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.

Rumors du jour.........

After a quiet day (a few quiet days, in fact) for the MU coaching search, late this afternoon two rumors gained momentum on the message boards.

First - - The MUScoop and the Dodds boards each report that MU could announce the hiring of its new head men's basketball coach on Tuesday. If so, that could mean Buzz Williams is in line to be the next coach.

Second -- A thread on the Dodds board indicates that Steve 'The Homer' True reported on his radio program that he's hearing a rumor that MU will throw $2M at Washington State head coach Tony Bennett. Also per MUScoop, Mike DeCourcy indicated on TSN Radio earlier today that Bennett is still in play. Same thing on the Dodds board.

Of the two, here's hoping the Bennett rumors are most accurate.

Monday morning coaching update

A few key items from around the Web regarding the MU coaching search:

• Rosiak blogged late last night, most of it revolving around Buzz Williams as well as the possible emerging candidacy of SIU's Chris Lowery. Rosiak also throws out two other names: UK assistant Tracy Webster, and current Baylor coach Scott Drew.
  
• Sean Miller is sticking with X, no surprise.
  
• Garry Howard of the Journal-Sentinel emerged from hibernation long enough to deliver a column designed to help repair Tom Crean's reputation with the MU fan base (or so it would appear).
• Tyshawn Taylor still wants out according to Zagoria.
• Need to learn (and see) more about Buzz Williams? Check out MUScoop.
  

DeCourcy updates: Buzz Williams called back from San Antonio

Mike DeCourcy, who last week provided exclusive insight into MU's search for a new head basketball coach, today reports that Buzz Williams has been called back from San Antonio to meet with university officials. According to a source cited in the report, Williams has a 'great chance' to replace Tom Crean.

In addition, current MU Board of Trustees member Doc Rivers somewhat endorsed Williams' candidacy in this report from the AP.

"Buzz wouldn't be a bad guy," said Rivers, a former Marquette player and current university trustee. "He'd be terrific. But they're going to interview a lot of guys, which they're already doing. We'll see."

Talk about it at MUScoop.

Saturday update: A Buzz about Marquette

Todd Rosiak reports this morning that current assistant Buzz Williams is "likely the top candidate" to replace Tom Irsay as the new head basketball coach at Marquette.

In a disappointing development, the article also reports that MU has approached Tony Bennett, Anthony Grant, and Sean Miller -- only to be rebuffed.

Meanwhile, WTMJ in Milwaukee is reporting that MU is down to four: Buzz Williams, Davidson's Bob McKillop, Wright State's Brad Brownell and SIU's Chris Lowery.

Chris Jenkins of the AP reports that MU already spoke with Williams informally about the opening. Thankfully it appears that Brian Gregory wants to stay in Dayton (lets hope that was just a bad rumor the other day).

The momentum (er, buzz) around Williams could be an indication that Marquette is keen to stop the bleeding with the incoming 2009 recruits, not to mention any players on the current roster. Williams could offer a smooth bridge to a new era on campus, without the disruption of a complete regime change.

We'll watch this space closely.

BTW, the Bleacher Report has an interesting list of 'up and coming' coaches to check out.

Here is what we know

What a wild week........as of 3:15pm CDT on Friday afternoon, here is what we think we know is going on since Tom Crean 'went Irsay' on Marquette University back on April Fools Day.

• The Marquette Board of Trustees is meeting today to discuss the search for a new head coach. It is noteworthy that former MU basketball players Doc Rivers and Ulice Payne serve on the board. It is also noteworthy that this is the same organization that brought us the Marquette Gold (though they did hire TC way back when).
  
• 2009 commits Nick Williams and Tyshawn Taylor have asked to be released from their commitment to attend Marquette. MU has not officially responded to these requests.
• 2009 recruits Chris Otule and Joseph Fulce are in 'wait and see' mode.
• Per IWB, it looks like former MU assistant coaches Tim Buckley and Bennie Seltzer will join Tom Crean in Bloomington.
• The Dayton Daily News is reporting that the next head coach at Marquette will be current Dayton coach Brian Gregory. This guy had better be wrong, very wrong. Brian Gregory is the second-best college coach in his own city.
• Yesterday, another reporter at the same Dayton newspaper claimed that Wright State's Brad Brownell was on MU's short list. Brownell is an intriguing candidate who was evidently the runner-up choice for Indiana.
  
