Who is the next coach to win their 1st title? | The Boneyard

Who is the next coach to win their 1st title?

Who is the next coach to win their 1st title?

  • Vic Schaefer

  • Shea Ralph

  • Kara Lawson

  • Lindsay Gottlieb

  • Jeff Walz

  • Kim Barnes-Arico

  • Jan Jensen

  • Mark Campbell

  • Other

Results are only viewable after voting.
This is an interesting question. Before the transfer portal I think I would have said Vic. Famous coach, southern climate, interesting city that is an emerging tech center, in short many ingredients to be a consistent major contender. But losing three key players in the portal raises questions about the program too.

Shea could be there soon too, and clearly is a program on the up-swing, but has the potential disadvantage of being the Northwestern of the SEC, namely having to sometimes take a pass on a top player because of academics. Of course Stanford was a national power for years despite having the same issue.

Kara has the national team status to add to her resume, is a well known personality and in a hotbed of basketball interest, so she deserves to be on this list. Lindsay is a puzzlement to me. I get the appeal of LA to young athletes, and her ability to recruit is proven, but I'm not sure if she is that good a coach, and at least it seems to me she just tries to get the most talent, regardless of how it goes together or fits into a team concept.

Jeff has been in the discussion for years, but always seems to be the next tier of national contenders, just below the top dogs. Kim has that great sophomore class to add to, and if she is ever going to get there, it is probably with that group. Jan inherited a great program built on Clark's exceptional popularity, but I think she needs to achieve high level success on her own for a few years before she will be a top threat. And finally I wonder if Mark can just buy a championship with short term portal rentals, but he too needs a few more years pf success, and demonstrate an ability to recruit HS recruits as well.

This is a great list of potential candidates, a case can be made for all of them, but if I had to pick one, it would be between Vic, Shea and Kara and I can't decide between those three.
 
Gottlieb is an interesting candidate. She has all the talent in the world and her team should be capable of winning it all but if she cannot win it in the next few years, I doubt she keeps striking gold. She seems like a good short-term bet but a bad long-term one.
 
GamecockFam said:
Gottlieb is an interesting candidate. She has all the talent in the world and her team should be capable of winning it all but if she cannot win it in the next few years, I doubt she keeps striking gold. She seems like a good short-term bet but a bad long-term one.
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All that talent and all that money to throw at talent...

I think this take is spot on. Next year is going to be really interesting in Galen. If the team doesn't produce, does the money dry up? L.A. isn't the most patient town to operate in.
 
GamecockFam said:
Gottlieb is an interesting candidate. She has all the talent in the world and her team should be capable of winning it all but if she cannot win it in the next few years, I doubt she keeps striking gold. She seems like a good short-term bet but a bad long-term one.
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I feel similarly about Texas/Vic in terms of longevity. He’s 65 and running out of time. Came painfully close in 2018 and a bad shooting game by Booker likely kept them from winning in 2026. They have strong lineups going forward but he doesn’t strike me as the type of person who wants to coach well into his 70s either.
 
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Not biased, but I voted for Coach Lawson. If she brings a title to West Durham, I look forward to getting her name tattooed across my chest... The day after I go looting through the streets in celebration.
 
Interesting topic and interesting list of potentials. It could be just as likely the next first timer is someone not even on this list...although I can't think of anyone obvious that has been left out.
 
I went with "Other". Great list of names and very capable candidates but I just got a feeling that someone that is not in the "In Group" is going to win before anyone on that list wins one.
 
Vic obviously has been recruiting better than ever and we need to see what this Texas re-tool looks like.

But the exodus of players makes you wonder if that window just closed?

Gottlieb has an obvious immediate opportunity and possible can continue to lock down a lot of Cali talent and get more opportunities.

But if this core doesn't get it will another?


Lawson just seems line it will eventually happen.

Ralph not impossible at Vandy but could also be in line for UConn. What if that happened next year and there was Strong and she brought Blake's and Galvin?
 
My money is on Lindsey Gottlieb. However, if she doesn’t do it with this team, maybe she never will.
 
