Who does Georgia offer now ?

[Biggus Piggus]

You think Arkansas's coach search was tough, Georgia's really in a death spiral.

[Biggus Piggus]

Tellya what, Ole Miss is going to have a roster ideally suited for running and pressing.  I don't know whether Andy Kennedy's the best fit for them.  A coach who would kick their asses, get them to play past their comfort zones and not worry about stats, man that's what they need.

[The Hogfather]

I wonder where they go from Mike Anderson.  I'm telling you, if they get the right coach there, that can be a very good job for someone.  I know there's not much fan support and they have crappy facilities.  But, like I said before, you have to just change the mindset, like Donovan did at Florida.  Then, convince the PTB that you need new facilities, and they'll give them to you.

[Oliver]

You think Arkansas's coach search was tough, Georgia's really in a death spiral.

Yet I still think they are going to come out with a better hire than we did.

[Hoggish1]

With Grant going to Bama, who are the most reasonable choices for coaches. I have heard they are going to pay up to 2 million. Capel is on the short list, but I don't think he would leave Oklahoma now. With BG leaving Kentucky would he be a viable choice?

One thing for sure........it appears most programs in the SEC are taking a step up and paying to get better coaches.

I'm reacting to your 3/30 post:  Capel is getting off the wind swept OK Plains and is headed (apparently) for Arizona (a great gig)!

As for BCG, he is headed back to the state he said he could win a championship in just with TX recruits.  But to wait for another gig like TXElpaso, or something close to it where he can change their non existant attitude about Basketball by being a dump arse stubborn iconoclast.

[jbcarol]

Tellya what, Ole Miss is going to have a roster ideally suited for running and pressing.  I don't know whether Andy Kennedy's the best fit for them.  A coach who would kick their asses, get them to play past their comfort zones and not worry about stats, man that's what they need.

It may come open depending how he fares in a Hamilton County Courtroom later this month.

[Alt-F4]

Inside sources say that GA has asked for and received permission to talk with Thad Motta (sp) at Ohio State.

[RedSatinHog]

The UGA job will be difficult to have success with, and it has to do with where they are located.

It's not that there isn't top-notch talent, just the opposite.  The problem lies within the fact that the top-tier ACC teams generally get their first pick among players in the Atlanta area, and that is where the biggest talent base in that region is.

[The Hogfather]

The UGA job will be difficult to have success with, and it has to do with where they are located.

It's not that there isn't top-notch talent, just the opposite.  The problem lies within the fact that the top-tier ACC teams generally get their first pick among players in the Atlanta area, and that is where the biggest talent base in that region is.

The Georgia job sucks right now and has sucked for most of its existence.  However, for the right coach, it could be a goldmine.  You just have to change the thinking of everyone (like many on this thread) who thinks that the Georgia Tech program is the cool program in the state and Georgia basketball is just an afterthought in the state.  IF you can do that, that job would be golden.  You just have to have one successful year to get things going there. 

Tubby Smith did it.  Unfortunately, he got wooed by Kentucky and Georgia hasn't recovered. 

It will happen again.

[RedSatinHog]

I'm reacting to your 3/30 post:  Capel is getting off the wind swept OK Plains and is headed (apparently) for Arizona (a great gig)!

Looks like the AZ post is going to Tim FLoyd, another in a long list of coaches who refused to talk to us 2 years ago.

[RedSatinHog]

The Georgia job sucks right now and has sucked for most of its existence.  However, for the right coach, it could be a goldmine.  You just have to change the thinking of everyone (like many on this thread) who thinks that the Georgia Tech program is the cool program in the state and Georgia basketball is just an afterthought in the state.  IF you can do that, that job would be golden.  You just have to have one successful year to get things going there. 

Tubby Smith did it.  Unfortunately, he got wooed by Kentucky and Georgia hasn't recovered. 

It will happen again.

Oh , I don't doubt it could be a great job, the problems lie in the recruiting process there.  When you have to pick thru the leftovers which remain after UNC, Wake Forest, NC State, Clemson, and GA Tech take first dibs, there just isn't a whole lot left to choose from.

Another problem is that hoops just aren't as important to the folks in GA as the game of football is.  That is a big barrier to knock down.

[hogfan064]

The Georgia job sucks right now and has sucked for most of its existence.  However, for the right coach, it could be a goldmine.  You just have to change the thinking of everyone (like many on this thread) who thinks that the Georgia Tech program is the cool program in the state and Georgia basketball is just an afterthought in the state.  IF you can do that, that job would be golden.  You just have to have one successful year to get things going there. 

