Did you really think
- Thread starter Pitt 4 Brains
- Start date
Pitt basketball has fan support. Kevin Stallings had no fan support. There's a difference.
The crooked Stallings hiring was unacceptable and the fans spoke with the only true voice they have.
Same thing deserves to happen to the Pirates this year.
The crooked Stallings hiring was unacceptable and the fans spoke with the only true voice they have.
Same thing deserves to happen to the Pirates this year.
He could well be in Final Four in 3 yrs at UCONN
At Pitt he’s likely to be building a squad still.....
It’s really not close of course the idiots at Pitt allowed themselves to be the bumper.
At Pitt he’s likely to be building a squad still.....
It’s really not close of course the idiots at Pitt allowed themselves to be the bumper.
That's not a fair stat considering he walked into a RI program that won, what 5 games the year prior
No...precisely why this process designed by Pitt's AD was so screwed up...she put Pitt in a public 2 horse race that Pitt was destined to lose form the start. Thank you, Lyke.
Attractiveness depends on your point of view. Do you think the Pitt job is more attractive? Except based on money and if you really want the challenge of competing with the Duke's, UNCs etc in the ACC; the Pitt job is not. In fact, the need to completely rebuild while facing the challenge of the ACC is likely regarded as a negative by most coaching candidates.
At UConn Hurley only needs to recruit to the same level he did at Rhode Island using the same recruiting footprint and UConn will be turned around. And, he doesn't have to compete in the ACC while building almost an entirely new roster because he is not following a complete bozo who blew up an entire roster and "threw out the baby with the bath water."
mmmmm, don't know if I agree. I don't think 95% of the people going to games really care about the hiring process, probably never heard anything about the 2016 search firm, and wouldn't know Kevin Stallings if he walked into their kitchen. The program on the whole didn't win obviously last year, so fans responded. Why spend $100 or more and, more importantly, 3-5 hours of non-working time to go see a team lose by 18 on average?
I think some of us has finally had a moment of clarity.
I've been saying that the Pitt job is not very good right now. It's probably one of the worst in the power conference leagues. There are many problems. It's going to take patience and hard work just to get us back to where we were under Dixon.
The administration needs to think outside the box to hire a coach.
Am I surprised that Hurley chose UConn over Pitt? Not at all...
I've been saying that the Pitt job is not very good right now. It's probably one of the worst in the power conference leagues. There are many problems. It's going to take patience and hard work just to get us back to where we were under Dixon.
The administration needs to think outside the box to hire a coach.
Am I surprised that Hurley chose UConn over Pitt? Not at all...
I am happy we didn't get him. I don't think he would have succeeded here--for reasons I have stated before on this Board.
On the other hand, I am disappointed Pitt apparently pushed so hard for him since it was clear early on that he knew he wasn't a good fit for Pitt and didn't want the job. Our admin should have known the same from the start as well and not wasted their efforts.
no, it is going to take 3 good dudes from Philly or NYC...this is not a mission to Mars...Hell, if Stallings had the kids at PSU he probably makes the tourney.
I think the Pitt job in it's current state like you said is not attractive at all. But looking at the jobs as a whole, in the big picture, Pitt is easily more attractive. And believe me, I find it very odd I'm even saying that because UConn was a national power not long ago, the pinnacle of that group 1 below the blue bloods, literally as close as you could get. These are different times though.
For Hurley, I understand not wanting to do the total rebuild when he's still young and likely will keep getting better job offers as the years to on, barring something like 3-4 years spent building Pitt and being mediocre. But looking at the perspective of any coach, what does this look like once I have my program set up at that school?
