If this job

[Waz]

opened up, there would be over 100 applicants trying to get ahold of Copeland. Some great DI assistants, some pretty successful DI coaches (past and present), and very successful DII and DIII coaches. Coaching is coaching and if you are successful against like minded and like funded programs (even playing field), moving up is not out of the question. Some pretty good coaches started in some pretty low places.

We would find at least five applicants that we would love to offer.

[Stallion]

you sure got a lot of opinions but do you ever check the facts before you type? Go investigate every single FB and BB hiring at this school since the DP. We are likely to hire a coach will no Division 1A experience who will be learning on the job just as Shumate, Cavan Dement, Rossley and Bennett have done. And no coaching is not coaching everywhere-if you can't recruit talent at the Division 1A level you'll find yourself fired within 4 years.

[Dooby]

Originally posted by Waz:
opened up, there would be over 100 applicants trying to get ahold of Copeland. Some great DI assistants, some pretty successful DI coaches (past and present), and very successful DII and DIII coaches. Coaching is coaching and if you are successful against like minded and like funded programs (even playing field), moving up is not out of the question. Some pretty good coaches started in some pretty low places.

We would find at least five applicants that we would love to offer.

Are you stoned? Or just drunk?

[bhop]

Actually, that raises a concern I've been thinking about for awhile. If Dement's contract isn't extended (likely), then who the hell are we going to get to coach the team? No one will want to come to the coach's graveyard that's SMU. We simply don't have the resources to build up football and basketball at the same time. We've chosen football, and are pouring our limited resources into it. That's fine. But the other side of that coin is that Moody will remain unrenovated, our basketball recruiting and coaching budgets will remain small, and our practice facilities will remain pitiful for as long as it takes to get football up and running and profitable. . .which, with the BCS and all that, should be in about 175 years. Unless we can figure out a way to increase our athletic budget by, say, $5 million per year, basketball will remain exactly at the same level its been for the 9 years of Dement's reign. The only difference will be that our gym looks older and older.

[Dooby]

Well, Bhop, you and Stallion are basically correct in your points.

I will add this positive: Some of the changes, particularly the curriculum changes (if true), benefit the basketball program as well. Maybe the next coach can get 1 to 2 jucos a year. Something Dement never had.

I still lean towards letting Dement go. The Rice game just confounds me. I know we have loftier goals than beating Rice, but Rice has all of our negatives: curriculum, admissions, juco issues. And they have a smaller fan base. And their facilities are worse than ours-Moody blows the doors off of Autry Court.

<small>[ 01-27-2004, 02:55 PM: Message edited by: Dooby ]</small>

[Hoop Fan]

bhop - SMU's resources are not finite. They are only limited by the willingness of alums to donate money. If you add up the banks accounts of all of our alums, the number is astronomical. The problem is most have lost enthusiasm for the program. A new coach has a honeymoon period which invariably gets peoples attention. Its all about support and enthusiasm and thats what this programs needs an injection of somehow, someway.

[Hoop Fan]

By the way, we need to put the naming rights to Moody up for bid. Whether that means a corporation or another Gerry Ford, that is the vehicle to get a complete renovation of Moody, not the operating budget that you guys refer to.

[Dooby]

Originally posted by Hoop Fan:
bhop - SMU's resources are not finite. They are only limited by the willingness of alums to donate money. If you add up the banks accounts of all of our alums, the number is astronomical. The problem is most have lost enthusiasm for the program. A new coach has a honeymoon period which invariably gets peoples attention. Its all about support and enthusiasm and thats what this programs needs an injection of somehow, someway.

Lot of truth to this. The money is there to upgrade Moody, etc. It just has to be earned by the coach, which Dement never could do-a single trip to the NIT. If SMU could generate some success, the money would come.

SMU is not a school with a small alumni base (Rice) or by and large poor alumni (not mentioning names to avoid starting an argument). SMU raises all the money it needs to build buildings. The alumni just have no faith in the athletic department.

But it is tough to convince a young coach of that.

Originally posted by Hoop Fan:
By the way, we need to put the naming rights to Moody up for bid. Whether that means a corporation or another Gerry Ford, that is the vehicle to get a complete renovation of Moody, not the operating budget that you guys refer to.

