[GoCatsGo]

Was Wright being polite in not announcing his retirement publicly until the dust had settled? Or did he wait this long to handicap Villanova into promoting an assistant? Did the players / recruits know this was coming?

Technically it was a former assistant. And based on Kyle Neptune being the current (well, as of yesterday) coach at Fordham, my guess is that this is something that's been in the works at least since season's end because there were certainly legal T's and I's to handle (like, writing a decent check to Fordham).

As for who knew? Can't believe too many people knew, because loose lips sink ships. Most importantly, Fordham has three freshmen lined up for next year. Guessing they didn't know.

 

[Coachrt]

Who had the longer, more drawn out coaching search: Duke or Villanova?

And because I'm sure somebody is just chomping at the bit to go there: no, John Becker is not going to Fordham.

Thank goodness you brought it up and put it to bed. I was waiting for someone to start the JB to Fordham thread. With the momentum Fordham gained this year, they really need to ge this hire right to keep the progress continuing.

 

[catamount2021]

Thank goodness you brought it up and put it to bed. I was waiting for someone to start the JB to Fordham thread. With the momentum Fordham gained this year, they really need to ge this hire right to keep the progress continuing.

Agree with this. I thought about it for a second but realized that Becker probably isn't the guy. They've made a lot of progress since the 2019-2020 season and they had a young coach leading the team this past year. Maybe they go for a young assistant coach from a big-time program again.

 

[catpower]

If Becker wanted the job last year, what's changed in a year? He's got many more question marks at UVM than he did a year ago. I'm not saying he's going to get it. He couldn't a year ago. But I don't think anything is "put to rest" by one person on a message board's probably accurate opinion on the matter...Been trying to tell folks here for a while, but you don't listen: the man goes after jobs that would surprise you whether it is financial, or the allure of a new challenge to move up a level and the desire to be "respected" in the industry, it's all there. No other school at an "upgrade" has felt the same way about him yet, so in that sense UVM is lucky.

So yeah, personal opinion? He's probably not getting it. But to act like he may not give it another shot? Not going to go that far. If anything he's going to make sure he gets his name associated with it again for the profile boost, and try and take a meeting with someone. Anyway, I think Grasso would have a better shot at it than Becker would.

 

[BingGrad]

Was Wright being polite in not announcing his retirement publicly until the dust had settled? Or did he wait this long to handicap Villanova into promoting an assistant? Did the players / recruits know this was coming?

This may have actually been in the works since before the Final Four. From what I'm told by a Villanova alum who attended the Final Four, the school president was particularly effusive in his remarks at mass on Sunday in New Orleans telling people that if they bumped into Coach Wright to tell him how much they loved him. He thought it was slightly odd at the time, but that in hindsight it all makes sense.

If this has indeed been in the works since before the Final Four, then it would be a master class in how a professionally run organization keeps confidential information confidential. Stony Brook and the CAA might want to request the case study for future reference.

 

[catpower]

REPORT: Donlon, Kansas City to part ways - HoopDirt

I can confirm multiple reports that Billy Donlon and UMKC will part ways. I have also heard from people close to it that a possible/likely landing spot for Donlon is on Brad Brownell’s staff at Clemson. Donlon has gone 46-39 (.541) during his three seasons at Kansas City. The former assistant at...

hoopdirt.com

Well, Kansas City looks like it is opening as Billy Donlon is joining Clemson's staff.

 

[catpower]

Been a while since the last one so:

Open Jobs (confirmed and reported):

Fordham (A10)
Kansas City (Summit)
South Carolina State (MEAC)

(Put quote tags around the filled jobs so it doesn't take up a ton of the page, just expand it to see them all)

