MU Press Release on Wally

[IWB]

For Immediate Release
Wally Ellenson No Longer With Men’s Basketball Program

BIG EAST high jump champion will remain on scholarship in track & field in 2016-17

Milwaukee – Junior guard Wally Ellenson is no longer a member of the men’s basketball program, but will remain on full scholarship with the track and field program at Marquette University until graduation, head coach Steve Wojciechowski announced Thursday afternoon.

“We appreciate the contributions Wally has made during his two years with the program and wish him the best of luck the remainder of the season in the high jump and moving forward,” Wojciechowski said.

Ellenson, who transferred prior to the 2014-15 campaign after spending two seasons at Minnesota, appeared in 29 games for the Golden Eagles last season after redshirting and averaged 1.9 points and 2.2 rebounds per contest in an average of 8.8 minutes per game.

The Rice Lake, Wisconsin native is a four-time All-America selection in the high jump and claimed the BIG EAST Conference indoor and outdoor titles in the event in 2015.

Also, freshman walk-on Christian Haffner has been granted his release as requested and will continue his basketball career at another institution.

[Markedman]

Does a walk on need a release?

[IWB]

Yes - if you are a member of a team coaches from other schools can't contact you until you have been released.

[Nukem2]

Wally gets to follow his track dream while on scholarship to graduation after getting to play with his brother for a year in BB. Not exactly suffering here. People can quibble, but....... Ya know, some of us like me paid for our educations while working 20-30 hours a week. Wally can try for the Olympics and come back for indoor track and have a full scholie and get his degree. No weeping here.

[MU/Panther]

Well said! Works out well, for Wally.

[TheSultan]

Well said! Works out well, for Wally.


LOL...even though he wants to play basketball, we are going to say that this works out well for him? I'm willing to see what the whole story entails to see Marquette's side, but I'm not going to spin it this way.

[Nukem2]

LOL...even though he wants to play basketball, we are going to say that this works out well for him? I'm willing to see what the whole story entails to see Marquette's side, but I'm not going to spin it this way.
Sorry, Sultan, but you are simply wrong. His thing is track and he should focus on it. He would have been the 13th man and sitting on the bench. He would not have been happy. Now he can focus. Not spinning anything here. In the end, Wally would be not participating in BB activities until September. That really is not fair to the other guys. BB is 24/7 these days. Just reality. He is getting a scholie until graduation while following his real dream in the high jump. Such is life.

[MU/Panther]

Odds are we won't hear anyside. Wally is on a track scholarship, we can't cry for him.

[MUAlphaBangura]

LOL...even though he wants to play basketball, we are going to say that this works out well for him? I'm willing to see what the whole story entails to see Marquette's side, but I'm not going to spin it this way.

Hey, Wally and I have something in common. I wanted to play basketball at Marquette also. And just like Wally, I wasn't good enough either. :cool:

[TheSultan]

Sorry, Sultan, but you are simply wrong. His thing is track and he should focus on it. He would have been the 13th man and sitting on the bench. He would not have been happy. Now he can focus. Not spinning anything here. In the end, Wally would be not participating in BB activities until September. That really is not fair to the other guys. BB is 24/7 these days. Just reality. He is getting a scholie until graduation while following his real dream in the high jump. Such is life.


I love how people can tell others what their "thing" is and what they should "focus on."

I mean, I understand Wojo's rationale. I just don't want to hear how good this is for Wally and that we should all be happy for him. It's very patronizing.

[MU/Panther]

If you don't want to hear it, don't listen then. Fine, you disagree. So be it!

[Nukem2]

I love how people can tell others what their "thing" is and what they should "focus on."

I mean, I understand Wojo's rationale. I just don't want to hear how good this is for Wally and that we should all be happy for him. It's very patronizing.

Wally is not exactly suffering here. This is a BB decision and he is being given an outstanding alternative. Stop playing your violin. And, you and the rest of us don't know what other things are going on in the background over time. No patronization here.

[Markedman]

Decisions have to made sometimes that aren't going to make everybody happy.

I understand what Sultan is saying.......it isn't what Wally wanted but he is getting a valuable degree without paying a dime for it.

Of things in life that make me angry this isn't going to make the list.

Best of luck to Wally.

Time to move on.....at least for me.

[TheSultan]

Wally is not exactly suffering here. This is a BB decision and he is being given an outstanding alternative. Stop playing your violin. And, you and the rest of us don't know what other things are going on in the background over time. No patronization here.

No he's not suffering. And yes we don't know everything and Wojo could very well be completely justified. And as markedman said, it isn't unjust by any means and I am hardly angry about it.

