Above Expectations

The most recent Cracked Sidewalks post about the Buzz hiring seems to have re-opened a nerve in the comments section here at Cracked Sidewalks and on MUScoop. Personally, I was also fairly critical about the decision to hire Buzz, but I said my piece and then waited to see what happened. My position was not one where I wanted him to be the wrong choice, so that every setback (like the Tyshawn Taylor situtation) was judged harshly. However, it was also not one where Buzz received automatic acceptance that he was the right person for the job. My position?

Prove it.

I've seen some suggestions that Buzz deserves 2-3 years to grow into the job. I totally disagree. In my opinion, Buzz gets exactly one year to prove that he's the right choice for a program coming off of three straight NCAA appearances / Top 25 finishes. One. Year. Buzz managed to convince Cracked Sidewalks punching bag Steve Cottingham he was the right choice, but I want to see him prove he's a Big East coach this year.

Buzz gets graded this year based on six areas:

• Roster Continuity (5%)
  
• Coaching Staff Selection (5%)
• Representative of Marquette (10%)
  
• 2009 (or 2010) Recruiting (25%)
  
• Regular Season Success (25%)
  
• NCAA Success (30%)
  

I think that the percentages are fair, but certainly the opinions of CS readers are welcome. Thus far, only two of those areas are even complete, and a third (Representative of Marquette) has only limited information. However, I have to say that Buzz has been Above Expectations in all three areas.

Roster Continuity - (4 out of 5)
When we look at what the worst case scenario could have been (losing all four recruits for this year, Erik Williams, Scott Christopherson, Trevor Mbakwe, and Dominic James), I've got to say that Buzz did a pretty good job here. Once Crean left, Nick Williams was never going to set foot on Marquette's campus. Plus, Jimmy Butler was an upgrade over Scott Christopherson. The only area that could have been better would have been if Tyshawn Taylor stuck with MU. There was some definite ugliness, but in reading the outstanding Blog from Rosiak, I believe that Buzz handled the situation pretty well and kept the high road.

Coaching Staff Selection - (4 out of 5)
Unlike his employer, Buzz took his time filling out his coaching staff (gratuitous dig!). With a realistic view of things, I think he did pretty well. Tony Benford is experienced, well regarded, and has worked with big men in the past. "Aki" Collins is unproven, but appears to be the hungry young coach with East Coast connections. It's a bit odd that Dale Layer is now working for his former employee, but that's their relationship. Layer also brings experience to the bench and the recruiting trail. Add to that the positions for Autry and (almost certainly) Monarch, and the staff has real promise. I think the only thing really keeping this from being a five is if Buzz had hired someone like Josh Pastner.

Representative of Marquette - (4 out of 5)
I keep thinking about a quote from Billy Gillespie about Buzz (which you can find on his Marquette home page).

Everyone likes him. If they don't start out liking him, he forces them to like him.

I've heard several interviews with Buzz, and I've got to say that I like the guy. If you haven't listened, check them out yourself on his home page. There's a refreshing honesty and candor about him. Certainly, there's considerably less coach-speak than the previous coach, and I don't think I've heard him say phenomenal once. Heck it even seems like Murff is warming up to Buzz.

In summary, the proof will be when we start getting to 2009 recruits and when the season kicks off. Until then, Buzz has been Above Expectations. Keep on proving it, Buzz!

Cottingham details 'the process'

OK, let's start with the good stuff.......Bob McClellan from Rivals.com pulled together an article on Buzz Williams -- the piece effectively recaps the 'how we got here' and 'here's what we know about Buzz' storylines.

Of course, we also have to put up with Marquette AD Steve Cottingham's defense of his unwillingness to conduct a thorough, national search to fill the institution's most visible job. So, in honor of FireJoeMorgan.com, we're going Ken Tremendous on Cottingham.

"I think the general public might see it that way (as a risky hire)," Marquette athletic director Steve Cottingham told Rivals.com.

Despite being an inside job, the Politburo would have seen it as a risky hire. Hiring a coach embroiled in a legal battle with his previous employer -- a job he left under questionable circumstances after a losing season -- is risky. For a university that believes its men's basketball program is a key part of its strategy to attract interest from prospective students and dollars from alums, the hire was risky by any measure.

"My view is it's a much greater risk to hire somebody based on the popular opinion."

Please ring that gong, Chuck Barris.

Would everybody who thought that MU should hire a coach based on popular opinion raise your hand? (no hands go up in our virtual world).

No, Mr. Cottingham. Marquette fans wanted to see the institution engage in a competitive evaluation and hiring process that didn't include "hire the last assistant remaining in the program" as a key criterion.

