Gameday

[PonyKai]

The ironic thing about these couple of Jank defenders is just like Jank, they are constantly throwing LB under the bus by bringing up sanctions and the terrible conditions Jank supposedly inherited. In reality, Jank won the lottery when LB picked him to be the HCIW. Go ask anyone at Illinois St or in the MVC how Jank was perceived, or if he was long for that job. Instead he came to SMU with a nice pay raise to work under a legend with little to no pressure. He got incredible notoriety being the second guy in charge at the hottest up-and-coming program in the country.

Then as everyone knew would happen, LB was gone and Jank was handed the keys of a Bugatti. All he had to do was stay out of the way. Jank had a HC job at a sleeping giant making probably 3x what he was at Illinois St, and even had the convenant excuse of having a couple of less scholarships to make his coaching job seem that much better. Seriously, all he had to do is roll the ball out and get out of the way. That 2017 team had sweet 16 talent and he blew it against USC.

Moving forward all he needed to do is recruit at a decent level, promote a positive image of the program, and he could’ve rode this job into retirement. But instead of seeming grateful for the opportunity, he has become an industry laughing stock in recruiting and he has done nothing but whine and [deleted] 247 since LB’s talent started leaving. His 2019 class is a mediocre C-USA level class and 2020 looks even worse. The culture is eroding and the fan support is dwindling at an alarming rate, and despite what the defenders will tell you, that has nothing to do with sanctions. We should all want and expect much better for SMU.

Winner winner chicken dinner. Guy was HCIW in waiting for four years while we were supposedly cheating to build a machine. There every single day. Same offices. Now it's all "gosh aw shucks this is so hard, these sanctions, it's unfair," and people saying he's had to deal with things out of his control. That's garbage. He knew what was going on, and that was part of his pitch to take over when he did.

Put on your big boy pants, bucky. You were here while the bed was made, you draw seven figures, you knew exactly what was happening, shut up and deal with it. He didn't, and he won't. And he whines.

Time to go.

[ObeyMyDog]

The ironic thing about these couple of Jank defenders is just like Jank, they are constantly throwing LB under the bus by bringing up sanctions and the terrible conditions Jank supposedly inherited. In reality, Jank won the lottery when LB picked him to be the HCIW. Go ask anyone at Illinois St or in the MVC how Jank was perceived, or if he was long for that job. Instead he came to SMU with a nice pay raise to work under a legend with little to no pressure. He got incredible notoriety being the second guy in charge at the hottest up-and-coming program in the country.

Then as everyone knew would happen, LB was gone and Jank was handed the keys of a Bugatti. All he had to do was stay out of the way. Jank had a HC job at a sleeping giant making probably 3x what he was at Illinois St, and even had the convenient excuse of having a couple of less scholarships to make his coaching job seem that much better. Seriously, all he had to do is roll the ball out and get out of the way. That 2017 team had sweet 16 talent and he blew it against USC.

Moving forward all he needed to do is recruit at a decent level, promote a positive image of the program, and he could’ve rode this job into retirement. But instead of seeming grateful for the opportunity, he has become an industry laughing stock in recruiting and he has done nothing but whine and [deleted] 247 since LB’s talent started leaving. His 2019 class is a mediocre C-USA level class and 2020 looks even worse. The culture is eroding and the fan support is dwindling at an alarming rate, and despite what the defenders will tell you, that has nothing to do with sanctions. We should all want and expect much better for SMU.

Spot on. All of it.

[ponypatrick]

Tie game at Temple. I will take it! Pony up!

Who is coaching tonight? Oh, that is right... Coach Jank. The same coach that coached our team to a school record 30-5 (W-L) with 6 players only a few seasons ago. The same coach that stepped up and won the first 10 games a season before that when LB was suspended. The same coach that beat #2 Arizona last season. The same coach who has inherrited a storm of injuries and sanctions. The same coach that gets bashed in 10 different threads on ponyfans. The same coach that gets blamed for poor attendance. The same coach that gets blamed for scheduling. The same coach that gets blamed for injuries. The same coach that gets blamed for a re-seat. Wake up. This is Crazy!

Coach Jank has someohow kept our team in the past 4 to 5 games. There are always going to be people second-guessing play calls. Not every coaching adjustment is going to work everytime. Not everything is going to go SMU's way, but Coach Jank has given our team opportunities to win games.

..........."The same coach" that refuses to R E C R U I T.....and will soon be looking for a job !

