A new list of Tech possibilities, this one including Amaker
Tommy Amaker: A Harvard man to lead Tech? (AP photo)
Last month I offered a list of possible replacements if Georgia Tech fired Paul Hewitt. Today, with Tech actively seeking a head coach, I offer a slightly amended list.
Mike Anderson of Missouri has been dropped because I don’t think the Jackets can afford him. (Having to pay its former coach $7 million doesn’t help in the effort to find a successor.) Scott Drew of Baylor has been dropped because his program just had a player ruled ineligible by the NCAA. And Craig Neal, the Tech alum and New Mexico assistant, isn’t on the list because I’ve discussed him elsewhere. And with that, I give you another six-pack:
Tommy Amaker, Harvard: Has rebounded from his Michigan misfire — he was dumped after six non-NCAA seasons — to make the Crimson an Ivy League power. (Harvard missed the NCAA tournament because Princeton hit a last-second shot in a tiebreaker game.) Played and coached at Duke under Mike Krzyzewski. Did nice work at Seton Hall, his first stop as a head coach. If not atop Tech’s in-house list, he’s probably near it.
Brian Gregory, Dayton: Caused a slew of bubble teams to break into a sweat when his Flyers crashed the Atlantic 10 final. Has had five 20-win seasons in eight years at Dayton but only two NCAA tournament appearances. If he’s on Tech’s list, it’s probably as a fallback.
Gregg Marshall, Wichita State: Did a masterful job at Winthrop, leading that program to six NCAA appearances in eight seasons. Pulled a Bobby Cremins when he accepted the College of Charleston job in 2006 only to recant after the introductory press conference. (Whereupon Charleston hired Cremins, who had in 1993 done a similar thing at South Carolina only to return to Georgia Tech 3 1/2 days later.) Has worked at Wichita for four seasons but hasn’t lifted the Shockers to the Big Dance. Figures to be high on Tech’s list.
Cuonzo Martin, Missouri State: Hot young coach might have cooled because his Bears lost the Missouri Valley Conference final to Indiana State by four points and missed the Big Dance despite an RPI of 44. (Life at a mid-major can be, er, a bear.) Remains an attractive candidate for any opening, though. As noted, former Gene Keady assistants — Kevin Stallings, Bruce Weber, Matt Painter, even Steve Lavin — fare rather well.
Chris Mooney, Richmond: His Spiders have reached the NCAA for the second year running. Played under Pete Carril at Princeton. (Fun fact: Carril told me he thought my description of Princeton — “moves like a glacier” — was hilarious.) Runs the Princeton offense. Surely near the top of Tech’s list.
Mark Turgeon, Texas A&M: Not really sure he’d be interested in the Tech job, having played and worked at Kansas and spent most of his professional life in the Midwest. But he’s a fine coach — his Aggies are a No. 7 NCAA seed — and it would be worth giving him a call.
And that’s it: No Cremins, no Mark Price, no Tubby Smith. (And no Jeff Capel. You can’t hire a guy Oklahoma just canned.) Tech athletic director Dan Radakovich has said he’s open to anything, but financial considerations could leave Tech fishing from the mid-major pond. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
By Mark Bradley
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247 comments Add your comment
chem
March 14th, 2011
11:17 pm
Mike Woodson!
derek
March 14th, 2011
11:30 pm
It is well known in among the upper crust of Tech folks that Mark Price is the #1 target. Young, experienced, visionary. Great choice for Tech. Expect the announcement soon.
larry drew
March 14th, 2011
11:39 pm
sure===he’s been a bust with the hawks but he knows the game and can recruit the inner city.
Typical Tech Fan
March 14th, 2011
11:40 pm
derek
March 14th, 2011
11:30 pm
I agree with your post except for the “experienced” claim. Has he ever coached and been successful?
techster
March 14th, 2011
11:43 pm
mark
how about the guy at belmont?
jim
murfdawg
March 15th, 2011
12:05 am
Where can GT find a coach who can compete with Coach K, Roy Williams, Gary Williams, etc? Why would a successful coach leave his position and go to the ACC? Good Luck Tech!!
p.s. Hewitt is the smartest man on North Ave. He will be receiving $120,000 per MONTH for the next five years. I hope he keeps Blaine and D-Rad on his xmas card list.
William Satterwhite
March 15th, 2011
12:20 am
IL Jacket, I think we might just have to agree to disagree on this one, Depaul and South Florida were really the only truly bad teams in the Big East- Providence, Seton Hall and Rutgers were all fairly good teams who just suffered from getting beat down on by the big boys up top. Also, because of the way the Big East schedule is set up, the “good” teams at the top generally play 2 games against each other with just one against most of the “bad” teams- the league basically plays a schedule geared towards producing as many television friendly games as possible. As an GT fan/ACC supporter I love pointing out the Big East’s Big Dance shortcomings as much as the next guy but the fact still remains that coming out of the Big East regular season at .500 or above is an accomplishment if you play Georgetown’s schedule. And again, it’s not really fair to just look at Thompson’s worst seasons in order to judge how well his system works without also taking into account his best seasons as well.