Gamecockfan77 said:
Vic obviously has been recruiting better than ever and we need to see what this Texas re-tool looks like.

But the exodus of players makes you wonder if that window just closed?

Gottlieb has an obvious immediate opportunity and possible can continue to lock down a lot of Cali talent and get more opportunities.

But if this core doesn't get it will another?


Lawson just seems line it will eventually happen.

Ralph not impossible at Vandy but could also be in line for UConn. What if that happened next year and there was Strong and she brought Blake's and Galvin?
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Ralph I could see pulling it off at Vandy if she keeps recruiting well, but I think it'd be a tougher sell at UCONN. I might be in the minority here, but I think she stays at Vandy even if Geno retires. Those who've followed in the footsteps of legends have struggled mightily and I think UCONN loses its allure to recruits once Geno leaves. I also can't imagine that Geno retires before Sarah Strong graduates or that Blakes would leave Vanderbilt.
 
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triaddukefan said:
Not biased, but I voted for Coach Lawson. If she brings a title to West Durham, I look forward to getting her name tattooed across my chest... The day after I go looting through the streets in celebration.
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How would you respond if it was coach Banghart
 
nwhoopfan said:
Interesting topic and interesting list of potentials. It could be just as likely the next first timer is someone not even on this list...although I can't think of anyone obvious that has been left out.
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Others I considered adding in were Niele Ivey and Kenny Brooks. In hindsight I probably would've put Ivey on this list over the likes of Campbell and Jensen since she's been able to land elite players straight out of high school. Plus in 2024-25 Notre Dame looked like the odds on favorite to win it all mid season with Hidalgo/Citron/Miles all playing well together.
 
USC is really intriguing with so many players who can create and score. Across the top teams, I think they actually have the largest question mark though as Gottlieb hasn’t shown to be a strong offensive coach and they’re going to need players to defer. Their top two current players haven’t played together before and neither has been particularly efficient. The potential is sky-high though and if it comes together they could be one of the most electric teams we’ve seen in several years
 
bballnut90 said:
I feel similarly about Texas/Vic in terms of longevity. He’s 65 and running out of time. Came painfully close in 2018 and a bad shooting game by Booker likely kept them from winning in 2026. They have strong lineups going forward but he doesn’t strike me as the type of person who wants to coach well into his 70s either.
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Exactly. That is why I didn't pick Vic. Anything is possible but I just think his window on winning a title is shut or closing quickly. Now if Texas lands a 6'9" type player who can do it all over the next few years, that changes things.
 
GoChips20 said:
USC is really intriguing with so many players who can create and score. Across the top teams, I think they actually have the largest question mark though as Gottlieb hasn’t shown to be a strong offensive coach and they’re going to need players to defer. Their top two current players haven’t played together before and neither has been particularly efficient. The potential is sky-high though and if it comes together they could be one of the most electric teams we’ve seen in several years
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USC, like South Carolina, are two pretty lethal teams, on paper. With that type of talent they (USC) has added and if Juju is 100% healthy, they have a nice chance. But alot just depends on the players and how they develop that chemistry on/off the court.

Coach Gottlieb is an excellent offensive coach. Check out her Cal Bears when she was there. Coach did a solid job there. Same with her first year at USC. Decent offensive game planning and she didn't have the type of talent that she has now. Coach is good.
 
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GoChips20 said:
USC is really intriguing with so many players who can create and score. Across the top teams, I think they actually have the largest question mark though as Gottlieb hasn’t shown to be a strong offensive coach and they’re going to need players to defer. Their top two current players haven’t played together before and neither has been particularly efficient. The potential is sky-high though and if it comes together they could be one of the most electric teams we’ve seen in several years
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That was my thinking too, and also why I voted for Gottlieb. Next season feels like a make it or break it one for her. I think Kara is the only other coach with enough of an arsenal to reasonably make it happen, but it feels like USC, SCAR, and UConn are still heads and tails above the rest of the country in terms of total talent.
 
