MDchicago
- Lake Norman NC
Not one bit. I think Lou wanted Big Ed to be a post player. He saw himself more in the mold of Bernard King. From what I remember, that took Illinois out of the running. (Horton was a great athlete in high school but certainly bulked up in college.)
He actually had a pretty solid career with Iowa. His Lanphier teammate, Kevin Gamble, turned out to be the better player of the two and nearly made an NBA All-Star game with the Boston Celtics. Great guy, too.
Per the Tribune (March 1985):
"Coach Lou Henson had asked Horton to redshirt his freshman year. He had hoped Horton would enroll at Illinois with Providence-St. Mel star Lowell Hamilton, who will not redshirt.
''It was just one of those things,'' said Horton, who played on Lanphier`s state championship team two years ago. ''Mr. Henson wanted me to redshirt, and I couldn`t go for that. Not on a team I knew I could play for.''
With Efrem, Welch, Norman, Meents and Lowell onboard, understand Lou's view of the available PT as a freshman. But Horton's dismissive response is equally unsurprising, given his physical readiness and high rankings (McD AA and #9 in Bob Gibbons final rankings). Recruiting in the mid-80's!