Asst Coach Job Posting

[UConnCat]

Until two years ago, she was recruiting for Washington (a FF team) and AZ (now a FF team) in the Pac12. And Uconn recruiting is about Uconn and Geno and CD and recruits, their coaches and their parents and their friends know them. She just becomes another in a long line of 'gatekeepers' to the King and Queen. This idea that Shea and Jamelle were the magnet that got recruits to commit is silly.

As for it being Morgan ... maybe TN just stole a march on CT by reportedly hiring Samantha Williams - she was an assistant at Duke and Louisville, and a HC at EKU so she meets the minimum.

We are maybe over-focused on Uconn connections. There may be others with all the required experience out there.

Williams certainly checked all the boxes for the UConn job though I suspect she’ll be recruiting coordinator at Tenn — effectively CD’s position. UConn is looking to fill a regular ‘ol AC position with someone who was once a head coach. That itself limits the pool of candidates.

 

[GG]

I am sort of kidding but Kevin Freeman?

Kevin Freeman is leaving his job as UConn assistant coach, but not leaving the university.

 

[kanener]

I don't think Morgan is the right person at this time. She needs to be better known by recruits before she can assume this job. If CD doesn't plan on sticking around after Geno then they should hire the person that Geno wants. Uconn needs a big name to assume Geno's legacy . We all saw what happened to our Men's team.

I heard Mufft McGraw and Doug Bruno are being considered.......

 

[Purchase1]

While everyone may feel it’s Morgan Valley something in my gut is telling me it’s someone outside of the program I think we’re going to be shocked (in a good way) about the new hire

 

[da60]

Best Recruiter Needed....Shea is a great recruiter and coach. Coach G needs a great rep to get around the country and world to get the best young ladies. Yes, she or he has to be a very good coach and not necessarily an heir to the thrown. Geno probabley has known for a long time what is out there. Coach is unbelievable on the phone.....I know that from back in the day.
As has been said, today's kids are sooo different and great care has to be taken by the university. We may be surprised and wind up with a current head coach who would love to finish their career with a NC. The betting odds say Morgan Valley, but, but, but. This decision is huge!

 

[uconnfan68]

I am sort of kidding but Kevin Freeman?

Kevin Freeman is leaving his job as UConn assistant coach, but not leaving the university.

Kevin is switching into Jamelle’s original job when she came back.

 

[Cornell Lt]

Wonder what the buyout #'s, if any, are from Hartford ?

 

[HuskylnSC]

The important section of the posting is the "preferred qualifications". That will be used to effectively justify the candidate that Geno prefers.

I worked for 35+ years in education, at a public college and a private university and hired many individuals over my career. This is a certainty: at the highest levels of any educational institution (which includes a highly compensated hiring manager with 11 national championships) job postings that are tailored to certain individuals are common. Geno will get the person he wants.

That individual is probably being flooded with spreadsheets and film to digest so they can hit the ground running. they probably have a call list of prospects and are mapping an itinerary for June 1.

 

[FanFromMaine]

Requirements be damned: CARLA, CARLA, CARLA!

 

[Bald Husky]

Jose Fernandez?

 

[Jibariqua]

Maybe Mark Campbell from Oregon would be interested?

He is the head coach at Sacramento State now.

 

[bluedevil]

The important section of the posting is the "preferred qualifications". That will be used to effectively justify the candidate that Geno prefers.

I worked for 35+ years in education, at a public college and a private university and hired many individuals over my career. This is a certainty: at the highest levels of any educational institution (which includes a highly compensated hiring manager with 11 national championships) job postings that are tailored to certain individuals are common. Geno will get the person he wants.

Perhaps he could use Indeed.com and save lots of time and money..

 

[SVCBeercats]

Hmm... Tamika Williams Jeter.. consider.

1. Meets criteria and former UConn great
2. Ayanna Patterson has a close relationship with Jeter family and gave advice to her on signing with UConn
3. Dorka Juhacz is coming from Ohio State
4. Tamika coach at Ohio State
5. Geno just recently filmed undefeated tv series where she was a guest and they could have caught up and talked shop

I don't believe in coincidences in the universe....

Doesn't Geno need a guard coach. He already has CD and Jamelle for posts?

 

[JonathanXIV]

Requirements be damned: CARLA, CARLA, CARLA!

