q calhoun gone. st johns closer to a losing season?

I have been holding off on St John's Red Storm basketball posts all summer, so as not to shoot my basketball wad too early. I've amused myself with reading the message boards on the team at redmen.com and at big east basketball, where posters can hit apocalyptic in 2 posts flat. There's been a lot of debate about the quality of the coach's recruiting and game planning, his ability to keep players in the fold, and the players coming in. It's a young class-- 7 incoming players:

PF: Justin Burrell
C: Dele Coker
G/F: DJ Kennedy
PG: Malik Boothe
G: Paris Horne
F: Sean Evans
G: Mike Cavataio

And these players will be discussed in a later post. But I'm sitting at home, chatting with Dor about language on cover letters when I see this.

Red Storm Sports News
Forward Qa’rraan Calhoun Withdraws From St. John’s

Coach Norm Roberts Published: August 20, 2007
QUEENS, N.Y.
St. John’s head men’s basketball coach Norm Roberts announced that rising sophomore forward Qa’rraan Calhoun (Hazlet, N.J.) has withdrawn from the University and plans to transfer to another institution for the 2007-08 season.

“Qa’rraan and his family have made the decision for him to transfer,” said Roberts. “He leaves the team in good academic standing, and we wish him the best of luck with his decision.”

“This has been a difficult decision to make,” said Calhoun. “But I feel it is what is best for me and my family right now. I want to thank Coach Roberts and the coaching staff for the opportunities they gave me here at St. John’s, and my teammates as well.”

Calhoun played in all 31 of St. John’s games in 2006-07 as a freshman, and drew 10 starts, averaging 5.9 points per game and 4.0 rebounds in 22.5 minutes.

What.

The.

F*&%^$%#%$^.

This guy had the chance to be one of the centerpieces of the team-- a speedy and lithe forward, always working the offensive glass, occasional shots from 3-point range, and excellent on backdoor cuts and playing above the rim. he was listed as a probably breakout candidate this year. The team was going to have to run and press, and he was the perfect forward for that.

Instead, he withdraws from school a week before class?

This after the transfers of last year's leader 3-point chucker Avery Patterson and Coach Norm Roberts' first big-ish recruit in the city, Ricky Torres? On top of the injury to last year's academic non-qualifier, Rob Thomas (not the guy from Matchbox 20) and the academic fail-to-qualify of Derwin Kitchen? Along with transfers from Jermaine Maybank, Cedric Jackson, and Dexter Gray? It's only been 4 years-- how can this many players leave a program?

While I am not predicting the apocalypse, Calhoun was a hell of a player and a big loss to a team with only 5 returning scholarship players.