Tubby Smith did it.  Unfortunately, he got wooed by Kentucky and Georgia hasn't recovered. 

It will happen again.

Tubby got to the sweet 16 once.  He didn't change the culture inside the state of Georgia.  Fans still didn't show up, under Tubby the Dogs average attendance was somewhere in the 70s. 

Tubby was a good coach who got the best out of his players.  Similar to what Stallings and Stansbury have done at their school.  Never in UGA's history has there been a coach who has closed the fences to the state's talent.

[The Hogfather]

Tubby got to the sweet 16 once.  He didn't change the culture inside the state of Georgia.  Fans still didn't show up, under Tubby the Dogs average attendance was somewhere in the 70s. 

Tubby was a good coach who got the best out of his players.  Similar to what Stallings and Stansbury have done at their school.  Never in UGA's history has there been a coach who has closed the fences to the state's talent.

45-19 and back-to-back 20 win seasons for the first time in school history.

I'm not talking about the fan culture.  I'm talking about the recruit culture.  Tubby was only there for 2 years.  So, who knows exactly what he could've done if he was there longer than that.  He had people talking about Georgia basketball while he was there.

[donewithdale]

Frank Haith is the most likely candidate imo.  They are going to talk to Purnell and if he wants a raise, he may leave Clemson. 

[outkast217]

Having just moved back to NLR from Atlanta, GA I can tell you that basketball is an after thought there to the football program.  And honestly an after thought is giving it a lot of credit. 

As long as GA keeps having the winning football seasons Mark Richt and crew will be king.  As was posted earlier the fan base is not there, the arena is sub par and even when they were winning they were playing second fiddle.  Just not going to change...

[The Hogfather]

Having just moved back to NLR from Atlanta, GA I can tell you that basketball is an after thought there to the football program.  And honestly an after thought is giving it a lot of credit. 

As long as GA keeps having the winning football seasons Mark Richt and crew will be king.  As was posted earlier the fan base is not there, the arena is sub par and even when they were winning they were playing second fiddle.  Just not going to change...

THAT DOESN'T MATTER.  IT'S THE SAME EVERYWHERE IN THE SEC, EXCEPT FOR KENTUCKY.  Florida is the same way and they have 2 National Championships in the past 5 years.

It can change.  It has, all over.

Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, USC, Florida, etc. are schools where football is king and basketball doesn't have much support or tradition, yet coaches were able to come in and have some success.

Tubby Smith was 49-19 at Georgia and took them to the Sweet 16, by beating a #1 seed.  The right coach can have a lot of success there.

Mark Fox is a good coach.  I don't know much about his recruiting, though (especially in that part of the country).  If he can recruit, he'll do very well there.

[outkast217]

THAT DOESN'T MATTER.  IT'S THE SAME EVERYWHERE IN THE SEC, EXCEPT FOR KENTUCKY.  Florida is the same way and they have 2 National Championships in the past 5 years.

It can change.  It has, all over.

Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, USC, Florida, etc. are schools where football is king and basketball doesn't have much support or tradition, yet coaches were able to come in and have some success.

Tubby Smith was 49-19 at Georgia and took them to the Sweet 16, by beating a #1 seed.  The right coach can have a lot of success there.

Mark Fox is a good coach.  I don't know much about his recruiting, though (especially in that part of the country).  If he can recruit, he'll do very well there.

OK dude, it is your prerogative to believe what you want.  Just not gonna happen in my opinion.

[The Hogfather]

OK dude, it is your prerogative to believe what you want.  Just not gonna happen in my opinion.

It has happened.  Tubby Smith was 49-19 in 2 seasons there.  He went to the Sweet 16 once and was in the Tournament the other year.  It has happened and will in the future, with the right coach.

[outkast217]

It has happened.  Tubby Smith was 49-19 in 2 seasons there.  He went to the Sweet 16 once and was in the Tournament the other year.  It has happened and will in the future, with the right coach.

OK...I am sorry if you feel 49-19 is a good record in two seasons.  Maybe at GA, but that is debatable.  If you look back at those times, and I was there, the program was still a second tier program.  Preach that Tubby Smith did it stuff all you'd like, it was average at best.

[The Hogfather]

OK...I am sorry if you feel 49-19 is a good record in two seasons.  Maybe at GA, but that is debatable.  If you look back at those times, and I was there, the program was still a second tier program.  Preach that Tubby Smith did it stuff all you'd like, it was average at best.

