If Hewitt goes, who might Tech target? Glad you asked
Both of these men are Tech legends, but they're not on my list. (AJC file photo)
I believe Georgia Tech will be in the market for a basketball coach within the month. I do not know this for a fact, but I work today on that assumption. But before I offer a half-dozen (or so) candidates I’d consider to replace Paul Hewitt, I should explain why some major names aren’t on the list.
• Brad Stevens isn’t on it because I’ll believe he’ll leave Butler only when I see it, and maybe not then. The same goes for Mark Few of Gonzaga.
• Tubby Smith isn’t on the list because the Tubby’s-coming-back-to-Georgia-to-coach-somebody rumor has become such an annual occurrence as to be discounted. (Didn’t take the Hawks job back in 2004, did he? Didn’t return to UGA in 2009, did he?) And Tubby Smith — who is, I should stipulate, among my all-time favorites as both a man and a coach — will turn 60 in June. I’m not sure you start over with a 60-year-old.
• Mark Price isn’t on the list because he hasn’t been a collegiate head coach and isn’t currently working in college basketball. (He’s the shooting coach for the Golden State Warriors.)
• Lon Kruger of UNLV isn’t on the list because he’s 58. Fran Dunphy of Temple isn’t because he’s 62. Blaine Taylor of Old Dominion isn’t because he’s 53. (Which is younger than I am, for the record.)
• Bobby Cremins isn’t on the list because you can’t go home again.
• Bobby Knight isn’t on the list because the great lure of Georgia Tech basketball — it plays in a prestigious conference and is based in the capital of a state that produces a slew of big-time basketball players (Dwight Howard, Josh Smith, Derrick Favors, Trey Thompkins) — would be rendered null and void. Because no big-timer would play for Bobby Knight.
• Randy Bennett of Saint Mary’s isn’t on the list because he has never worked east of the Mississippi. (Though he did spent two years as Lorenzo Romar’s assistant at St. Louis, which is pretty darn close to the Mississippi.)
• Jamie Dixon of Pitt and Jay Wright of Villanova aren’t on the list. I’d love it if they were, but they have better jobs. And the Big East is a hotter conference than the ACC.
Which leads me to this: Three ACC programs hired new coaches last spring, and none elicited a “Wow!” Clemson hired Brad Brownell of Wright State. Boston College hired Steve Donahue of Cornell. Wake Forest hired Jeff Bzdelik of Colorado. This isn’t to say any were bad hires — Brownell and Donahue have done well — but none had the sizzle of Bob Huggins heading to West Virginia or John Calipari going to Kentucky. (FYI, Calipari was interested in the Tech job back in 2000.)
There’s the preface. Here’s my list:
That's Mike Anderson is on left. On the right is Tony Greene, the Atlantan who's the best ref in the business. (AP photo)
Mike Anderson, Missouri: He’s close to Dixon/Wright status in that he presides over a Top 25 program in a major conference. (And Missouri can throw money at him to stay.) But he grew up in Birmingham and coached at UAB and worked under Nolan Richardson at Arkansas, and he might have a hankering to return to the South. And I for one would love to see his full-tilt style shake up the rather staid ACC.
Scott Drew, Baylor: He coached under his famous dad Homer at Valparaiso and has worked since 2003 in Waco, where he inherited a program leveled by a scandal involving the murder of a by a former player. He’s 84-43 over the past three-plus seasons. Last spring he took the Bears to the Elite Eight, after which he signed a 10-year extension. Not sure he’d leave for Tech, but how much longer is a coach this young (40) and skilled apt to stay in Waco?
Brian Gregory, Dayton: He doesn’t fit the definition of a Hot Young Guy. He’s 44, which isn’t that young, and his Flyers are 5-6 in the Atlantic 10, which isn’t hot. But he’s 167-89 in seven-plus seasons at a mid-major that takes the sport seriously, and he apprenticed under Tom Izzo at Michigan State.