But you are wrong that the "this is good for Wally" stuff isn't patronizing. It is very patronizing.



If you don't want to hear it, don't listen then. Fine, you disagree. So be it!

If you don't want me to respond to what you put on a message board, don't type it.

[Nukem2]

Decisions have to made sometimes that aren't going to make everybody happy.

I understand what Sultan is saying.......it isn't what Wally wanted but he is getting a valuable degree without paying a dime for it.

Of things in life that make me angry this isn't going to make the list.

Best of luck to Wally.

Time to move on.....at least for me.
Yup. And, he still gets to follow that high jump dream just like Henry follows his NBA dream. The Ellenson family will be just fine. Now, he could turn down the track scholie, but who's fault would that be? I have moved on.

[MU/Panther]

Yes, Wally might not be happy, but we are hearing only side of story.

[MUMac]

Sorry guys, I do not like this cr@p at all. I do not care for your spin, I see it differently and am a bit disgusted with Wojo and my alma mater right now. Just got an email tonight reminding my of my points for the reseating. Frankly, am wondering right now if I even want to reseat.

[Nukem2]

I watched Wally all season at the BC and was thinking he should focus on track. Had a couple nice 2nd halves when games were out of control. Otherwise, he was mostly a foul machine. Realistically, he would have been the 13 th man next season. Just what it is. The coaches obviously came to the same conclusion. Wally has been given an outstanding alternative to continue his track career and get his degree. Yes, he may be disappointed about basketball. But that's not really his future. No spin here. If Wally turns down this alternative, that's his choice. He is not being tossed to the curb here.

[MUMac]

I watched Wally all season at the BC and was thinking he should focus on track. Had a couple nice 2nd halves when games were out of control. Otherwise, he was mostly a foul machine. Realistically, he would have been the 13 th man next season. Just what it is. The coaches obviously came to the same conclusion. Wally has been given an outstanding alternative to continue his track career and get his degree. Yes, he may be disappointed about basketball. But that's not really his future. No spin here. If Wally turns down this alternative, that's his choice. He is not being tossed to the curb here.

Sorry Nukem, this is a crap post. Full spin BS. This is a disgusting move by Wojo and MU. It has ZERO to do with track. Why bring that cr@p into it. I expected more of MU and Wojo. You did not. So be it. It says alot about all of us.

[Nukem2]

Sorry Nukem, this is a crap post. Full spin BS. This is a disgusting move by Wojo and MU. It has ZERO to do with track. Why bring that cr@p into it. I expected more of MU and Wojo. You did not. So be it. It says alot about all of us.
Sorry, Mac. This has all to do about BB, not track. Sure that Wojo and Scholl did not make this decision lightly. In the end, this is probably better for Wally. His ego might be bruised, but he is getting a helluva an opportunity for his future without worrying about BB. We agree to disagree. I would agree with you if his scholie was pulled. That's not the case.

[IrwinFletcher]

Sorry guys, I do not like this cr@p at all. I do not care for your spin, I see it differently and am a bit disgusted with Wojo and my alma mater right now. Just got an email tonight reminding my of my points for the reseating. Frankly, am wondering right now if I even want to reseat.

So you are deciding to believe what you are reading on Internet message boards and giving no thought to what Wojo and MU's side of the story is?

[warriorfan4life]

So you are deciding to believe what you are reading on Internet message boards and giving no thought to what Wojo and MU's side of the story is?

Especially when all of the reasonable voices on the boards (the few that remain) have highlighted that there is a lot more to this move.

[mufansince72]

Whatever happened, sucks and looks bad for MU. What should I expect though, just about every move the program has made since the end of the Crean era has been bad.

[TheSultan]

I agree with Mac. Wally was invited here to play basketball. If it was insinuated that Wally would be allowed to fully participate in track, or if Sunday was the first time issues with his track participation were discussed, then Marquette should hold up its end of the deal. It's not Wally's fault that Wojo didn't recruit a power forward.

[Nukem2]

I agree with Mac. Wally was invited here to play basketball. If it was insinuated that Wally would be allowed to fully participate in track, or if Sunday was the first time issues with his track participation were discussed, then Marquette should hold up its end of the deal. It's not Wally's fault that Wojo didn't recruit a power forward.
Don't think the 2 sport stuff was working so well. Suspect that Wojo told Wally to concentrate on just one sport if he wanted to play BB. In short, be all in. Obviously, Wally did not agree. And, I certainly doubt that the subject first came up on Sunday. My guess is as good as yours.

[Phantom Warrior]

It certainly appears at this point that his participation on the track team and his preparation for the Olympic trials are not/were not the major issue but that "overbearing helicopter parents" was the issue, at least that is what Todd Smith's posting of the article would lead one to believe. That certainly could not be a coincidence in terms of the what and the when.