"There wasn't a risk in hiring Buzz because we know what he can do and know what he's going to do."

Seriously, Cottingham said that. You can't make this stuff up. To recap, here is what we knew about Buzz Williams at the time of his hiring:

• Buzz Williams did not have to defend his resume or approach to building a program against a slate of competitive candidates.
• Buzz Williams quit on the folks at the University of New Orleans and was engaged in a protracted legal battle with them.
• Buzz Williams led UNO to a 14-17 record as head coach.
• Buzz Williams played a brief, minor role in building the MU program.
  
• Buzz Williams would have been an assistant coach at any other D1 program in the nation for the 2008-2009 season.
• Buzz Williams seems to have been an effective recruiter as an assistant coach.
  
• Buzz Williams might be just fine in the end. Or he might not.

"It would have been easy to settle for a name on somebody else's list."

I think Cottingham mis-spoke here. What he meant to say was, "It would not have been easy to conduct an aggressive, national search. Such a search would have taken time and forced candidates to demonstrate their competing visions of Marquette basketball. Those candidates could have challenged this institution's perspectives in what would have been a very healthy dialectic. Ultimately we just didn't need that kind of distraction."

Cottingham admits other coaches were approached. He declined to reveal any names.

Approached? Stalked? Left messages for? Sigh.

It took Buzz Williams more time to hire his first assistant coach than it did for MU to hire its 16th head basketball coach. And per Internet reports, Williams actually conducted an aggressive national search to build out his staff (I didn't think MU allowed such a thing!). Bravo, Buzz.

"We did our job in terms of looking at people we thought would be interested and would be the right fit"

Looking at people but not interviewing people, apparently.

"That's all part of doing your due diligence."

Due diligence? This process was reminiscent of the fella who marries the first girl he kisses, only to realize later that playing the field for a while might have resulted in out-kicking his coverage.

"Buzz emerged pretty quickly as a strong candidate."

A haunting refrain reappears near Cottingham's noggin as a Pop-Up Video bubble , "Hire the last assistant remaining in the program."

"Recruiting is a huge part," Cottingham said.

Of course!! Nobody else that MU might have considered as a head coach can recruit -- only Buzz Williams can recruit. It's all making sense now.

"Even during the season, it became clear to me he'd be a high-major coach," Cottingham said. "I just didn't expect it would be at Marquette."

On this point we agree. Nobody else did either.

James enjoys the Buzz, media updates

Jeff Goodman of FoxSports catches up with Dominic James -- who has nothing but good things to say about Buzz Williams, Trevor Mbakwe and Chris Otule (along with a shot at Tommy Irsay).

Goodman also reports that 2008 combo guard Varez Ward will visit Texas this weekend -- no word on any interest regarding MU.

Mike DeCourcy writes up an incongruous review of the Buzz Williams hire....strangely TSN says MU made a decision 'in a panic', but ultimately rates the hire as a solid 'B'.

In honor of Buzz......Buzz 'I Hate New Media' Bissinger that is, Deadspin is worried about Dwyane Wade these days. Dating Star Jones? Are you kidding me.

Um, hi....we're back

Life (er, work) has a funny way of interrupting your hobbies, hence the dearth of material here for the last several days. Capitalism has a funny way of demanding increasing amounts of your time. Anyway, we're back. For those of you who follow the threads on MUScoop and other sites, some of this might be redux -- but let's get caught up with Marquette hoops.

Marquette has offered 2009 stud Jeronne Maymon of Madison Memorial High School. Mark Miller of WSN Boys Basketball has the details here. Maymon, a 6'6" combo forward, currently sports offers from MU, USC and Iowa State with many more to follow. Maymon is off to a fast start this spring on the AAU circuit, turning in a series of eye-catching performances.

Darrius Morrow signed with ECU. Recruiting successfully requires patience and vision more than a hunger to settle for the 'best (only?) player available'. I'm glad to see that Buzz Williams appears to have exhibited that with Morrow.

6'10" Kyle Rowley reclassified to 2008 and signed with Northwestern. Good luck, Kyle.

According to the Big East Basketball Report, MU is after 2009 PG Justin Jordan of Fort Wayne.

Marquette University's athletic programs delivered academically once again. According to MU, each of th university's 14 athletic teams exceeded the NCAA's required Academic Progress Rate (APR). Congratulations, MU. If you want to see what happens when a university does not take care of the academic side of life, check out the SHU situation. For a history on MU's position with the APR over time, read our post on the subject from last year.