He was only there 2 years and he averaged 25 wins/year.  They beat #1-seed Purdue to advance to the Sweet 16.  What I'm saying is, get a better recruiter in there than Tubby, and they can tear it up.  You don't need fan support or state-of-the-art facilities to have success in college basketball.  You basically need a very good talent base (or the ability to recruit outside your state) and a good coach to get recruits from that talent base to come to your school.  Georgia has the talent base.  They just need a good coach, who can recruit.

[outkast217]

He was only there 2 years and he averaged 25 wins/year.  They beat #1-seed Purdue to advance to the Sweet 16.  What I'm saying is, get a better recruiter in there than Tubby, and they can tear it up.  You don't need fan support or state-of-the-art facilities to have success in college basketball.  You basically need a very good talent base (or the ability to recruit outside your state) and a good coach to get recruits from that talent base to come to your school.  Georgia has the talent base.  They just need a good coach, who can recruit.

The thing is in GA they recruit against both the SEC and ACC.  GA Tech in is Atlanta, Clemson is within 90 mins, Alabama, Auburn, and Tenn are all within 3 hrs.  Then you have the Dukes, UNC's and Wake Forest's of the world.  No one wants to go to Athens GA and play basketball, when you can go to a bigger name school in basketball and have a chance to actually win somethin...That is just how it is.

I agree if they get a good recruiting coach and have good talent they can be good...But so can anyone in the US who has good recruits, coaches and recruiting. 

[The Hogfather]

The thing is in GA they recruit against both the SEC and ACC.  GA Tech in is Atlanta, Clemson is within 90 mins, Alabama, Auburn, and Tenn are all within 3 hrs.  Then you have the Dukes, UNC's and Wake Forest's of the world.  No one wants to go to Athens GA and play basketball, when you can go to a bigger name school in basketball and have a chance to actually win somethin...That is just how it is.

I agree if they get a good recruiting coach and have good talent they can be good...But so can anyone in the US who has good recruits, coaches and recruiting. 

I understand all that.  I took Geography in elementary school.  The point is, Georgia, as a state, has a lot more talent than a lot of other states.  There is enough talent to go around.  All you have to do is get 1 or 2 of the studs to come to Georgia.  You can change the mindset and make it cool to go to Georgia.  If Baylor, UAB, etc. can get 5-stars looking at them, so can Georgia.

Plus, the SEC is about to become a lot better in basketball than it has in the past.  All of the basketball games will be shown by ESPN.

We'll see if this Mark Fox guy can do it.  I'm not sure.  But, someone can turn that job into the next Florida.

[RedSatinHog]

THAT DOESN'T MATTER.  IT'S THE SAME EVERYWHERE IN THE SEC, EXCEPT FOR KENTUCKY.  Florida is the same way and they have 2 National Championships in the past 5 years.

And on the heels of back to back national titles in basketball, Florida still struggles to sell out their home games.

There are 2 programs in the SEC which need to be competitive and legitimate on a national level.  Kentucky is one of them, Arkansas.  The rest of the conference is bandwagon and fairweather in off years.

Eddie Sutton took us to a Final Four in 1978, and the popularity of men's basketball exploded in the state of Arkansas.  Georgia was in the Final Four just a few short years later, but the popularity of basketball on the UGA campus just never caught on.  Not saying they're mired in mediocrity, but it's just not important to folks in that school.

[The Hogfather]

And on the heels of back to back national titles in basketball, Florida still struggles to sell out their home games.

There are 2 programs in the SEC which need to be competitive and legitimate on a national level.  Kentucky is one of them, Arkansas.  The rest of the conference is bandwagon and fairweather in off years.

You guys keep bringing up different issues.  I don't care about fan support and I haven't said one thing about it.  Believe it or not, a basketball program's success is not based on fan support.  It doesn't matter if they have 2 people in their gym, or 2,000,002.  They can still have success on the court.  Just like Florida.  Georgia can do the same thing Florida has done under Donovan.  They just have to find the next Donovan.

[RedSatinHog]

The thing is in GA they recruit against both the SEC and ACC.  GA Tech in is Atlanta, Clemson is within 90 mins, Alabama, Auburn, and Tenn are all within 3 hrs.  Then you have the Dukes, UNC's and Wake Forest's of the world.  No one wants to go to Athens GA and play basketball, when you can go to a bigger name school in basketball and have a chance to actually win somethin...That is just how it is.