[Charleston Pony]

Go ask anyone at Illinois St or in the MVC how Jank was perceived, or if he was long for that job.

Actually I have because my next door neighbor here moved from Normal and was a big ISU booster. He liked Jank (except for his weak scheduling) and still thinks he's a pretty good X's & O's guy, but is surprised he can't recruit better at SMU than he was able to at ISU. He was more disappointed about Nic's following Jank to SMU than he was losing Jank, but reminds me that ISU was "loaded" and in position to make a serious NCAA Tourney run if Nic and Jank had returned for Nic's soph season.

I see Jank's situation as somewhat similar to JJ's time here at SMU. Came into a pitiful program and built it to a respectable level (football has 1st bowl game & win in forever and bball at least had that NIT run and NCAA invites) and had an opportunity to IMPROVE in recruiting. I think both coaches just got lazy and thought SMU's success would attract kids and they just didn't work hard enough to upgrade the talent level on their respective rosters.

I don't buy the sanctions argument because we have always had 10-11 'ships available and you don't need more than 8-9 guys providing quality minutes. In fact, in hoops I would argue it might be an advantage in recruiting to tell guys they will have a chance for more minutes early in their careers. With 10-11 'ships, there was room for a transfer or two, depending on who was coming back. As for the "we can't practice 5 on 5, I get that guys get hurt and/or sick, but that's where walk ons come into play. It's pretty special to be invited as a walk on in a Top 25 program and to get those occasional 1-2 minutes of play in blowout wins at Moody.

I was initially a fan of Jank's with his initial "positionless basketball" season, but it's pretty clear to see he's running the program into the ground just like JJ did to a football program that he had an opportunity to take to the next level.

[JasonB]

So, a couple of things here...

1) It is awesome that the team kept the game close. Good effort, very appreciated. And good job by Jank of getting the team to perform on the road and hang in against a quality team, in a league where an awful lot of good teams tend to get blown out on the road.

2) Unfortunately, organization and discipline are required in certain phases of the game. Defense. Offense running set plays at the end of a close game. Tournament basketball where the game slows down a bit and things go more half-court. My personal opinion is that Jank is too much of a players coach to install the discipline necessary to be successful in those phases. But regardless of my opinion on "why", the results are that we aren't an organized, disciplined team in those areas, and that comes down on the coaching staff.

3) For being a players coach, as Jank is, he sure has a lot of players leave early. Transfers are all normal. But if Semi stuck around one more year, he could have been lottery. Shake didn't play the second half of the season, even after being cleared medically, and left early even though he wasn't a first round pick. Jarrey isn't going to play this year even if cleared. One at a time, they are individual circumstances, but put them together and that is a big red flag for someone who is supposed to be a players coach.

4) as far as recruiting is concerned, What we should be shooting for is the 2013 class. Yannick filled an immediate need and was one of the top JUCO players in the country, not middle of the pack. You had a top 25 recruit in Keith, a 100 rank in Sterling, and 250 in Ben. So, even if one busts (Keith), there is enough talent in the class to cover. Now, as the roster gets better and bigger, sure you have some DITR recruits to fill the end of the bench, because if you over-recruit you get a ton of transfers.

In 2017, Douglas and Chargois are both top 175, Landrum top 250, and ray DITR. You can see there is a drop in quality there, but it still isn't the end of the world unless two players bust. And two players were busts. And arguably, with so much playing time available after graduation, there should have been more interest. But we were under restrictions for time, so under the circumstances not bad.

In 2018, we have no restrictions on recruiting. And open spots to fill. We get one top 200 and two DITR. Significant drop in overall quality.

In 2019, we have a solid JUCO recrit, and then two DITR. Again, no restrictions, and plenty of open spots for immediate PT.

So, basically, as the recruiting restrictions have lifted, the recruiting has actually gotten worse.

Rumors and opinions aside, the basic thing here is that 1) the team is going to have a losing record and 2) Jank has not shown an ability to land upper tier recruits. If we want to be considered a top program, then he has to go.

[LA_Mustang]

Go ask anyone at Illinois St or in the MVC how Jank was perceived, or if he was long for that job.

Actually I have because my next door neighbor here moved from Normal and was a big ISU booster. He liked Jank (except for his weak scheduling) and still thinks he's a pretty good X's & O's guy, but is surprised he can't recruit better at SMU than he was able to at ISU. He was more disappointed about Nic's following Jank to SMU than he was losing Jank, but reminds me that ISU was "loaded" and in position to make a serious NCAA Tourney run if Nic and Jank had returned for Nic's soph season.