Steve Yanda of the Marquette Tribune ran a provocative article about the university's proclivity to favor the internal hire over a competitive, national search. Here's my key take-away from the article:

In February, Cottingham was named Marquette's athletic director after a 14-month interim stint during which he conducted the search for a permanent replacement. Though Cottingham stated throughout the search process that he was not interested in the full-time position, he eventually concluded he was the best person for the job.

Of the 60 candidates who applied for the full-time position, none were interviewed. As a private institution.

Talk about it in this thread at MUScoop if you're interested.

Dale Layer named assistant coach at MU

Buzz Williams went with experience and familiarity to fill the final assistant coaching spot on his bench when he welcomed former Colorado State head coach Dale Layer to Marquette.

Layer, head coach of the Rams from 2000 - 2007, led CSU to one conference title and compiled a 103-106 record overall. Buzz Williams served on Layer's staff in Fort Collins for four years. Layer spent this past season as an assistant at Liberty University and has been in the coaching business for 30 years.

Read all the details here at GoMarquette.com

So, Buzz Williams will go to battle with Tony Benford, Dale Layer and Aki Collins. These coaches are an interesting mix given that their strong national footprint as coaches does not include the significant Midwestern flavor that characterize most Marquette coaching staffs.

With this hire, Williams has a decidedly veteran assistant coaching staff considering Layer and Benford combine for more than 45 years on the sidelines. Throw Collins' New York City heritage and recent work at a Jesuit university, and the make-up of the staff appears strong - with only the one glaring weakness:

• Can this group of coaches successfully recruit the Midwest?

Perhaps they don't need to -- well, let's not go that far.

Recently, MU's roster has been built with recruits from outside of MU's home region. Still, recruiting well close to home -- ie, MU's own back yard and Chicagoland -- will be one aspect of the next six months (until National Signing Day) fans will track closely.

Buzz Williams update, new potential recruit emerges

According to this report from a K-State blog penned by a reporter from the Wichita Eagle, it appears that MU is in pursuit of 6'2" combo guard Varez Ward from the Patterson School in Lenior, NC. Marquette is in good company with Ward -- Texas, Arkansas, K-State and FSU have also offered according to his coach.

Also today, Rosiak files this report on the outlook for Buzz Williams first year on the sidelines at MU -- somewhat of a very early season preview. In addition, Buzz Williams sat down with Todd Rosiak for a thorough overview of the program in this blog entry. Among the most interesting nuggets:

• Regarding the last open scholarship -- Williams indicated it could be used for either the 08 or 09 classes;
• Williams expects Butler and Fulce to be 'ahead of the curve' as compared to true freshmen next season;
• David Cubillan will have surgery on his left shoulder soon. He recently had surgery on his right shoulder and has not had an individual workout yet this off-season.
  
• Williams took the high-road on the Tyshawn Taylor situation. Smart.
• There are no updates on McNeal's NBA process in the report
  
• Varez Ward is not mentioned in the Rosiak update.
  

BTW, here is a YouTube clip of what appears to be Varez Ward from his junior year in high school --against Nick Williams' LeFlore Rattlers, no less.

Morning grinds

A few items of note regarding MU..........

Marquette Tribune's Steve Yanda paints himself green with envy at the opportunities that await Jerel McNeal. Yanda rightly expects McNeal to declare for the NBA draft shortly -- but to do so without an agent, and ultimately return to MU.

Now for the main event.

Mike DeCourcy says it will be tough for MU (and PC) to recruit in the Big East because the league is, well, too tough -- and infers that new head coaches Buzz Williams and Keno Davis might be in over their heads.

Nobody is denying that the Big East is rough, but DeCourcy downplays MU's strengths to the point where he views PC as a program on par with MU. Of course, this is not the case on any level, just look at the relative successes of each program in the last decade, not to mention facilities, fan support, television appearances, and NBA footprint. MU certainly left itself open to criticism for hiring Buzz Williams -- but the PC comparison is a non sequitur.

Still, DeCourcy marginalizes Marquette's position in the Big East:

"When the Marquette job opened and its fans wondered if Xavier's Sean Miller would be interested in moving, the answer was obvious -- but not to them."

Few MU fans (any?) expected MU to land Miller. The buzz on Miller's interest in potentially moving on from Xavier was more of a media creation than any Marquette fan's expectation. When the Pitt job opens up, Miller will move on. Fine with me.

"Marquette built one of the nation's best practice facilities and has shown a willingness to invest in coaching salaries, but it cannot change the fact it is at the Western edge of an Eastern league."