UConn: dump of an arena, nobody goes there anymore either and UConn athletics is the only ticket in town. Between Hartford and storrs it's UConn men, UConn women, UConn football, you get the point. They still are in a huge jam financially. The state of Connecticut is really struggling and they expect that to impact UConn and what UConn can spend on athletics greatly. And then of course, the big east money has stopped. They were getting much more than your average AAC member because of big east exit money, now they will fall back into the real world of being a mid major. Also that conference, the alumni are furious about it. Nobody wants to be there, the university is trying to find a new home but it's hard. The fact that they have a football team makes a return to the big east complicated. So for now, mid major conference, mid major revenue. Regardless of Pitt, just in the general landscape of college basketball it's not that attractive anymore. Mid-major UConn is not big east power UConn anymore.
Pitt: You will get paid. If Pitt really wants you, you'll get a nice check. If you win here, you'll keep making more. Obviously that sounds like common sense, but the point is Pitt can afford to do that being in the ACC. They were about to make Hurley I think it was the second highest paid coach in the ACC, that is no joke there. They have great facilities, the Pete is not really state of the art anymore but for Christ sake Cameron indoor is an auxiliary gym. Pitt has the ACC money now though, they spend it on better facilities. Being in the ACC also, you're going up against the best. Not only is that appealing to coaches, but you can recruit great players in the ACC. A hungry young coach that has some success at a mid major can say to kids, that's what I plan to do in the ACC. You come here, that kid comes here, we're gonna make Pitt the hot new team in the ACC. You can play on national tv and go up against duke, Carolina, Virginia, and NC state amongst others. I won't even get into the current affairs of Pitt's roster, but make it through these next couple years and you're at a good job.
Proof? There is nothing out there that said Pitt was the leak. Rumor was it was Hurley's agent.
Cmon Del. You are saying she shouldn’t have tried to get Hurley for fear of failing. What would the reaction be on this board then?
Your narrative is likely Pitt's narrative to sell Pitt to a new coach. Any good salesman would use it. However, a level headed person would also know that the challenge is huge and has a huge downside on the failure end of the equation. How many guys will be willing to roll the dice on it? I would bet that the answer is very few.
There's nothing wrong with asking the hottest mid-major coach to interview and offering a ton of money. It stings a bit at getting rejected but now the whole country knows Pitt means business and is buying in to bury the past few years and move on to something better than mediocrity. That's a win in my book.
Doesn't make any difference...she let this go on the boil way too long. She should have told Hurley the following on Sunday: "if we were to make an offer of $x to you, would you be inclined to accept? You have 24 hours to get back to us." Failing to hear back in 24 hours she's in a position to say: "Pitt never made any offer to Hurley." She would have been truthful in making that assertion and Pitt isn't placed in the embarrassing situation it's now in and the fans wouldn't be outraged the way they are.
Tend to agree wrt Hurley......but nobody sb surprised the stuffed suits at Pitt would get played like a bass fiddle
AGAIN
At this point you or anyone else knows she did anything wrong. You are only guessing at what you think happened because Hurley choose UConn which most of us expected. But at least she went after him. How about seeing who we do hire then you can whine all you want since no matter who it is you will whine.
Unfortunately, Philly and NYC are no longer in Pitt's recruiting footprint because Pitt is no longer in the Big East. Only the ACC "blue bloods" will have any real attractiveness for the top players in the Northeast. IMO, that is one of the main reasons Hurley turned Pitt down and took less money to coach UConn--he believes he can recruit those areas to UConn (like he has to Rhode Island) but that he wouldn't be able to recruit them to Pitt. Why do you think Dixon was unhappy with Pitt's move to the ACC? It changed Pitt's recruiting footprint for the worse as it made recruiting Philly and New York extremely difficult for Pitt.
Like we've both said, I think for a guy like Hurley yeah totally not worth rolling the dice. A guy like Matta though, no reason this wouldn't be a great job for him. Even musselman, if he'd be willing to come to the ACC it's not that risky for him. A few other mid major guys even I think it wouldn't be too much of a gamble for. It's the guys in hurley's position that can't risk it, hot name currently, success at a mid major but nothing remarkable like a Gregg Marshall, someone that wants a better job now and possibly an even better one later.
