Recruiting is ruthless. It always has been and it always will be. Very few like but most everyone accepts it. Maybe that will change eventually, especially after hearing what one coach used to recruit against Thad Matta.
For the first time since arriving at Ohio State in 2004, Matta will fail to reach the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons. The Buckeyes have won 38 total games over the last two year, their lowest two-year total since 2002-04 (31). Their on-court struggles give opposing coaches plenty to recruit against. But apparently that's not enough.
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Matta has battled back issues for years. However, the 49-year-old says he's never missed a day of work since his coaching career began as an assistant at Indiana State in 1990, and that the issues have never limited his on- or off-court job performance. That hasn't stopped opponents from using the injuries against him. In fact, one coach even told a recruit that Matta was dying.
Seriously.
"It's been used for probably the last eight years to be honest to you," Matta said during a press conference in a video captured by Buckeye Grove. Somebody told a recruit I was dying. Not that my foot didn't lift but that I was going to die. Tough business I'm in here.”
You can watch the entire video below.