I agree if they get a good recruiting coach and have good talent they can be good...But so can anyone in the US who has good recruits, coaches and recruiting. 

Don't forget that UK's best player this season was from the Atlanta area as well.

You're spot on.  There are only about 3 teams in the ACC which don't have players on their rosters from Georgia.  It is so hard to coach and recruit there.

[The Hogfather]

Maybe Mark Fox is that guy.  We'll just have to wait and see.

[The Hogfather]

Don't forget that UK's best player this season was from the Atlanta area as well.

You're spot on.  There are only about 3 teams in the ACC which don't have players on their rosters from Georgia.  It is so hard to coach and recruit there.

One coach can change all that.

[RedSatinHog]

You guys keep bringing up different issues.  I don't care about fan support and I haven't said one thing about it.  Believe it or not, a basketball program's success is not based on fan support.  It doesn't matter if they have 2 people in their gym, or 2,000,002.  They can still have success on the court.  Just like Florida.  Georgia can do the same thing Florida has done under Donovan.  They just have to find the next Donovan.

Fan support is ultimately what makes or breaks a program, and that is why we keep bringing it up.  The folks in Florida were passionate about the Gators when they were winning national titles, but the fact that they cannot sell out home games in the aftermath of it is going to cost them sooner or later.

The same thing can be said about Georgia.  BB is just not important to them, and that is evidenced by the fact that they have so many fans disguised as empty seats sitting at their home games.

[RedSatinHog]

One coach can change all that.

Okay, who?  A guy from Nevada?  Only time will tell whether this hire works or not, but history says it typically has not worked in Athens.

[The Hogfather]

Fan support is ultimately what makes or breaks a program, and that is why we keep bringing it up.  The folks in Florida were passionate about the Gators when they were winning national titles, but the fact that they cannot sell out home games in the aftermath of it is going to cost them sooner or later.

The same thing can be said about Georgia.  BB is just not important to them, and that is evidenced by the fact that they have so many fans disguised as empty seats sitting at their home games.

Just because the coach that brought them that success keeps getting brought up for other jobs and might leave eventually.  But, so far, he hasn't.  So, fan attendance is a non-factor.  Florida is the only school in the SEC with a McDonald's All American coming in this year (unless all those kids come with Cal to Kentucky).  Fan support is not as important as we like to think, as long as the school has adequate revenue from football/other sports.

Georgia just needs to get a coach that can change the minds of some of these recruits from Atlanta (and other places in the state) and get them to come to Georgia to play basketball.  They just need 1 or 2 and that will start a pipeline.  Maybe Mark Fox will be able to do that.

[The Hogfather]

Okay, who?  A guy from Nevada?  Only time will tell whether this hire works or not, but history says it typically has not worked in Athens.

Donovan was just "a guy from Marshall".

[RedSatinHog]

Donovan was just "a guy from Marshall".

...who had direct ties both as a player and a coach, to a guy from Kentucky who had won a national title and had taken 2 different programs to the Final Four, and that "guy from Marshall" had also played on a Final Four team, too.

Finished that one for you.

[RedSatinHog]

Just because the coach that brought them that success keeps getting brought up for other jobs and might leave eventually.  But, so far, he hasn't.  So, fan attendance is a non-factor.  Florida is the only school in the SEC with a McDonald's All American coming in this year (unless all those kids come with Cal to Kentucky).  Fan support is not as important as we like to think, as long as the school has adequate revenue from football/other sports.

Go ahead and label me as pessimistic, but I doubt very seriously that Donovan will retire at Florida.  His kids and their ages are the only thing that really kept him from bolting for Kentucky 2 years ago.  Once they are thru high school, he'll ripe and ready for a big-name program on the basketball landscape.

Georgia just needs to get a coach that can change the minds of some of these recruits from Atlanta (and other places in the state) and get them to come to Georgia to play basketball.  They just need 1 or 2 and that will start a pipeline.  Maybe Mark Fox will be able to do that.

If it happens at all, it will likely be a long, uphill struggle to get the program there.  It won't be a 2-3 year overhaul like the one Eddie Sutton was hired into at UA.  The reason Nolan was as successful was because fans were passionate about the program, it was left over from the time Sutton spent here, and that gave him a solid base to work from.  Otherwise, he would have left for Ohio State circa 1988.

[The Hogfather]

...who had direct ties both as a player and a coach, to a guy from Kentucky who had won a national title and had taken 2 different programs to the Final Four, and that "guy from Marshall" had also played on a Final Four team, too.

