The Mysterious Events Surrounding the Sudden Departure of Bo Ryan

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he quit mid-season. no debate, he's a quitter
 

Pretty simple: he does not trust Alvarez (not unusual) and he wanted his guy Gard to take over. Gopher fans should be so lucky have a "quitter" with the success Bo had.
 

He clearly wanted out earlier, but Alvarez wouldn't guarantee that Gard would get the job. The timing looks like he put his guy in a spot where he can earn the job through performance. I would call that loyalty over "quitting."
 



Holy Man said:
He clearly wanted out earlier, but Alvarez wouldn't guarantee that Gard would get the job. The timing looks like he put his guy in a spot where he can earn the job through performance. I would call that loyalty over "quitting."
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Spot on, but I get a chuckle out of all the conspiracy theories.
 


SelectionSunday said:
Spot on, but I get a chuckle out of all the conspiracy theories.
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Ahhh, you do realize that a coach at the level of Bo Ryan, coming up with the idea that he wants to give his buddy a job, and therefore, won't retire when he wants (the off-season), but will in the middle of the season when they are having a bad year, all in an effort to say F-you to his AD, so his buddy can get the job, is very much a conspiracy theory in of itself, but apparently not one worth chuckling at since you apparently agree with it. Whether you think he quit mid year because he's a quitter, or you think he quit mid year to give his buddy a job, they are both conspiracy theories. If we are going with the conspiracy theory that he did this out of loyalty to his buddy, then we must also recognize this was disloyal to the players who committed to him this offseason and who worked hard for him this offseason under the impression he would be their coach for this season. Like all of us, Bo doesn't get to have it both ways.
 

Is this the gopherhole or buckyboard? So many Bo Ryan and WI threads it is ridic!
 



BuckyGopher said:
Is this the gopherhole or buckyboard? So many Bo Ryan and WI threads it is ridic!
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I just did a quick scan. There are 40 threads on this first page, 3 of them are about Bo Ryan who just retired mid-season. That's "ridic"?! Oh.

Go Gophers!!
 


Holy Man said:
He clearly wanted out earlier, but Alvarez wouldn't guarantee that Gard would get the job. The timing looks like he put his guy in a spot where he can earn the job through performance. I would call that loyalty over "quitting."
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Loyalty is great, admirable.

However, Picking your successor is not even remotely the responsibility of an exiting coach. That is the job of the athletic director, first and foremost. If that is indeed how things went down, then Bo Ryan did a disservice to the university and the program by exerting his will and arrogance by doing so.

As a side note, totally not surprising that two arrogant jackasses like Bo and Alvarez did not get along.
 




Ogee Oglethorpe said:
Loyalty is great, admirable.

However, Picking your successor is not even remotely the responsibility of an exiting coach. That is the job of the athletic director, first and foremost. If that is indeed how things went down, then Bo Ryan did a disservice to the university and the program by exerting his will and arrogance by doing so.

As a side note, totally not surprising that two arrogant jackasses like Bo and Alvarez did not get along.
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At the very least it's sneaky. I don't love Alvarez, but I think he does a good job, and he's doing his best in this situation as well. I like what he said - that he keeps a list of coaching candidates and that Gard is on his list. I believe Gard would have been on his list no matter when Bo retired. The thing this does is allow Gard to claim head coaching experience and, like Barry said, audition for the job.

I don't remember whether Dick Bennett recommended Soderberg as his permanent replacement or if there was speculation at the time that the timing of his resignation was designed to increase Soderberg's chances. I recall it being clear that Bennett was burned out, but there may have been speculation; I just don't remember. One way or another, Wisconsin declined on elevating the interim coach, and it worked out pretty well for them.
 

