Ollie can not be fired.

[Kembacity]

Who of the defections from last year would have made a big difference? Enoch was a highlight film?
VJ never wanted to be a big and never was going to stay on the east coast

Enoch, he was taller than 6'9". I'm missing where a big man or a three point shooter would have to be a highlight film to make the team better. With Enoch instead of Dave O and Gilbert healthy, we wouldn't have been great but our ball handling issues and rebounding issues would've been slightly less atrocious

 

[Chief00]

I wasn't suggesting he was, only using him to illustrate a point. Burton has always been about football anyway, whether or not he's still an active donor to the AD.

At any rate, the donor issue has been cleared up - Dave is all set for a negotiated buyout. Additionally, “ for cause “ is a bigger universe than the NCAA. I am confident this will be negotiated and relatively amicably settled.

 

[Chief00]

Enoch, he was taller than 6'9". I'm missing where a big man or a three point shooter would have to be a highlight film to make the team better. With Enoch instead of Dave O and Gilbert healthy, we wouldn't have been great but our ball handling issues and rebounding issues would've been slightly less atrocious

Steve could rebound.

 

[TRest]

We shall see indeed. If breakfast on Wednesday morning is dated I’ll stand corrected. And I’ve certainly read the contract. I take it you know about the player suspensions being lifted this morning? I’ll wait for your answer.

I certainly don't know about any player suspensions. No point in keeping it a secret now.

 

[KingAG]

So in all honesty, who do you guys think is the best possible replacement and what kind of recruiting do you think they do in the first few years?

I'm almost looking forward to him getting fired even though I'm one of the few in the give him one more year camp. I just can't wait to see everyone backpedal or complain about what an awful job the new coach does with recruiting. We are not going to be landing 5star kids, so understand that

We don’t now...

 

[Madmannsucks]

Steve could rebound.

I agree with much of what you say. However Enoch's typical game was 7 minutes, 3 boards 2 points, 4 missed blown assignments on d and 2 or 3 fouls.
Didn't work hard enough. Justin Brown redux.

 

[mauconnfan]

Haste!?

Two straight losing seasons, the first in like, almost half a century. Back to back.
Losing to Wagner, Northeastern, Yale, East Carolina, - almost figured out a way to lose to Coppin State, blown out of the *building* by P5 opponents
A never ending turnstile of players the last three years
A never ending turnstile of coaches the last three years
The same offensive issues every game
An increasing number of defensive issues every game
The most 20 point+ blow outs in the history of the program
I mean we haven't been over a #7 seed in the NCAA tournament since 2010-2011. That's going on 8 years, now.
An NCAA Championship
An NCAA investigation
0-9 on national television
Lots of silly, distracting rumors around the program
A coach who's disinterested generally in recruiting
Nose-dive in attendance
All at the worst possible time

Three of the last four years have been actively *bad basketball*. The recruiting was never a problem, theoretically shouldn't be still - but we're finishing lower and lower every year in conference usa, basically.

NO NEED TO BE HASTY THOUGH

People realize that head coaches are fired for like... a quarter of this list at other very good-elite caliber programs, right? I mean I know JC was one heck of a luxury, but you can't possibly be this out of touch with the world around you....

Can we please fire him right now so we don'y need to see these people write the same Goddam thing they've been writing day in-day out for a year now? I mean it's pitiful around here, he's gone quit reminding us daily of his journey to the door.

 

[Alum86]

That statement is true. Been there. Done that. But folks on this message board look at the basketball program though a magnifying glass. The administration is a little further back. What they think is unacceptable may not be the same things that the athletic department thinks are unacceptable. Cooler heads. Cutting Ollie loose too soon may makes the situation more uncertain and rudderless. They lose nothing by waiting a while. And may gain some clarity by waiting. When you have clear direction, act swiftly.

Yeah. Status quo. Nobody knew at work they were even playing yesterday. He’s gotta go. We’re a laughing stock that has become a laughing stock nobody watches

 

[willie99]

Ollie knows what he did or didn't do. I suspect that Benedict does as well. They'll reach an accord.

Or maybe there's no reason to reach one. With respect to the investigation, one of the most important facts we're supposed to know already is that none of the recruits came here. I think that bodes well for the program.

