Evans Finally Interviewed.

[SMU Football Blog]

Evans interviewed last night.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 78b11.html

[newshound]

A .500 coach is ... a .500 coach ... is a .500 coach.

This is the "easy" hire. This is not anywhere near the answer. Dr. Turner would not accept this kind of mediocrity anywhere else on campus, would he?

Rob Evans
Ole Miss: 86-81
Arizona State: 119-120
Career: 205-201

See Mike Dement, too.

We need a WINNER!

http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/evans_rob00.html

[smupony94]

Yes and D'oh is such a proven winner

[mr. pony]

NOO-LLAAN, OH, NOO-LLAAAAN.

I think they're calling you, Nolan........

[2112]

If we can get Matt Doherty, we better make it happen! Just a few years ago, he was NATIONAL Coach of the year at North Carolina. Evans is a career 500 coach, that is almost 60 years old!

[newshound]

Did someone say Matt Doherty was not a winner? This would be a COUP for us. Are you kidding? What would you call a winner? He's done it everywhere he's been. Just pray he wants the job.

1999-00 Notre Dame: 22-15
2000-01 North Carolina: 26-7
2001-02 North Carolina: 8-20
2002-03 North Carolina: 19-16
Total: 75-58

As a player, Doherty was a starter as a sophomore on North Carolina's National Championship team that went 32-2. In all, North Carolina won at least 28 games in each of the four seasons Doherty starred as small forward and garnered three ACC regular season and two ACC Tournament titles, as well as four NCAA Tournament appearances.

The Jayhawks went 202-42 (.828) with an average of 29 wins per season. Doherty recruited eight McDonald's All-Americans and coached five All-Americans and eight future NBA players.

Prior to taking the North Carolina post, Doherty served as head coach at Notre Dame for the 1999-00 season. He immediately turned around a team that was without a 20-win season since 1988-89.

In his first season at UNC, Doherty led the Tar Heels to a 26-7 record and was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year. The team was the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season co-champion and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

http://fausports.cstv.com/sports/m-bask ... att00.html

[Pony_Fan]

Evans, 59, was fired in March after eight seasons at Arizona State, where he compiled a 119-120 record. If you can't be successful at ASU, how do you expect to succeed at SMU?

[MustangIcon]

Excellent post newshound. He IS a winner and would improve our program dramaticaly. For those that say he won't be able to get Dallas recruits bc he doesn't have enough Dallas connections I say this. With his name recognition, if he came in and produced a solid 16-18 win season in his first year (which he would do) recruits would start looking at us. Highschool kids don't care if a college coach is buddy buddy with their highschool coach. They want to win, they want publicity, and they want the best chance to make it to the league. Doherty would show them that at SMU they now have those things. Those things that Bhop unfortunately did not have.

[Stallion]

I'm thinking winning an SEC championship at easily the worst BB school in the SEC trumps anything Doherty has accomplished. One was hired "rounding third base" while the other actually hit a grand slam in the Ninth to win the World Series. Getting Benford as an assistant makes it just that much better as he recruited almost all of the great New Mexico players of the last decade plus Ike Diougu and this year George Odufawa from Dallas. Without question Evans/Benford will be able to pick up the pieces in SMU's recruiting region much much faster than Dherty.

[Hoop Fan]

they dont get it Stallion. They actually think the one Espn mention represents something that will last too. Give me a break. I wouldnt mind Doherty under different circumstances, but not because they mention his name once on PTI because of the flameout he had at UNC. He will always be known for that as a recruiter too, how the stud recruits at UNC ran him off because they couldnt stand him. People already have enough reason to dislike SMU and say we dont reach out, Dohertys history will give em one more arrow in that negative recruiting quiver.

[mrydel]

If ( and this is just and analogy) Coach Bennett went undeafeated this next football season, he would be hailed a hero and be named National Coach of the year. But guess what newshound, he would still be under 500. Do not show your ignorance by just stating W L records. Learn the situations. Evans went to Ole Miss under very similar circumstances as here and completely turned the program around. He will also be respected in the Dallas community. He also has 2 very capable assistants that if and when the program turns around and he chooses to step down, one could take over.

Doh on the other hand stepped into the Mecca of Basketball and has been beaten down to a level below SMU. Yes he would bring immediate National Media attention, but in case you did not know, [deleted] Vitale is not actually dunking those balls on that pizza commercial. That attention will win no games and not sway many if any recruits.

I want a proven experienced commodity and that all adds up to Rob Evans et al.

I will live with whatever decision is made because I am puttng faith in Orsini until he proves otherwise. But my vote continues to be for Evans. Disagree if you wish, but stop posting the WL records as the ultimate sign of success. Even Tom Landry went winless with the Cowboys in his first year. What a loser he turned out to be.

[Stallion]

I just think you can't just look at career records and claim that Doherty is preferrable than Evans. Evans took two bad programs and won the SEC West twice and took Arizona St to the Big Dance after building the program from scatch. Arizona St had only been to 2 Dances in tewo decades before Evans and Mississippi was simply awful and had to deal with Rebel flags waiving. You shouldn't even consider his first 3-4 years. Significantly in his 4th and 5th years at both Mississippi and Arizona St he won two championship and went to 3 Dances out of 4 possible berths. He also took Arizona St. to 3 NITs-so that is 4 Post Season appearance at Arizona St. and I guess two at Mississippi. That's how I judge a coach-what he accomplished after recruiting his own kids. Doherty started at arguably the No. 1 program in America and it all fell apart. I'm not negative toward either alternative though-I can live with both. But lets be fair about the career record thing. In this case it means jack.

[SMU Football Blog]

Dumb question about Evans. Usually, I know the answer to dumb questions, but not this one. Every article on Evans and Turner says that while at Ole Miss, Turner hired Evans. Did Ole Miss not have an athletic director at the time or what? None of us would say that Turner hired Bennett, would we?

[EastStang]

We'd be lucky to get either one of these guys. They might just be the best available to us. I don't hear John Thompson, Nolan Richardson or Mike Jarvis demanding an interview. These two are certainly better than the thoughts that ran through my head after they fired Tubbs.

[Stallion]

since Turner was Evans' JUNIOR COLLEGE teammate I think its relevant to make the Turner/Evans connection. The President has to feel comfortable with his coaches too.