[Markedman]

Here is a post from JD's board. The poster is known by Ted.....he is the son of a former MU great and played for Bo Ryan.
Ps. Ted correct me if I'm wrong.

Hoops1212

Ignore this Member
Nominate | Report
Posted: Yesterday 6:49 PM
Re: Wally Ellenson Post Rating (9 votes)
I know this for sure, Wally didn't get his scholarship taken from him. Coaches typically meet at the end of the season with players and give them an idea where they see them for the upcoming year. This is pretty common. Wally's time on the floor next year would have been very little and therefore he was upset and decided to give up his scholarship. Sometimes the truth hurts! Instead of appreciating the opportunity, it sounds like someone (or in this case an entire family) felt they should be given playing time. Smoke and Mirrors? The Ellenson's got everything and more from Marquette.

[Goose85]

The best thing that could happen now is Wally focuses on high jumping full time, and has a great effort that gets him a shot at the Olympic trials and he goes from there.

Track is crazy. We all celebrate a guy that wins or medals in the Olympics, but it is always a little about the luck of the timing. With his sole focus on high jumping, and if Henry gets to peak season jumping at the right time, he could very well be on the Olympic team. Of course timing, and the luck of having your best day on that one day is needed.

Old school story. I remember IWB running track in high school. It was the 200, and IWB came in second but was not close to the winner. I told IWB he ran a great race, but IWB was upset at getting smoked (if you can say that coming in 2nd). I said to him - yeah, but you came in 2nd to Floyd Heard.

Floyd Heard was one of the best 100 and 200 runners in the world for a period of time, but his best years just didn't happen to be Olympic years.
Luck, timing, and one track meet every 4 years determines who gets a shot at the Olympics.

Here's to hoping that with Wally focusing on high jumping, he has his best efforts when needed to get a shot at the Olympic trials, and then PRs when it counts to get to the Olympic team. I'm sure all MU hoop fans will be pulling for Wally to have his best day when it counts.

Good luck and jump high Wally - we will be watching and cheering for you no matter what!

[MUMac]

I can attest, with track athletic children, that timing is critical in the training. Peak a week early or late and you are a memory. Tough sport. Their competition is other athletes training. So now think of what their training may be for that one shot.

Suzy Favor said the year she took the fall in the Olympics that she knew she had peaked two weeks before the race. Knew she would not have that extra gear to finish and when she did not, took the fall.

[MayorBeluga]

Old school story. I remember IWB running track in high school. It was the 200, and IWB came in second but was not close to the winner. I told IWB he ran a great race, but IWB was upset at getting smoked (if you can say that coming in 2nd). I said to him - yeah, but you came in 2nd to Floyd Heard.


Almost believable story until you said IWB was running.

[Goose85]

Almost believable story until you said IWB was running.

IWB had some serious wheels for a big fella. Just not Floyd Heard wheels.

I'm not even sure if MayorBeluga has ever gone jogging.

[Djgoldnboy]

I can attest, with track athletic children, that timing is critical in the training. Peak a week early or late and you are a memory. Tough sport. Their competition is other athletes training. So now think of what their training may be for that one shot.

Suzy Favor said the year she took the fall in the Olympics that she knew she had peaked two weeks before the race. Knew she would not have that extra gear to finish and when she did not, took the fall.

Reports out of Vegas are that she had the extra to finish in other areas.......

[MayorBeluga]

I'm not even sure if MayorBeluga has ever gone jogging.

Not if Hizzoner can help it.

[MUMac]

Reports out of Vegas are that she had the extra to finish in other areas.......

Yeah, I debated even mentioning this to derail the thread.

[CaribouJim]

IWB had some serious wheels for a big fella. Just not Floyd Heard wheels.

I'm not even sure if MayorBeluga has ever gone jogging.

Floyd Heard was studly in his prime so count me in as impressed with IWB, but then again, there was the San Diego " incident" that negates how impressed I am.

[MUAlphaBangura]

Floyd Heard was studly in his prime so count me in as impressed with IWB, but then again, there was the San Diego " incident" that negates how impressed I am.

I will not be impressed until somebody can confirm that there were more than 2 people running in that race!

[IWB]

Ha - good stuff. A couple of corrections - the Floyd Heard race was actually a relay, but the rest is pretty accurate. I was a collegiate running back, but that was a couple hundred pounds ago.

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

Sorry Nukem, this is a crap post. Full spin BS. This is a disgusting move by Wojo and MU. It has ZERO to do with track. Why bring that cr@p into it. I expected more of MU and Wojo. You did not. So be it. It says alot about all of us.