• KJR sports radio in Seattle reported last night that Tony Bennett informed his university president that he will be staying at Washington State University.
• Other coaches mentioned in connection with the MU job: Bruce Weber, John Groce, and Sean Miller. Cracked Sidewalks thinks it is extremely unlikely that Miller departs Xavier. He already makes good money, has great facilities, and a supportive administration. Ther guess here is that he is waiting for Jamie Dixon to bail on Pittsburgh so he can return to his Alma Mater.
  
• With the MU fan base, the candidacy of current assistant Buzz Williams is a very hot topic.
• If that's not enough, IWB has a list of rumors to check out at the SportsBubbler.
• According to a few reports in the Hoosier State, IU has agreed to pay MU a buyout of $650K. We've not heard the last on that issue.
  

Right now, if we trust the collective wisdom of The Internets (and who wouldn't!?), then the top three most likely candidates would appear to be Buzz Williams, Brian Gregory, and Brad Brownell.

Who is your preferred candidate from among that group?

Exclusive: Jonah Keri on the Marquette Coaching Search

Fresh of our Q&A with Mike DeCourcy, it is our pleasure to welcome another Exclusive Q&A to Cracked Sidewalks. Today's Q&A is with Jonah Keri, who contributes to the New York Sun as their college basketball writer. If you aren't familiar with the NY Sun, it's actually a little gem of sports coverage that also includes contributions from John Hollinger, Tim Marchman, Aaron Schatz and Steven Goldman. When not covering college basketball, Mr. Keri also contributes as a baseball columnist for ESPN.

We first became familiar with his writing when he published an interesting article on Inconsistent Teams, which had coverage of Marquette. The stats-driven coverage reminded us of our own analysis of Marquette as a High Risk Stock. Several email exchanges later, Mr. Keri was kind enough to also answer some of our questions and bring his perspective to the Marquette Coaching search as well.


What do you think are the most important criteria Marquette will need to consider for the next coach?
JK: Someone committed to continuity. While Marquette obviously plays in an elite conference, some of the best situations I've seen in the college game reside among the top mid-majors. At Butler, for instance, Brad Stevens did a great job in his first season as head coach. He made a few tweaks of his own, but mostly, he followed the blueprint set forth by his predecessor and mentor Todd Lickliter. If/when Stevens leaves one day, you get the feeling that Stevens' successor will likely be a well schooled top Butler assistant. There's a lot to be said for building a winning system, so that if the next Marquette coach gets wooed by a glamour program a few years down the road, it won't leave the program grasping for answers.


In your opinion, which coach would be the best fit for the job?
JK: Tony Bennett, to me, is one of the top five coaches in the country. With a number of his top seniors graduating from Washington State this year, and the Bennett ties in the state of Wisconsin, I'd make a big run at him. There are any number of terrific mid-major coaches out there too. Would Bob McKillop consider leaving Davidson after their Cinderalla run? I'd want to find out, because he does a great job both of running a motion offense and getting great performance from a defense that's lacking in athleticism. I think I may have just described Bo Ryan, actually.


Marquette has a lot going for it (Big East, great facilities, commitment to pay large dollars), but coaching searches are always less fruitful than fans want. To what extent will MU be able to attract a top candidate?
JK: Well I thought Tom Crean was a pretty good coach for as long as he lasted at Marquette, for what it's worth. I think a lot of how the search goes will depend on how many other plum jobs are out there. This isn't like last off-season, where Tubby Smith's departure from Kentucky started a chain reaction of movement to attractive coaching gigs. Marquette could be a prime destination this time. If that happens, there's no reason the school can't get someone very good.


Buzz Williams, the ex-UNO coach and current MU assistant, is a hot name on the message boards because the feeling is he could stop the bleeding. Hiring from within paid dividends for Pitt with Jamie Dixon, do you see any parallels here?
JK: I'm absolutely a fan of hiring from within, if a strong candidate exists. And yes, with Tyshawn Taylor reportedly bolting and potentially more recruits thinking about it, getting a handle on things quickly makes a lot of sense. At the same time, if there's a better candidate out there who may require a little more time and wooing, it might make sense to be a little patient, or as patient as Marquette can be without triggering a mass exodus. Hypothetically, if they convinced someone of Bennett's ilk to sign on, that might be as attractive--maybe even more attractive--to recruits than hiring Buzz Williams or another assistant. With that said, no one knows what's in the hearts and minds of these recruits better than they do. Marquette's administration would do well to reach out to the incoming class and see what they're thinking, how patient they're willing to be, etc.