I see Jank's situation as somewhat similar to JJ's time here at SMU. Came into a pitiful program and built it to a respectable level (football has 1st bowl game & win in forever and bball at least had that NIT run and NCAA invites) and had an opportunity to IMPROVE in recruiting. I think both coaches just got lazy and thought SMU's success would attract kids and they just didn't work hard enough to upgrade the talent level on their respective rosters.

I don't buy the sanctions argument because we have always had 10-11 'ships available and you don't need more than 8-9 guys providing quality minutes. In fact, in hoops I would argue it might be an advantage in recruiting to tell guys they will have a chance for more minutes early in their careers. With 10-11 'ships, there was room for a transfer or two, depending on who was coming back. As for the "we can't practice 5 on 5, I get that guys get hurt and/or sick, but that's where walk ons come into play. It's pretty special to be invited as a walk on in a Top 25 program and to get those occasional 1-2 minutes of play in blowout wins at Moody.

I was initially a fan of Jank's with his initial "positionless basketball" season, but it's pretty clear to see he's running the program into the ground just like JJ did to a football program that he had an opportunity to take to the next level.

In Jank’s fourth season Illinios St they went 12-19 and 4-11 in conference. I was told the school and fans were not happy about the direction. Then he landed Nic who saved him. They went 21-14 and 9-9 in conference that next/last season before he and Nic came to SMU. Like your neighbor mentioned, I’m told they were way more upset about losing Nic than Jank. FWIW, Illinois St went 18-15 and 8-10 in conference that next season so it wasn’t like they were loaded with talent outside of Nic. Obviously Nic was a special player but the rest of the roster was mediocre.

[Charleston Pony]

Go ask anyone at Illinois St or in the MVC how Jank was perceived, or if he was long for that job.

Actually I have because my next door neighbor here moved from Normal and was a big ISU booster. He liked Jank (except for his weak scheduling) and still thinks he's a pretty good X's & O's guy, but is surprised he can't recruit better at SMU than he was able to at ISU. He was more disappointed about Nic's following Jank to SMU than he was losing Jank, but reminds me that ISU was "loaded" and in position to make a serious NCAA Tourney run if Nic and Jank had returned for Nic's soph season.

I see Jank's situation as somewhat similar to JJ's time here at SMU. Came into a pitiful program and built it to a respectable level (football has 1st bowl game & win in forever and bball at least had that NIT run and NCAA invites) and had an opportunity to IMPROVE in recruiting. I think both coaches just got lazy and thought SMU's success would attract kids and they just didn't work hard enough to upgrade the talent level on their respective rosters.

I don't buy the sanctions argument because we have always had 10-11 'ships available and you don't need more than 8-9 guys providing quality minutes. In fact, in hoops I would argue it might be an advantage in recruiting to tell guys they will have a chance for more minutes early in their careers. With 10-11 'ships, there was room for a transfer or two, depending on who was coming back. As for the "we can't practice 5 on 5, I get that guys get hurt and/or sick, but that's where walk ons come into play. It's pretty special to be invited as a walk on in a Top 25 program and to get those occasional 1-2 minutes of play in blowout wins at Moody.

I was initially a fan of Jank's with his initial "positionless basketball" season, but it's pretty clear to see he's running the program into the ground just like JJ did to a football program that he had an opportunity to take to the next level.

In Jank’s fourth season Illinios St they went 12-19 and 4-11 in conference. I was told the school and fans were not happy about the direction. Then he landed Nic who saved him. They went 21-14 and 9-9 in conference that next/last season before he and Nic came to SMU. Like your neighbor mentioned, I’m told they were way more upset about losing Nic than Jank. FWIW, Illinois St went 18-15 and 8-10 in conference that next season so it wasn’t like they were loaded with talent outside of Nic. Obviously Nic was a special player but the rest of the roster was mediocre.

"Loaded" is a relative term and he was referring to their being "loaded" as compared to their competition in The Valley...felt they would likely have won conference and their tourney and actually have a chance to make some noise (win a game or even two) in the NCAA. I think he told me they had Nic and a returning senior who went on to play professionally as well as several good role players with experience...then suddenly they were dealing with a new coach and no PG. Bad combination for sure.