The 'western edge of an Eastern league' reeks of spin from competitive coaches, or even coaches formerly on the MU staff. Despite their proximity to the Center of the Big East Universe, programs like Seton Hall, Rutgers, St John's and Providence have somehow struggled to be competitive for what, a decade or more? To read this column, you'd expect that MU had failed miserably during its Big East tenure.

Players who grow up in Wisconsin generally dream of playing in the Big Ten, which is one reason the Badgers have enjoyed an edge in drawing the state's elite prospects

Marquette never was a program built on the backs of talent from the Dairy State. MU has always gotten its share of local kids (Diener and Novak for example), but historically recruited with greater success regionally and nationally. This is a non-issue for the program.

Both Marquette and Providence have hired promising coaches. But each has moved out of his geographic comfort zone and will have to overcome that.

Hmmm........After DeCourcy just pointed out that homestate kids don't flock to play ball at MU how can he now say that hiring a coach from outside the state (or Midwest) is now a disadvantage? Should MU have doubled-down with a yokel so he could swim upstream in a state where the cultish following of the red-clad flagship institution is culturally ingrained?

When Marquette hired Tom Crean, geography mattered more than it does now. With Marquette playing in an East Coast-based league, a coach with a national reputation as a strong recruiter just might be the right fit (process be damned), if for no other reason than being on the 'western edge of an Eastern league'.

Big East battles aren't confined to the court. In fact, the confrontations along the recruiting trail can be even more intense. No joke.

Agreed. And let's face it, after landing the blowout class headlined by the Three Amigos, Tom Crean delivered a pair of decidedly underwhelming classes to follow. Simply put, other than Lazar Hayward and maybe Trevor Mbakwe, Crean left behind a roster of questionable role players with marginal skills. True to form, it took Crean three years to land another promising class, one broken up by his Irsay-esque departure. Crean often recruited his best talent when his back was against the wall -- and heading into 2009, it would have been at Marquette because of the mistakes, misses, and reaches made in between.

In the end, maybe these perceived recruiting issues at Marquette had less to do with geography and more to do with the talent evaluation and roster development of the previous head coach.

Catching up with the program

After the remarkable pace of news out of the Marquette program for most of last week, things slowed down just a bit - - - but here are few nuggets from the past several days to get you caught up.

Per this article from the Tyler Morning Telegraph, Buzz Williams hired Scott Monarch as his first assistant coach. Monarch, who until recently was an assistant at Tyler JC where he coached MU commits Joseph Fulce and Jimmy Butler, previously served on Williams' staff at the University of New Orleans.

In addition to Marquette, Tyshawn Taylor is now considering five other universities. Adam Zagoria has the list. It is unclear how interested Taylor remains in MU -- but the truth is, with only role players (Cubillan, Acker) in the program to replace the Three Amigos, MU desperately needs a top notch point guard. John Dodds lays out the case in this thread.

Luka Mirkovic, a 6'11" center from Indiana, announced his intention to sign with Northwestern over Louisville and Marquette.

MUScoop puts fans in the Way Back Marchine for an interview with coach Al McGuire. Great find, MUScoop.

Jimmy Butler commits to Marquette

UPDATED
Over on Scout.com, IWB just confirmed this morning's Des Moines Register report by Rick Brown that 6'5" Jimmy Butler from Tyler Junior College committed to Marquette University.

Butler, originally from Tomball, Texas, is a teammate of current MU recruit Joseph Fulce at Tyler JC. Like Fulce, Butler will have three years of eligibility remaining upon enrolling at Marquette. Butler led Tyler JC in scoring last season, pouring in 18 points per game to go along with 7 rebounds and 3 assists.

With Scott Christopherson's departure (he is headed to Iowa State) adding Butler to the current freshman class will help balance out the roster for Coach Williams. Butler, who can play three positions on the floor, will also offer MU a great deal of flexibility in the backcourt and small forward slots.

Congrats Jimmy, and welcome to Marquette University -- and congrats to Buzz Williams for securing his first recruit as head coach.

MEDIA UPDATES

• IWB filed this report on the Butler commit for the Sports Bubbler.
• This article from the Tyler paper offers more detail on Butler.
• Here is the official Marquette announcement.

With props to bma725 over at MUScoop, here's the additional low-down on the talented Mr. Butler, who was an honorable mention JUCO All-American this season. Fulce was a second-team JUCO All-American.

Not much info out there on him because he's a JUCO, but he's a good player. 6'5, somewhat skinny. Truly a combo guard, he's probably more natural as a 2, but has good court vision and can play the 1 as well. Good shot from the perimeter, can score in bunches. Was Tyler's leading scorer this year and just had some absurd games. NJCAA All American Honorable Mention.

