Rumors had been flying all week that Tony Freeman--you know, that guy that led Iowa in scoring in eight of his twenty games played--was on his way out. The UI made it official tonight, announcing that Freeman will be released from his scholarship. He'll be completing his collegiate career elsewhere, the story says, and we're anxiously awaiting word on where that'll be. High-major school? Possible, but it's doubtful he'd start; why transfer out of a sure starting role for your senior season just to sit out for a year, then play 10 minutes a game at Marquette or some shit? Mid-major, most likely, but Freeman cannot actually think that playing at IUPUI will be better than at Iowa. C'mon.

The transfer rumors had begun earlier this week, after an assistant told the Linn County I-Club that the captains for the 2008-2009 season were Cyrus Tate and Jarryd Cole. Two guys who play the same position, and one guy who is much younger than Freeman. Freeman gave some tepid answers when pressed for comment, then said he "should be" at Iowa next year, which is code for "peace bitches." Nice work by Randy Peterson, marking the first time since the Big Peach era that Register sportswriting has been noteworthy. In a positive sense, anyway.

We'll sort of miss Freeman. Well, Jebus won't. And I probably won't. And HS probably won't. So let me amend my previous statement: Thank you for spending all of last season knocking down three-pointers when Iowa was hopelessly behind, Freeman. Your ability to create massive amounts of turnovers from thin air (The stats say 71, creating a "perfect 1:1" A/T ratio, but we could swear he coughed it up roughly 14 times per game) was at once astonishing and maddening. Also, we're pretty sure you were the reason Todd Lickliter did this all the time:

Lord grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, or failing that, a failsafe place to hide Tony Freeman's body.

Soooo, here's your depth chart for next season:

C: Jarryd Cole (Soph., 6'7", 250), Andrew Brommer (Fr., 6'9", 215)
PF: Cyrus Tate (Sr., 6'8", 240)
SF: Matt Gatens (Fr., 6'5", 201), Aaron Fuller (Fr., 6'7", 185), Jermain Davis (Jr., 6'4", 200)
SG: Jake Kelly (Soph., 6'6", 180), Devan Bawinkel (Jr., 6'5", 205)
PG: Jeff Peterson (So., 6'0", 185), Anthony Tucker (Fr., 6'4", 175)

The wild card is incoming recruit Anthony Tucker, who will probably be pressed into duty at the point. You can judge for yourself if you think he's capable of doing so by watching this highlight reel from Rivals, but we're not terribly optimistic. His jumper is outstanding, but you can't seriously watch that and tell us he's capable of consistently facing a press at the BXI level. No way.

But we digress. Tony Freeman, going the way of the dirigible and Dan Bohall. Godspeed, you offense-wrecking lunatic. We'll always have our below-average photoshops of you.

We don't even remember what prompted this.

Last, no word on if Skynyrd will be crafting a tribute song, though we're not optimistic. And this man you cannot change.

Here at BHGP, we'd like to believe that Coach Lickliter was a great hire. In fact, we do believe that. We'd like to believe that he's got a deeper understanding of the game than we can ever imagine or appreciate, and that there are nuances deeply ingrained into his approach that separate him from all but the finest of his contemporaries.

Then something like this comes along, and all of a sudden we don't know what to believe. From the P-C:

Iowa coach Todd Lickliter loves the way Tony Freeman shoots.

Loves it.

"Oh my goodness," Lickliter said. "He just makes them. I love shots that go in, and he can really make them."

So, uh, that's the vaunted Butler system? Demanding "shots that go in"?

Perhaps the author merely caught Lickliter at a bad time (i.e. after two bottles of Grigio down at Devotay). Perhaps Lick said something insightful, but the tape recorder was stuck on "child." Maybe Ryan Suchomel is a liar.

But that's all speculation; the facts as we know them tell us that Lickliter talks like the kid from down the hall who was a middle distance runner in high school and hasn't watched regular sports for very long. You know, the type that always asks who's playing and which team is which.

I for one am terrified.

*With the triplicate usage of "love" to start that article, I was sorely tempted to take a shot at Ron Paul. I will decline, because his supporters make the MGoBots look like Baylor fans.