Collen Dismissed as Head Coach

[BWS]

http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=6100&ATCLID=209428769

[Wildhog]

Give Pittman a raise.

[razorbacker3]

Bring back Gary Blair!!!
He still has a house in Fayetteville. If he won't come back then Joe Foley should be the man!

[oldfart]

blairs wife is still on the faculty here

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

About **** time.  Don't let the door hit you on the way out Susie Sweater Vest.

[Qbackinman]

That's a great step for the program. The team never did well once SEC play started under Collen, building its record on patsies in December, then being just terrible.

Now after two terrible hires after running off Hall of Fame Coach Gary Blair, hire someone who can make the women's team competitive and get back to the glory days that Blair established.

[hogman64]

That was pretty quick, I only sent my message to Long last night.

[Westcoasthog]

    Justice was done regarding Tom Collen's firing.  Jeff Long bring back Gary Blair. 

[pigture perfect]

Bring back Gary Blair!!!
He still has a house in Fayetteville. If he won't come back then Joe Foley should be the man!

here! Here!

[menehune]

NOOOOO! to Gary Blair!!!!  His record at Arkansas was .419 in SEC play.  Hire Joe Foley...NOW!!!!!!!

[yraciv]

NOOOOO! to Gary Blair!!!!  His record at Arkansas was .419 in SEC play.  Hire Joe Foley...NOW!!!!!!!

Yeah I'll pass on Blair. Joe Foley will work and he'll come at half the price, which is all I'm willing to spend on our women's basketball program.

[psycHOGlogist]

Getting rid of Collen is a good move, I think. He's had seven years and the program just hasn't moved forward enough, though it's significantly better than when he inherited the Gardner trainwreck.

For the "Bring Back Blair" crowd - just stop. Gary is 64 years old. Not ancient, but I really want to see some youthful energy in the program. That SEEMS to be something Long looks for (Colby Hale, Robbie Pulliza -- though Mike Larabee isn't exactly "young," he's got a lot of energy and youthful enthusiasm). I don't think Blair a) would come back, or b) is the right long-term answer for the program. Not sure Long would be willing to pay what it might take to lure him.

I'm agnostic about Joe Foley, given the low tier level of competition where he's been successful, but he's definitely intriguing.

Some other thoughts -- and these are totally random, food for thought:

1. WVU's coach Mike Carey (they won the B12 this year and have been moving up steadily; he's a WV native, though)

2. Kenny Brooks from James Madison (been there for 12 years, and they have been steadily improving; they've gotten at large bids to the tourney from a mediocre conference; but he's a JMU alum)

3. Jim Jabir - Dayton. Not sure this guy even meets the 'youthful, energetic' criterion, but he consistently fields tournament teams from a mid-major.

4.  Sytia Messer - Former Associate Head Coach, GA Tech, Former HC at Tennessee Tech (where she did okay and left to return to GA Tech for a year), and now Asst Coach and Recruiting Coordinator at Baylor under Kim Mulkey. Arkansas native. Have to believe she'd be interested. Is she ready?

UPDATED to correct wrong info about Messer

[ImHogginIt]

Getting rid of Collen is a good move, I think. He's had seven years and the program just hasn't moved forward enough, though it's significantly better than when he inherited the Gardner trainwreck.

For the "Bring Back Blair" crowd - just stop. Gary is 64 years old. Not ancient, but I really want to see some youthful energy in the program. That SEEMS to be something Long looks for (Colby Hale, Robbie Pulliza -- though Mike Larabee isn't exactly "young," he's got a lot of energy and youthful enthusiasm). I don't think Blair a) would come back, or b) is the right long-term answer for the program. Not sure Long would be willing to pay what it might take to lure him.

I'm agnostic about Joe Foley, given the low tier level of competition where he's been successful, but he's definitely intriguing.

Some other thoughts -- and these are totally random, food for thought:

1. WVU's coach Mike Carey (they won the B12 this year and have been moving up steadily; he's a WV native, though)

2. Kenny Brooks from James Madison (been there for 12 years, and they have been steadily improving; they've gotten at large bids to the tourney from a mediocre conference; but he's a JMU alum)

3. Jim Jabir - Dayton. Not sure this guy even meets the 'youthful, energetic' criterion, but he consistently fields tournament teams from a mid-major.

4.  Sytia Messer - Associate Head Coach, GA Tech. Has been HC before at Tennessee Tech. Arkansas native. Have to believe she'd be interested. Can she hack it?

Blair is about 68. He graduated HS in 1963

[tbhogfan]

I hate it for the coaching staff and their families, but this was a good move for the program.