Kenneth M. Potter
March 15th, 2011
4:38 am
Chris Mooney and Jeff Capel are both real gentlemen! Who says you can’t hire a guy Oklahoma jusy fired! He took several VCU teams to the dance before landing the Sooners job! No one will work any harder at this stage of the game! Would be a perfect recruiter for the hot bed of Atlanta high school hoops! Chris Mooney of Richmond might have to go out of Georgia to the New Jersey and New York markets! Both look like winners!
W.D.
March 15th, 2011
8:16 am
I find it interesting that few of the current “Top Dollar” coaches are being mentioned. What about Billy Donovan (Florida), Rick Pitino (Louisville), Rick Barnes (Texas), or Jay Wright (Villanova). Although I do like the Brad Stevens mention, if money is truly not a limiting factor then let’s go get a proven winner and dominate the ACC. Wasn’t it Milton that said “better to rule in hell than serve in Heaven”–One thing for sure is that it’s better to rule in Hell than to serve in Hell.
Big GT Fan
March 15th, 2011
8:38 am
The Vanderbilt Coach is going to be a finalist. They have been keeping it a secret and he is looking forward to getting out of Memphis and Tennessee’s Back Yard and dominating the State of Georgia!
O-me
March 15th, 2011
8:41 am
WD, I’ll take Heaven but I understand your opinion. To he!! with Milton!
Carolina Gator Lover
March 15th, 2011
8:54 am
What we really need is a list of the top 5 sportswriter to replace Mark Bradley. How I miss the good old days with Jesse and Furman.
T3
March 15th, 2011
9:01 am
GT’s TOP candidate is someone that NO ONE is expecting.
And if GT comes calling, he will DEFINITELY take the job.
Anthony Grant to Tech? Great name, but where's the money? | Mark Bradley
March 15th, 2011
9:03 am
[...] to come coach Georgia Tech. You’ll have noted that I didn’t include Grant on my (slightly redrawn) short list of names for the Jackets, and I didn’t for a simple reason: I don’t think he’d take the [...]
Mark Price
March 15th, 2011
9:04 am
Look, here’s the situation. I’ve done high school, semi-pro and NBA coaching. I’ve trained players to become NBA players and I’ve trained NBA players to be better players. I can coach at my alma mater and I will do a good job…… count on it. Throw my hat in the ring.
Steven Mcarthur
March 15th, 2011
9:09 am
Why not Bobby Cremins? There is a recruiting and re-building process that has to be instituted here. Bobby is a fantastic recruiter and a great tournament coach. Why not give him his just reward and let him finish what he started. 4 or 5 years in a contract and he could very well get Tech back in the mix. It would be exciting again and I guarantee he would put fans in the seats at the new arena. It would be great if one of his assistants could be mentored by him during those years and then step up into the head coach position in Bobby’s retirement. It makes sense to me, but what do I know, I’ve only been a Yellow Jacket for 50 years.
Freddie Blassie
March 15th, 2011
9:09 am
That picture of the Haaaaaavard coach makes me want to bitch slap the pencil neck geek.
IL Jacket
March 15th, 2011
9:11 am
Willian Satterwhite, a good resolution-we agree to disagree. Having said that, if Georgetown gets their guard back, they may surprise a team or two.
Americus Jacket
March 15th, 2011
9:26 am
I’m still rooting for Craig “Noodles” Neal. I really think he could have been a “small college” HC but stayed with Alford as an “Assistant Head” coach. It shows some loyalty and desire to build a program long-term. He would be cheaper in the short run, but if he does have success, he can be paid more money as the pain from paying off Hewitt lessens. I talked to my buddy from Iowa who raved about Neal while also thinking that Alford was not the answer in Iowa. When Alford was fired from Iowa, he said that Neal was his #1 choice. The reason: He knows how to coach the x’s and o’s. I loved Cremins — and I didn’t hate Hewitt — but wouldn’t it be exciting to have a team that actually “outcoached” another team at Tech?
So let’s just say Neal is an x’s and o’s kind of coach. Can he recruit? You cannot compete in the ACC without good players. I think that of all the colleges that he could coach, Neal would have the best opportunity to recruit at Tech. AND, he got his degree from Tech.
The Tech program needs to be repaired, and I truly think a former player is the one to do it. I tend to discount Price’s desire to be a head coach, and I think Neal is the only one with the pedigree to take on the job of repairing the problems with the fan base.
wrecker
March 15th, 2011
9:49 am
You should add John Pelphrey to the list.
