Transfer Portal 2026

[Let'sGoZips94]

He has Cal Baptist written all over him. 

[Zippy87]

33 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

He has Cal Baptist written all over him. 

 

I kind of wonder with stuff like this, do players put teams in the top 3 who don't even really want them? Can they do that? Lol

[kreed5120]

13 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

 

I kind of wonder with stuff like this, do players put teams in the top 3 who don't even really want them? Can they do that? Lol

 

Why wouldn't they be able to? I'm sure there is a lot of embellishing going on in the portal to make players appear more marketable than they really are.

 

I would imagine at the very least Akron probably did reach out to him at some point. Whether or not Akron decided on someone else and that offer is no longer valid, your guess is as good as mine.

 

Edit: If he does come here I imagine he's a replacement for Bowen's role.

Edited 50 minutes ago by kreed5120

[Illini Zip]

5 minutes ago, kreed5120 said:

 

Edit: If he does come here I imagine he's a replacement for Bowen's role.

I see the same thing.

 

 

Edited 45 minutes ago by Illini Zip

[1981 grad]

On 4/16/2026 at 8:22 PM, 72 Roo said:

From folks inside the program I heard that they wanted Eric but feared they couldn't afford him, which was true. He ended up better on all counts. As regards Sharon they felt they had better talent coming in and coming up from redshirt. They wanted to keep him but were not going to pay much. Personally I hate losing him because I liked his grit. According to the people I talked with he was never assured he would start. 

I am really disappointed that we lost both of these guys.  It reminds me when KD left the program we lost another West Virginia guard Tavian Dunn Martin and a center, Michael Hughs and Groce had almost a rebuild in year one and we had a losing season.  (Jimond Ivey stayed and had a fantastic career at Akron)  Sharron did not have a great 2nd season but he came on at the end with a fantastic game at Kent and played well in Cleveland.  Eric has a lot of potential but I think for his development it would have been better for him to stay one year as a starter and put up the great stats and have payoff in year 3.  I will be curious if he gets to be a starter in Cinn or just a role player.  I also wonder if therse guys would have stayed but for the coaching change.

[kreed5120]

17 minutes ago, 1981 grad said:

I am really disappointed that we lost both of these guys.  It reminds me when KD left the program we lost another West Virginia guard Tavian Dunn Martin and a center, Michael Hughs and Groce had almost a rebuild in year one and we had a losing season.  (Jimond Ivey stayed and had a fantastic career at Akron)  Sharron did not have a great 2nd season but he came on at the end with a fantastic game at Kent and played well in Cleveland.  Eric has a lot of potential but I think for his development it would have been better for him to stay one year as a starter and put up the great stats and have payoff in year 3.  I will be curious if he gets to be a starter in Cinn or just a role player.  I also wonder if therse guys would have stayed but for the coaching change.

 

I can't really speak about Young, but Eric attended Ford's press conference the same day he committed to Cincy. I feel it's telling how much respect and appreciation Eric had for Ford that he attended even though he knew he was leaving. Coaching change seems like a non-factor. In fact, maybe Groce left because he knew he was going to lose Eric and Young so he figured if he was going to have to rebuild anyway now was the right time to leave.

 

Hilltopper threw a number out randomly (not sure if accurate) saying Eric was going to get $700k+, which to me sounds right when you hear what others at P5 schools are making. You can't walk away from that. Maybe he stays another year and improves his value further (mind you he would have to nearly double his value to make it worthwhile as he would have 2 years instead of 3 to cash in if he stayed at Akron). Maybe he stays another year and tears his ACL like Ipsaro did at Miami. Now all that money is gone and he doesn't have a head start on life.

Edited 26 minutes ago by kreed5120