Cuonzo Martin, Missouri State: Here’s your Hot Young Guy. Martin was Glenn Robinson’s wingman at Purdue when the Big Dog was the best player in college basketball. Martin played in Europe and survived non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and has become a coach of growing portfolio. He won 24 games last season at Missouri State, which as Southwest Missouri State perpetrated a memorable NCAA tournament upset of Clemson at the old Omni. Martin’s latest Bears are 20-6, tied with Wichita State atop the Missouri Valley Conference. Another reason to like Martin: He worked under Gene Keady at Purdue, and Keady assistants do well. Think Kevin Stallings at Vanderbilt, Bruce Weber at Illinois and now Matt Painter with the Boilermakers.
Chris Mooney, Richmond: Good young coach — he’s 38 — at another pedigreed mid-major. He played under the legendary Pete Carril at Princeton, which means, surprisingly enough, that he runs the Princeton Offense. Mooney led the Spiders to the NCAA tournament last season, but they were upset (Richmond was actually the better seed) by Bennett and Saint Mary’s. Richmond is 20-6, tied with Temple for second in the Atlantic 10 . Possible disqualifier: Richmond played Tech in December and lost. If you go by RPI, that’s the Spiders’ worst loss of the season.
Mark Turgeon, Texas A&M: Played under Larry Brown at Kansas, coached under both Brown and Roy Williams there. Turgeon also signed a contract extension after last season, in which he took the Aggies to the NCAA tournament for the third time in three tries. This appears to be his best A&M team — it’s 19-5 and ranked No. 21 in the Associated Press poll. Not sure he’d leave for Tech, either, unless he just wants out of College Station and into the ACC. (A&M is rumored to be bound for the SEC, which might or might not be a consideration.)
OK, there are six candidates, three of whom would surely see Tech as a step up. And you’ll notice I included only current head coaches. This kept me from including assistants Mark Montgomery of Michigan State, Steve Masiello of Louisville and Joe Dooley of Kansas, all of whom should be head coaches soon. But there’s one assistant coach who bears special consideration, and he is …
Good ol' days: That's Craig "Noodles" Neal in the background, his hand on Mark Price's head. (AJC file photo)
Craig Neal, New Mexico: Known as Noodles when he played at Tech, where he first served as Price’s backup before becoming an outstanding point after Price departed. He has been Steve Alford’s chief assistant in Albuquerque since 2007, and last season the Lobos were 30-5 and entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 3 seed. This year they’re 17-8. I cannot imagine a circumstance in which Neal would not crawl to Atlanta for a chance to coach his alma mater.
Oh, and one more name, this one a long shot but nonetheless intriguing:
Herb Sendek, Arizona State: He’s the dullest guy in the world, and he’s not a great recruiter. He left N.C. State in a snit because Wolfpack fans weren’t satisfied with five consecutive NCAA tournament appearances. But things haven’t gone great for him in Tempe — he’s 85-70 in four-plus seasons and has reached the Big Dance only once — and his Sun Devils are 9-15 and hold last place in the Pac-10. There’s a chance Sendek could get fired this season. It’s not often a big-time program hires a coach who has just been canned at another school, but Sendek does have a history of winning in the ACC. He was 46-34 in league play his final five seasons at State.
And that’s it — a long post regarding a short list. And if you’re asking which of these names fascinates me the most, I’d think really hard and say:
Cuonzo Martin.
By Mark Bradley
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387 comments Add your comment
Buzz Tech
February 16th, 2011
3:17 am
hewitt’s taken tech’s program so far down, it will be hard to get a good coach. They may have to bring back cremins for a few years, get the new arena, then search for a big time coach.
Dr. Warren
February 16th, 2011
3:46 am
With my 44th birthday two weeks away, MB just put it all in perspective for me: “He’s 44, which isn’t that young.”
Buzz Me
February 16th, 2011
5:38 am
Hey Mark,
I don’t think Tech will fire Hewitt this year as much as I would like them to. What new coach wants to come to a team that cant win on the road and essentially plays all road games next year. Why not make a big splash the following year…new coach and new arena? Thoughts?
Notsp Fast
February 16th, 2011
5:46 am
Great to at least talk about change. We do need the best man available but we have to make a change. When you are in the ACC and not the best team in you city much less your state, then you got trouble. We got trouble.