Finished that one for you.

So what.  At the time, he was just a coach from Marshall.

Fox is a decent hire.  Just not sure he has the recruiting connections in that region to succeed.  I think that is where they go wrong.  Anthony Grant would've been perfect for them.

[The Hogfather]

If it happens at all, it will likely be a long, uphill struggle to get the program there.  It won't be a 2-3 year overhaul like the one Eddie Sutton was hired into at UA.  The reason Nolan was as successful was because fans were passionate about the program, it was left over from the time Sutton spent here, and that gave him a solid base to work from.  Otherwise, he would have left for Ohio State circa 1988.

Yep, Sutton made it cool to play basketball for Arkansas.  Tubby Smith was in the process of making it cool to play basketball for Georgia, when Kentucky came calling.

The right coach can have success there.  Fan support, or not.

[The Hogfather]

Go ahead and label me as pessimistic, but I doubt very seriously that Donovan will retire at Florida.  His kids and their ages are the only thing that really kept him from bolting for Kentucky 2 years ago.  Once they are thru high school, he'll ripe and ready for a big-name program on the basketball landscape.

And by then, Donovan will have been at Florida for 15+ years and won AT LEAST 2 National Championships.

[RedSatinHog]

So what.  At the time, he was just a coach from Marshall.

But Donovan had a pedigree which strongly suggested that he understood what it took to be successful on a higher level.  Also consider that the almighty Dana Altman had fallen flat on his face at the same school.

Fox doesn't have that, outside of inheriting a program which was coming off a conference title season the year before he arrived there.  Does the name Trent Johnson mean anything to you?

Fox is a decent hire.  Just not sure he has the recruiting connections in that region to succeed.  I think that is where they go wrong.  Anthony Grant would've been perfect for them.

Grant I would tend to agree with you on, but Alabama was smart in beating UGA to that punch.  No arguments there, but he has experience and connections with recruiting the area.  Fox does not.  That is why I am taking the wait and see approach.

The jury is still out on both of those guys at this level, though.

[RedSatinHog]

And by then, Donovan will have been at Florida for 15+ years and won AT LEAST 2 National Championships.

...unless Calipari gets full of himself again and follows boatloads of easy money back to the NBA.  It has happened with a Kentucky coach before (Pitino).

Finished that one for ya!

[The Hogfather]

Trent Johnson at Nevada:  79-74 (.516)
Mark Fox at Nevada:        123-43 (.74)

I know Mark Fox inherited a different program, so don't go there.  But, 74% is pretty impressive.  Like I said, he has to prove he can recruit that region.  I don't like hiring coaches from the West to come to a southern school.  It is tough to form in-roads with schools/recruits in the south, when you basically come in with none.

[RedSatinHog]

Trent Johnson at Nevada:  79-74 (.516)
Mark Fox at Nevada:        123-43 (.74)

I know Mark Fox inherited a different program, so don't go there.  But, 74% is pretty impressive.  Like I said, he has to prove he can recruit that region.  I don't like hiring coaches from the West to come to a southern school.  It is tough to form in-roads with schools/recruits in the south, when you basically come in with none.

He simply built on a program whose foundation which was laid before he took over there.  He will not have that at UGA.  The jury is still out.

[RedSatinHog]

And FWIW, I believe the jury is still out on Johnson at LSU, too.  He inherited a squad of someone else's players.  Brady should have been fired for not winning with that team.  They had solid talent.

[The Hogfather]

He simply built on a program whose foundation which was laid before he took over there.  He will not have that at UGA.  The jury is still out.

Well, obviously.  He hasn't even coached a game there.

He has to be a pretty good coach to win 74% of his games over a 5-year period.  I don't care how good the "foundation" was when he took over.  To sustain that over a 5-year period is pretty impressive to me.  Oh yeah, and he won 80% of his conference games, too.

And yeah, I think Johnson is a really good coach.  But, like I said earlier, it is tough to make in-roads in the south, when you are from Cali.  It might just take him awhile.  I don't think LSU will be very good next year.

[RedSatinHog]

Well, obviously.  He hasn't even coached a game there.

He has to be a pretty good coach to win 74% of his games over a 5-year period.  I don't care how good the "foundation" was when he took over.  To sustain that over a 5-year period is pretty impressive to me.

Fair enough.

I gotta get ready for work now.

[obutiny]

An interesting fact: UGA has had 9 MAA since 1979.To put that in perspective, Arkansas has had 11.