Eric Mussleman

[HuskyBandDad]

Let's be fair though, the "took Crean until his fourth year to get in for the first time" fact is because he literally had nobody for two full years after the Sampson fallout. He was starting multiple walk-ons for a couple of years. He obviously underachieved a great deal after given the talent level. As I said, Crean would not be my first choice; but I'd rather have someone established who has won at some level than an untested P5 assistant or someone who is at a low D1.

Like someone who won a conference and national championship? Hmm. I think we already have one.

 

[EBonz30]

FYI- Kevin Keatts from NCST is a big time coach, he is about to do work in the ACC.

 

[Burt]

Mike Boguslawski

He's in your corner!

 

[Captbluefin]

Hurley: The clear No. 1 choice. I hope we get him.

Grant: A mediocre (at best) coach who's won 1 NCAA tournament game in 9 years. Would be an awful hire.

Otzelberger: Looks like an inventive young coach but he has 1.5 years of head coaching experience and has no east coast lineage.

Lottich: Fun young coach who, like, Otzelberger, has only 1.5 years on the sideline. Valpo's awful this year btw.

The other names that are actually interesting, besides Hurley & Musselman:

-----------

Pat Kelsey (Winthrop – age 42): Took a struggling team and in 2 years turned them into the class of the Big South. Played and assistant coached at Xavier, and assistant coached at Wake Forest as well, so he's got high-level recruiting cred in areas we care about. Memorably flipped UMass the bird last year after he'd agreed to coach them.

Pat Skerry (Towson - age 48): Has turned Towson, of all places, into a consistent winner. They're a good bet to post their third straight 20-win season, and fourth in five years. When he took over in 2011/12 they were the worst team in the world, going 1-31. They won 18 games the next season before starting on this current run of 20-win seasons. Has yet to make it to the NCAA tourney but he's resurrected the dead down there, and has Big East recruiting experience with both Providence and Pitt. He's a native of Medford.

Earl Grant (Charleston - age 41): Has rebuilt that program after Wojcik nearly ruined it. They went 9-24 in his first year, but have now posted three straight winning seasons including back-to-back 20+ win years. Seems like a real basketball intellect – his teams play smart – and has background as a high-level recruiter with both Wichita State and Clemson.

John Becker (Vermont - age 49): Took over in 2011/12 and has turned the Catamounts into the class of that league, with seven straight 20-win seasons. That includes two NCAA tourney trips (and one win) and two trips to the CBI semifinals. He's an elite offensive coach, as they net out at 20th overall in the Kenpom rankings. They're 11-0 in conference play this year and are prohibitive favorites to win the league. Only blemish is he's never recruited at a high level. He's from Fairfield.

Joe Dooley (FGCU - age 52): Failed with ECU back in the '90s when he was the youngest head coach in college hoops, but he's been awesome with FGCU. They've posted their 5th straight 20-win season, are unbeaten in conference play and are favorites to make a third straight NCAA tourney appearance. He's from the northeast and has deep recruiting ties here, including at the highest levels – he was an assistant at Kansas for a decade, including with their national championship team.

-----------------------

If it's not Hurley it's a fair bet that our next coach will be one of those five guys.

If its anyone on this list we are 100% screwed... If you fire Ollie go get yourself a stud...

This coach needs to raise us from the ashes... NOBODY on that list will...

If everyone is disappointed now just wait..

AD better get a heavy hitter

 

[Jaker]

I am thinking we are pretty muched screwed

 

[superjohn]

If its anyone on this list we are 100% screwed... If you fire Ollie go get yourself a stud...

This coach needs to raise us from the ashes... NOBODY on that list will...

If everyone is disappointed now just wait..

AD better get a heavy hitter

Hurley is the guy.

 

[EBonz30]

Hurley is the guy.

Not into doing this, but superjohn is spot on, Hurley is the guy, the only thing I haven’t liked is his team over the last 2 years has slipped on defense & defensive metrics, but at the same time he’s had his best two years at URI.

Hurley is gonna be a big time coach within the next 5 years, big time.