MoTimeFoeTwits
February 16th, 2011
5:53 am
i think it’s no coincidence that ”first” and ” moron,, have the same number of letters. wGAD if you are first if that is all you say?
Ray Man
February 16th, 2011
6:46 am
My choice, if not Mike Anderson, then Kevin Willard of Seton Hall.
gt45
February 16th, 2011
7:14 am
Craig Neal told me last year he would be here on the next plane!
Little Girl
February 16th, 2011
7:14 am
I have the latest news concerning the coach:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmLbmxbi8fM
Alabama Jack
February 16th, 2011
7:19 am
Watched Mike Anderson at UAB. He is a stud coach. Would definitely shake up the ACC.
Golden White
February 16th, 2011
7:24 am
I am not a Tech alum . I do not belong to any Georgia Tech organizations . I am a Tech Fan . Have been for 47 years . Paul Hewitt has to go now . I pledge $ 100. oo toward his buy out . Who is with me ?
TD
CPJisthebomb
February 16th, 2011
7:35 am
Surprised that Mark didn’t list Paul Johnson, since he thinks CPJ is the greatest coach of any sport ever.
JimO
February 16th, 2011
8:16 am
Look at St. John’s second choice – nice job he is doing. Betcha they are very happy not getting PH!
Great article, good insight. We need a young stud, like Bobby was, not one of the older great coaches. Hard to understand why it would be difficult to recruit to tech except for the academics – and the great players don’t stay to the really tough courses.
What is the average number of scouts attending a tech game, vs alabama, uga or fsu? probably one reason bynum, west and morrow are in the nba – not high profile names, but they were seen many many times and so when a team has a specific need they come to mind. a super plus for tech being in atlanta – nba city and major airport hub,
But regardless, we do need to sit PH down and bring in new blood. hopefully this time our contract negotiator will have his head where it belongs. The recruiting class two years ago was highly ranked even without Favors – so the talent is there. unfortunately PH doesn’t seem to recruit what he needs. Too many big men one year, lack of point guards most of the time, etc.
brent cunningham
February 16th, 2011
9:01 am
mark price would make an excellent coach, and could also teach them how to shoot the rock. With some good assistants he should be the choice
Bucket
February 16th, 2011
9:05 am
I am a UGA fan and have wondered why Hewitt was re-upped the last time. However, I think this article is a low blow. Compiling a list for a coach’s replacement and publishing it before he has been fired? Really? You do understand the guy has a family, right?
gt
February 16th, 2011
9:12 am
Tech has unusual circumstances. Basketball is not a rural sport. College basketball can compete with a pro team in the same town, such as New York or Philly. The state is loaded with un recruited talent, unlike football which is very over recruited. The type of guy that can win coaching basketball, like a New York transplant will find the atmosphere favorable for his type. What we need to guard against is the subtle attitude problem I perceive in Hewitt. I think Hewitt recruits well because he is a little like the players he recruits. The problem is they and he are not working towards being a unit with each other or the school. Tubby Smith understands the PR part of the game, Bobby C understands it. You see both of them at more events in Atlanta than the local guy Hewitt. I was at Reynold Plantation in a shopping center one day a few years ago, Bobby Cremins stops his car full of people and ask me directions to a golf course like he was one of the crowd. Made me write em down for him and teased me that if this wasn’t right he would be back to get me. I have two pictures of Tubby and myself, one at a Fellowship of Christian Athletes dinner held here in Atlanta and one at an airport waiting area where he and I talked basketball like normal people both excited about the subject. “Bobby and Tubby” lets get a name like that, someone who doesn’t take himself too seriously, loves the game of basketball, loves his kids, and they love him. Respectful of the institute that hired him. No sullen or over dressed, no selfishness or isolated, the school and the conference still recruits itself, we just need someone who appreciates what they have here. And maybe that someone can bring a real assistant coach with him, or hire one here. Great teams have great and loyal assistant coaches, check it out. Learn from this, basketball is close and get to know you. I wouldn’t recognize many of the better coaches in college or pro football in an airport, not sure I would recognize Drew of the Hawks, but I would recognize that mug of Roy Williams or Coach K. Lets get back to some real people, the kind that made the ACC, even made the Tech program.