Is Villanova a mid-major?
Connecticut has won four national championships. The right coach makes them another Villanova.
Connecticut has won four national championships. The right coach makes them another Villanova.
Villanova is in the big east, not a mid major conference. They are big time college basketball. There's a reason UConn was getting money from the big east departure that gave them more annual revenue than other AAC schools.... they went from a major conference to a mid major conference.
Lots of good points in this post.
Another thing: Aren't the Hurleys close to Coach K? Maybe Dan thinks he may have a shot at replacing K in a few years. Probably much easier leaving UConn for that than spending a few years rebuilding Pitt right now. He's the hot name right now, why spend a few years trying to rebuild a program if you have bigger aspirations. A few years of mediocre won-lost records will take the shine off of him.
Or, if he's really imagining scenarios, maybe he thinks Bobby might replace K and he doesn't want to compete against him in the same conference. Who knows, but I think he had more thoughts than just UConn = good, Pitt = bad.
She should have pursued Hurley but been smart about it, WBR...but she handled this in a way that it was clear to the world that we made the offer and allowed herself to be played. She should could have simply told Hurley: " if we made you an offer to coach Pitt for a total comp figure of $X, would you be inclined to accept? You have 24 hours to get back to me". If Hurley doesn't respond affirmatively, then she's in a positon to say Pitt never offered Hurley and she would have been chasing other candidates days ago. The way she handled this, she got the whole fan base up in a lather because she placed a public spotlight on the horse race with Ucon and Hurley's final decision. The fan base was more realistic than Lyke about the prospects of reeling Hurley in...it was a mistake to to stage a public horse race that was rigged or one which you Pitt was unlikely to win.
I'm not whining...you're the whiner. Does it make your little world uncomfortable that Pitt didn't handle this situation well? I'm simply pointing out the obvious...that Pit handled this situation in a way that set themselves up for criticism and handled the situation in a way that most universities don't. Programs go to extremes to not make it appear they have offered a coach unless they are almost certain their offer will be accepted.
Absolutely right - Hurley used Pitt and Miller should have never been considered
Pitt needs to forget about hiring a "name" coach. Pitt needs to forget about winning the press conference or the fan base.
Identify the best young coaches available. Cut the list for interviews. Determine true interest in the job. Ask to hear their plans and vision (assistant coaches, potential recruits they could bring, targeted recruiting territory, etc) Trust your judgement. Hire the coach you feel is the best fit.
Winning solves everything.
Exactly what I was thinking. Bobby or Dan could end up at Duke, I'd probably bet on bobby though if it's not say scheyer. But Dan should get a big time job as well. I think he was thinking bigger than Pitt or UConn, he realizes bigger jobs will be opening up. So to him you only gotta worry about short term where UConn made more sense to keep building up his resume, stack up wins, etc.
So could Kevin Willard at Seton Hall.
Hurley has made the NCAA tournament only 2 times. He has never reached the Sweet 16. His only NIT team won only 1 game and so could not sniff NYC.
For all the money Pitt is now going to waste on a new coach, they could have just given Jamie maybe $1.0 million more to attract top assistant coaches from other top programs.
Just BUY the assistants.
Think about it.
AD Barnes.
So much damage in so little time.
HAIL TO PITT!!!!
Just BUY the assistants.
Think about it.
AD Barnes.
So much damage in so little time.
HAIL TO PITT!!!!
Many people fail to discern what as changed. Because football is King, the 5 Major/Power football conferences are also Major for basketball. And the Big East has remained a Major/Power conference for basketball.
The AAC is NOT a Major conference for either revenue sport.
Villanova is in a Major conference for basketball. UConn is in a mid-major conference.
There was no fan support at UConn this year, their building was just as empty as the Pete was
How does that compare to Jamie.
AD Barnes.
So much damage in so short a time.
HAIL TO PITT!!!!
Similar threads