Great idea. But why would she give up a DI head coaching job at Princeton to work as an assistant coach (and not even be #2)?

 

[DEpup]

Great idea. But why would she give up a DI head coaching job at Princeton to work as an assistant coach (and not even be #2)?

She might make more money and eventually skip the #2 spot and become #1 in the long run.

 

[da60]

Brainstorm or Stupid idea??
I would be happy if a current head coach be offered Geno's huge job if offered an opportunity to come to UConn for a couple of years. Of all the people mentioned, only 1 coach would probably be a perfect fit....Carla Berube...
She is a proven winner, at Tufts & Princeton and has blue UConn blood in her veins. I watched her in action in an international tournament in Europe and was quite impressed.
How could this be possible? CD could either give up her associate title or share it with Carla....CD certainly wants the program to remain elite and I believe Geno agrees that his former player is a blooming star coach. She could be offered more money than she makes with Princeton and know that she is the Queen to be. We need such a person to take over in a few short years and she seems to check all the boxes.

 

[HopJim]

Brainstorm or Stupid idea??
I would be happy if a current head coach be offered Geno's huge job if offered an opportunity to come to UConn for a couple of years. Of all the people mentioned, only 1 coach would probably be a perfect fit....Carla Berube...
She is a proven winner, at Tufts & Princeton and has blue UConn blood in her veins. I watched her in action in an international tournament in Europe and was quite impressed.
How could this be possible? CD could either give up her associate title or share it with Carla....CD certainly wants the program to remain elite and I believe Geno agrees that his former player is a blooming star coach. She could be offered more money than she makes with Princeton and know that she is the Queen to be. We need such a person to take over in a few short years and she seems to check all the boxes.

Two pros and a con for Berube:

Pros - great track record as coach. Having the heir apparent in place prior to Geno retiring provides consistency and continuity in recruiting.
Con - never has recruited at the top level. Unlikely anyone will be next Head Coach unless they are a proven high level D1 recruiter.

 

[The CDR-Ret]

Until two years ago, she was recruiting for Washington (a FF team) and AZ (now a FF team) in the Pac12. And Uconn recruiting is about Uconn and Geno and CD and recruits, their coaches and their parents and their friends know them. She just becomes another in a long line of 'gatekeepers' to the King and Queen. This idea that Shea and Jamelle were the magnet that got recruits to commit is silly.

As for it being Morgan ... maybe TN just stole a march on CT by reportedly hiring Samantha Williams - she was an assistant at Duke and Louisville, and a HC at EKU so she meets the minimum.

We are maybe over-focused on Uconn connections. There may be others with all the required experience out there.

DJ's comment about Geno calling her directly being what impressed her the most proves your openning argument. I'm sure Geno will get the Assistant Coach he wants. Who would not want to coach the current and future Huskies in the "pipeline."

 

[cbraarj]

As a fan, I would be disappointed if it were Morgan Valley. There. I said it. Having said that, I'm open to being convinced that she's the right choice. Not that Geno nor CD owe me any explanation, but there is absolutely ZERO on her resume that is impressive (to me).

She has literally had 8 jobs in the past 16 years. She has stayed at NO job more than 2 years except for UMASS as an assistant. She was at Va Tech, Washington, and Arizona, so she spent some time at P5 schools. Ok that's nice but name one single top player she was the lead recruiter on (I'm asking - like I said, open to being convinced). I get that she may have coached Kelsey Plum for a year or 2, but she joined Washington after Plum was already on the team so did not recruit her.

She took over for Kim McNeil, who was at Hartford for 3 years and was 23-11 in her 3rd season, making it to the WNIT. Kim had a winning record all 3 seasons. Morgan then took over and promptly went 1-28. She was 3-9 this season before Hartford shut down due to Covid. Is she just an awful coach, or was the cupboard left completely bare when McNeil left? Or something in between?

Has she even coached guards before? I know she was a versatile player hampered by plantar fascitis, but she was never a PG or SG. She was more a wing/forward. So this is potentially who would be the lead coach will be for possibly the greatest 2 guards to ever play for the same team at the same time in the history of women's college basketball (following in the footsteps of Sue and Diana)?

I'm NOT trying to be a Debbie Downer. I have no idea if she is THE candidate that Geno and CD are looking for. But when you look at the list of people who fit the ENTIRE job description, it's something like Morgan Valley, Gail Goestenkors, Joanne McCallie. I haven't seen anyone else put forward a name who meets all the criteria. So please - tell me why she would be the right person for the job. And saying "If Geno wants her, it's fine by me" is obvious. Give me something else.