Tech Guy
February 16th, 2011
9:21 am
Bradley smells blood! He’s a shark.
Best Idea
February 16th, 2011
9:21 am
Bring Cremins in for 3 years and make Mark Price an assti. Bam!!!
GTGuy44
February 16th, 2011
9:22 am
Homer Rice always said he would never hire a head coach who had not proven he was a good head coach. I would make an exception for Mark Price. He is such a class act I know he could recruit great and clearly he knows how to coach. To me it would be a very small risk.
coachx
February 16th, 2011
9:22 am
Good list of candidates MB. GT would do well to get any one on your list. GT should alwayse be a very attractive job.
I was hoping for Drew or Anderson to come to UGA but of course we are all very happy Fox is the guy now. GT would probably have a better shot at them then UGA did 2 years ago.
Craig Neal would be very interesting just from a nostalgia stand point.
russ78
February 16th, 2011
9:27 am
Nolan Richardson–40 minutes of Hell. Herb Sendek and the Princeton is like watching paint dry.
Yurtle_the_turtle
February 16th, 2011
9:27 am
I’m praying for a Chatanooga win tonight over my beloved Jackets! This would go a long way in helping us rid Phewitt once and for all.
Dadgum.....
February 16th, 2011
9:28 am
Buzz Me…..As I mentioned earlier on this blog, Hewitt will be fired on or before March 14th. My connections within the GT community are long standing and I have accurate info. Paul Hewitt is gone regardless of how he finishes.
Let me also address the Mark Price scenario. Many of you on here are dismissing him from the equation. Reality is that at least 3 huge GT supporters have already taken some action to have him come to the flats. Not saying that will get it done or that he is perfect for the job. Guarantee one thing though, he will be on Drads list and at least get an interview. Ditto Neal.
While I am at it allow me my take. GT I am told will hire a coach that is fairly young and cheap. I am taking that as a given. Watching Richmond games and having met Mooney on a couple of occasions, you have to come away very impressed with the guy. Gotta believe when he enters a recruit’s home he will be able to sell the GT program. Ask any college coach and that is the number one criteria to being successful in coaching. Experience certainly is a factor but not the most important at all.
GT must reenergize the fanbase and bring someone in who can teach basketball skills at a high level. Frankly, you will be hard-pressed to find anyone better at that than Mark Price. He has a plethora of experience at the key points needed as mentioned. He has been successful at all his jobs whether it is instruction, coaching, or recruiting. Sure he hasn’t been at the helm of a midlevel team but he has the pedigree to succeed. Give me someone who can recruit and coach them up and I will give them a pass on head coaching experience. Think about it like this, here is a guy who is a former NBA all-star and one of the best pure shooters ever and is being hired to coach shooting in the NBA and walks into a recruits home saying that he will put the kid in an environment that gets national exposure and make him a better player and coach him up all the while winning over every parent listening to him preach his message. That is powerful. Do you really think that recruit is going to care about head coaching experience? Not a chance.
Again, I am not saying he is the perfect candidate but I know this, he is already on the short list you can bank on it. I also know that Hewitt is gone by March 14th. The Good Word!
Dadgum.....
February 16th, 2011
9:33 am
Bradley may smell blood but he is correct. Well, some of the time anyway.
E Ivery
February 16th, 2011
9:34 am
Bradley smells blood? At this point, I think anyone with half a brain (and a functioning nose) could smell blood.
Best Idea
February 16th, 2011
9:40 am
MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE MARK PRICE
richtfan
February 16th, 2011
9:46 am
GT is really a big time program? give me a break.
asuram92
February 16th, 2011
9:51 am
The first person I ask is Chris Collins at Duke, because if/when Coach K retires, either him or Wojo is going to be pretty disappointed if they dont get the job. How long are they willing to wait for that job to open up, especially if Tech comes calling?
Next is Mike Anderson, who may want to come back down south and can recruit the type of kids needed for his system within 25 miles of campus instead of 120 miles to Kansas City and St. Louis.