 

[Purple Stein]

If KO goes, Musselman would be great. My main concern would be that he's a west coast guy -- not sure he'd want to come east, and not sure we'd be more than a stepping stone for him to head back west.

All that said, KO is the man for now. We've got no coaching gig to fill.

 

[huskyjawz]

Hurley: The clear No. 1 choice. I hope we get him.

Grant: A mediocre (at best) coach who's won 1 NCAA tournament game in 9 years. Would be an awful hire.

Otzelberger: Looks like an inventive young coach but he has 1.5 years of head coaching experience and has no east coast lineage.

Lottich: Fun young coach who, like, Otzelberger, has only 1.5 years on the sideline. Valpo's awful this year btw.

The other names that are actually interesting, besides Hurley & Musselman:

-----------

Pat Kelsey (Winthrop – age 42): Took a struggling team and in 2 years turned them into the class of the Big South. Played and assistant coached at Xavier, and assistant coached at Wake Forest as well, so he's got high-level recruiting cred in areas we care about. Memorably flipped UMass the bird last year after he'd agreed to coach them.

Pat Skerry (Towson - age 48): Has turned Towson, of all places, into a consistent winner. They're a good bet to post their third straight 20-win season, and fourth in five years. When he took over in 2011/12 they were the worst team in the world, going 1-31. They won 18 games the next season before starting on this current run of 20-win seasons. Has yet to make it to the NCAA tourney but he's resurrected the dead down there, and has Big East recruiting experience with both Providence and Pitt. He's a native of Medford.

Earl Grant (Charleston - age 41): Has rebuilt that program after Wojcik nearly ruined it. They went 9-24 in his first year, but have now posted three straight winning seasons including back-to-back 20+ win years. Seems like a real basketball intellect – his teams play smart – and has background as a high-level recruiter with both Wichita State and Clemson.

John Becker (Vermont - age 49): Took over in 2011/12 and has turned the Catamounts into the class of that league, with seven straight 20-win seasons. That includes two NCAA tourney trips (and one win) and two trips to the CBI semifinals. He's an elite offensive coach, as they net out at 20th overall in the Kenpom rankings. They're 11-0 in conference play this year and are prohibitive favorites to win the league. Only blemish is he's never recruited at a high level. He's from Fairfield.

Joe Dooley (FGCU - age 52): Failed with ECU back in the '90s when he was the youngest head coach in college hoops, but he's been awesome with FGCU. They've posted their 5th straight 20-win season, are unbeaten in conference play and are favorites to make a third straight NCAA tourney appearance. He's from the northeast and has deep recruiting ties here, including at the highest levels – he was an assistant at Kansas for a decade, including with their national championship team.

-----------------------

If it's not Hurley it's a fair bet that our next coach will be one of those five guys.

This is great; thanks.

 

[Yorkeez4]

Given what I have read on the boneyard I would suggest the AD look thru the post and he will find numerous candidates. Granted none will have D1 experience but from what I can tell many know more about basketball then Ollie.

 

[gtcam]

Given what I have read on the boneyard I would suggest the AD look thru the post and he will find numerous candidates. Granted none will have D1 experience but from what I can tell many know more about basketball then Ollie.

Highly doubt they know more about basketball than KO - maybe better equipped to coach but KO's bball IQ is great

 

[FASTEDDY]

Highly doubt they know more about basketball than KO - maybe better equipped to coach but KO's bball IQ is great

KO hasnt shown to have the high bball IQ that you speak of. Team looks terrible past few years.

 

[AdamaNation]

Hurley: The clear No. 1 choice. I hope we get him.

Grant: A mediocre (at best) coach who's won 1 NCAA tournament game in 9 years. Would be an awful hire.

Otzelberger: Looks like an inventive young coach but he has 1.5 years of head coaching experience and has no east coast lineage.

Lottich: Fun young coach who, like, Otzelberger, has only 1.5 years on the sideline. Valpo's awful this year btw.

