NCAA MBB Coaching Carousel

[Hoosierfan2017 20,357]

3 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Those are accurate statistical citations that are devoid of context.

Meh. You’re fighting an uphill battle if you need to use context to argue that you hired a “top guy.” You don’t need context if you hire Hurley, Oats, Drew, Pearl, etc. Pope’s made the tournament twice as a head coach and lost to a lower seed both times. Maybe he ends up excelling there. No one knows the future. But I feel pretty good about UK’s hire as someone who doesn’t want UK to succeed. 

[LamarCheeks 17,417]

10 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

I do not think so.

Ben Roberts is the UK beat writer for the Lexington Herald Leader. He just stated that UK AD Mitch Barnhardt had only two candidates on his list:

1. Scott Drew
2. Mark Pope

That makes a lot more sense than the unattainable wish list candidates that some short-sighted fans think are the only acceptable options.

Here is what is far more likely:

• Barnhardt first went after the highly successful candidate that he had a personal relationship with, and who he thought would bring stability to the program.
• When that was 'close-but no', he went to his second choice; the fairly successful candidate with UK ties that he had a personal relationship with, and who he thought would bring stability to the program.

I kinda wish our fan base could get past Brad Stevens. 

He ain't coming here. 

He wasn't in 2021 and he won't if/when Woody departs. 

He's the President of Basketball Operations of the most storied NBA franchise, which is currently 6 games ahead of everybody else for the league's best record. He's stated several times he's happy in New England. He's not gonna give that up to return to recruiting and coaching kids. 

Yet every time we talk about a new coach, that name pops up. Give him all the money he wants, they say.

It's silly. 

[Uspshoosier 44,671]

9 hours ago, Trish said:

We’re so screwed. 

Absolutely if IU decides to hire another coach without any college basketball coaching experience however if IU hires someone like Kentucky just did that has been in the grind of coaching college basketball and being respected by other coaches in the college profession then IU might have a chance of turning the corner 

[Hoosierinbham 160]

10 minutes ago, AH1971 said:

I think Drew was the first coach they made a formal offer, but Oats was the first coach they actually reached out too. He put a lengthy sentiment saying he was staying put at Alabama shortly after the UK job opened. 

Living in Birmingham, I'm friends with several former Bama players, and some other VERY connected people. Oats was contacted at least twice. There was an initial "no", and a follow-up attempt as they were rebuffed by their other targets.

[AKHoosier 6,654]

2 minutes ago, Hoosierinbham said:

Living in Birmingham, I'm friends with several former Bama players, and some other VERY connected people. Oats was contacted at least twice. There was an initial "no", and a follow-up attempt as they were rebuffed by their other targets.

It's not an accident that Nate Oats released a statement this week confirming his commitment to remaining Alabama's coach.

[Class of '66 Old Fart 82,891]

Trying to find a silver lining in being stuck with Woody for another year is the fact that when the time comes to replace him there will be more of a track record of how replacement candidates have fared with recruiting in the portal era and playing portal poker.  

[Hoosier Roots 725]

1 hour ago, Stuhoo said:

Very doubtful:

• Maybe they called Oats. Oats was flat out not available.
• Beard has a fairly recent domestic abuse episode (though not criminally convicted) and also has the reputation of being someone that drinks way too much.

Kind of just assumed beard’s baggage wasn’t a problem at Kentucky lol

[Hoosierinbham 160]

While I'm on a Birmingham roll, I'll be interested to see who finally gives Bucky McMillan at Samford a shot at a major job. We've watched "Buckyball" for years, and he has a great chance to be successful with the right opportunity.  He's already turned down some jobs that lack administrative support and NIL resources.  I don't think he's quite ready for a job like Kentucky, but I also think he would win big there.

[kottke 766]

1 minute ago, Hoosier Roots said:

Kind of just assumed beard’s baggage wasn’t a problem at Kentucky lol

I think they had enough of the "drinks way too much" part when they had Gillespie. Probably didn't want to go down that road again. They were probably fine with the domestic abuse...j/k.

[Uspshoosier 44,671]

Just now, Hoosier Roots said:

Kind of just assumed beard’s baggage wasn’t a problem at Kentucky lol

Should tell you how much baggage actually would come with his hiring if Kentucky and Louisville passed in the same cycle when he would have been available.    When IU was doing their search many said IU wouldn’t consider him because of the skeletons in the closet and that was before this last incident.   It was also reported after the latest that many schools he would never be a serious option.  Being at a lower level or a few select SEC schools that would take a flyer.   Maybe more schools are willing to jump in if he keeps a clean slate for multiple years 

[Class of '66 Old Fart 82,891]

[Stuhoo 77,857]

11 minutes ago, Hoosierinbham said:

While I'm on a Birmingham roll, I'll be interested to see who finally gives Bucky McMillan at Samford a shot at a major job. We've watched "Buckyball" for years, and he has a great chance to be successful with the right opportunity.  He's already turned down some jobs that lack administrative support and NIL resources.  I don't think he's quite ready for a job like Kentucky, but I also think he would win big there.