Eric I would feel the same way as you do. The 8 jobs in 16 years is a big red flag for me. As a player she really had a tough time getting on the court because of injuries. She was a player without a position that really didn't get alot of pt. She was a tough player but other than that. I would be shocked if it happens.

 

[Alydar]

Eric I would feel the same way as you do. The 8 jobs in 16 years is a big red flag for me. As a player she really had a tough time getting on the court because of injuries. She was a player without a position that really didn't get alot of pt. She was a tough player but other than that. I would be shocked if it happens.

Just for balance, there must be a reason 7 head coaches continued to hire her? If she was a bust I doubt she would have found so much work. Maybe she had a plan to stay only as long as it took to learn what she could.

As an alternative theory, it might be that she was such a good assistant that other programs continued to lure her away and she took advantage by coaching at 8 schools. This way she was able to study many more coaching styles and learn more methods than she would have at one school. She must by now have a large network of head coaches & AD's around the country. In addition, if she did any recruiting she probably knows a great number of AAU/HS coaches which usually takes years for a new head coach.

Now I know none of the candidates and have no idea who is best for the job. But I would be shocked if the coaches at Princeton or Vandi, having produced winning teams, decide to give up plum jobs to return to a public university under the pressure of following a mythic coach.

 

[Rings R Us]

Eric I would feel the same way as you do. The 8 jobs in 16 years is a big red flag for me. As a player she really had a tough time getting on the court because of injuries. She was a player without a position that really didn't get alot of pt. She was a tough player but other than that. I would be shocked if it happens.

Not a red flag at all once you hear from Morgan herself why she bounced around. She was content on staying close to home, but it was her mentor Chris Dailey who suggested she took opportunities elsewhere for different experiences.

 

[UConnCat]

Not a red flag at all once you hear from Morgan herself why she bounced around. She was content on staying close to home, but it was her mentor Chris Dailey who suggested she took opportunities elsewhere for different experiences.

It's not necessarily a red flag for the job of assistant coach in college sports. It's especially not a red flag for someone whom Geno and Chris know very well. Not only do they know why Morgan moved from job to job, but Chris has been her advisor and mentor.

Somehow Hartford didn't view it as a red flag and Geno and Chris gave her a strong recommendation for the job.

Again, whether it's Morgan or someone else, Morgan's job history will not be a knock against her.

 

[cbraarj]

Not a red flag at all once you hear from Morgan herself why she bounced around. She was content on staying close to home, but it was her mentor Chris Dailey who suggested she took opportunities elsewhere for different experiences.

Someone who has been at the same job for 36 years is not going to tell someone to take a job on a average of every two years plus she just gave her advice. It was Morgans decision not CD. Big red flag!

 

[cbraarj]

Not a red flag at all once you hear from Morgan herself why she bounced around. She was content on staying close to home, but it was her mentor Chris Dailey who suggested she took opportunities elsewhere for different experiences.

That advice from a person who has worked at one place for 36 years. How would CD know it's good for her to keep changing jobs if she didn't experience it herself. Anyone seeing her work record would say the same thing.

 

[oldude]

I would agree that if I was interviewing a job applicant in the business world, frequent job changes would be a red flag. But coaching is an entirely different profession, where job changes are the norm. Rick Pitino has changed jobs 11 times in his career. Larry Brown had 15 different coaching jobs before finally retiring. Both are HOF coaches.

Morgan Valley strikes me as an ambitious young coach who is willing to accept increasingly greater challenges in order to advance in her profession. I don’t see anything wrong with that.

 

[CL82]

As a fan, I would be disappointed if it were Morgan Valley. There. I said it. Having said that, I'm open to being convinced that she's the right choice. Not that Geno nor CD owe me any explanation, but there is absolutely ZERO on her resume that is impressive (to me).

She has literally had 8 jobs in the past 16 years. She has stayed at NO job more than 2 years except for UMASS as an assistant. She was at Va Tech, Washington, and Arizona, so she spent some time at P5 schools. Ok that's nice but name one single top player she was the lead recruiter on (I'm asking - like I said, open to being convinced). I get that she may have coached Kelsey Plum for a year or 2, but she joined Washington after Plum was already on the team so did not recruit her.