But if he was involved in violations , I absolutely concur

 

[Chief00]

Can we please fire him right now so we don'y need to see these people write the same Goddam thing they've been writing day in-day out for a year now? I mean it's pitiful around here, he's gone quit reminding us daily of his journey to the door.

I agree let’s not kick a dude when he’s down; even when he may be getting a negotiated payout we would all want to receive.

 

[CTGoonie]

I’m in.

I'm not an alum but I'll throw in a couple hundred to cover a few that don't.
How about we get Malloy to add a .10 gas tax to pay for Ollie that goes away once the goal is reached?


Ha! Just kidding. That tax would never go away.

 

[Kembacity]

We don’t now...

Yes... but the mouth-breathers here seem to think that's because of Ollie.

First and foremost it's about the conference, and I think even current Ollie has an ability to get kids interested and everyone is just assuming every other possible head coach out there will be better in this respect. I don't think some schmo head coach is going to improve recruiting, maybe the product on the court, maybe the development of players over a 3 year period, but not recruiting overall

 

[HuskyHawk]

At any rate, the donor issue has been cleared up - Dave is all set for a negotiated buyout. Additionally, “ for cause “ is a bigger universe than the NCAA. I am confident this will be negotiated and relatively amicably settled.

I can't recall ever wanting you to be right more than about this.

As a side note, does anybody think, money aside, that Kevin is enjoying this job? I think he could improve his personal happiness, and his future as a coach, by taking another job along with a negotiated buyout, and moving on. It provides him with better optics for an NBA assistant job than being straight up fired. There are benefits for KO to moving on amicably.

 

[the Q]

I can't recall ever wanting you to be right more than about this.

As a side note, does anybody think, money aside, that Kevin is enjoying this job? I think he could improve his personal happiness, and his future as a coach, by taking another job along with a negotiated buyout, and moving on. It provides him with better optics for an NBA assistant job than being straight up fired. There are benefits for KO to moving on amicably.

I don't think it will take him long to get an NBA Asst job.

Especially if the perception is that he is just not a good recruiter. (I don't know what NBA front offices think of him, just saying that being a bad recruiter isn't a big deal for an NBA Asst Coach).

 

[HuskyHawk]

I don't think it will take him long to get an NBA Asst job.

Especially if the perception is that he is just not a good recruiter. (I don't know what NBA front offices think of him, just saying that being a bad recruiter isn't a big deal for an NBA Asst Coach).

I think he still has some very solid connections and friends in the NBA. I don't know how anyone can think his problems are just around recruiting. He's a horrific game coach. But I do think a lot of his problems stem from not understanding the college game, and not appreciating the way the game has evolved. So I do think he could get an NBA assistant job.

 

[CL82]

Or maybe there's no reason to reach one. With respect to the investigation, one of the most important facts we're supposed to know already is that none of the recruits came here. I think that bodes well for the program.

But if he was involved in violations , I absolutely concur

The fact that none of the supposed recruits came here makes it worse. It allows them to scapegoat UConn with impunity.

FWIW, I think there's something. What it is or how severe, I don't know. I base the on AD Dave's long pause and then "I think he tries" when asked if KO follows the rules.

 

[ZenConn]

The basketball program is in a very precarious position and as some of you have alluded to in the other threads, this isn't rock bottom. I just wish that the AD can make a decision either way.

It would be horrible if the AD dragged this on then eventually fires KO. Then the AD leaves and the program would be left without a HC and an AD with NCAA violations looming. We'll end up hiring some retread HC without any future and the new AD will have go back to the same donors asking to fund another buyout in a few years.

Sorry. I'm just a ray of sunshine today.

 

[huskeynut]

First - KO needs to be fired/ terminated/ relieved or what ever term you want to use right now. Or at least within the next couple of weeks. KO cannot be at the helm of the program another year.

Second - all else is speculation.

My belief (speculation like everybody else) is that the AD already has the money, whatever the amount needed. He already has a short list of potential candidates. He knows a lot about the NCAA investigation and what it entails.

Now I have no connections to the program or any inside information. But there are a couple of keys that lead me to my beliefs. The AD has been very quiet on the subject - lack of support for Ollie. Very few comments from KO. He knows what is going to go down - and its not good for him.

Now we all wait and see.