[psycHOGlogist]

Blair is about 68. He graduated HS in 1963

Fair enough. I googled it, but the answer I found may have been a couple years old.

[Hogtied85]

Fair enough. I googled it, but the answer I found may have been a couple years old.

We need a coach with championship mentality, recruiting, recruiting, recruiting and raise attendance

[psycHOGlogist]

We need a coach with championship mentality, recruiting, recruiting, recruiting and raise attendance

Do you think Joe Foley has these qualities? Is he a national recruiting force?

I'm not very knowledgeable about him, but in all seriousness, if he is so fantastic, what is he still doing at UALR after so much success there?

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

SEC WBB coaching searches are the best.  Start the bus trackers.

[donk]

Joe Foley

[Hogtied85]

Do you think Joe Foley has these qualities? Is he a national recruiting force?

I'm not very knowledgeable about him, but in all seriousness, if he is so fantastic, what is he still doing at UALR after so much success there?

totally agree. What is record against SEC TEAMS

[10thPlanet]

Foley is no joke. When you hear about a coach who can do more with less, this coach can seen it first hand. I of course would love to see him recruit top rated recruits. This is no knock on his past teams, he made them a lot better.

[ImHogginIt]

I hope they go after Joe Foley too  :razorback:

[psycHOGlogist]

So no one has any response to the "if he's so awesome, why is he still at UALR?" question?

[ImHogginIt]

So no one has any response to the "if he's so awesome, why is he still at UALR?" question?

Maybe he wants to live in Arkansas and has no desire or need to leave. According to this article he turned down several D1 jobs while at Tech because he liked Russellville. Perhaps he just wants to stay in Ark  :razorback:

http://www.arksportshalloffame.com/newsroom/joe-foleys-road-to-success/

[psycHOGlogist]

That talks about why he didn't leave Arkansas Tech, not UALR. Maybe he does want to stay in Arkansas. I'm not buying, though.

I updated the info on Sytia Messer above. She is now Asst Coach/Recruiting Coordinator for Baylor under Kim Mulkey. I would take her a million times before Joe Foley.

[tophawg19]

could we have Kim Mulkey please

[Hogtied85]

So no one has any response to the "if he's so awesome, why is he still at UALR?" question?

I agree with you. I don't know. Really good question. That is why I said they should go after some one else,

[psycHOGlogist]

could we have Kim Mulkey please

No. And we cannot have Geno Auriemma, either. Let's keep it realistic.

[tophawg19]

No reason why we can't hire a top coach . if you remember during the years surrounding the final 4 run, the women's team was drawing lots of fans . Look at UCONN  . the sell out their arena . put something worth watching on the floor and people will come . reach out to the professional buisness women for support . You get what you pay for as we have learned the hard way with the Men's programs . John McDonald , Dave Van Horn , CBP , CBB , Mike ANDERSON are all top coaches . Why can't we get the same for the women ?

[yraciv]

No reason why we can't hire a top coach . if you remember during the years surrounding the final 4 run, the women's team was drawing lots of fans . Look at UCONN  . the sell out their arena . put something worth watching on the floor and people will come . reach out to the professional buisness women for support . You get what you pay for as we have learned the hard way with the Men's programs . John McDonald , Dave Van Horn , CBP , CBB , Mike ANDERSON are all top coaches . Why can't we get the same for the women ?

Ha! We have no history, other than 1 fluke Final 4 run as a 9 seed, and we got lucky enough to play the 16 in the 2nd round. Gary Blair had more success at Stephen F Austin than he did here. And  you want numbers for how awesome our attendance was, how about 3,714 on AVG.
http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_basketball_RB/reports/Attend/00att.pdf
Of course that is from 99/00 not the Final 4 year, maybe it topped out at 5,000, but either way pretty damn bad.  Very few fanbases support women's basketball, and even the ones that do lose their ass in it financially.  I'd love to have some success at it, but I know a sinking ship when I see one. Even if you spend 1 million on an elite coach, maybe that gets us some Sweet 16s and Elite 8 runs. It won't put butts in the seats, it won't have top ranked recruits flocking to us, and it will in all likelihood cause us to lose our ass. That is why you hope for the best with an up and comer.

