah Jeter on the birth of their first son Kaius Green Jeter! #Re2pect 🫡
Karaoke | Scout That Never Was
Karaoke by Drake is the 2nd song on his ‘10 Thank Me Later album. It is with high praise that we present Mr. Graham with the inaugural Week to Week Notes’ Certified Aubrey Award. The criteria for an Aubrey is when an artist both sings the hook and raps usually with a mellow dramatic soft beat in the background. Grown men do not tend to admit to listening to an Aubrey publicly but if a song such as Karaoke were to be played on shuffle and the fellas let the song play out, somebody in the car will likely utter the phrase, “Yo, he Aubrey’d that.”
Thank Me Later was Drake’s first studio album and he was certainly seen as a potential star at this point but it is not out of the question for people at the time to still have doubts about his career as an artist who both sang and rapped. Karaoke is a song about a girl who didn’t think he would be able to do both the rapping and singing. We’ll skip over the whole rap lyrics this go around.
Jarace Walker was named the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Freshman of the Year in ‘23. At 6’8” with both a lean and long frame (7’2” wingspan), Walker has the potential to be an elite defender in the NBA. The offensive side of Walker’s may take a bit of time to develop in the NBA, but the tools are all there. Walker can finish with authority off the dribble, hit a catch & shoot spot up 3, and flashed some solid playmaking skills for a forward. He may not be the #1 on an NBA team, but his well-rounded game should make him a rotational asset from the onset of his NBA career. His game has drawn comparisons to a mix of Paul Millsap and Julius Randle.
Keyonte George holds the Baylor basketball program record for the most 20-point games (12) and three-pointers made by a freshman (77). George was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year. At 6’4”, he may be a bit undersized as a 2 guard but his development as a playmaker is all the way there yet. George has the ability to knock down 3s at a decent rate and loves to use his midrange floaters like you see GIF’d above.
Gradey Dick is a 6’8” shooting guard who set a Kansas freshman record for three-point field goals made with 83. Dick was the ‘22 High School Gatorade Player of the Year, joining only Andrew Wiggins in ‘13 as a player from Kansas to receive such acclaim before becoming a Jayhawk. During the NCAA tournament, Dick averaged 13 points and a team-best 9 rebounds per game. While he may not ever be a #1 option on an NBA team, he has the ability to be a very effective off-the-ball catch-and-shoot player. Let’s face it, if Gradey Dick is to work out in the NBA, his game will likely be very similar to Kyle Korver. People forget that Korver had a great 17-year career in the NBA with a career 42.9% 3-Point percentage.
Ausar Thompson has a twin named Amen. I don’t know how to rank identical twins with extremely similar body types and skill sets. This feels weird. Ausar won 2 championships in the Overtime Elite professional basketball league for 16–20-year-olds, based in Atlanta, Georgia. He was named the Finals MVP in both championship runs. He actually matched up with his brother Amen in the OTE Final in ‘22. His team coming up on top is why I got him 1 slot above Amen, but the two brothers joined forces to win the OTE Championship in ‘23. Could they be like the Morris twins with a bit more guard skills?
Amen Thompson has a twin named Ausar. I don’t know how to rank identical twins with extremely similar body types and skill sets. This feels weird. Amen was named to the All-OTE First Team after leading the City Reapers to the championship. He actually matched up with his brother Ausar in the OTE Final in ‘22. His team came up short which is why I got him 1 slot below Ausar, but the two brothers joined forces to win the OTE Championship in ‘23. Could they be like the Morris twins with a bit more guard skills?
Jared Verse played for the UAlbany Great Danes in ‘21 before transferring to Flordia State to become a Seminole piece of their defense. Verse must have thought the single largest poured concrete campus was adverse to his NFL Draft stock. In ‘21, Verse had 10.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss in New York’s capitol. As a redshirt sophomore in ‘22, the defensive end recorded 48 tackles, including 17.0 for loss with 9.0 sacks, three quarterback hurries, one fumble recovery, and one blocked field goal. He was named first-team All-ACC and received the most All-ACC votes on defense. Verse was named the FSU Defensive MVP. He is the only player in the ACC and one of two Power 5 defenders nationally with four games of 2.5 tackles for loss in ‘22. He’ll look to improve upon his ‘22 season and I look forward to claiming him as a UAlbany alum when he gets drafted in the NFL.
Collin Oliver had a monstrous freshman season as a Cowboy in ‘21, becoming the unanimous Big 12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year. He came in 7th in the Nation with 11.5 sacks on the year. As a sophomore, Oliver was named first-team Academic All-Big 12. His sack totals in ‘22 fell to 5 and he had 7.5 tackles for loss. Oliver will be transitioning from an edge rusher to an outside linebacker in Mike Gundy’s new 3-3-5 defense. Gundy this spring has said, “I’m excited about watching him. This is a good position for him. It’s a good position for us that he’s in that spot. We can rush him just like we did last year. We can move him around just like we did the last couple of years. We should be able to use his ability to do some different things with throughout the season.” We’ll see if the position change can get the most out of Oliver’s skillset and have him as effective as he was his freshman season.
Shedeur Sanders is the son of Colorado’s new head coach Dion Sanders. “Primetime’s” son quarterbacked for his dad at Jackson State and has transferred to Colorado along with 5 other of his Jackson State teammates. In ‘21 as a freshman, Sanders threw for 3,231 passing yards with 30 passing touchdowns to just 8 INTs. He followed that up with a sophomore performance of 3,752 passing yards with 40 passing touchdowns and 6 INTs. Sanders will face much tougher competition in the PAC-12 than he did in the Southwestern Atheltic Conference with Jackson State, but I’m sure with Primetime at the helm, we’ll be in for some must-watch TV.
Demeioun “Chop” Robinson was selected All-Big Ten honorable mention by the coaches and media. In ‘21, Chop Robinson played for Maryland before transferring to Happy Valley. He along with his Adisa Isaac, shared the honor as the team’s Most Outstanding Defensive Lineman. Chop got his nickname when he was born. “When I came out of the womb, I was 14 pounds. A real big baby, and my dad and my mom started calling me a pork chop. Once I got older, I was like, ‘Well, I can’t have people calling me a pork chop. So, I just kept it to chop, and that’s how I got my name.” Chop Robinson in ‘22 had 10 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 2 pass breakups, 3 QB hurries, a fumble recovery, and one forced fumble. The Penn State coaching and Robinson have high hopes for the ‘23 season.
Ga'Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry was given his nickname by his grandmother shortly after his birth because his smile reminded her of the Kool-Aid Man. McKinstry now dons the Crimson Tide red so the name still plays and even earned him a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deal with the drink company. In ‘22, McKinstry returned to his starting spot at cornerback in year two while also handling punt return duties and earned All-SEC First Team as a defensive back by both the AP & the league coaches. He also received second-team All-SEC for his punt return duties. As a punt returner, Kool-Aid averaged 15.8 yards per return, good for second in the nation and tops in the SEC. In his career thus far, McKinstry has had 2 career INTs and 18 pass deflections. We’ll see if McKinstry can be Nick Saban’s next great CB at ‘Bama, joining the likes of Marlon Humphrey, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Trevon Diggs, and Patrick Surtain.