Danny
March 15th, 2011
9:58 am
Mark Price all the way. He would run a clean program. He is well known around the area. Would help with ticket sells. And he knows coaching and the game of basketball.
FullMetalJacket
March 15th, 2011
10:14 am
Just read Satterwhite’s earlier posts and I agree completely with his assessment of Sendek at NCSU. I think many at NCSU have recently been regretting running him off, though after eventually canning Lowe I am sure they will make a good hire and come storming back.
FullMetalJacket
March 15th, 2011
10:21 am
While I could get behind almost any selection made by Radakovich, I am not really excited by any one of the candidates mentioned thus far. It’s still early in the process, which while they hope to make a quick hire, still has to play out and run its course. Tech is not an elite program now, but it is a very attractive position and so far seems to be the best overall opening thus far this year. It may not be the best paying gig outright, but the opportunity and potential to succeed rank with the best openings. I don’t think Radakovich is targeting a huge name from a huge program with huge salary demands and downsides (forget about Calipari, Grant, and co.). Likewise, I don’t think we are so poor that he’d take a big gamble with an unknown/experimental pick.
UGASlobberknocker
March 15th, 2011
10:24 am
If Tech hires the coach at Richmond …They will win the NCAA Fan Snoozer Award by default.
Football…You’ve got the CPJ wishbone thing going ..nothing like watching 65 running plays out of 70 total to charge up the fan base. Boring even if they win. Skill position recruits hate it.
Basketball–Princeton offense..Wow . Why don’t we just bring back the 4 corners and eliminate the shot clock.? Get back to those classic 22-20 ACC games in the early 70s. If Tech hires the Richmond coach,every game will be 41-40. Top Recruits would rather go to BYU than to play in an offense where you walk it up every time.
one word: FAN-TASTIC
FullMetalJacket
March 15th, 2011
10:29 am
Whether or not you like Paul Johnson as Tech’s coach (and I do), most would admit he is a true football coach in the old school sense, with a strong work ethic and character. If DRad goes the same way with the basketball HC hire, we can eliminate big names from big schools, and unknowns from small schools. I think DRad realizes the next coach needs to be decidedly different from Hewitt in his background and approach to the game. I would expect the next coach to be more concerned about the product on the floor than the name brands he was wearing or the political causes he was representing.
JUSTAFAN
March 15th, 2011
10:35 am
Had Bruce Pearl not made that HUGE mistake with the recruits at Tennessee,he would be hands down the lead canidate for this position.Admit it,he CAN coach,and gets all he can from the talent that he has.Can you imagine the talent we WOULD keep in state.(hell he already got 3 or 4 guys on the VOLS Squad now)
As for Bobby Knight as a choice,he’s a very good coach,but a much bigger IDIOT !!! The other night I’m watchin a game on ESPN when a young guy dunks on another,turns and stares at the guy he dunked on and gets a technical.Bobby Knights’comment was,”There is no room for that in college basketball”……..Ahhhhhhhh, SERIOUS !!!!Bobby Knight said THAT !!!
FullMetalJacket
March 15th, 2011
10:37 am
UGA Slobber: Paul Johnson’s offense looks pretty good and I’ll take a boring victory over an exciting defeat any day. Victory is always more entertaining. I agree that in basketball some of the slow-down approaches are a bit boring, but the key is whether you consistently win with it. I don’t care how we beat UNC and Duke as long we beat them often enough. Hewitt made inbounds plays and late game collapses very exciting indeed, but we’re looking for wins first, thrills second. That said, I believe Radakovich is savvy enough to know the next coach has to appeal to the fanbase on many levels including the kind of team and style of play he employs.
Bama Dawg
March 15th, 2011
10:40 am
Yeah, man. Roddy Jones looked a bit too exciting running down the sidelines in Sanford a couple of years ago. We don’t care who Tech hires, as long as we can beat him as easily as we beat Paul Hewitt.
FullMetalJacket
March 15th, 2011
10:45 am
Has Mark Price even expressed interest in the Tech job…at any point? Neal obviously has. I don’t know if either is a viable candidate, and I would support either if chosen by Radakovich, but if you go with an alum you need to go with one who is both qualified and who burns for the job.
Frank Martin
March 15th, 2011
11:12 am
What about me?
jojo sunshine
March 15th, 2011
11:51 am
Brad Stevens, Larry Brown-he said he wanted to coach again and was a great college coach at Kansas, Belmont’s coach, Steve Fischer from San Diego State. This is my list. I have more but it will come from smaller programs.
FY
March 15th, 2011
1:18 pm
Who ever Mark Bradley wants DO NOT TAKE THEM. He like every person from the AJC graduated from UGA with journalism and want Tech to fail. Hence that 100% of their articles about Tech sports have been negative for the last 4 and a half years.
sk
March 15th, 2011
1:26 pm
Considering that the Sacramento Kings in the early 2000s ran the Princeton offense, the slow-down part of it is not the defining trait. Did Georgetown score 17 points in a row in OT in the Final 8 over the mighty Heels by being boring? The Princeton attack is defined by the cuts and the reads – and having a post guy who has skill.