[Rocket23]

One of the best recruiters in the business...

http://www.gohuskies.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=30200&ATCLID=208056991

[Rocket23]

Ha! We have no history, other than 1 fluke Final 4 run as a 8 seed, and we got lucky enough to play the 16 in the 2nd round. Gary Blair had more success at Stephen F Austin than he did here. And  you want numbers for how awesome our attendance was, how about 3,714 on AVG.
http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/w_basketball_RB/reports/Attend/00att.pdf
Of course that is from 99/00 not the Final 4 year, maybe it topped out at 5,000, but either way pretty damn bad.  Very few fanbases support women's basketball, and even the ones that do lose their ass in it financially.  I'd love to have some success at it, but I know a sinking ship when I see one. Even if you spend 1 million on an elite coach, maybe that gets us some Sweet 16s and Elite 8 runs. It won't put butts in the seats, it won't have top ranked recruits flocking to us, and it will in all likelihood cause us to lose our ass. That is why you hope for the best with an up and comer.

We had very good attendance when Blair was here.  The year went to Final Four and the year we won the WNIT.  We had crowds in the range of 10,000 a few times.  Our all-time womens record for Arkansas is 14,163 during the WNIT.  Same tourney also had 9,043 one game. We had 11,000 or so against Vandebilt one year. 

[psycHOGlogist]

We were a #9 seed, not #8, fwiw.

There is no doubt that crowds were better when Blair was here. But they weren't Tennessee/Connecticut sized.

And I'm not saying we can't get a good coach. I'm saying that aiming at the two most elite coaches in the nation (Mulkey, Auriemma) who have built their programs from the ground up and are legends in the game at this point is unrealistic. They are not going to leave where they are to come to a bottom-level SEC program. Not for all the tea in China.

We should, and I think can, expect Long to make a good hire. But if you are setting your sights on Mulkey, you're setting yourself up for disappointment.

[psycHOGlogist]

One of the best recruiters in the business...

http://www.gohuskies.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=30200&ATCLID=208056991

They beat Stanford, played TAMU close ... I'm intrigued. I hope this guy gets a close look!! Thanks for sharing.

[josh_sec33]

Just make sure Bev Lewis doesn't have a say in the new hiring. She find one last way to screw this team up.

[Westcoasthog]

   Josh_SEC33 Josh I agree keep Bev Lewis out of this new hire!

[Hogtied85]

Everyone seems to think Joe Foley is the greatest thing since sliced bread. Trust me I am not dogging the man out but lets be realistic about one thing first. Some of you made a comment about Gus Malzhan being a winner. That statement is true but Gus did not come into the SEC as a head coach first. He was an coordinator at arkansas then @ Tulsa @ Auburn @ A-State Head Coach before being Head now at Auburn. So lets just keep our options open is all I am saying.

[PharmacistHog]

Getting rid of Collen is a good move, I think. He's had seven years and the program just hasn't moved forward enough, though it's significantly better than when he inherited the Gardner trainwreck.

For the "Bring Back Blair" crowd - just stop. Gary is 64 years old. Not ancient, but I really want to see some youthful energy in the program. That SEEMS to be something Long looks for (Colby Hale, Robbie Pulliza -- though Mike Larabee isn't exactly "young," he's got a lot of energy and youthful enthusiasm). I don't think Blair a) would come back, or b) is the right long-term answer for the program. Not sure Long would be willing to pay what it might take to lure him.

I'm agnostic about Joe Foley, given the low tier level of competition where he's been successful, but he's definitely intriguing.

Some other thoughts -- and these are totally random, food for thought:

1. WVU's coach Mike Carey (they won the B12 this year and have been moving up steadily; he's a WV native, though)

2. Kenny Brooks from James Madison (been there for 12 years, and they have been steadily improving; they've gotten at large bids to the tourney from a mediocre conference; but he's a JMU alum)

3. Jim Jabir - Dayton. Not sure this guy even meets the 'youthful, energetic' criterion, but he consistently fields tournament teams from a mid-major.

4.  Sytia Messer - Former Associate Head Coach, GA Tech, Former HC at Tennessee Tech (where she did okay and left to return to GA Tech for a year), and now Asst Coach and Recruiting Coordinator at Baylor under Kim Mulkey. Arkansas native. Have to believe she'd be interested. Is she ready?

UPDATED to correct wrong info about Messer

You know WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too much about women's basketball.  That just makes me sad. 

[psycHOGlogist]

You know WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too much about women's basketball.  That just makes me sad. 

So seriously - what motivates comments like this? It is just completely inconceivable to you that a poster on a WOMEN's SPORTS discussion board would actually know/care about women's sports? That just blows your mind, does it? Keep your misogynistic comments to yourself and go be sad somewhere besides women's sports discussion boards.

[PharmacistHog]

So seriously - what motivates comments like this? It is just completely inconceivable to you that a poster on a WOMEN's SPORTS discussion board would actually know/care about women's sports? That just blows your mind, does it? Keep your misogynistic comments to yourself and go be sad somewhere besides women's sports discussion boards.

