OK.......so, earlier today on ESPN Andy Katz annointed Tom Crean as one of the early favorites for the Kentucky job.
We know what that means -- Coach Crean is staying at Marquette!
Let's review Andy's track record with Tom Crean over the years:
- "Tom Crean to Illinois makes more sense than Bill Self to Kansas" That phrase was not enough. Oops. Crean, of course, never interviewed for the job.
- Katz initially floated Crean as a candidate at Indiana. Doh! Good thing he filled some air time with that.
- Katz indicated that TC was the leading candidate at Ohio State (probably while Thad Matta was in his car driving around Columbus). Crean, of course, never interviewed for the job.
Andy, MU fans will sleep well tonight. Glad u are on the case.
12 comments:
he likes to spread rumors about marquette because he's a product of the university of wisconsin. that's all there is to it.
I'm not surprised by Katz' comments. It's also interesting that none of his candidates show that he put much effort into putting his list together. What school wouldn't want those guys to be their coach?
Is the Kentucky job one of the most glamorous, under-the-microscope jobs in the country? Certainly. If I were Crean and I was offered the job, I think I'd take it. Then again, I don't know if I'd want to have all that added stress and insane fans.
Plus, you don't want to be the "next guy", you want to be the next-next-guy. For examples, see Indiana, UNC.
I think the one no-brainer job Crean would jump to in a heart beat is MSU. Other than that, I don't know. Forget about Michigan. Their facility is abysmal and they will always be a football-first school.
If Crean bolts for "greener pastures" who would be a candidate for the MU job?
An obvious one that I can see would be Rick Majerus. I think he would jump at the opportunity to coach the Warriors...hell for all I know that could be why he's still working at ESPN and not coaching somewhere right now...or it could be his health. Would that USC job have been all that great anyways?
The scary thing is that he's the only logical successor I can come up with.
Once, just ONCE in my life I would like for Andy Katz to throw Bo Ryan's name out there as a candidate.
Come on, Andy, I'll buy you a steak! I'll even buy an appetizer and a piece of cake! Just ONE rumor about Bo Ryan leaving Wisconsin to hurt HIS recruiting efforts.
Katz is an idiot. Crean is a good coach, but I wouldn't put him on the "A" list for the Kentucky job (i.e., Billy Gillispie, John Calipari, Billy Donovan). With respect to Donovan, I seriously doubt that Kentucky has a chance for to land him. With all the money Florida throws at football and basketball to buy NCAA championships, no one can outbid the Gator$ for Donovan's services.
Crean's name appears in the rumor mill year after year because he wants it there! Are you guys really so delusional that you believe Andy Katz is doing Wisconsin's bidding? Get real.
I hope Crean does leave.
C'mon Chief. I think both parties are delusional here…you and Katz. Is there a conspiracy by Katz to dump on MU? I don't think so. Would I like to see Ryan's name out there as an MU fan? Sure. But I don’t think he's on Bucky's payroll (although, there have to be many more glamorous hoops jobs out there than coach at UW). As for Crean throwing his name out there, how does that help him? He has a friggin extension that runs through 2048. He gets $1.7/year. He's in the top 20 highest paid coaches. If his name is being thrown out there, it's a complement to him and the MU program. I don't like reading this stuff every season, but it happens.
While I don't want Crean to leave, I wouldn't be shocked if he (or anyone) left after being offered a job from the holy grail of college hoops jobs (Kentucky, UNC, Duke, UCLA).
As for MU replacements, I'd say please God, no, no way to Rick Majerus. From a recruiting standpoint, who's going to come to MU when the coach could have a heart attack any minute or bolt the program due to health reasons. That's not being insensitive, that's just a fact. Put yourself in the shoes of an 18-year-old trying to decide between Marquette with Rick Majerus or Tom Izzo at MSU.
Kids (and their parents) aren't so naïve that they don't know the coach could bolt at any time, but I'd think the kids/parents want to go somewhere that the coach stands the greatest chance of staying throughout his four-years there.
If Crean leaves, Gillespie (it could happen) from A&M, or, the guy I'd throw everything at is Kruger at UNLV. He's been there, done that, knows the region, and would enter the Big East, the premier conference in college basketball (usually). Kruger would be #1 on my list hands down.
If we could get Billy Gillespie, don't you think we should go to Tommy's house and help him pack>
I side with the Chief - in general sentiment...why so much hero-worshipping for TC. He's been a good coach. Much better than K O'Neill, light years better than Deane - but Mrquette hasn't exactly been burning it up in the past 4 years (post Wade).
2004 was one of the most disappointing seasons in recent memory - despite losing Wade, a nice core remained...NIT bid and see ya.
If anything, I'd be interested in seeing what another young/bright coach can do. Rob Jeter, Steve Wojo (Duke) or maybe the guy out of S.Fla.
If Crean leaves, it will be for the money - god bless him for that...I'm more concerned about the state of the Marquette program then I am about Crean's career.
Change may be appropriate.
For the record Katz gave you all a shoutout on Wednesday when he was on ESPNNews, saying something along the lines of "the Marquette blogs of course are calling me out for my history of bad forecasting regarding Tom Crean."
Pretty cool stuff.
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