One of the best aspects of the Big East is that the BE Champion should be considered a strong candidate to also be the national champion. However, it's clear that one motivator for Crean to move to IU was the ability to attract better recruits and contend for that same NCAA championship. To what extent do you think Marquette will be able to contend for the Big East and NCAA Championship?
JK: If Dominic James and Jerel McNeal stay, and most of the recruiting class keeps their commitments, Marquette's looking pretty darn good for next year. Indiana loses D.J. White and probably Eric Gordon too. Indiana will always attract top talent. But for right now, I'd take Marquette's chances over Indiana's for next season.


A big issue in Marquette land with Crean over the last few days is not THAT he left, but HOW he left. Basically his bosses and his players found out the same time everyone else did. What's your opinion?
JK: Brian McNamee said it best: It is what it is. Coaches make power plays all the time, and many of them don't say anything until the news is official and ready for public consumption. Meanwhile we have student-athletes generating millions for their schools, with no compensation of their own and no leverage other than to transfer on the fly and sit out a year when something like this happens. The Crean situation is no different than hundreds that have come before it. It is what it is.


Part of the fun with a coaching search is all of the various names that pop up, but sometimes they appear to be names that are selected at random. As a media insider, what's your take on why/how this occurs?
JK: Hey, I have no inside knowledge that Tony Bennett's name has even been mentioned, but I floated him out there myself! I think the media tries to analyze what's out there, consider possible connections in terms of geography, relationships and playing style, then go from there. When we hear the actual names under consideration, it's only because the school in question has decided to make those names public. Otherwise all we can do is speculate. And hey, it keeps things interesting and keeps people engaged.

If you're a Marquette fan, you have to be bummed that Crean bolted for Indiana. But it's also an exciting time in a way, with the future lying in front of you and all these possibilities on the table.

Bonus Stats question - This year was the first year that more of the "Pomeroy-stats" started getting published by national writers (such as yourself and Luke Winn). To what extent do you think that these possession-based stats will gain more popular acceptance?
JK: First of all, let's elaborate a bit. The Pomeroy you're referring it is Ken Pomeroy, and he does tremendous work. I hit his Web site, kenpom.com, constantly for information that can help me better understand the game and the players that play it. Pomeroy's work at BasketballProspectus.com is also excellent. Dean Oliver, who's the author of the terrific book "Basketball On Paper", is another big influence. Luke Winn at SI does great work with all of these metrics (as does Grant Wahl at SI, Andy Glockner at ESPN and others), more are catching on every day, and I just try my best to keep up.

As for when this catches on more widely, I think it'll happen fast. Basketball doesn't have the same entrenched dogma and unbreakable (and often misguided) traditions that baseball does. I expect basketball writers, teams and coaches to run with this very soon, if they haven't already. On the professional level, Daryl Morey of the Rockets has done amazing things by applying these principles to player acquisition and evaluation. Others are doing the same. It's exciting to see people seeking out new sources of knowledge and applying them to their jobs. It can make the quality of play higher and the game more enjoyable for all of us.


Jonah, thanks for taking the time to offer your perspective.

Also, feel free to check out Jonah Keri's Final Four preview on Which Number One Is the True Number One?

Exclusive: Mike DeCourcy on the Marquette coaching search

It is our pleasure to welcome The Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy, one of the nation's top college basketball writers, to Cracked Sidewalks.

Mike was gracious enough to offer his perspectives on the Marquette program and the current search for a new head basketball coach in this Q & A, which he completed exclusively for Cracked Sidewalks.

Which names do you expect to hear in connection with the job?
(MD) There are few things I hate worse than "lists" and "names being mentioned." Whose list? Mentioned by whom? Too many in the media just throw out as many people as it seems might be peripherally connected with a job without any consideration to whether that person might actually be interested, or whether that person might be qualified, or whether that person would be of interest to the people doing the hiring.

What do you think are the most important criteria Marquette will need to consider when narrowing down candidates for the next coach?
(MD) Getting the best person for the job. That's all. He'd better be an excellent recruiter, because even though Marquette is a wonderful university with a passionate following, it is a Big East school in Big Ten country -- and that makes it, by definition, a difficult sell. Tom Crean recruits as well as any head coach, and it was tough for him to get all the people he wanted.