Disappointed Wally can't transfer and keep playing basketball, either as a grad transfer or by sitting out. Really disappointed how this one panned out.

If this was happening in Madison, people on these boards would be unilaterally skewering Gard. Just because Wojo is our guy doesn't change the standard. I'm expecting the next man up to get us to the Tourney this year.

[Nukem2]

Disappointed Wally can't transfer and keep playing basketball, either as a grad transfer or by sitting out. Really disappointed how this one panned out.

If this was happening in Madison, people on these boards would be unilaterally skewering Gard. Just because Wojo is our guy doesn't change the standard. I'm expecting the next man up to get us to the Tourney this year.
Once again, to be fair, we do not know the whole story (and I would bet $$
that no one here does) Let's temper our judgments a bit. Looks "bad" on the surface, BUT................?

[kneelb4zerg]

Once again, to be fair, we do not know the whole story (and I would bet $$
that no one here does) Let's temper our judgments a bit. Looks "bad" on the surface, BUT................?

Yeah a lot of people assuming the worst just because of public perception. That's a separate issue. Call me an optimist but I'll assume Wojo isn't an underhanded jerk until proven otherwise.

[Nukem2]

Yeah a lot of people assuming the worst just because of public perception. That's a separate issue. Call me an optimist but I'll assume Wojo isn't an underhanded jerk until proven otherwise.Yup, too many folks on these various MU boards are judging the outcome while not knowing the actual process of what happened. And, yes, I don't think Wojo was being underhanded either. Frankly, it its "almost" in his best interest to speak about the situation. But, we have those unwritten rules of sports This is obviously not a HIPAA or privacy issue. If there is, there is probably even more to the story.

[MUMac]

Yup, too many folks on these various MU boards are judging the outcome while not knowing the actual process of what happened. And, yes, I don't think Wojo was being underhanded either. Frankly, it its "almost" in his best interest to speak about the situation. But, we have those unwritten rules of sports This is obviously not a HIPAA or privacy issue. If there is, there is probably even more to the story.

Are you not doing the same? Your follow-up sentence shows that you are. But, since it is "the corporate line", that's ok. Those of us that take a different school of thought are just being judgmental? Ok, whatever ... :rolleyes:

[Nukem2]

Are you not doing the same? Your follow-up sentence shows that you are. But, since it is "the corporate line", that's ok. Those of us that take a different school of thought are just being judgmental? Ok, whatever ... :rolleyes:Well, I just said I don't think Wojo was underhanded. That's not necessarily a judgment. Just an observation as I don't think he is an evil person. You and others on the other hand, have basically thrown Wojo under the bus. I don't know what happened any more than you do. My judgment is that all parties involved had something to do with the final outcome. Too bad we don't know how that sequence of events took place.

PS, in a non-judgmental basketball decision manner, I do note that a poster on one of the MU boards suggested that Wally was not going to play whether he were to be on the roster or not. ;)

Time to move on as no one is going to talk, at least not both sides.

[Phantom Warrior]

Let's play, "Let's Pretend."

Let's pretend that next year in Madison a certain parent of an in-state player) has, reportedly been demanding certain actions by the staff with respect to his son - unreasonable demands. Let's pretend that the kid, though fairly talented, is not a starter and is not even the first reserves at his position to come in off the bench. In fact let's the say that in some games the kid does not even get in the game and that for the season he is averaging around 8 minutes per game.

Let's further pretend that the parent has been complaining all season about his son not being in the starting line up, that he should be a starter ahead of other players the staff feels are better at this point in time than the kid with the whining parent.

Let's continue to pretend that Gard and the rest of the staff have finally had as much as they can take from this parent, that they are not willing to put up with all the moaning and all the demands in the future but they are convinced that they will not stop.

So, to finish our hypothetical pretense, let's say that Gard, with the full knowledge and backing of the athletic director, decides it's not worth it to keep the kid on the team but he can keep his scholarship for another year.

Would MU fans skewer Gard? Some will, of course, because they are anti-Badger no matter what. But I think others - and more than just a few - would come to the conclusion that Gard did what he thought was best for the team overall as that is, and should be, the coach's top priority and responsibility.

We are using UW in our pretend scenario, but a similar situation apparently just played out in Cincinnati with Xavier, only this time it had to do with the player himself not the parent. Supposedly Reynolds, who was a starter for the Musketeers, was basically told not to come back because Mack and the staff were tired of dealing with him and told him to move on.