El Amin Fan said:
Ahhh, you do realize that a coach at the level of Bo Ryan, coming up with the idea that he wants to give his buddy a job, and therefore, won't retire when he wants (the off-season), but will in the middle of the season when they are having a bad year, all in an effort to say F-you to his AD, so his buddy can get the job, is very much a conspiracy theory in of itself, but apparently not one worth chuckling at since you apparently agree with it. Whether you think he quit mid year because he's a quitter, or you think he quit mid year to give his buddy a job, they are both conspiracy theories. If we are going with the conspiracy theory that he did this out of loyalty to his buddy, then we must also recognize this was disloyal to the players who committed to him this offseason and who worked hard for him this offseason under the impression he would be their coach for this season. Like all of us, Bo doesn't get to have it both ways.
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Wrong. Conspiracies require more than one person. It's a theory, not a conspiracy theory.
 


LesBolstad said:
Pretty simple: he does not trust Alvarez (not unusual) and he wanted his guy Gard to take over. Gopher fans should be so lucky have a "quitter" with the success Bo had.
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Yes, on both counts.

Bo's success at Wisconsin (a school that has a lot higher hill to climb for basketball success than Minnesota does) is further proof of what I've been saying for years -- that Minnesota should be a national power in basketball and it will happen someday when we stop tripping over ourselves.
 



Ogee Oglethorpe said:
Loyalty is great, admirable.

However, Picking your successor is not even remotely the responsibility of an exiting coach. That is the job of the athletic director, first and foremost. If that is indeed how things went down, then Bo Ryan did a disservice to the university and the program by exerting his will and arrogance by doing so.

As a side note, totally not surprising that two arrogant jackasses like Bo and Alvarez did not get along.
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I'm no fan of people trying to run the show from the grave, but it rarely stops them, especially people with major egos and a history of success. Not sure of the history, but did Barry choose his successor?

You're exactly right, by the way.
 

BleedGopher said:
I just did a quick scan. There are 40 threads on this first page, 3 of them are about Bo Ryan who just retired mid-season. That's "ridic"?! Oh.

Go Gophers!!
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Being passive aggressive is bad for your health!

Also, one of the "Bo/WI" threads on the first page has the 3rd most replies...ridic!
 

BuckyGopher said:
Being passive aggressive is bad for your health!

Also, one of the "Bo/WI" threads on the first page has the 3rd most replies...ridic!
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Him retiring was kinda a big deal. Also a few Wisconsin fans do a good job of keeping the WI related threads going.
 


I know Ryan doesn't have a lot of fans on this board - but I have actually met the guy (when he was at Platteville), and my sense is that he is a very straight shooter. My gut tells me he woke up one day, looked at the long season stretching out in front of him, and said "bleep this, I don't want to do this for the rest of the season."
Again, I certainly don't claim to know him well, but I get the sense that he is an all-or-nothing guy, and if he couldn't be 100% committed to coaching, he felt the best thing to do was to step aside and let someone else give the job their best effort.

Because, beyond everything else, Ryan really loves the game, loves the challenge of coaching and working with players. In order for him to walk away from something he loves, he had to have a pretty damn good reason.
 

WanderingGopher said:
Yes, on both counts.

Bo's success at Wisconsin (a school that has a lot higher hill to climb for basketball success than Minnesota does) is further proof of what I've been saying for years -- that Minnesota should be a national power in basketball and it will happen someday when we stop tripping over ourselves.
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Does the proximity to Chicago and the fact that Wisconsin has a larger population have anything to do with the success compared to Minnesota? I am not sure I agree with your conclusion, other than the idea that the University does seem very dysfunctional.
 


norman dale said:
http://deadspin.com/bo-ryans-tenure-as-wisconsin-head-coach-ended-strangely-1749380378

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tumblr_inline_nxwbhp8hN81t09k6m_500.gif
 



Breakin' The Plane said:
It gets a little juicer. Rumors out there that Bo Ryan was having an affair with a Wisconsin athletic department employee and got her pregnant. Enjoy your Christmas, Mr. Grinch.
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And I thought Norwood was stupid for bragging about his tongue.
 

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