No academic issues, full qualifier out of high school, wanted to go to Mississippi State but they ran out of scholarships and he chose to go the JUCO route rather than signing with a low D1 school or going to a Prep School. Currently has offers from Kentucky, Clemson, Mississippi State and Iowa State. He's already made visits to Mississippi State and Iowa State.

Joseph Fulce sticks with MU and more

UPDATED
"Everything's real good. I'm still going to Marquette," he said. "I'm excited, my family's excited. It's a great place for me, I'm going to get a great Jesuit education."

After a stretch of uncertainty with key recruits in the wake of the Buzz Williams hiring, Todd Rosiak once again puts fans' minds at ease today with a positive update on Joseph Fulce, the 6'6" combo forward from Tyler JC. Fulce remains an MU commit.

What's more, for the second time in as many days we're hearing from recruits and those close to them about how much they value a Jesuit education . Consider what John Harmatuck, Erik Williams' high school coach, said yesterday to the guys at the SportsBubbler:

“Erik’s parents really value a Jesuit education,” Harmatuk said. “Erik went to a Jesuit school (Strake Jesuit) as a freshman. His parents are very impressed with Marquette as a university, first and foremost.”

Not to mention what the hyper-talented Williams said himself at the SportsBubbler:

"I committed to Marquette because of everything that it stands for and has to offer."

These comments above reflect the kinds of values many traditional students appreciate when they decide to attend Marquette University - -and its good to see future student-athletes recognize and value what differentiates MU.

Oh, by the way ...... Fulce and Williams can play. Check out this video of Fulce from his high school days in Plano when he led his team to the state title.

JIMMY BUTLER AND SCOTT MONARCH TO JOIN MARQUETTE?
According to a blog on the Des Moines Register, Marquette is poised to gain a commitment from Jimmy Butler, a high-flying 6'6" guard/forward from Tyler JC. Like Fulce, Butler will have three years of eligibility remaining at a Division One program.

In addition, the Register reports that Scott Monarch has accepted an assistant coaching slot at MU. Monarch is currently an assistant coach at Tyler JC and was on Buzz Williams' staff at UNO. We'll await verification from MU.

Kudos to MUScoop for finding these gems.

Come back in from that ledge, my friend

.......at least that's one way to look at the reassuring Rosiak report concerning Erik Williams and Chris Otule:

Erik Williams, a fast-rising junior from Cypress Springs (Tex.) High School told me this afternoon that he remains committed to MU...........Williams also said that he keeps in contact with Chris Otule, one of three remaining signees for next season, and Otule told him he will also honor his commitment to MU.

Tyshawn Taylor wants out

Adam Zagoria (as always in New Jersey) breaks the news........After meeting with new head coach Buzz Williams last Friday, Tyshawn Taylor still wants his release from Marquette University.

Taylor has not eliminated MU -- but coach Bob Hurley indicated that a dozen other schools have inquired, and Taylor wants to take a few more visits before deciding. Hurley cited Buzz Williams' inexperience as a head coach, and the logjam in the MU backcourt as primary factors in seeking the release.

Hmmmmm. On the backcourt 'logjam' - - the backcourt was much more of a logjam back in October when Taylor verballed to MU, something he acknowledged and was apparently unconcerned with when asked. Since that time, both Nick Williams and Scott Christopherson have exited the program.

Of course, Taylor's profile improved dramatically this past season when he exploded on the national scene as a vital cog on the top team in the country. It's no wonder that many other programs are now fawning over Taylor -- and that he's willing to reciprocate that interest.

As for Buzz Williams' inexperience as a head coach.....well......that sounds like the primary driver here.

Personnel moves du jour: DJ is coming back, a few are headed out the door

First the good news -- Dominic James announced at the basketball banquet tonight that he will return to Marquette for his senior season. Bravo, Dominic! Now it is time for DJ to chase down and pass George Thompson as MU's all-time leading scorer, and lead the team to a fourth consecutive NCAA tournament bid.

Now for the departures.....freshman SG Scott Christopherson and 2008 commit Nick Williams have each been granted their release from Marquette University. Adios, fellas.

Williams was given an unconditional release meaning he can go to any school he chooses. It is interesting that MU afforded Williams complete freedom. In the past for kids already in the program, Marquette was prescriptive as to the places a player was eligible to transfer to. Hello, IU?

It appears the next shoe to drop could be Trevor Mbakwe if you believe the message boards.

Even before these departures, Andy Katz didn't think much of Marquette, failing to include the Golden Eagles in his early pre-season top 25. Whatever, Andy.