Reynolds still had a year of eligibility for Xavier, but he already used up a red-shirt season, so he could not transfer to another school. Reynolds does not have the option of being on tennis scholarship or golf scholarship, or track scholarship this coming year, so he's gone, and his only viable option is to declare for the NBA draft. Have any MU fans skewered Mack for this decision? Nope. I think the basic response among the MU faithful would be that it's Mack's choice, and if he chose to jettison a returning starter for the overall good of the team, so be it.

Identical situation to MU? No - player issues versus parent issues. But issues nonetheless.

It bothers me that so many MU fans are willing to throw Wojo - and the university - under the proverbial bus if there is even a chance that his decision was a result of the family's actions/words over the past year.

[Markedman]

I didn't know that about Reynolds. A guy with his talent to be told to take a hike tells you his behavior must have been a real problem.

[warriorfan4life]

This situation has boiled down to those that those that want to believe the worst have done so. Those with open minds have taken a different stance.

[MUMac]

This situation has boiled down to those that those that want to believe the worst have done so. Those with open minds have taken a different stance.

Wow, so only those who take a different stance have open minds? So passive/aggressive! Some really bizarre comments by the lemmings on this board. Yours is at the top.

[Nukem2]

Wow, so only those who take a different stance have open minds? So passive/aggressive! Some really bizarre comments by the lemmings on this board. Yours is at the top.
Oh, I suspect we all have open minds. Some are more apt to form conclusions based on the "evidence" available. To each his own. In the end, there is an outcome in place here. Coaches, player, admins, family and fans will all move on from this outcome in whatever direction they choose. Such is life. Hoping for the best for Wally and his family. Wish it had not turned out this way. But, here we are however we got here.

[MUMac]

Oh, I suspect we all have open minds. Some are more apt to form conclusions based on the "evidence" available. To each his own. In the end, there is an outcome in place here. Coaches, player, admins, family and fans will all move on from this outcome in whatever direction they choose. Such is life. Hoping for the best for Wally and his family. Wish it had not turned out this way. But, here we are however we got here.

And there you go again ... I have seen the evidence and have a different view than you, but I chose not to make snarky attacks to your ability to decide for yourself. This is getting ridiculous!

[Nukem2]

And there you go again ... I have seen the evidence and have a different view than you, but I chose not to make snarky attacks to your ability to decide for yourself. This is getting ridiculous!

No snarkiness intended here. I put quotes around the word evidence because we literally have no hard evidence, just an outcome and some mysterious tweets and a heckuva a lot of conjecture and talk of helicopter parents. If you choose to make conclusions, that's your choice/opinion and i'll respect that. I'm moving on as I, and virtually every body on these boards, do not and never will know the whole story as to how events played out. Let's leave that to the parties involved. I suspect the actions and words leading to that outcome were not all that one-sided ( that's just an educated guess, not a conclusion ).

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

And there you go again ... I have seen the evidence and have a different view than you, but I chose not to make snarky attacks to your ability to decide for yourself. This is getting ridiculous!

Exactly why I've avoided this discussion...well, that and a busy day at work. It's either defend Marquette even against the evidence or attack the program and vilify Wojo. I'm not a fan of either option, so screw it, no one's opinion will likely change on the issue.

[Nukem2]

Exactly why I've avoided this discussion...well, that and a busy day at work. It's either defend Marquette even against the evidence or attack the program and vilify Wojo. I'm not a fan of either option, so screw it, no one's opinion will likely change on the issue.
That's the bottom line. Too many opinions and no facts. And, there are no facts other than Wally is no longer on the BB team...!

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

That's the bottom line. Too many opinions and no facts. And, there are no facts other than Wally is no longer on the BB team...!

Yup. Wally is gone. Whatever we may individually think about it, personally I will embrace whoever takes the scholarship.

[Nukem2]

Yup. Wally is gone. Whatever we may individually think about it, personally I will embrace whoever takes the scholarship.Yes.

[Phantom Warrior]

We have exactly zero evidence either way. We may know the what - meaning the decision, the outcome - but we do not know the why - though different theories - that's THEORIES - have been presented representing different view points.

Personally, I find some of the THEORIES somewhat illogical. Others, at least to me, seem to make more sense. I simply prefer to go with what seems to me to be the most logical of the "why's."

[Nukem2]

We have exactly zero evidence either way. We may know the what - meaning the decision, the outcome - but we do not know the why - though different theories - that's THEORIES - have been presented representing different view points.

Personally, I find some of the THEORIES somewhat illogical. Others, at least to me, seem to make more sense. I simply prefer with what seems to me to be the most logical of the "why's."
You are hitting on what I have been saying. Not a decision...rather an outcome. Hoops1212 seems to have it right. Took 4 days for MU to come forward.