The next coach also better be good with Xs and Os, because he almost certainly is going to be going against teams with better players -- there aren't going to be many years in which the Golden Eagles' talent is not bested by some combination of Connecticut, Georgetown, Syracuse and one or two others.

In your opinion, which coach would be the best fit for the job?
(MD) I don't think Marquette should fear hiring an assistant. It worked out beautifully last time. One person I would tell you is very gifted and ready to make this kind of move is John Groce, the associate head coach at Ohio State. He helped build the roster that went to last year's NCAA title game, had a large hand in recruiting Stanley Burrell for Xavier, which made this year's Elite Eight and was a big part of Butler's success early in this decade. He does much of the gameplanning and play-calling for the Buckeyes now. He would excel in this position.

Marquette has a lot going for it in terms of the Big East, great facilities, commitment to pay large dollars, but coaching searches are always less fruitful than fans want. To what extent will MU be able to attract a top candidate?
(MD) When Marquette hired Tom Crean, how many fans really knew who he was? Maybe those who were really in tune. Not to be disrespectful, but fans too often get caught up in whether a coach is famous and not whether he's truly gifted. Getting a "name" coach generally is the least important consideration.

Will having a new athletic director hinder Marquette's ability to land one of its prime targets?
(MD) I would think not, so long as that AD consults the right people and makes wise decisions. Hey, Indiana's AD was on a long losing streak and pulled out Tom Crean. So I wouldn't put it past anyone to hire a good coach.

Buzz Williams is a hot name on the message boards because the feeling is he could stop the bleeding. Hiring from within paid dividends for Pitt with Jamie Dixon, do you see any parallels here?
(MD) It's a different deal, but that doesn't mean Buzz couldn't do a great job. Jamie helped Ben Howland build up the program. He helped write the blueprint. Buzz was a relatively recent addition to Tom's staff. However, Buzz has more head coaching experience than Jamie had and is an extremely accomplished recruiter. His connections to Texas offer Marquette an avenue to talent that could be very useful. I thought Buzz was a great hire by Tom. Keeping him could work out very well.

One of the best aspects of the Big East is that the BE Champion should be considered a strong candidate to also be the national champion. However, it's clear that one motivator for Crean to move to IU was the ability to attract better recruits and contend for that same NCAA championship. To what extent do you think Marquette will be able to contend for the Big East and NCAA Championship?
(MD) I'd say the two are more mutually exclusive than you suggest. Pitt has proven that. Pitt has won Big East titles -- regular-season and tournament -- with teams that had virtually no chance of winning the NCAAs. You need much more talent to win six NCAA Tournament games than to win even the best league over the course of 18 games. It's a different challenge and values physical toughness and stamina much more than individual playmaking ability.

Mike, thanks for taking the time to offer your perspectives during a busy Final Four week.

Folks, please be sure to bookmark Mike's landing page over at The Sporting News and check back often for the latest news and perspectives on college hoops.

Pray

I'm part of what is probably a small minority that would suggest that the success of our next coach is dependent more on the grace of God than any careful evaluation that Steve Cottingham might undertake over the next few days.

There isn't an AD on earth that could make a 100% perfect decision between the type of candidates that MU will have available to them. How could they? Is it really possible to come up with some way to accurately predict the future performance of ANY coach?

If there were a way to predict who will be successful in five years and who will fall short, there wouldn't be any failed coaches. Unfortunately, there is no book on how to pick the perfect coach--the one who will recruit well, win at the highest levels, graduate all his players, be loved by fans & media alike, and never ever leave.

All we know is that any candidate that MU would consider has three things in common:

--They all have some track record of success.

--There is absolutely no way to know how that track record will translate as the Head Coach at MU.

--Every one of them already has rabid fans and vocal detractors.

Unless Cottingham goes off the rails and rehires Bob Dukiet, there will be a defensible case for just about any of the candidates who's names are being mentioned: Altman, Few, Miller, Bennett, Brad Brownell, Martelli, Jay Wright, Larranga, Buzz Williams, McKillop, Jim Boylan, Anthony Grant, Krueger, Anderson, Horn, Trent Montgomery, Bruce Weber, Majerus, Bruce Pearl, Painter, Lowery, Keno Davis, Scott Drew, Frachilla, Travis Ford, Lawrence Frank, Kristkowiak. I'm sure there are some I missed.

Is it really possible to think that anyone can separate one coach who stands above all the others from the above list? I doubt it.