Filled:
Alabama A&M (Dylan Howard fired > Otis Hugley Jr, Nigeria Women's National Team Coach)
Alabama State (Mo Williams to Jackson State > Tony Madlock, South Carolina State Head Coach)
Ball State (Jason Whitford fired > Michael Lewis UCLA Assistant)
Butler (LaVall Jordan fired > Thad Matta, Former Ohio State Head Coach)
Cal State Northridge (Mark Gottfried fired > Trent Johnson, CSUN Interim Head Coach)
Chattanooga (Lamont Paris to South Carolina > Dan Earl, VMI Head Coach)
Cleveland State (Dennis Gates to Missouri > Daniyal Robinson, Iowa State Assistant)
Duke (Mike Krzyzewski retired > Jon Scheyer, Duke Assistant)
East Carolina (Joe Dooley fired > Michael Schwartz, Tennessee Assistant)
Florida (Mike White to Georgia > Todd Golden, San Francisco Head Coach)
Florida Gulf Coast (Michael Fly fired > Pat Chambers, Former Penn State Head Coach)
Georgia (Tom Crean fired > Mike White, Florida Head Coach)
Georgia State (Rob Lainer to SMU > Jarvis Hayes, Xavier Assistant)
George Washington (Jamion Christian fired > Chris Caputo, Miami Assistant)
High Point (Tubby Smith retired > GG Smith, High Point Assistant)
Illinois State (Dan Muller fired > Ryan Pedon, Ohio State Assistant)
Jackson State (Wayne Brent fired > Mo Williams, Alabama State Head Coach)
Kansas State (Bruce Weber retired > Jerome Tang, Baylor Assistant)
La Salle (Ashley Howard fired > Fran Dunphy, Former Penn/Temple Head Coach)
Lafayette (Fran O'Hanlon retired > Mike Jordan, Colgate Assistant)
Louisville (Chris Mack fired > Kenny Payne, New York Knicks Assistant)
Louisiana Tech (Eric Konkol to Tulsa > Talvin Hester, Texas Tech Assistant)
LSU (Will Wade fired > Matt McMahon, Murray State Head Coach)
Maine (Richard Barron fired > Chris Markwood, Boston College Assistant)
Maryland (Mark Turgeon fired > Kevin Willard, Seton Hall Head Coach)
Miami-Ohio (Jack Owens fired > Travis Steele, Former Xavier Head Coach)
Milwaukee (Pat Baldwin fired > Bart Lundy, Queens of Charlotte Head Coach)
Mississippi State (Ben Howland fired > Chris Jans, New Mexico State Head Coach)
Mississippi Valley State (Lindsay Hunter fired > George Ivory, Former Arkansas Pine Bluff Head Coach)
Missouri (Counzo Martin fired > Dennis Gates, Cleveland State Head Coach)
Murray State (Matt McMahon to LSU > Steve Prohm, Former Iowa State/Murray State Head Coach)
New Mexico State (Chris Jans to Miss. State > Greg Heiar, NW Florida Head Coach)
Northwestern State (Mike McConathy retired > Corey Gipson, Missouri State Assistant)
Omaha (Derrin Hansen fired > Chris Crutchfield, Oregon Assistant)
Rhode Island (David Cox fired > Archie Miller, Former Indiana Head Coach)
Sacramento State (Brian Katz retired > David Patrick, Oklahoma Assistant)
San Diego (Sam Scholl fired > Steve Lavin, Former UCLA/St. John's Head Coach)
San Francisco (Todd Golden to Florida > Chris Gerlufsen, San Francisco Assistant)
Seattle (Jim Hayford fired > Chris Victor, Seattle Interim Head Coach)
Seton Hall (Kevin Willard to Maryland > Shaheen Holloway, St. Peter's Head Coach)
SMU (Tim Jankovich retired > Rob Lainer, Georgia State Head Coach)
South Carolina (Frank Martin fired > Lamont Paris, Chattanooga Head Coach)
South Dakota (Todd Lee fired > Eric Pederson, Utah Assistant)
St. Peter's (Shaheen Holloway to Seton Hall > Bashir Mason, Wagner Head Coach)
The Citadel (Duggar Baucom fired > Ed Conroy, Vanderbilt Assistant)
Tulsa (Frank Haith fired > Eric Konkol, Louisiana Tech Head Coach)
UMass (Matt McCall fired > Frank Martin, Former South Carolina Head Coach)
Villanova (Jay Wright retired > Kyle Neptune, Fordham Head Coach)
VMI (Dan Earl to Chattanooga > Andrew Wilson, James Madison Assistant)
Wagner (Bashir Mason to St. Peter's > Donald Copeland, Seton Hall Assistant)
Western Michigan (Clayton Bates fired > Dwayne Stephens, Michigan State Assistant)
Xavier (Travis Steele fired > Sean Miller, Former Arizona/Xavier Head Coach)