Then I call Mark Price, but the caveat is that he needs to hire a proven college recruiter/assistant to help guide him through the minutiae of being a D1 Head Coach. I dont doubt that Price will excel with the player development/strategy part of the job.
I think if they ask Price, he takes the job
GoJackets!
February 16th, 2011
9:51 am
I’m on a Mark Price bandwagon. Here are reasons why he would work.
1. He’s a genuine Tech guy. I’ve seen him numerous times at AMC. He’ll dedicate himself to make the team better.
2. He knows where this program stands. Tech has to pay Hewitt $7+ million to make him go away. He won’t ask for significant amount of money just because it’s in a major conference.
3. He doesn’t have much coaching experience. It’d be a learning experience for him too. If he can’t deliver good results then he can move on with no hard feeling.
4. Whether he works out or not it’ll give a couple of years to payoff Hewitt’s rollover. Then either Tech gives him a raise for good results or pay someone else if Price fails.
5. He can’t be worse than Hewitt. I was talking to a huge Carolina fan the other day and even he was joking that a high school basketball coach could do better than Hewitt.
I think there’s nothing to lose by trying Price out. Especially, next year will be a total transition year with new renovation taking place. I’ll actually go to several games to Gwinnett Arena and Phillips to check out how he does.
Supersize that order, mutt
February 16th, 2011
9:56 am
richtfan, GT basketball is more of a big time program than THUGa can ever dream about being. Hewitt’s record agains the mutts notwithstanding, Tech owns THUGa in basketball; just check the records.
Supersize that order, mutt
February 16th, 2011
9:58 am
Bucket, Hewitt stands to get 7.1 million dollars if he is fired. You think his family is being hurt by articles by Bradley or anyone else??? Hell, if someone gave me 7.1 milllion dollars, I don’t think my family would give a damn what they said about me.
BYRDDAWG
February 16th, 2011
9:58 am
Craig Neal’s a nobrainer! None of the others would want to coach the WRECK!!!! Just sayin……
ormewood
February 16th, 2011
10:07 am
I believe that GT is the third or fourth best job in the ACC, which is definitely a compliment. Extremely fertile recruiting ground, decent tradition, new arena on the horizon. GT should aim high on this one. Mark’s list has some really solid coaches on it.
V1-Tech E
February 16th, 2011
10:12 am
Bring in Kenny Andersen—he needs a job and can recruit in the hood.
Blewitt
February 16th, 2011
10:20 am
Dadgum – I have also been told he is on the short list. It has come up several times this year and seems to have the backing of some pretty key supporters. I would not count Price out.
Hewitt Fan
February 16th, 2011
10:25 am
I am very heavy involved in AAU basketball..I personally know of 5 players who loved GT and Hewitt, but have already marked GT off their list due to the Coach k conference rules…I have known Derrick Favors since he was young, watched him developed…He wanted to stay 2 or 3 years in college..He left due to the refs in the ACC…The AJC wrote an article about it, no GT fans cared..You all said it was Hewitt’s fault…The ACC is a joke..everyone is bad except……DUKE
ormewood
February 16th, 2011
10:37 am
I don’t think Mark Price, as revered a player as he is, will work out. See example in Raleigh: Lowe, Sidney.
Go figure
February 16th, 2011
10:38 am
Mark Bradly you and people like you is what is wrong with the world today. Always looking for the next young great coach or CEO. Oh and it is OK if lives are destroyed or people are hurt cause he has to go through a growing process.What is wrong with a seasoned head coach who will not make rash decisions. One who looks out after his players and the program instead of the next chance to jump at a better job. You are pathetic. You know he is probably younger than you but Chip Towers is the best AJC sports writter.
Jake
February 16th, 2011
10:38 am
What about Cliff Warren at Jacksonville University? You can argue that Tech basketball has gone downhill since he left and he’s done a lot with very little at JU.
Buzzzed
February 16th, 2011
10:46 am
@Hewitt Fan, Everyone knows the ACC is run by a bunch of Good Ole Boys from North Carolina. The the good ole boys tell refs who will win and they make the calls appropriately. Letting Duke win is good for business. Doesn’t matter who is coaching, Tech will always be the red-headed step child in the ACC and will always get the shaft by the refs especially against Duke. This is the main reason I would jump to the SEC in second. I know injustice when I see it. BTW, Hewitt needs to go.
