My feelings on this is it's time to hold Coyle to a higher standard with regards to the basketball program. It's been obvious to some of us that the Pitino tenure was going to end very poorly for a number of years. Coyle waited. He waited while a number of talented local prospects went elsewhere, and not just to Duke. He waited while a number of talented coaches found jobs elsewhere. He waited until Minnesota had 4 consecutive losing seasons. He waited until the returning roster is at least in the coversation for the weakest it's been at Minnesota that I can remember (year 3 Pitino, last year of Monson in the mix for sure).
Now is the time to make this right to the fanbase. The events of today have raised my expectations. Indiana found $10 million to buyout Archie Miller and almost assuredly will be paying $4 million plus to their next guy (plus a potential buyout). Iowa State found $5 million to buyout Steve Prohm and is rumored to be hiring TJ Otzelberger who has a $3 million buyout at UNLV. Don't cry poor. The Pitino buyout likely ends up less than $1.75 million if he gets the New Mexico job. Coyle's comments after last season made it pretty clear that Pitino was not meeting his expectations, so there's no excuse not to be prepared. If you don't have the money to pay a big buyout or a big salary, then that is on you (Coyle). He's had a number of years to create new donors at a school in a major market with tons of Fortune 500 companies in the area. There is money in the Twin Cities. During the pandemic, there's been plenty of time for him to cultivate relationships with wealthy alums or simply local wealthy individuals who love basketball and would like to feel involved somewhere.
I believe the steam that Eric Musselman is interested and attainable. It's simply coming from too many people now who have no interest in trolling Minnesota and no particular affinity for the school. The buyout at Arkansas is $5 million. Iowa State found that to make Prohm go away (and possibly another $3 million to get Otzelberger). The salary for Musselman would be $3.5-$4 million or somewhere between $1.1-$1.6 million more than Pitino made. This should be attainable if you are serious about getting this basketball program going. I am certainly willing to listen to people who prefer another candidate, but he's the only one I see that actually seems to excite/energize the vast majority of the fanbase. He's built up 2 programs in very different areas of the country. He's shown he knows how to work with transfers (which are becoming more common), and he's recruited the state of Arkansas well from the jump. This roster needs an overhaul and Musselman is the guy most likely to bring in talent immediately given both his history and his higher profile than the other mentioned candidates. This program needs some juice both externally and internally and Coyle shouldn't be allowed to use finances as a crutch. If Musselman will take the job, Coyle has to find a way to make it happen.