 

[barneybearcat]

Was Wright being polite in not announcing his retirement publicly until the dust had settled? Or did he wait this long to handicap Villanova into promoting an assistant? Did the players / recruits know this was coming?

It wasnt about being polite. It was about not being an insufferable tw*t and doing a year long swan song....

 

[jfromvt]

Was Wright being polite in not announcing his retirement publicly until the dust had settled? Or did he wait this long to handicap Villanova into promoting an assistant? Did the players / recruits know this was coming?

Based on a story I saw (ESPN I think), they have been interviewing for the last week or more. Neptune was probably the top choice from day 1, who knows he may have been the only one interviewed. Nice being a private university. So yes, Wright was seriously considering retirement for a while, not just the last few days. Really surprised it didn’t leak out.

 

[Coachrt]

If Becker wanted the job last year, what's changed in a year? He's got many more question marks at UVM than he did a year ago. I'm not saying he's going to get it. He couldn't a year ago. But I don't think anything is "put to rest" by one person on a message board's probably accurate opinion on the matter...Been trying to tell folks here for a while, but you don't listen: the man goes after jobs that would surprise you whether it is financial, or the allure of a new challenge to move up a level and the desire to be "respected" in the industry, it's all there. No other school at an "upgrade" has felt the same way about him yet, so in that sense UVM is lucky.

So yeah, personal opinion? He's probably not getting it. But to act like he may not give it another shot? Not going to go that far. If anything he's going to make sure he gets his name associated with it again for the profile boost, and try and take a meeting with someone. Anyway, I think Grasso would have a better shot at it than Becker would.

I didn't say he wouldn't go after it. I just meant he won't get a sniff. He's not getting interviewed. He can apply for all the jobs he wants. You and I could even apply if we wanted but none of us are getting serious considreation. Grasso maybe. However, he was passed over once before and I realize he has more experinece now then but i don't think he is what they need.

 

[catpower]

I didn't say he wouldn't go after it. I just meant he won't get a sniff. He's not getting interviewed. He can apply for all the jobs he wants. You and I could even apply if we wanted but none of us are getting serious considreation. Grasso maybe. However, he was passed over once before and I realize he has more experinece now then but i don't think he is what they need.

For the record, he got an interview/conversation of some type last year (Zoom). He just didn't advance to the final stages. Yes, I don't think he's going to be strongly in the mix, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Fordham go back to their candidate pool from last year, which, whether it was top 5 or 8, he was a part of. Or, they just hire the assistant to keep the team together. Doesn't change my point either: Becker looks at and has a willingness to take jobs like Fordham for all the reasons I said before.

Also, in D1, nobody "applies" for the job. This isn't like getting a staff accountant job. You or your team either reach out, or the school reaches out. They aren't pouring over resumes being like "oh this guy I've never heard of sounds good!" Not until you're told by the administrators of the school you're talking to that you'd be in the final grouping does the application actually get filled out. This is all handled by search firms and agents who set that stuff up. Chris Markwood likely didn't apply to the Maine job until he got the deal he wanted or was told it was down to him and someone else, for example.

 

[GoCatsGo]

If you like rumors, here are rumors...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1517571675537252352

 

[VCat_2015]

If you like rumors, here are rumors...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1517571675537252352

What are the commitment/NLI rules regarding portal transfers and grad transfers?

Speaking on hypotheticals here, if Grasso ends up at Fordham, would he be able to take some of the high-profile transfers along with him (provided there's room on Fordham's roster of course)?

 

[GoCatsGo]

What are the commitment/NLI rules regarding portal transfers and grad transfers?