I was just messing with you.  Holy Crap I'm sorry.  I certainly didn't mean to offend you.  My apologies.  What about the guy that coaches Marshall?  Daniel? 

[psycHOGlogist]

Apology accepted. Sorry if you felt attacked, but there are a lot of troll-ish posters who come over here on occasion and feel compelled to tell women's sports fans that they're not real fans, or some version of that.

I found all that info using good old-fashioned google in about 15 minutes. It's not like I have a rolodex of possible replacement coaches! lol

The guy from Marshall has not exactly lit it up at Marshall - his first two seasons have both been about 3-13 in conference, and they were better than that when he got there. I know he did well at UCA, but he's struggling so far in his first stint in a major(ish) conference.

[PharmacistHog]

Apology accepted. Sorry if you felt attacked, but there are a lot of troll-ish posters who come over here on occasion and feel compelled to tell women's sports fans that they're not real fans, or some version of that.

I found all that info using good old-fashioned google in about 15 minutes. It's not like I have a rolodex of possible replacement coaches! lol

The guy from Marshall has not exactly lit it up at Marshall - his first two seasons have both been about 3-13 in conference, and they were better than that when he got there. I know he did well at UCA, but he's struggling so far in his first stint in a major(ish) conference.

this forum is usually dead.  I joked that maybe lanny had something to do with Collen's firing to stip up the traffic in here. 

By the way, I have the job of moderating the politics forum--getting attacked is a daily occurrence. 

[psycHOGlogist]

Well, that's certainly been part of Collen's problem - he hasn't exactly a) put an exciting product on the floor (in part due to his inability to recruit many Arkansas kids), and b) shown much in the way of an interesting "personality." Hard to generate much excitement or enthusiasm.

And a lot of the traffic that was in here was posters coming in and talking about how we needed to hire Geno Auriemma and/or Kim Mulkey. Hard to generate much interesting discussion about far-fetched scenarios like that.

[LadybackBBFan]

Here are my comments:  No to the following that you have mentioned - Gary Blair - too old, never was really successful at Arkansas in the SEC, no to Joe Foley for all the reasons that others have mentioned, no - no to Mike Neighbors who was on Susie Gardner's staff and was a high school coach at Bentonville who made changes 15 minutes after I suggested what he needed to do.

Sytia Mess er is intriguing, but not really pr oven.  I would love the Ole Miss coach - 29, name Matt Insell.  Does anyone recognize that name - he is the son of the coach at Middle Tennessee State and was the Kentucky assistant for five years.  He is the real deal, but probably will not be picked.  How about Gail  (you spell it).  She was great everywhere until she got to Texas who I am told would not give her the facilities that she needed.  Would Jeff Long?  I think it would be a great hire and you could probably get her right now.

[psycHOGlogist]

I'm not sure I understand what the Mike Neighbors comment means, though I didn't realize he was on Susie's staff. That's some bad ju-ju that we might want to avoid!

Never even thought about Gail Goestenkors. Wow - that would certainly be an attention grabber. Interesting your comment about the facilities. I had heard rumors that she was unable to connect with the AAU/HS coaches in Texas because she had a "I'm from Duke" elitist sort of attitude, they hated her, and the in-state recruits started going elsewhere. (Sounds somewhat familiar, maybe.)

I agree that Sytia is unproven, and that scares me a bit. But it could certainly resonate with the in-state kids, I would think.

Thanks very much for your thoughts!

[beantownhog]

SEC WBB coaching searches are the best.  Start the bus trackers.

That's funny stuff: +1!

[Hogtied85]

That's funny stuff: +1!

Gail Goestenkors would be great at Arkansas

[ImHogginIt]

Gail Goestenkors would be great at Arkansas

Yeah. Folks can't spell her name so she will be referred to as CGG 

[Rocket23]

Neighbors was on staff twice at Arkansas, under Gardner and Blair.  Coaching at Bentonville was a long time ago and early in his career.  He took a Bentonville team that was 1-24 to the state championship game two years later.

He is very highly respected as a top recruiter with a lot of energy.  That is what we need, someone who can recruit, and young and energetic who will work tirelessly to get the recruits and market the program.  Blair was a dynamic marketer and reason we had crowds ofcnine, 10 and 11,000 for women's games at Fayetteville. 

It will be interesting to see who Long brings in.  Whoever will have a nice nucleus to start off with -- Jackson, Brooks, Adams and the incoming 6-5 post player.

[Inhogswetrust]

Any one of Foley, Neighbors or Messer are intriguing for different reasons.