Quin Snyder

[Blunt Pony]

Saw that he resigned today. Could be an interesting opportunity if this team collapses on us in the second half. He has youth (and scandal) on his side. Just putting it out there.

[MFFL02]

Tubbs just recruited the best center since poerner...give him 5 years to work and get recruits in here....you have to be patient...snyder meanwhile is a great coach and wherever he ends up he will do well.

[HixsontoLeVias]

synder is a sleaze.

[PonyFan]

That may be, but he can coach, so he won't be unemployed for long.

[Hoop Fan]

That may be, but he can coach, so he won't be unemployed for long.

why do you think he is such a good coach? It will be interesting to see what mid major he lands at on the rebound.

[BringBackThePonies03]

Give Tubbs a chance, he can recruit. All his players are contributing right now, he will turn this program around.

[PonyTales]

I sort of agree with several of you. Regardless of what you think of him personally, I do think Snyder can coach. However, I also believe Coach Tubbs will improve the talent level, in part by selling guys on the chance to play with Bamba Fall.

[Ponymon]

Snyder leaves the program in shambles


BY JEFF GORDON
STLTODAY.COM SPORTS COLUMNIST
02/10/2006

Columnist Jeff Gordon
(E-mail a "Letter to Gordo")



Hiring Quin Snyder seemed like one of the smartest decisions the University of Missouri administration ever made.

The Missouri basketball program was very good for a very long time under Norm Stewart. But try as he might, Stormin’ Norman never got the Tigers to the Final Four.

Norm was getting old. The industry was changing. Slick young coaches were brushing aside the Gene Keadys, Lou Hensons and Norm Stewarts of coaching.

Snyder seemed like the best of this ilk, groomed by Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and ready to bust out on his own.

He had the support of not one, but TWO basketball-loving billionaires in Columbia. Stan Kroenke’s son played for Quin and Bill Laurie’s nephew came to the program as well.

With Boone County abuzz over the program, the university built the spectacular new Mizzou Arena. Laurie paid a big chunk of the bill himself and (briefly) named the arena after his daughter, Paige.

Recruiting was never better for Missouri. Snyder got in on most of the top kids and kept landing highly coveted prospects. The fast-track kids wanted to play for a fast-track program.

It appeared that dreams would finally come true for the loyal Tigers faithful. The coach, the arena, the blue-chip recruits, the powerful alumni -– how could Mizzou NOT achieve basketball glory?

The program’s promise was enormous. The potential seemed unlimited. So what went wrong?

Two things, really.


First, Snyder was much too cavalier in his recruiting. On his watch, Missouri broke lots and lots of rules. Most of them were minor, but at times it seemed like Mizzou disregarded the voluminous guidelines entirely.

He wooed kids of suspect character and dubious academic credentials. This practice culminated in the Ricky Clemons Fiasco, a multi-faceted public relations catastrophe that alternately disgusted and entertained Missourians.

I mean, Snyder inexplicably stuck his neck out for a juco ball-hog with a checkered past and a suspicious multi-juco transcript. All Clemons did from the minute he arrived in Columbia was get in trouble and get others in trouble.

Somebody could make a mini-series out of his jailhouse phone transcripts alone. The Clemons-related legal cases down in Barton County, Kan., could generate still another mini-series. Lives were ruined because of this kid, who never had any business attending a major university.

Aside from embarrassing the university, Snyder’s reckless recruiting also drew NCAA sanctions. The school forced out his assistant coaches, but let Quin stay.


Which brings us to the second problem: Snyder can’t coach, at least not at the Big 12 level.

He installed an offense that either he couldn't coach or his players simply couldn’t learn. (More likely, it was a combination of both.) The Tigers have played like a YMCA pick-up team, hiking up lots and lots of 3-pointers between their ill-timed turnovers.

We actually saw signs of improvement in the offensive execution this season before the team went downhill.

At times, the Tigers played and guarded [deleted] Snyder’s watch. But his teams never developed the defensive toughness and discipline to prevail in such a balanced, well-coached conference.

Despite surrounding himself with highly capable assistant coaches -– three of them have been Division I head coaches -– Snyder couldn’t coach up the Tigers.

Last season was a big disappointment and this season became something much worse.

Finally, Snyder packed it in this season. With rumors of his imminent demise circulating even before the season started, he folded. You could see it in his face, hear it in his words.

So his team finally packed it in, too. Snyder’s final game as coach will live in infamy -- that 90-64 loss at Baylor, arguably the single-most pathetic “effort” in school history.

A regime that started with incredible excitement didn’t quite last seven years. The program is in shambles, ranking perhaps ninth or 10th in the conference.


Athletic director Mike Alden will try again.

He, like the rest of us, won’t fall for the next slick wonderboy coming down the coaching pike.

Mizzou needs substance in its next coach, not style.

[WildBillPony]

I read where Billy "The Flake" Gillespie has denied rumours that he is interested or in the running for the Mizzou job.

[Pony4Life]

Different conference, but it would be great if Gillespie went to Mizzou. Or the University of Alaska.

[Vitale]

Coaching the Nanooks?
Where would he get all his hair gel?
I guess he could have it shipped in, since I can't imagine he'd need much of a budget for those Armani suits up there.