BleedGopher
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Dana O'Neil: Successful mid-major HCs no longer jumping ship at the first opportunity
- Thread starter BleedGopher
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There was a time not that long ago when it was impossible to make $1 million/yr at a mid-major. Now more and more of those schools are paying that kind of money.
And if you are Shaka Smart, why would you take a five year deal at NC State for (guessing) $2 million a year when you can get a 10-year deal at VCU for $1.2 million a year. There's way mroe stability at VCU and if you keep doing a good job, there's an opportunity to get a job that has a better chance of getting to the NCAA tournament on a regular basis than NC State.
While it wouldn't have crushed me if Tubby left, I do wonder what kind of coach the Gophers could land if there was an opening. With the current environment, I think the Gophers would have a tough time.
And if you are Shaka Smart, why would you take a five year deal at NC State for (guessing) $2 million a year when you can get a 10-year deal at VCU for $1.2 million a year. There's way mroe stability at VCU and if you keep doing a good job, there's an opportunity to get a job that has a better chance of getting to the NCAA tournament on a regular basis than NC State.
While it wouldn't have crushed me if Tubby left, I do wonder what kind of coach the Gophers could land if there was an opening. With the current environment, I think the Gophers would have a tough time.
A mid-major coach staying at his current job instead of cashing in is somewhat analogous to guys who would be first round NBA draft picks - some guys who turn down the big pay day are better off for staying because their position in the draft rises dramatically, but for others their stock drops and they end up worse off because they stayed.
Not too long ago Chris Lowery at Southern Illinois was the flavor of the month, but turned down offers at BCS schools. Now "Chris Lowery buyout" is one of the top suggestions to the phrase "Chris Lowery" in Google searches because SIU fans want him to be fired after a disappointing 5-13 season in the MVC. I don't think it's too smart (no pun intended) for Shaka to stay at VCU instead of immediately going for a BCS job, especially with Rodriguez, Skeen and Rozzell (3 of their 4 double-digit scorers) being seniors this season & losing 4 of the team's top-5 in terms of minutes per game. I do think it's reasonable for Stevens to stay at Butler because Butler has established a solid reputation of being an NCAA tourney team, and not just any NCAA tourney team but one who is a serious threat to win at least a game or two every year over the past decade. Butler is essentially the new Gonzaga & you can't fault a coach for staying in that situation. VCU, on the other hand, is to me more like SIU and it's much harder to make NCAA tourney frequently from the CAA (or MVC) where there is much more parity than there is in the Horizon league (or WCC). When you get in the tourney often like a Gonzaga or Butler, the odds of making a run are a lot better because you won't have a particularly tough draw every year. If you're a program that only makes it only once out of every four years, the margin for error is not very generous.
Not too long ago Chris Lowery at Southern Illinois was the flavor of the month, but turned down offers at BCS schools. Now "Chris Lowery buyout" is one of the top suggestions to the phrase "Chris Lowery" in Google searches because SIU fans want him to be fired after a disappointing 5-13 season in the MVC. I don't think it's too smart (no pun intended) for Shaka to stay at VCU instead of immediately going for a BCS job, especially with Rodriguez, Skeen and Rozzell (3 of their 4 double-digit scorers) being seniors this season & losing 4 of the team's top-5 in terms of minutes per game. I do think it's reasonable for Stevens to stay at Butler because Butler has established a solid reputation of being an NCAA tourney team, and not just any NCAA tourney team but one who is a serious threat to win at least a game or two every year over the past decade. Butler is essentially the new Gonzaga & you can't fault a coach for staying in that situation. VCU, on the other hand, is to me more like SIU and it's much harder to make NCAA tourney frequently from the CAA (or MVC) where there is much more parity than there is in the Horizon league (or WCC). When you get in the tourney often like a Gonzaga or Butler, the odds of making a run are a lot better because you won't have a particularly tough draw every year. If you're a program that only makes it only once out of every four years, the margin for error is not very generous.