Great OP and good points by all posters. I wonder what might happen if the NIL/donor money playing field gets leveled by regulation in the future? I think UCLA's model of players staying the course could be the way to go and rosters will be more consistent. I'd be happy to see all the factors outside of money be the primary draw to a school. Not saying the ladies shouldn't get paid but let's even it out.
 
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Bjbod said:
Great OP and good points by all posters. I wonder what might happen if the NIL/donor money playing field gets leveled by regulation in the future? I think UCLA's model of players staying the course could be the way to go and rosters will be more consistent. I'd be happy to see all the factors outside of money be the primary draw to a school. Not saying the ladies shouldn't get paid but let's even it out.
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Third party NIL is going to be difficult to regulate. That’s their money. Not the schools nor. The NCAA’s

However, we might see regulation through busting “donors” who are mere boosters who not true 3rd parties and who are not paying for real benefits to them.
 
Voted for Vic. He is getting older, but I think can engineer one more run. I agree that Gottlieb has a chance, of course, and Kara and Shea are the best of the young folks out there. Some of the others, not sure they will ever get there, like Vivian or Andy, among others. Good coaches, but after a certain point there is an element of luck in it that you can't "count on".
 
visitingcock said:
Third party NIL is going to be difficult to regulate. That’s their money. Not the schools nor. The NCAA’s

However, we might see regulation through busting “donors” who are mere boosters who not true 3rd parties and who are not paying for real benefits to them.
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Does 3rd party NIL really need much regulation? I get that some rabid boosters might try to recreate some sort of pay to play scheme. But as the women gain more name recognition, that sort of thing is going to look less attractive in comparison. A genuine Nike or State Farm endorsement is portable after graduation. Plus, the liberal portal system might also tend to rein in the boosters naturally, if their payouts don’t translate into stable year to year rosters.
 
Bone Dog said:
Does 3rd party NIL really need much regulation? I get that some rabid boosters might try to recreate some sort of pay to play scheme. But as the women gain more name recognition, that sort of thing is going to look less attractive in comparison. A genuine Nike or State Farm endorsement is portable after graduation. Plus, the liberal portal system might also tend to rein in the boosters naturally, if their payouts don’t translate into stable year to year rosters.
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No. Legit contracts by Nike or Progressive don’t and can’t be reined in. They are free to contract with any player who endorses their products or services. I’m talking about the local car dealer who pays only players for the school s/he pulls for and only while she plays for that team. It’s still okay he pays reasonable value for the player’s endorsements he uses in ads or other actual services to his business. But, a mere payment by a booster for no value other than playing for the booster’s Alma mater is prohibited as 3rd party NIL

Collective payments by boosters have to fall under the House cap. They don’t really add to the 20.5 million cap per school but they do help pay for schools that struggle to provide that cap amount from their sports revenue.

A GRAY AREA: the Player’s Era Tournament: the first year’s tournament (for mbb only) paid a million to the schools for distribution to the players. The NCAA had no problem in 2024. . However, the second year (including four wbb teams) happened after the House settlement has been held up by the NCAA who is looking at whether the distribution by the schools takes it out of 3rd party player payments and makes it subject to the House cap. The last I heard in January the 2025 payments were being held up by the NCAA. I’ll try to follow up. The logical future solution is to give the money directly to the players -?not the schools
 
I went with Gottleib because she should have the most talented starting 5 next year, but if everyone was building from an empty roster, I’d put Lawson, Vic, and Ralph ahead of her.
 
IMHO coaches like: Sylvia Hatchell, Andy Landers, Sue Gunter, Gail Goestenkors, Lindsay Gottlieb, Cori Close and some others were/are great recruiters! They can/did get outstanding players to join their rosters but were/are lacking in the essentials to win the big one!
In Cori Close's case she recruited so much talent that she couldn't screw it up even if she tried!
Once UConn was removed Cori was next in line!
Vic Schaefer I think has the total package to win it all but losing star players to the portal is a serious road block!
Jeff Waltz really HAS a Championship already as he was the power behind the throne in 2006 when Maryland won the title!
He was Brenda Freese' top Assistant and in 98+% of their huddles he was the one instructing the players not Freese!
He left the next year for L'ville and has been highly successful (though without a title)!
 
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