She took over for Kim McNeil, who was at Hartford for 3 years and was 23-11 in her 3rd season, making it to the WNIT. Kim had a winning record all 3 seasons. Morgan then took over and promptly went 1-28. She was 3-9 this season before Hartford shut down due to Covid. Is she just an awful coach, or was the cupboard left completely bare when McNeil left? Or something in between?

Has she even coached guards before? I know she was a versatile player hampered by plantar fascitis, but she was never a PG or SG. She was more a wing/forward. So this is potentially who would be the lead coach will be for possibly the greatest 2 guards to ever play for the same team at the same time in the history of women's college basketball (following in the footsteps of Sue and Diana)?

I'm NOT trying to be a Debbie Downer. I have no idea if she is THE candidate that Geno and CD are looking for. But when you look at the list of people who fit the ENTIRE job description, it's something like Morgan Valley, Gail Goestenkors, Joanne McCallie. I haven't seen anyone else put forward a name who meets all the criteria. So please - tell me why she would be the right person for the job. And saying "If Geno wants her, it's fine by me" is obvious. Give me something else. PLEASE.

Fair points. I got the below from the University of Washington‘s website. It’s both a plus because of the players success in the minus because of the players position.

Under Valley's tutelage, forward Chantel Osahor garnered national and conference awards while establishing several program and Pac-12 Conference records. Osahor became just the second player in program history to be named a WBCA All-American after leading the nation in rebounds per game (15.3) and double-doubles (30). She became Washington's all-time leading rebounder with 1,253 and her 519 boards in 2016-17 tied the Pac-12 record for most rebounds in a season

 

[bluedevil]

Brainstorm or Stupid idea??
I would be happy if a current head coach be offered Geno's huge job if offered an opportunity to come to UConn for a couple of years. Of all the people mentioned, only 1 coach would probably be a perfect fit....Carla Berube...
She is a proven winner, at Tufts & Princeton and has blue UConn blood in her veins. I watched her in action in an international tournament in Europe and was quite impressed.
How could this be possible? CD could either give up her associate title or share it with Carla....CD certainly wants the program to remain elite and I believe Geno agrees that his former player is a blooming star coach. She could be offered more money than she makes with Princeton and know that she is the Queen to be. We need such a person to take over in a few short years and she seems to check all the boxes.

I would hope she gets to coach at a better basketball school than Tufts and Princeton if she is the heir apparent.

 

[oldude]

In his first 8 years as a coach, Geno changed jobs 4 times, or every 2 years on average, and he had no intention of staying at UConn any longer than it took him to secure a better job than the HC at the lowly WBB program in Storrs, CT.

Consider how the history of WBB would be different if the UConn AD in 1985 decided that Geno’s frequent job changes were a red flag, and he didn’t hire him.

 

[Skeets]

OK, before I even start typing, this is meant as semi-humorous, so the kevlar stays in the closet. Suppose you want an excellent assistant for holding down the position until the eventual HC to comes in (Shea or whoever). Maybe someone for 4 years or so. OK, here I go, what about Jim Calhoun? Consider the following:

1. He's had his fun at St. Joe's. He bleeds blue (I think he swears blue).
2. I understand he is still on the payroll at UCONN (a notoriously cheap state)
3. Is there someone with better name recognition for recruiting? HA!
4. Perhaps the Geno / Jim dust up is slightly overblown, I think they are both bigger than that pettiness (maybe not).
5. He can hold the assistant position down until a new HC is needed, he probably does not want to be the HC.
6. CD won't have to restrain Geno during a game (yes, less frequently in recent years) Jim can break Geno in 2.
7. He might not meet the P5 requirement, but so what. He's a person of color (I believe white is a color, white is all the colors in fact) and the desired diversity (I understand Jim identifies as a bad ass).

So if people a tossing out some far out people like MM, what about Jim?

 

[UcMiami]

All the jobs before VaTech can be discounted as they were all the bottom end of mid majors, VaTech was the first P5 job and it was at a dreadful program with a coach headed for unemployment. Washington was a significant step up, until Neighbors left, and she had a choice of unemployment, or moving - she chose AZ and her friend Barnes over perhaps following Neighbors to Arkansas. And then as all assistants with ambition a HC job tempted her back east. The HC job just exploded with Hartford heading out of D1, It all seems like a pretty straight forward job progression.