The other names that are actually interesting, besides Hurley & Musselman:

-----------

Pat Kelsey (Winthrop – age 42): Took a struggling team and in 2 years turned them into the class of the Big South. Played and assistant coached at Xavier, and assistant coached at Wake Forest as well, so he's got high-level recruiting cred in areas we care about. Memorably flipped UMass the bird last year after he'd agreed to coach them.

Pat Skerry (Towson - age 48): Has turned Towson, of all places, into a consistent winner. They're a good bet to post their third straight 20-win season, and fourth in five years. When he took over in 2011/12 they were the worst team in the world, going 1-31. They won 18 games the next season before starting on this current run of 20-win seasons. Has yet to make it to the NCAA tourney but he's resurrected the dead down there, and has Big East recruiting experience with both Providence and Pitt. He's a native of Medford.

Earl Grant (Charleston - age 41): Has rebuilt that program after Wojcik nearly ruined it. They went 9-24 in his first year, but have now posted three straight winning seasons including back-to-back 20+ win years. Seems like a real basketball intellect – his teams play smart – and has background as a high-level recruiter with both Wichita State and Clemson.

John Becker (Vermont - age 49): Took over in 2011/12 and has turned the Catamounts into the class of that league, with seven straight 20-win seasons. That includes two NCAA tourney trips (and one win) and two trips to the CBI semifinals. He's an elite offensive coach, as they net out at 20th overall in the Kenpom rankings. They're 11-0 in conference play this year and are prohibitive favorites to win the league. Only blemish is he's never recruited at a high level. He's from Fairfield.

Joe Dooley (FGCU - age 52): Failed with ECU back in the '90s when he was the youngest head coach in college hoops, but he's been awesome with FGCU. They've posted their 5th straight 20-win season, are unbeaten in conference play and are favorites to make a third straight NCAA tourney appearance. He's from the northeast and has deep recruiting ties here, including at the highest levels – he was an assistant at Kansas for a decade, including with their national championship team.

-----------------------

If it's not Hurley it's a fair bet that our next coach will be one of those five guys.

Let’s pray if Ollie’s out the thunder collapse and Donovan wants to come back to New England. That’s the ONLY slam dunk.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Ship already sailed. He just reupped with Rutgers for another 5 years. Guaranteed $15mil. Hefty buyout. UCONN would effectively have to pony up $20m minimum to attract him, leaving aside the KO buyout.

We should be thankful. I liked him as a player, but he's done next to nothing as a coach, and I think the biggest mistake we could make is hiring within the UConn family. It was a mistake the last time, and it has been a mistake with our assistants at times as well. It adds pressure and is more likely to no result in the wholesale program refresh we need.

 

[gtcam]

KO hasnt shown to have the high bball IQ that you speak of. Team looks terrible past few years.

Thanks for letting me know the team looks terrible
Take a second and reread - I said KO knows basketball but perhaps it's his translation into coaching it is not good
Someone who spent 14 years in the NBA playing for some of the greatest coaches and with some of the greatest players will pick up a ton of basketball knowledge so I repeat, KO knows basketball
I coached soccer for almost 30 years and know a ton of folks who know soccer but couldn't coach a lick

 

[HuskyHawk]

If its anyone on this list we are 100% screwed... If you fire Ollie go get yourself a stud...

This coach needs to raise us from the ashes... NOBODY on that list will...

If everyone is disappointed now just wait..

AD better get a heavy hitter

You can't guarantee anything with this hire. What I can expect though is competence. We haven't seen that in some time. I'll give you an example (though I'm in no way advocating for him), Karl Hobbs would be doing a much better job than KO with this team. Dave Leitao, who may get fired by DePaul, would be doing better. That's where we are. We are several rungs below "mediocre division 1 coach". Almost anything would be an upgrade. It's at the Diaco level now.

That said, they need to find the right guy. Somebody with no UConn connections.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Hopefully we've been in contact with Hurley already. He's the only name that seems guaranteed to bring us back.

 

[gtcam]

Hopefully we've been in contact with Hurley already. He's the only name that seems guaranteed to bring us back.

