Two finalists meet with Copeland and Turner

by **BigEasyPony** » Wed Mar 24, 2004 10:32 pm

This is a weird article. Initially it states that Copeland will decide in the next two (2) weeks and then said Copeland may add a candidate if he doesn't hire one soon.

What does that mean? Is Copeland and/or Turner having second thoughts about Roberts and Tubbs? Puzzling.

SMU finalists meet president
Copeland to choose from pair of assistants in next two weeks

09:06 PM CST on Wednesday, March 24, 2004

By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News

UNIVERSITY PARK â€“ SMU officials met with the two finalists for the men's basketball job Wednesday.

SMU president Gerald Turner and athletic director Jim Copeland met with Oklahoma assistant coach Jimmy Tubbs and with Kansas assistant Norm Roberts.

Tubbs, who spent 12 seasons at SMU before leaving for OU in May 2002, met with Copeland and Turner in the morning. Roberts and his wife, Pascale, had lunch with Copeland and Turner.

"The interviews went well," Copeland said outside his office at Moody Coliseum.

Tubbs declined comment, and Roberts didn't return phone calls seeking comment.

Copeland said he would like to hire a coach by the Final Four.

SMU fired Mike Dement on Feb. 27 and replaced him on an interim basis with Robert Lineburg. Copeland has been on a nationwide search for a coach that has seen him talk to several Big 12 coaches and West Coast coaches such as Stanford assistant Eric Reveno.

Copeland also said he would consider adding another candidate to the pool of coaches if a decision isn't made on Tubbs and Roberts soon.

Tubbs is considered an excellent recruiter and has strong ties to the area.

Roberts has recruited nationally and is in charge of the East Coast at Kansas. In his only stint as a head coach, 1991-95 at Division II Queens (N.Y.) College, Roberts went 24-84. He left after the 1995 season for Oral Roberts, where he stayed for one season. He's been an assistant coach at Tulsa (1998-2000), Illinois (2001-03) and Kansas (2003-present).

by **PlanoStang** » Wed Mar 24, 2004 11:31 pm

Sounds to me like Copeland doesn't have final say on who gets hired, and presented his best 2 candidates. He's waiting for a decision from up above.

by **Dark Horse** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 12:12 am

Actually, Copeland does have the final say, as I hear it. I get the impression that the committee will vote on its choice, but that Cope does have the final say.

Has Roberts recruited Texas before? Or has he always been an East Coast guy?

by **Pony_Fan** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 9:14 am

Copeland also said he would consider adding another candidate to the pool of coaches if a decision isn't made on Tubbs and Roberts soon.

Sounds fishy to me. There are too many coach openings to delay now.

by **Dooby** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 10:16 am

It is all very simple if you believe Roberts is the hire and he won't accept until Kansas is done in the tournament. If Kansas makes it to the Final 4, then Kansas won't be finished until April 3rd or the 5th. That is a little less than two weeks out. On the other hand, if Kansas loses to UAB on Friday or Ga. Tech or Nevada on Sunday, they could announce early next week.

What they can't say is "We intend to hire Roberts, but we have to [deleted] around until Kansas' season is over."

How hard is that to figure out?

by **BigEasyPony** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 10:22 am

I will agree that is this benefits anyone it is Roberts and not Tubbs, but there have been several assistant coaches who have been hired when their teams are in the NCAA tournament before.

You could be right, but I think that if it is the case it would be leaked that Roberts is going to be the next HC.

by **Dooby** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 10:39 am

BigEasyPony wrote:I will agree that is this benefits anyone it is Roberts and not Tubbs, but there have been several assistant coaches who have been hired when their teams are in the NCAA tournament before.

You could be right, but I think that if it is the case it would be leaked that Roberts is going to be the next HC.

Leaked in the sense that the Gillespie hire has been telegraphed for more than a month? Yes. Leaked in the sense that somebody on the committee or in copeland's office will leak it? Probably not. I imagine that one of Self's conditions on letting us talk to Roberts was that there would be no decisions until after the season.

And yes, while some assistants have been hired during the tournament in the past, notice that hasn't happened this year. All hires have been guys out of coaching or out or out of the tournament.