[Gruffalo]

I would hardly consider myself a Jank sympathizer, and I also do not believe jank was handed keys to a Bugatti. LB is a legend and nobody will disagree with that, but I don't think he built a program for SMU that was sustainable. 2 solid freshman recruits to build a team around for the future in Sterling Brown and Shake Milton. Pretty much the rest were JUCO and other excellent D1 transfers or developmental freshman. With a name like Larry Brown you can rely on having that clout. Those kids weren't coming to SMU, they were coming to play for Larry Brown. That house of cards begins to crumble when you miss on a recruiting class, 2016 was that year. Evidently decent ball players, but they were looking for the quickest path to professional basketball overseas to make money.

Now enter Jankovich. I don't believe the scholarship restrictions can single handedly make a program take a step back. I do believe reduced scholarships, using scholarships on transfers who are sitting, having injured scholarship players while developing freshman will impact on court performance.....Good luck finding walk-ons at SMU who can challenge the team enough to make them better!

If you want a Blueprint for building a consistently competitive program go take a look at Houston right now. With the exception of Hinton this past year our recruiting has been just as good if not better. 3-4 yrs of solid recruiting will give you a consistent experienced upperclass team and an occasional 4star to put you over the top.

LB was like a drug that arrived on campus and gave us what we wanted for a short period of time. I don't want that again for SMU, but I sure loved it when he was doing it. He left when it was convenient for him. No transition period, no recruiting together for the final year putting minds at ease about the transition. Up and left when he didn't get his way.

I, like everyone else, want SMU to be a conference contender and known nationally. But to give up on a guy who hasn't even completed his 3rd yr of recruiting and has 4 returning starters next year is ludicrous.

[used to be 2]

Has Pot been just legalized in Texas?

[Bergermeister]

I would hardly consider myself a Jank sympathizer....

[LA_Mustang]

CP,
I understand Illinois St being optimistic going into that next season but I seriously doubt they were better than Creighton and Wichita St. Both were really good. Not that it really matters though. My point is the mild bit of success Jank has had as a HC, he has never been able to maintain it.

[tristatecoog]

How was he able to pull off those 10 wins when LB was out? Every squirrel finds a nut?
What if he just replaced a couple assistants with better recruiters? Did LB have a better group of recruiters or are they the same guys? Didn't the guy that recruited Keith and Mudiay move on to work for Lucas?

[Pony ^]

How was he able to pull off those 10 wins when LB was out? Every squirrel finds a nut?

He had 4, maybe 5 NBA players on the roster + Nic Moore. I could have coached that team to a 30 win season

[PonyKai]

How was he able to pull off those 10 wins when LB was out? Every squirrel finds a nut?
What if he just replaced a couple assistants with better recruiters? Did LB have a better group of recruiters or are they the same guys? Didn't the guy that recruited Keith and Mudiay move on to work for Lucas?

Switching assistants is rearranging the chairs on the Titanic. They aren’t the (biggest) problem.

[sacklunch]

I would hardly consider myself a Jank sympathizer, and I also do not believe jank was handed keys to a Bugatti. LB is a legend and nobody will disagree with that, but I don't think he built a program for SMU that was sustainable. 2 solid freshman recruits to build a team around for the future in Sterling Brown and Shake Milton. Pretty much the rest were JUCO and other excellent D1 transfers or developmental freshman. With a name like Larry Brown you can rely on having that clout. Those kids weren't coming to SMU, they were coming to play for Larry Brown. That house of cards begins to crumble when you miss on a recruiting class, 2016 was that year. Evidently decent ball players, but they were looking for the quickest path to professional basketball overseas to make money.

Now enter Jankovich. I don't believe the scholarship restrictions can single handedly make a program take a step back. I do believe reduced scholarships, using scholarships on transfers who are sitting, having injured scholarship players while developing freshman will impact on court performance.....Good luck finding walk-ons at SMU who can challenge the team enough to make them better!

If you want a Blueprint for building a consistently competitive program go take a look at Houston right now. With the exception of Hinton this past year our recruiting has been just as good if not better. 3-4 yrs of solid recruiting will give you a consistent experienced upperclass team and an occasional 4star to put you over the top.

LB was like a drug that arrived on campus and gave us what we wanted for a short period of time. I don't want that again for SMU, but I sure loved it when he was doing it. He left when it was convenient for him. No transition period, no recruiting together for the final year putting minds at ease about the transition. Up and left when he didn't get his way.

I, like everyone else, want SMU to be a conference contender and known nationally. But to give up on a guy who hasn't even completed his 3rd yr of recruiting and has 4 returning starters next year is ludicrous.

4 (maybe 5) NBA players on the roster is pretty much a Bugatti bro. Jank is a bum.