Meanwhile, Buzz Williams jets off to New Jersey on Friday morning in an attempt to re-recruit Tyshawn Taylor, the combo guard from St Anthony's who has also asked for his release from Marquette. In a Q/A with Adam Zagoria today, Taylor offered MU fans a ray of hope (and contradicted remarks made by his coach last week):

Q: What kind of relationship do you have with Coach Williams?
A: He recruited me. I had a better relationship with him than with Coach Crean.

Coach Williams also quickly re-energized his efforts to recruit 6'7" stud Jamil Wilson from Racine. Mark Miller has the report.

First impressions of Buzz Williams

With thanks to a commenter in below, click on this link for exclusive interviews on the Buzz Williams hiring from the Steve 'The Homer' True show, ESPN Radio in Milwaukee. A great find, enjoy.

Analyzing the Decision Process

Just some additional comments on the decision to hire Buzz, and then I’ll back off. My opinion on the Buzz hiring is that I believe Marquette made a bad decision. It's not a reflection on Buzz... just an opinion that there were more qualified candidates out there. There is an excellent book called "Winning Decisions", which covers the process that people should use to make good decisions. Really important decisions (like say picking a basketball coach) should follow a structured process such as:

• Determine the crux of the issue
• Create decision criteria and weight those criteria
• Gather Information
• Make the decision
• Learn from your decision

What’s the crux of the issue?
The first, and most important step, is to figure out the right frame for the problem. In other words, for Marquette, what was the crux of the issue? Was it finding a coach? The best coach? A coach that wanted the job? The crux of the issue should have been a coach that can grow the Marquette program so that it is in a position to compete for the Big East and National Championships. After all, this is what Cottingham alluded to at his press conference, so Marquette did this well.

What are the decision criteria?
Of course, once that is determined, the decision process should require selection of decision criteria. What did Marquette look at for making this decision? According to Cottingham, it included:

Primary Decision Criteria

• Committed to Marquette's mission of developing exceptional student-athletes
• Represent the University well
• Hungry for the challenge - Recruit the best players, Win in the BIG EAST, and Win at the highest national level.
  

Additional Decision Criteria

• Vision and plan for success
• Work Ethic
• Recruiting
• Style of Play
  

Okay, two beefs with these decision criteria.

Number one - All three of the primary decision criteria are basically a view of “Organizational Fit”. We know from Rosiak's latest blog that recruiting was considered very strongly too. How well the coach aligned with the administration is certainly important. But what about coaching, player development, and leadership? If you look at Cottingham’s statement, one would think that 100% weight was applied to Organizational Fit / Recruiting.

Number two – if you look at the additional decision criteria for Buzz, Cottingham says

“there are other qualities that make Buzz the best choice for the Marquette head basketball job”

Hate to say it, but that reads to me like Confirmation Bias. In other words, Marquette might have decided on Buzz and then adjusted the criteria to fit that decision.

The big implication from these two points is that there's a possibility Marquette didn’t really know what they wanted in a new head coach. That’s a scary implication and that's what we were afraid of happening with Cottingham.

What about Information Gathering?
If we look at Rosiak's blog again, we can see that MU made multiple attempts at luring Washington State's Tony Bennett. Marquette also contacted Xavier's Sean Miller, Virginia Commonwealth's Anthony Grant, Davidson's Bob McKillop, and Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt, with additional interest from Siena's Fran McCaffery, Bradley's Jim Les and Illinois' Bruce Weber.

Using the wonderful benefit of 20/20 hindsight, it’s easy to see why pretty much everyone MU contacted decided it wasn’t a good fit. The marginal benefit for Miller wouldn’t have been worth it, Grant’s recruiting contacts were in the south, McKillop has Curry (and his son) playing next year, and Hewitt is already in a premier conference.

Making the decision
So let’s say that Marquette makes overtures to their top four or five candidates and none of them are a good fit. All of a sudden, the candidate that is readily available starts looking better (we call this Availability Bias). In other words, the qualities of the candidate that is close by and interested starts carrying more weight. Organizational Fit and Recruiting become even more important to the decision makers.

Conclusion
I stand by my premise that the administration made a bad decision (which may be confirmation bias of our own). Buzz may be a superstar coach, but he's a risk we shouldn't have had to take. Unfortunately, what I believe is that the administration never really defined what was important to them. Rather than working towards its own long-term vision of the program, Marquette instead jumped straight into the process of gathering information. When this information did not turn out favorably and the initial outreach was not reciprocated, Marquette then began adjusting the decision criteria so that the most available candidate (Buzz) became the preferred candidate.