History gives us no guide. In the late 1990's, Pete Gillen moved from Providence to Virginia, and Rick Barnes moved from Clemson to Virginia. I think there was almost universal belief that Virginia made the home run hire, and Texas was simply hiring an interim coach to clean up for the disgraced Tom Penders. Gillen had taken Providence to an Elite Eight. Barnes above average but certainly not outstanding performer during his time at Providence and Clemson. We all know who wound up the better coach.

The obvious question--did Texas make the better hire because their AD was better? More experienced? Had a better selection committee or consultant?

Was this truly within the AD's hands? Or God's?

I'm going with the latter. Pray that the next head coach at MU wins consistently, maintains the high standards of ethics and academic performance, recruits well, and represents the school and the community well.

“If someone leaves us, we just want to rub it in.”

Dominic James summed it up for many Marquette fans today when he spoke those words at the afternoon press conference -- many thanks to the team at the re-designed alternative MU newspaper, The Warrior, for sending this our way. Nice job, fellas.

BTW, don't forget the humor break (at the expense of the rodents).

And check out Hilltopper's sublime entry from this afternoon, Ceilings and Forest Fires.

.......much more to come here at Cracked Sidewalks.

Who will be the next coach: A top 10 list of potential candidates

While the MU fanbase moves from shock to despair to anger and soon to hope, let's take a look at some potential candidates for the head coaching job.

Unlike when MU hired Crean roughly a decade ago, this is no longer a mid-major program so the pool of available talent will be much more impressive. Marquette should no longer be forced to look for the next 'hot young assistant' or re-tread -- but rather, for a proven, young successful coach with a track record of recruiting and winning.

With a strong returning core of talent, a solid 2009 recruiting class, big money, fine facilities, the nation's best conference and unparalleled support from the administration -- Marquette is now in a strong position to land a terrific coach. Here are few names that might surface, in order of personal preference:

1) Sean Miller (Xavier): An ideal fit......he's a Big East guy stuck in the mediocre A-10 who has proven himself for the Jesuits at Xavier.
2) Tony Bennett (Washington State): Popular opinion would make him the logical first call for Cottingham. A Wisconsin native and part of that state's basketball royalty, he'd be an instant hit in Milwaukee. But after looking past IU, would MU have what it takes to entice him to bail on Wazzu?
3) Scott Drew (Baylor): Drew made lemonade out of lemons in Baylor of all places, somehow finding a way to rebuild a program rocked to its core just a few years ago. With a strong midwestern heritage and two different head coaching stops, Drew has the experience and is a proven winner.
4) Anthony Grant (VCU): Perhaps this rising star is the wildcard for MU. Grant, one of the top assistant coaches in the nation under Billy Donovan at Florida, has done nothing to disappoint since arriving at VCU. In two seasons there, he's won 52 games and a pair of conference titles.
5) Travis Ford (UMass): Part of the professionally promiscuous Rick Pitino coaching tree, Ford is a proven winner at each of his stops along the way. UMass is coming off of a 21 win season, and Ford might look to bail for a real league and a program that is committed to playing with the big boys.

There are several second-tier options which might surface:
5) Brad Brownell (Wright State): He's won big with two mid-major programs, UNCW and now Wright State. The Indiana native is a proven winner -- but can he recruit? We know he can coach -- he rebuilt Wright State on the fly and put together back to back 20-win seasons.
6) Chris Lowery (SIU): Until this year, his teams always exceeded expectations and won big in March.
7) Buzz Williams: Williams was good enough to be named the head coach at New Orleans, though he left that program in a lurch last year. A recruiter par excellance, Williams could give MU the best shot at retaining the present roster.
8) Phil Martelli (St. Josephs): Martelli is a proven winner at a fellow Jesuit institution, and has successfully recruited the East Coast in recent years. Moving from the A-10 to the Big East is a natural progression.
9) Lon Kruger (UNLV): The guy can flat-out coach and won in the Midwest before. It would feel like a re-tread hire, but Kruger is a proven coach and program builder.
10) Brian Gregory (Dayton): Part of the Tom Izzo coaching tree, Gregory re-established Dayton as a respectable program. Its fair to wonder though, why he can't win big in a mediocre A-10. A reach.

Thanks but no thanks: Rick Majerus, Kevin O'Neill, Tommy Amaker, Tim Buckley, Johnny Dawkins, Steve Robinson, Matt Doherty, Bruce Weber, and Dana Altman.