J W
February 16th, 2011
10:51 am
The only name(s) mentioned here that I would support: Craig Neal (Coach Cremins and Price, also)
Most mentioned would simply serve to drive me farther away from the program – no matter whether any success ocurred or not.
dyslexicbunny
February 16th, 2011
10:54 am
It’s all just stupid speculation. The more important question is deciding what the expectations are for the GT program. Drad needs to decide his thoughts and then the fans have to accept those goals. Sendek made NC State a pretty decent program but the fans had man sausage envy with Duke and UNC next door and booted him. Look where they are now.
I think our goal should be to consistently make the tourney as well as finish top 5 in the conference. One of my friends tossed out the St John’s coach’s name. I was thinking much cheaper since we gotta buy out Hewitt – Cliff Warren at Jacksonville (old asst coach).
The problem we have with recruiting is that there really aren’t any cupcake degrees athletes have to put no effort into. And if we’re going to recruit the way Hewitt does, we’re not going to keep anyone long term. That being said, Duke manages to keep guys for 3-4 years pretty easily. I think the recruiting approach just needs to change. Find players that look college good but not NBA good with a solid work ethic (Mario West had one).
Dadgum.....
February 16th, 2011
10:58 am
GTJacket…..you hit the nail on the head dude. Aside from the pitiful record Hewitt has produced the fact that GT is going into a transition year and building the new arena is the prime reason Hewitt will be let go. They can’t show his contract on the balance sheet. Let me also state that even a respectable year he would be let go. By the way, Hewitt knows it as well. Don’t feel sorry for him at all. I don’t think he has to look for loose change. He will be fired on or before March 14th.
Smarty Pants
February 16th, 2011
11:05 am
How’s about Huschul, just bring the basketball personality out of him.
Dadgum.....
February 16th, 2011
11:13 am
Duke is good for the conference!!! You have got to be freakin kidding me! The stronger you are at the top the worse you are as a conference. I contend the strength of a conference lies in the strength of the lower half. Simply put the ACC is weaker than it should be in the lower half. The Big East is a perfect example. That league and dare i say Big 12 has totally turned the table on the ACC. As long as the league and officials play nepotism with Duke and Carolina it will continue to slide. It is almost irrelevant in football with Virginia Tech trying single-handedly bail it out. As for basketball, when ratface K leaves Duke and they come back to the rest of the pack and the lower tier gets better then you will have a stronger conference. Right now the ACC is in transition and a perfect time for GT to be bringing in a young coach.
Smarty Pants
February 16th, 2011
11:14 am
The problem is that Tech is in the state of Ga , which has problems getting teams into the NCAA. Heck , the state of NC has 3 teams that have won multiple NCAA BB titles.
Dadgum.....
February 16th, 2011
11:18 am
I am going to make a phone call about Cremins but from what I understand he is happy in Charleston. My guess is you can pretty much scratch Cremins off any list.
MC
February 16th, 2011
11:18 am
Mark where will a low rent program like Tech get the money for Hewitt’s huge buyout and pay the next coach. The GT Athletic Department is not exactly flush with cash. Maybe McGarrity over at UGA will float them a loan. He can probably cover the entire amount out of the petty cash drawer.
Paul in RDU
February 16th, 2011
11:18 am
ormewood
I agree with you about not bringing Price in as HC and Sidney Lowe is a good example of how it can go wrong. You could also have used an example from your favorite team – Doherty, Matt
Doherty’s replacement seems to have worked out much better.
Doug
February 16th, 2011
11:24 am
Why would anyone leave Charleston for GT. Charleston vs the ghetto. That one’s a no brainer.
Paul in RDU
February 16th, 2011
11:25 am
Some people may think that the reasons that Duke and UNC are successful are because they have great head coaches and bring in highly regarded players – many of whom end up playing in the NBA.
I didn’t realize that Swofford was orchestrating a great conspiracy to make sure that they win the conference. He must also have a great deal of influence with the NCAA as Duke and UNC have won 3 out of the last 6 championships.