Marquette should have taken a step back, defined what was really important to them, and then approached a structured decision process that included candidates like Lowery, Brownell or a host of other potential options.

Learning from the Decision
However, there is a fifth step that we can now begin analyzing. What’s done is done with the coaching decision, and the Marquette coach is Buzz Williams. To be clear yet again, none of this analysis is directed at coach Williams, but rather our thoughts on the psychology and process which led him to be selected as the new coach. However, we should also expect Buzz to prove that he can handle the job.

Luckily, we’ll be able to begin analyzing this with short-term milestones as we judge how well he does with:

• Selecting a coaching staff
• Dealing with roster turnover
• 2008 / 2009 recruiting

Good luck with those three areas, Buzz. Despite our reservations on how the process was handled, we all really want you to succeed. Prove you can handle the job!

Rosiak details the search; Transfer rumors and more

UPDATED
Todd's latest blog is in the spotlight today.......check it out for details on the coaching search. Talk about it here at MU Scoop. Rosiak also reports on yesterday's introduction.

Rosiak had the scoop on a possible Trevor Mbakwe transfer last week, and now the Minnesota boards are buzzing about it per this thread. One down?

We linked to this last night, but in case you missed it -- Buzz Williams will try and retain Tyshawn Taylor when he visits Jersey City on Friday.

Bob Wolfley speaks with Buzz Williams mentors and former bosses in his latest column.

Chas Rich at AOL Fan House evaluates MU's decision to hire Buzz Williams -- another fine blog by Chas.

And dont forget.......Please click on this link to land over at the eBay auction for a pair of tickets to the sold out Marquette Basketball Banquet. All proceeds go to a great cause -- Camp Anokijig, a non-profit youth and family camp located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

More Buzz, More Buzz

Buzz Williams was introduced today as the new head basketball coach at Marquette University.

If you missed the press conference, check these out:

• Quotes from the press conference via MU
• Audio from the press conference from the Journal-Sentinel
• Video from the press conference from the Journal-Sentinel
• Also, Buzz will be on the road in New Jersey this Friday to try and re-recruit prize commit Tyshawn Taylor from Jersey City.
  

OK, if all of this virtual Buzz is not enough for you --- why not check him out in-person this week at the Marquette Basketball Banquet?

Please click on this link to land over at the eBay auction for a pair of tickets to this sold out event. All proceeds go to a great cause -- Camp Anokijig, a non-profit youth and family camp located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

Bid'em up and thanks for your support.

Perception is reality....Marquette needed to create a buzz but didn't

Perception is reality for a school like Marquette. Sure it has a grand tradition, some terrific coaches over the years, post season glory and a fan base that supports the basketball program financially and with ticket purchases. But perception remains reality for Marquette. MU is at it's strongest with a strong man at the helm of the basketball program. The type of man that might piss some fans off but rallies many others to the cause. Quite simply, a man that creates a buzz.

So it is with great irony (tragic perhaps) that MU hires a man nick named Buzz that seems to have caused anything but a thud. Perception is reality.

For as much hating of Tom Crean as there was from some MU alumni, Crean caused a buzz. Attendance was at an all-time high last year, this past year's squad was ranked again, went to the NCAAs for three straight years. We were recruiting nationally and landing better and better players each year. But Crean left and the buzz went with him, even if the Buzz didn't go with him.

So the last 7 nightmarish days have turned out to be prophetic for some of us. So many of us had hoped MU was finally past IT. Finally past the days of having to risk it on a coach that may or may not be the guy. Sure, every hire is a risk to some extent but there are levels of risk. After finishing in the top 25 and having a senior laden team returning next season, playing in the Big East, paying a $1.6 million salary to the previous coach, having fantastic facilities, 16,000+ attendance per game....why is this level of risk even necessary?

MU apparently tried to get Bennett and Miller. No doubt those would both be a reach and not surprising MU couldn't land them. They have their own wonderful programs in play, one is at state school with it's own built in advantages and the other plays in a watered down league which he can dominate. So, was option three Buzz Williams? Really? I suspect he may not have been but MU did feel he was in their top 5 all along.

So many of us wanted to believe we were past this...oh how wrong we were. In 1977, we hired an assistant in Hank Raymonds. A good X's and O's coach but no buzz to carry MU in a pro market where they need that charisma. In 1983 it was another MU assistant in Rick Majerus, who did not have the maturity or the self-confidence in his own skin yet to handle that position. In 1986, MU went with Bob Dukiet after others had accepted and turned down the position. Bob Dukiet...head coach of the Peacocks of St. Peter's College. Rolls off your tongue doesn't it.