Tyshawn Taylor to seek release from MU

Zagoria talks to Bob Hurley, Taylor's coach, in his latest blog.

No surprise, though MU is not obligated to release Taylor or any member of the 2009 class from their binding LOIs. In the past under Bill Cords, MU did not honor these requests - - - but times have changed.

In fairness, the actual quote from Hurley is:

"I would like the opportunity to have him released from his scholarship in the event that we don't like who's hired"

That implies that any new coach would still have the opportunity to re-recruit Taylor and convince him that the new staff would be a good fit.

Regardless, it's time for quick, decisive action from Marquette in the face of these shocking developments.

New Marquette AD faces daunting task

Now that Tom Crean has cast his lot with the Indiana Hoosiers, Marquette faces the unenviable task of starting anew.

Steve Cottingham, Marquette's newly minted AD, will lead the effort to find a new head basketball coach just 36 days after taking over the reigns of an athletic department for the first time. Cottingham has never hired a coach before (a scenario which made Cracked Sidewalks ask "Why Cottingham" when he was originally announced). Cottingham now faces the daunting challenge of replacing the man who, along with strong support from the administration and alumni, rebuilt the Marquette program to heights only surpassed by the legendary Al McGuire.

Given MU's willingness to pay Tom Crean top-dollar to run the program, there's no reason to believe that the administration will pare back its commitment to maintaining a high level of success with the men's basketball program. In the past, Marquette University President Robert Wild has indicated that a successful men's basketball program is a key aspect of his overall strategy for the university. As long as Father Wild remains at MU, expect the Golden Eagles to invest in hoops.

Considering the administration's long-term commitment to hoops, Cottingham should have the resources to land a very desirable candidate. Of course, he'll need to because this hire will define his tenure at Marquette.

With first-class facilities, strong support from the administration, a large budget, a burgeoning fan base, expanded online coverage, and a strong roster of returning talent (we hope), the Marquette coaching job is as appealing as it's been in a long time. Now it's time to fill it with a candidate who can continue the momentum the program has built during the past nine seasons.

Steve Cottingham is on the clock.

......much more to come here on Cracked Sidewalks, check back often!

It's official: Crean is gone

Marquette confirms that Tom Crean is moving on:

Marquette University wishes Tom Crean, his wife Joani and the Crean family the very best as he pursues new professional opportunities. Tom and Joani have been an important part of our Marquette family for the past nine years, devoting countless hours not only to our men's basketball program but to other athletic and community endeavors as well.

Coach Crean has brought pride, honor and a winning mentality to our men's basketball program. It is no surprise that other universities would seek him out.

Coach Crean put Marquette back in the forefront of college basketball by embracing our strong tradition and building a competitive program for today. His tutelage resulted in three recent Marquette graduates earning NBA contracts. In his nine seasons, Marquette has averaged 20 wins a year, won a conference championship and made eight postseason appearances, including the 2003 Final Four and this year's second-round loss to Stanford. Since 2001, Crean has directed the Golden Eagles to 190 victories. He is a two-time recipient of the Ray Meyer Conference USA, NABC District XI and USBWA District V Coach of the Year awards, and in 2003 won the Coach Clair Bee Award as well as being named a finalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Award.

The basketball program Tom has built is strong, with talented players and staff and solid university support. We anticipate that a Marquette coaching vacancy will attract many well-qualified candidates. We look forward to continuing Marquette's winning legacy and to competing successfully at the highest national level.

Crean: "I'm happy at Marquette"

While just yesterday, when Florida's Billy Donovan was headed for a job in the NBA and Tom Crean's name was linked to the UF opening, it would appear he's taken his name out of the running.

From ESPN:

Earlier at the NBA pre-draft camp in Orlando, Memphis coach John Calipari and Marquette coach Tom Crean both said they are not candidates for the position. If Florida were to go outside of the family, meaning not VCU's Anthony Grant, then Villanova's Jay Wright is expected to be on the radar.

From Gainseville.com:

"I'm happy at Marquette," Crean said Thursday. "They gave me a job eight years ago and I've enjoyed every minute of it."

This is amazing. So many other openings through the years, the Warrior faithful have had to endure days or weeks of waiting for colored smoke to come out of the Al Center chimney to see what Crean will do.

This time, hours after his name is linked to the opening, he says those 4 magic words:

"I'm happy at Marquette."

Whew.