I'll confess I don't know who "Moody" is or was or anything about him (or her), but I am reluctant to rip people's names off of buildings, particularly if they gave a bunch of money to build that building.

Besides, that will be met with a lot of contraversy- "Moody Madness" has a certain folklore about it that goes beyond SMU.

<small>[ 01-27-2004, 03:12 PM: Message edited by: Dooby ]</small>

[Hoop Fan]

I'm not saying I like Scott Drew, but he was considered a fairly promising talent. If a guy like that would walk into the Baylor mess, that says something. I'm not sure its comforting, but it says something about how precious jobs are.

[Hoop Fan]

Dooby - do I like ripping Moody's name off the building? No. But at the same time, the building is 50+ years old. He's gotten his moneys worth. Buildings get torn down too. ie Ownby Stadium, remember that jewel? I don't think there is any infinite committment by the university to never replace a tired building. Maybe you go to the Moody family and say look, we appreciate all you have done and want to honor your family with a special statue or naming of the court, but SMU needs to renovate the building and find a sponsor to do it. How could anyone argue with that??

[Dooby]

I dunno. If I pledged and gave big money to SMU to build a building with my name on it, I would be royally PO'd if SMU tried to change the name later. As long as that building stood, I'd expect my name to stay on it.

Didn't some school or charity try to change the name of a building and get sued by the donor's family for breach of contract or something? I don't recall what happened.

Edit: Vanderbilt tried to rename a dormitory and was sued by the original donors over the name "Confederate Memorial Hall".

Ask Gerald Ford what he thinks.

Now, you could do what U of H did with their football field-"John O'Quinn Field at Robertson Stadium". We could do "Lamar Hunt Court at Moody Collesium." Might be hard, considering Lamar Hunt isn't a lawyer and doesn't have the bar discipline problems that John O'Quinn has that necesitates him spreading money all over the place.

<small>[ 01-27-2004, 03:38 PM: Message edited by: Dooby ]</small>

[EastStang]

First, Bennett had what 20 years 1-A experience as an Assistant Coach at the highest levels including coordinator position. Cavan had head coaching experience at 1-AA level. (The other candidate everyone was so sexed up about (Charley Waters had four years college coaching experience). Dement had assistant coaching experience at the highest levels. Who would come? The Wizards are truly pathetic team for over two decades and who seem to hire a new coach every year or two have had plenty of candidates. Leonard Hamilton (who just turned Fla. State around) paid Miami to get out of his contract to take the Wizards job and was fired quickly thereafter. So, coaching graveyards, do attract coaches who are unemployed, who are up and coming, and who want a change of scenery. Dement was considered up and coming as was Cavan.

[Waz]

Got bad news for you Stallion. If you can't recruit in any college job, you are gone after 4 years. Not opinion, just fact. Also, for someone who is selfproclaimed informed, there is not a D I-A basketall classification. DI is DI. Not opinion, fact. There are many, and I repeat many, qualified candidates to take this job and if you had even the slightest understanding of how competitive the coaching profession is, you would know that. Perhaps that is why you give coaching such a low priority in the success equation. It is unfortunate that you have such a low opinion of our progam and school. You may be correct. Maybe with folks like you around, we can't be successful.

[Stallion]

thanks Sonny but I think I know exactly how things are done around SMU and once you are old enough to shave maybe you will too. Again I gave you the facts-all you got are opinions that I'm sure most of us that have lived and died over this program over the last 15 years got a good chuckle out of.

[CoxSMU]

Originally posted by Waz:
Got bad news for you Stallion. If you can't recruit in any college job, you are gone after 4 years. Not opinion, just fact. Also, for someone who is selfproclaimed informed, there is not a D I-A basketall classification. DI is DI. Not opinion, fact. There are many, and I repeat many, qualified candidates to take this job and if you had even the slightest understanding of how competitive the coaching profession is, you would know that. Perhaps that is why you give coaching such a low priority in the success equation. It is unfortunate that you have such a low opinion of our progam and school. You may be correct. Maybe with folks like you around, we can't be successful.

Man, you are making your self look like an idiot. If there are all these coaches knocking down Copelands door, then why haven't we hired a top flight coach?? You are completely right, though...Bob Knight and Phil Jackson both tried to get jobs at SMU, but we turned them down....