This weekend, Michigan State transfer AJ Hoggard will be taking an official visit to Vanderbilt. Hoggard never fully reached his potential in East Lansing and will leave with one year of eligibility remaining. A few other schools are in the running for Hoggard’s services, but Vanderbilt appears to be in a strong position.
AJ Hoggard Making an SEC Visit This Weekend
Hoggard would be an excellent fit at Vanderbilt. The Commodores have had a busy offseason. They brought in a new head coach, Mark Byington from JMU as 8 players from the transfer portal. Byington hinted at Hoggard visiting this weekend by saying he would bring a “special guest” to the Vanderbilt baseball game against the number one team in the country and in-state rival Tennessee.
Vandy fans. Saturday around noon I’m visiting the tailgates before the baseball game. I might bring a special guest. It’s going to be fun. ⚓️ down
— Mark Byington (@VU_CoachB) May 9, 2024
Despite bringing in 9 transfers, the Commodores have failed to bring in a true lead guard. They did bring in Cornell guard CJ Manon, but it is hard to say if his skills will transfer from the Ivy League to the SEC. Hoggard is a true scoring threat and has proven it in the Big Ten. But he mainly played a distributor role at Michigan State. He averaged over 5 assists per game this season. He is also a capable defender averaging 1.4 steals per game last season. His biggest weakness is his three-point shooting. He is a career 30.3% shooter from deep and his best season was the most recent season where he shot 34.7%.
Hoggard was a top-100 recruit in high school but never truly lived up to his rating. He was never the main guy at Michigan State which ultimately led to his transfer. He is looking for a chance to be the main guy, which he could get if he went to Vanderbilt.
Other Schools in the Mix
There are four other schools in the mix to get Hoggard. They are USC, Georgia, Florida, and Washington. Each team presents its own interesting situation for Hoggard. USC, Georgia, and Florida have each received a commitment from guards similar to Hoggard. Washington has received a guard commit, but they likely have the best situation for Hoggard as they have plenty of minutes to offer him. I would say they are probably in second place in this recruitment at this point in time.
At this point in time, it seems like Vanderbilt is the front-runner in this recruitment. We will learn more about where things stand after this weekend. Hoggard may go on more visits but nothing is confirmed at this point in time.
