- Joined
- Sep 8, 2015
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I am unique on this board because I always liked Pat and what she did at not only UT but for the sport. Pat had loyalty from fans and boosters to a fault. She wasn't perfect of course but to them she could do no wrong. Holly tried to keep almost the same things in place but couldn't handle the job to the degree it was expected. At her firing that would have been the moment to go find a truly fantastic HC, but it was another "family" member who was an improvement on some fronts but not on others. I actually thought she'd get one more year but oh well.
Caldwell was a very high risk hire from the standpoint her experience is so limited for a SEC program, particularly one of UTs status. I can't see a program that was still consistently top 25 and top half of the SEC hiring someone with one year of D1 coaching experience who ended the year blown out in the first game of the NCAA tournament. She said all the right things and charmed the media and fans early on plus recruited better in one year than Harper did in five. Realistically though this team wasn't going to be on the level of UConn, SC, TX but on talent alone they should be better than A&M, Ole Miss, MSU, and top 6 SEC isn't unrealistic. Unless she gets the right players and changes some of her ways she won't last long, mainly because expectations are almost impossibly high.
I hope they right the ship, whether it's with Caldwell or not. UT is still a top 10 program in terms of name, fan support, ratings, and only UConn has a more impressive history.
Caldwell was a very high risk hire from the standpoint her experience is so limited for a SEC program, particularly one of UTs status. I can't see a program that was still consistently top 25 and top half of the SEC hiring someone with one year of D1 coaching experience who ended the year blown out in the first game of the NCAA tournament. She said all the right things and charmed the media and fans early on plus recruited better in one year than Harper did in five. Realistically though this team wasn't going to be on the level of UConn, SC, TX but on talent alone they should be better than A&M, Ole Miss, MSU, and top 6 SEC isn't unrealistic. Unless she gets the right players and changes some of her ways she won't last long, mainly because expectations are almost impossibly high.
I hope they right the ship, whether it's with Caldwell or not. UT is still a top 10 program in terms of name, fan support, ratings, and only UConn has a more impressive history.