Chris Mooney makes a lot of sense in that he would bring an Xs and Os background to the job, something that is not wholly dependent on the quality of recruits. Hewitt knew nothing about coaching offense – and seemed too reliant on the talent he had to just fend for themselves.
Xander
March 15th, 2011
1:52 pm
Butler is a significantly better job than Tech, that’s not happening.
Stephens makes more than a million a year into sometime in the 20s at a place where he’ll make the tournament every year and win games
That does look like a Georgia Tech tie, doesn’t it? (AP photo) | GeorgiaNewsPress.com
March 15th, 2011
1:58 pm
[...] probability to come manager Georgia Tech. You’ll have remarkable that we didn’t embody Grant on my (slightly redrawn) brief list of names for a Jackets, and we didn’t for a elementary reason: we don’t consider he’d take a [...]
IL Jacket
March 15th, 2011
3:38 pm
Unfortunately, UGASlobberknocker has it right, competitors will use Mooney’s offense against us in the recruiting wars. We have traditionally been able to recruit well, why put ourselves behind the eight ball against our competition. To compete we need players who are looking to play on the next level and those players are not interested in the Princeton Offense.
Princeton Offense=NIT Champion
GT93
March 15th, 2011
3:42 pm
Tommy Amaker is a younger version of Hewitt … good recruiter, well-dressed, well-spoken … but CLUELESS when it comes to teaching b-ball fundamentals and how to play as a TEAM! No Thanks … NEXT!
Tyler
March 15th, 2011
3:45 pm
Oh, no. Please no. I was a student at Michigan during the waning years of the disaster that was the Amaker Era there. After watching Paul Hewitt’s teams squander huge amounts of talent by playing uninspired basketball in an offense with no apparent plan whatsoever, I simply can’t do the same again. Watching Amaker’s teams crushed my soul and sapped my love for the game of basketball. How does creating an Ivy League power outweigh six straight non-Tournament years at a school that was once a basketball powerhouse? For the love of all that is good and holy, Mr. Radakovich, please have mercy on me. I just can’t do it again.
IL Jacket
March 15th, 2011
4:06 pm
Don’t worry Tyler, I can’t see it
being Amaker. There have been enough issues regarding Ivy League recruiting issues that I don’t see him being a viable candidate for Tech.
blazer
March 15th, 2011
4:52 pm
no Ex-Dukies!!
Morgan
March 15th, 2011
5:31 pm
I like Rick Barnes of Texas. He’s on the hot seat over there so he might be looking to get out. I still remember his time time at Clemson when he went face to face with Dean Smith at half court. He turned Clemson around in 3 years from absolute nothing.
sk
March 15th, 2011
6:17 pm
clearly the Princeton offense has held Georgetown back …
Bout Time
March 15th, 2011
11:32 pm
GT should give the head coach of the JU Dolphins a look……….
deltarob
March 16th, 2011
4:28 am
Tech can pay me 50 thousand a year and ill take the job.
Georgia State should take Dip; KSU needs (the other) Matta | Mark Bradley
March 16th, 2011
9:59 am
[...] that end, I offer two more bits of advice. (I’ve already done my bit to help Dan Radakovich at Tech.) Here’s who GSU and KSU should [...]
Would Tech be smart to hire Smart? Or does it need a Buzz? | Mark Bradley
March 21st, 2011
9:22 am
[...] (And also Kennesaw State. But no longer Georgia State, which has hired Ron Hunter of IUPUI.) To our Tech short list of last week, we attach Shaka Smart of VCU and Buzz Williams of Marquette. But we affix asterisks to [...]
gomabman2
March 21st, 2011
12:29 pm
We have seen the hypothetical short list of Tech coach candidates. A couple of names are reasonable. The over the weekend successes have brought to mind even more potential coaching candidates. We must be realistic and understand that some of these coaches have sentimental reasons not to leave their successful programs. Seriously. Former players at Tech just wont do. As much as we would like it, they do not have the experience. Tech is going to have to ramp it up for this hire. This coaching hire cannot be a “bandaid on a gushing wound”. We cant go into this one thinking that if it does not work out, we will hire another coach. That will only damage the program further. The bottom line is that Tech will have to fork out as much as it takes to get the coach for the future, so to speak. In reality, Smart, Williams, Mooney, and Amaker probably should stay put. These coaches are in position to grow their programs over the next 5 -10 years with little pressure. Coming to Tech will be a much more daunting task with little room for error, especially with these “buzzing” fans (sorry for the pun). A relative young, experienced coach will be needed at Tech to manage recruiting, alumni, media, and fans.