The risk now is that a school like Auburn or Georgetown will not hire Roberts, but that they will hire a head coach from a school that will want Roberts as a replacement. But it doesn't look like anybody else is real colse to a hire right now either, so a second roudn of hirings is even farther out.

by **moodymadness** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 11:11 am

For all of you that have been questioning Tubbs coaching ability, please refer to Robert's 24-82 coaching record in Division II! Plus, Roberts recruiting emphasis has been the East Coast. If Copeland hires a guy with an 24-82 Division II coaching record that has only recruited the east coast the past few years over a long time former SMU assistant that has PROVEN he can recruit elite players at SMU and has deep ties within the metroplex I will be forced to lauch www.firecopelandsdumbass.com

by **EastStang** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 11:26 am

You do that. Be sure and pay those ISP fees for that website. That site will do about as much good as a golden shower flying into the wind. You and your alter-egos can talk to each other all day long. Is it schisophrenia if your alter egos talk to each other?

by **BigEasyPony** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 11:40 am

Madness, that's just dumb. I understand your passion for your favorite candidate, but this is not an easy decision. Both coaches have question marks. Roberts has an abysmal HC record and Tubbs has no coaching record. Also, Tubbs is not even the top assistant on OU's staff while Roberts is at KU.

Both candidates are proven recruiters, you cannot say that one is decidedly better than the other.

Let's face it we're not talking about Gillespie or Penders or even Eustachy who are all proven HC's. Now I am not advocating that we should have hired one of these coaches, but they personally led teams into the NCAA tournament.

by **moodymadness** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 12:05 pm

So let me get this straight...Tubbs is questionable because he has never been a college head coach (even though he has a high school championship in Texas) but Roberts is less questionable because he has been a HC... and failed miserably (24-82 in Division II???). And what is so difficult about deciding btw a candidate that has deep ties in the metroplex and would own recruiting here over a candidate that knows little about north texas because his focus has been on the east coast. So, are you telling me that Tubbs is an unproven head coach and proven metroplex recruiter? That is fine because Roberts is a proven failure as head coach (i'll remind you of 24-82 one last time) and an unproven metroplex recruiter. Advantage: Tubbs.

by **Dooby** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 12:28 pm

I think it is also fair to point out that Roberst is the longtime top assistant and recruiter to Bill Self, one of the most highly regarded coaches in the NCAA.

Tubbs is the top recruiter for another highly regarded coach, albeit not on the same level as Self, but Tubbs is not the top assistant coach.

The choice does not come down to any one thing, no matter how many people try.

by **BigEasyPony** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 12:30 pm

My only point was that this is not an easy decision. Though Tubbs certainly has proven himself in the metroplex, I think even his most ardent supporters would not argue that he would "own" recruiting in Dallas. I think Rick Barnes, Bill Gillespie, and other national programs that have recruited well in Texas may have something to say about that. Those programs will continue to get their share of talent if Tubbs is hired or not, even though I agree with you point that initially Tubbs would benefit from having such long standing ties.

If I were to argue against Tubbs you only need to point out that he is not even the top assistant coach at OU where Roberts is at KU. Does that say something about Tubbs? Maybe and maybe not. Tubbs has proven that (1) he is a winning HC at the high school level and (2) that he is a very good recruiter. Roberts has proven that (1) he is a very good recruiter and (2) he is the top ranked assistant coach at one of the best basketball programs in the country.

My point is that there are question marks about both candidates. Roberts' collegiate HC record is a concern and Tubbs' lack of experience as a collegiate HC is also a concern.

by **Hoop Fan** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 1:06 pm

If Roberts was the "longtime" first assistant to Self, why did Billy Gillespie get a head coaching job before Roberts? Gillespie was the first assistant to Self at Illinois, not Roberts. Roberts is qualified, but really no more so than Tubbs. Tubbs has the intangibles too.

by **PlanoStang** » Thu Mar 25, 2004 1:30 pm

Roberts went 24-84. :shock:

Two finalists meet with Copeland and Turner

Two finalists meet with Copeland and Turner

Re:

24-82?

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