ME! ME! 

I wanna give Bucky McMillan a shot at a major job!

He'd be right at the top of a Stuhoo list for best IU candidates. 

[LamarCheeks 17,417]

It's all official now. Kentucky issued a release and BYU's atheltic director just issued a fare-thee-well to Pope. (Apparently UK athletics likes really long urls -- lol)

https://ukathletics.com/news/2024/04/12/mark-pope-named-head-coach-of-kentucky-mens-basketball/?fbclid=IwAR3TxZ-G4iIthTV2co9bB7TsLCvMqCtWSc5Sho6v6tocvgoe4vvbsuxQ6FY_aem_AbQoEdUmFkv9bpb21PyIPW24mNHrQ6u6O3VbdBiYys7DftpC_giZrWylIa9eWVUdPYW9ReO31rgoJqpGroPCgHdU

[Hovadipo 53,953]

I know very little about Pope so, for those that do, what's the scoop here? Recruiting to BYU is way different than almost anywhere else, considering you're regularly starting with 20+ year-olds fresh off their mission trip. He understands the fishbowl at UK, etc. He obviously doesn't win the press release Olympics considering the reaction of the fanbase.

[Ghost of Rick Majerus 817]

34 minutes ago, Uspshoosier said:

Should tell you how much baggage actually would come with his hiring if Kentucky and Louisville passed in the same cycle when he would have been available.    When IU was doing their search many said IU wouldn’t consider him because of the skeletons in the closet and that was before this last incident.   It was also reported after the latest that many schools he would never be a serious option.  Being at a lower level or a few select SEC schools that would take a flyer.   Maybe more schools are willing to jump in if he keeps a clean slate for multiple years 

I've always been a fan of Beard, but outside of his incident last year I am clueless of any other issues. What type of issues are we talking about?

[Hoosierfan1901 5,908]

5 minutes ago, Hovadipo said:

I know very little about Pope so, for those that do, what's the scoop here? Recruiting to BYU is way different than almost anywhere else, considering you're regularly starting with 20+ year-olds fresh off their mission trip. He understands the fishbowl at UK, etc. He obviously doesn't win the press release Olympics considering the reaction of the fanbase.

I guess he has been at top of the UK AD list since Monday from what I have read. UK fans are furious right now and want him fired immediately. 

[Stuhoo 77,857]

2 minutes ago, Ghost of Rick Majerus said:

I've always been a fan of Beard, but outside of his incident last year I am clueless of any other issues. What type of issues are we talking about?

I think his semi-justification of the domestic abuse was that he was so drunk he barely remembers the fight happening.

Then last season, he said he tried to give up drinking during the season, but that wasn't happening.

So that.

[IH8PU 219]

Just now, Hoosierfan1901 said:

I guess he has been at top of the UK AD list since Monday from what I have read. UK fans are furious right now and want him fired immediately. 

He was on the ADs list a long time before Monday. ADs ALWAYS have a list, for all sports. They don't come up with a list a few days before the job opens.

[Hoosierfan1901 5,908]

2 minutes ago, IH8PU said:

He was on the ADs list a long time before Monday. ADs ALWAYS have a list, for all sports. They don't come up with a list a few days before the job opens.

Yea, watch Rupp Rafters implode the last couple of days have been fun to watch

[str8baller 4,907]

2 hours ago, Ghost of Rick Majerus said:

I've always been a fan of Beard, but outside of his incident last year I am clueless of any other issues. What type of issues are we talking about?

I’m not criticizing anyone for not knowing this, but people that understand substance abuse know that throwing someone like that into a high pressure situation is a recipe for disaster.  
 

Send him to a place like UK or IU and he’s not going to drink less. There’s a very real chance he spirals out of control. And if you don’t care about booze and domestic abuse just know that it probably would eventually take its toll on winning too. Everything was great at Texas until it wasn’t. 
 

Not to keep on Beard, look at Sampson. Habitual line-crosser. Got caught and a second chance. But that second chance was at a high pressure job at Indiana where he immediately reverted to his old ways trying to win.   
 

What’s the old saying: adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals character. These top jobs will test your character in a million different ways. Calipari was largely very successful and even he got tired of it. 
 

As someone said above, Beard is going to have to demonstrate he can establish a pattern of not screwing up for a few years before any AD ties their future to him and gets a donor to cough up money for a big contract. For me personally, I’d actually have to see that he addressed his underlying issue in some way—not that he merely went without incident for a few years—before I would attach my name to his. Second chances are fine, but not if you’re just going to make the same mistakes again. We should know that better than anybody given the Sampson ordeal.