One, not the only name, and,
Two, lets see what his team can do outside the A-10. I'd rather see someone who has P5 exposure but that might not be easy due to AAC

 

[husky429]

Hurley: The clear No. 1 choice. I hope we get him.

Grant: A mediocre (at best) coach who's won 1 NCAA tournament game in 9 years. Would be an awful hire.

Otzelberger: Looks like an inventive young coach but he has 1.5 years of head coaching experience and has no east coast lineage.

Lottich: Fun young coach who, like, Otzelberger, has only 1.5 years on the sideline. Valpo's awful this year btw.

The other names that are actually interesting, besides Hurley & Musselman:

-----------

Pat Kelsey (Winthrop – age 42): Took a struggling team and in 2 years turned them into the class of the Big South. Played and assistant coached at Xavier, and assistant coached at Wake Forest as well, so he's got high-level recruiting cred in areas we care about. Memorably flipped UMass the bird last year after he'd agreed to coach them.

Pat Skerry (Towson - age 48): Has turned Towson, of all places, into a consistent winner. They're a good bet to post their third straight 20-win season, and fourth in five years. When he took over in 2011/12 they were the worst team in the world, going 1-31. They won 18 games the next season before starting on this current run of 20-win seasons. Has yet to make it to the NCAA tourney but he's resurrected the dead down there, and has Big East recruiting experience with both Providence and Pitt. He's a native of Medford.

Earl Grant (Charleston - age 41): Has rebuilt that program after Wojcik nearly ruined it. They went 9-24 in his first year, but have now posted three straight winning seasons including back-to-back 20+ win years. Seems like a real basketball intellect – his teams play smart – and has background as a high-level recruiter with both Wichita State and Clemson.

John Becker (Vermont - age 49): Took over in 2011/12 and has turned the Catamounts into the class of that league, with seven straight 20-win seasons. That includes two NCAA tourney trips (and one win) and two trips to the CBI semifinals. He's an elite offensive coach, as they net out at 20th overall in the Kenpom rankings. They're 11-0 in conference play this year and are prohibitive favorites to win the league. Only blemish is he's never recruited at a high level. He's from Fairfield.

Joe Dooley (FGCU - age 52): Failed with ECU back in the '90s when he was the youngest head coach in college hoops, but he's been awesome with FGCU. They've posted their 5th straight 20-win season, are unbeaten in conference play and are favorites to make a third straight NCAA tourney appearance. He's from the northeast and has deep recruiting ties here, including at the highest levels – he was an assistant at Kansas for a decade, including with their national championship team.

-----------------------

If it's not Hurley it's a fair bet that our next coach will be one of those five guys.

I played in an exhibition against becker. Really has the respect of his team and was a nice guy in my experience. Solid coach, id worry about recruiting though

 

[the Q]

The mid-major head coaches that Ole Miss should consider

This was written for the Ole Miss job, but would any of these names be worth a look?

 

[HuskyHawk]

The mid-major head coaches that Ole Miss should consider

This was written for the Ole Miss job, but would any of these names be worth a look?

Yes. And this is what good coaching looks like. Anybody think ETSU actually has more talent than UConn? Not a chance.

“No matter how this year ends, it may be more impressive. ETSU lost three key pieces to graduation — including all-league first teamer T.J. Cromer — and had a projected starter, forward Jeromy Rodriguez, suffer a season-ending injury over the offseason. Nonetheless, the Bucs haven’t missed a beat and are still the class of the SoCon. “​

 

[scrappy2.0]

Nevada(Musselman) beat URI (Hurley) early this year. Musselman would be a great get.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

-----------------------

If it's not Hurley it's a fair bet that our next coach will be one of those five guys.

Unless Benedict has shared his plans with you I don't see how you can make the above statement.

 

[Stainmaster]

Unless Benedict has shared his plans with you I don't see how you can make the above statement.

Don’t question his authority. He’ll ask the mods to place restrictions on your posting capabilities and claim you’re preventing discussion from taking place.