Soon after Bill Cords took over and only two years later, Bob Dukiet was gone. Cords hired Kevin O'Neill. That was a great hire....a guy with buzz (in some cases more buzz then we thought). He put MU back on the map and in the process ticked off many MU blue hair alums. GET OVER IT. That's the trade off, some alums want a coach they can feel good about but more often then not you need someone that's going to get the job done and he might hurt a few feelings in the process, to bad! O'Neill left in 1994 to be replaced by Mike Deane. Deane was a terrific X's and O's coach but short on the buzz. Recruiting was not a strong suit and the public swagger needed to put MU over the top was in short supply. Enter Tom Crean, brash assistant from arguably the best program in the country at the time. Within 3 years took a non-postseason team to the NCAA and within 4 years to the Final Four. Many alums thought he was fake, arrogant, phony....he had the buzz whether those people want to admit it or not. People liked Tom or hated him, but they talked about him either way. He created a buzz.

And so 9 days after Crean's departure, MU seeing what that buzz has done for the university during McGuire, during O'Neill, and during Crean instead takes it literally and hires a guy named Buzz that creates none of it. That's not an indictment against Williams, who I pray turns out to be everything this administration thinks he will turn into. But history can be telling and in a city like Milwaukee at a school like Marquette, history could teach some valuable lessons. MU needed to create a buzz with this hire, a real buzz. MU failed in that category.

With the resources at its disposal, one would think MU could have gone in many directions. An assistant like Groce at Ohio State, a NCAA champion coach on the hot seat like Gary Williams, an established head coach ready to make the next move like Travis Ford or Brad Brownwell. Something that would have told MU's fans and the city of Milwaukee that MU got it, that MU wasn't going to go down that path again.

So ultimately the question is why? We asked 46 days ago, WHY COTTINGHAM? Now we ask WHY BUZZ? Is it to save a recruiting class that probably can't be saved, at least the two best players in that class? Is it keep continuity with the current team? Does anyone think James or McNeal are going to get drafted in the NBA this year? So if Taylor and Nick Williams decide not to come to Marquette, did MU just hire a 14-17 DI coach to keep "continuity" for a current team which likely isn't losing anyone either and to keep a recruiting class at 50% fulfilled? Couldn't we have delievered that with any number of other guys and also create a buzz at the same time?

Truth be told, I'm rooting very hard for Buzz Williams as would any MU fan. Next year MU should be quite good, though the potential transfer of Trevor Mbakwe will hurt. I hope in a few years to bring back this essay and say, I was dead wrong. Oh how I want to be dead wrong.

In the meantime, however, disappointment is the name of the game for me. MU again was in the batter's box with a chance to do something special and after fouling a few back (Miller and Bennett) decided instead of swinging hard, they let strike three go right down the middle.

Disappointing. Steve Cottingham and Buzz Williams have a terrific opportunity to prove me and many others flat wrong. Here's to you....the praying on my end has begun.

Buzz Willams takes the reigns at MU

Much more to come later including loads of commentary from the team here......in the interim, a few reports to check out about MU's new head coach:

• Todd Rosiak blogs his conversation with Buzz Williams. Terrific work by Todd.
• Here's Rosiak's article from today's edition.
• Here's the MU Tribune on the hiring.
• Michael Hunt states the obvious, thankfully -- no buzz about Buzz. IMHO, Hunt nailed this one -- consider:

Perception is a powerful selling point, especially with the alumni who were looking for a big-splash hire, so what does the relatively quick promotion of an inexperienced, relative unknown say about Marquette?

That Marquette, with all of its money, could've attracted a bigger name?

Buzz Willams to be named new head coach at Marquette

Jeff Goodman from Fox Sports reports tonight that current Marquette assistant Brent 'Buzz' Williams will be named the program's new head coach tomorrow.

Here's the link to Jeff's report.

Gary Parrish at CBS Sportsline also reports Buzz is MU's choice.

Todd Rosiak chimes in now......confirming a 2pm press conference at The Al McGuire Center on Tuesday to announce the hiring.

Here's the official MU press release.

Here is the Marquette media alert

April 7, 2008
Media Advisory

Marquette University will introduce Brent “Buzz” Williams as the men’s basketball program’s 16th head coach at a press conference at 2 p.m. CT Tuesday afternoon at the Al McGuire Center.

The press conference will be held on the main court of the Al McGuire Center.

Members of the University and greater Milwaukee community are encouraged to attend and support Williams as he takes over the leadership of the nationally recognized program.