Speaking on hypotheticals here, if Grasso ends up at Fordham, would he be able to take some of the high-profile transfers along with him (provided there's room on Fordham's roster of course)?

It's pretty open season on player movement these days, so barring unforeseen impediments these players would be able to move pretty freely to another location in the event of a coaching change. Someone else could clear this up: do in-coming transfers even typically sign NLIs? I'm not necessarily sure what binding commitments may be in place at this point for some transfer commits.

 

[GoCatsGo]

Fordham could be wrapping up soon...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1518376185419415558

EDIT: Dreams of Bryant chaos seem to be dissipating...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1518402062106701824

 

[UVM Hoop Cat]

Fordham could be wrapping up soon...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1518376185419415558

EDIT: Dreams of Bryant chaos seem to be dissipating...

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1518402062106701824

Translated: Grasso has been informed by Fordham he's not a leading candidate for the head coach position, has media pal Tweet he's staying at Bryant.

 

[Aceinthehole]

Translated: Grasso has been informed by Fordham he's not a leading candidate for the head coach position, has media pal Tweet he's staying at Bryant.

Exactly! That is 5 open A-10 jobs this season (URI, UMass, GWU, LaSalle, Fordham) and he wasn't a serious candidate for ANY of them.

I just don't know where some people really expect him to land next. For some on Twitter to suggested that Fordham isn't a big enough jump or he has too much talent at Bryant is garbage.

If he can't get a call for these A-10 jobs, he's going to be at Bryant for a while. I think he has a lot more to prove before some ADs take a chance on him at a bigger program.

 

[catpower]

Exactly! That is 5 open A-10 jobs this season (URI, UMass, GWU, LaSalle, Fordham) and he wasn't a serious candidate for ANY of them.

I just don't know where some people really expect him to land next. For some on Twitter to suggested that Fordham isn't a big enough jump or he has too much talent at Bryant is garbage.

If he can't get a call for these A-10 jobs, he's going to be at Bryant for a while. I think he has a lot more to prove before some ADs take a chance on him at a bigger program.

His biggest asset is he can "get dudes." That will always keep you in the conversation with higher jobs in some ways. He's also got great PR people like Zagoria in the NYC media space, so...He's done step one, gone to NCAA with said dudes. Step two is taking the even more dudes he landed this off season, going back to the tourney, and winning a game. Then yeah, going to have a shot at some gigs. If we're talking A10 and Duquense makes a move next year, maybe there. A random place would be like South Florida (again because of his ability to get dudes, this is a classic school that would take a coach who just knows how to portal play)...or in his best case scenario he somehow manages to get St. John's when it opens.

Realistically, if jobs like that don't consider him where does he go if he looks to leave in the near term? Iona when Pitino dies from coaching or banging the trainer's wife at an Italian restaurant again. Quinnipiac where he's an alum (but did they pass him over last time?) Stony Brook (I think Geno is gone within 2 years), I wouldn't be surprised to see him take a Monmouth or Siena if their coaches moved on (they don't appear to be, but never know).

He's 41, so he's got time, and so long as he keeps winning, he'll have his chances. And it depends on what "a while" means. I've said it before in 10 years he's either coaching in a power league (like a St. John's), coaching at a just under power league at a random spot (some CUSA or AAC school), or is at another east coast one-bid school because he failed at options 1 and 2, or jumped around at that level.

 

[UVM Hoop Cat]

I get Florida JUCO vibes in Grasso's future. Like the northwestern part of the state, or west coast.

 

[Aceinthehole]

Hernenda is out at FDU. Not a huge surprise, as rumors had been swirling he was ready to retire. Recent his name was connected to an assistant position at Seton Hall.

Very late to begin a coaching search and FDU isn't a place that will draw too much interest.

FDU Announces Leadership Change for Men’s Basketball Program - Fairleigh Dickinson University Athletics

HACKENSACK, N.J. – FDU Director of Athletics Bradford Hurlbut announced today that Greg Herenda will not return as head men's basketball coach.

fduknights.com