 

[Stainmaster]

I think he still has some very solid connections and friends in the NBA. I don't know how anyone can think his problems are just around recruiting. He's a horrific game coach. But I do think a lot of his problems stem from not understanding the college game, and not appreciating the way the game has evolved. So I do think he could get an NBA assistant job.

Pure speculation here - I wonder whether or not the off-court rumors have affected his standing with his NBA connections.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Pure speculation here - I wonder whether or not the off-court rumors have affected his standing with his NBA connections.

You mean, could they have elevated their view of him? I think his rumored off court activity fits pretty well with the NBA.

 

[Tenspro2002]

That statement is true. Been there. Done that. But folks on this message board look at the basketball program though a magnifying glass. The administration is a little further back. What they think is unacceptable may not be the same things that the athletic department thinks are unacceptable. Cooler heads. Cutting Ollie loose too soon may makes the situation more uncertain and rudderless. They lose nothing by waiting a while. And may gain some clarity by waiting. When you have clear direction, act swiftly.

"Rudderless" is exactly the term I would use to describe the program under KO.

We stand to lose much more by keeping him than jettisoning him.

 

[ktuck911]

At least, not right now. First, there is the matter of 10 million bucks. That's a lot. But UConn may not have to pay it -if- the NCAA charges Ollie's Huskies with something and gives the university an out. So, UConn has to wait a while and see how the "investigation" plays out. If Ollie is cleared by the investigation, perhaps you give him an extra season. If he is found guilty, he is fired without a ten million dollar penalty.

The key in all of this is the NCAA. Unfortunately, the NCAA will always do what is worst for UConn. So they will probably delay releasing the findings of the investigation until after the beginning of next season. Just leave us freakin' hangin'.

If we ignore all that and just fire Ollie and pay the piper, we have to interview coaches with an outstanding investigation ready to come in and put the program in jail. That would hurt both the coaching search and the eventual hire.

Sticking with Ollie until this all plays out makes the most sense. We have to be clear of this nonsense before we can start rehabilitating the program in earnest. And who knows, maybe Ollie bounces back. Or maybe a very large meteor hits Earth.

If they get an out so they don't have to pay him, that's straight up BullSh** considering all the * other programs have gotten away with...
Fire him based on performance, I get that... BUT don't conjure up some BullSh** chump charges to avoid paying what you owe the man per the contract signed..

We may suck (right now), but you can't tell me this guy hasn't been nothing but professional and full of class about what he's done.

Tough times (in Storrs) don't last forever....

 

[John]

"Dave Benedict, coffee is for closers."

 

[Palatine]

First - KO needs to be fired/ terminated/ relieved or what ever term you want to use right now. Or at least within the next couple of weeks. KO cannot be at the helm of the program another year.

That's easy to say when it isn't your 10 million dollars you have to pay to buy KO out. There isn't much down side to waiting as I point out in the OP.

 

[fatlucy]

That's easy to say when it isn't your 10 million dollars you have to pay to buy KO out. There isn't much down side to waiting as I point out in the OP.

I don't how you can say there's no downside. We need to rebuild our brand before we're unable to sell merchandise, tickets, advertising, and overall school brand. The success of our men's basketball team is critical to the schools income and overall success. A few million in a negotiated buyout (most likely donated by a booster as pissed as we are) is nothing in the face of that. Its a marketing cost.

 

[huskeynut]

That's easy to say when it isn't your 10 million dollars you have to pay to buy KO out. There isn't much down side to waiting as I point out in the OP.

That's your opinion of which you are entitled. Not mine. One more year of a losing record, no post season, less fans in the seats and further irrelevance in the college basketball world. There is a lot of downside. But keep plugging away at your theory.

 

[jibsey]

That's your opinion of which you are entitled. Not mine. One more year of a losing record, no post season, less fans in the seats and further irrelevance in the college basketball world. There is a lot of downside. But keep plugging away at your theory.

A big recruit for next season committing right now would be a lifesaver for KO. Is there anybody left?

 

[Danzz]

I expect we'll hear from AD David Benedict within the next few days on the state of MBB and its future.

Benedict has already made his decision. I'm not sure what it is but the decision has been made.

 

[huskeynut]

Kevin Ollie has been fired.

 

[4in16]

Kevin Ollie has been fired.

LOL.