Michigan

[Eric15]

Michigan was 8-24 last year. They fired their former player head coach Juwan Howard who had no previous head coach experience, and brought in Dusty May who had an established track record of success at Florida Atlantic. He took them to the Final Four in 2023.

Michigan is currently 20-5, ranked #12, and could possibly be as high as a 2 seed in the tourney if they win the Big Ten Tournament. They performed that turnaround in one season.

Lessons learned:
-in today's college basketball environment, you can turn things around very quickly with the right leadership
-it's smarter to hire coaches who have demonstrated they can win as a head coach as opposed to just crossing your fingers and hoping for the best

Disclaimer: Red is obviously a solid human being and not a total douche like Juwan.

 

[OttosShoes]

Disclaimer: Red is obviously a solid human being and not a total douche like Juwan.

Thank you for this lol. It's possible to like Red a lot and also question if he's up to the job. He's a stand-up dude and the whole situation sucks.

Whereas Juwan felt like a henchman in a Bond movie. I couldn't care less about Michigan's record but it was a relief for the sport when he got fired.

 

[ClamOtto]

Guys like May and Oats who have taken mid-majors with no tradition and limited resources to top 25 rankings and single digit seeds are no-brainers. Arkansas St. is in a four-way tie for first in the Sun Belt with four to play. Hodgson may turn out great but he's still pretty inexperienced as a head coach and hasn't really lit the college basketball world on fire yet.

 

[phil77]

Guys like May and Oats who have taken mid-majors with no tradition and limited resources to top 25 rankings and single digit seeds are no-brainers. Arkansas St. is in a four-way tie for first in the Sun Belt with four to play. Hodgson may turn out great but he's still pretty inexperienced as a head coach and hasn't really lit the college basketball world on fire yet.

22-23 they were 13-20 with a .394 winning percentage before he took over

-First year he went 20-17 and upset the #1 seed in the Sun Belt Conference tournament and lost in the title game. Big improvement first year

-Second year so far current 19-8 for a .704 winning percentage - Only lost to Bama by 9 and beat a ranked team on the road this year. At the time #16 Memphis in Memphis by 13 and like you said has them in a tie for first place. Will they make the tournament who knows.

I think that is a pretty impressive quick turnaround at a sun belt school with limited resources. Will he be a savior who knows but I do know our current coach is not and Hodgson checks a ton of boxes similar to what Fran did so I imagine that is what JW would be looking for but who knows.

 

[Scooch]

Michigan was 8-24 last year. They fired their former player head coach Juwan Howard who had no previous head coach experience, and brought in Dusty May who had an established track record of success at Florida Atlantic. He took them to the Final Four in 2023.

Michigan is currently 20-5, ranked #12, and could possibly be as high as a 2 seed in the tourney if they win the Big Ten Tournament. They performed that turnaround in one season.

Lessons learned:
-in today's college basketball environment, you can turn things around very quickly with the right leadership
-it's smarter to hire coaches who have demonstrated they can win as a head coach as opposed to just crossing your fingers and hoping for the best

Disclaimer: Red is obviously a solid human being and not a total douche like Juwan.

Out of curiosity… how many guys did Michigan bring in via the portal? And how many returning players are there? Are the core pieces new additions or returnees?

 

[JaySU22]

Out of curiosity… how many guys did Michigan bring in via the portal? And how many returning players are there? Are the core pieces new additions or returnees?

Lots of high major transfers and brought one of his FAU studs with him

 

[phil77]

Lots of high major transfers and brought one of his FAU studs with him

Yup their top 4 players are from FAU - Yale - Auburn and Ohio State.

Of their top 9 players in minutes - 3 are returning and 1 is a freshman and he averages 10 minutes a game.

 

[Eric15]

Another example is Louisville.

They went 13-19 in 2022, an incomprehensible 4-28 in 2023, and 8-24 last year. They're projected as a 6 seed in the tourney right now. It's so easy to right the ship in today's climate with the right people.

 

[SUFaninNJ]

He was also let go after his 5th year as head coach.

 

[Grbac]

Another example is Louisville.

They went 13-19 in 2022, an incomprehensible 4-28 in 2023, and 8-24 last year. They're projected as a 6 seed in the tourney right now. It's so easy to right the ship in today's climate with the right people.

And Vanderbilt

Stackhouse had them 9-23 in his last season. They hire Mark Byington from James Madison who has only been to the tourney his last season at JM.

Completely turns Vandy around from 67ppg to 80ppg this year.

They now sit at 20-9 after three straight top 25 victories.

 

[hoopsupstate]

He is no guarantee. It would be a huge gamble hiring him after what we are currently seeing. An experienced coach with a track record is a must. It’s hard to catch lightning in a bottle twice.

 

[Sherman20]

Michigan was 8-24 last year. They fired their former player head coach Juwan Howard who had no previous head coach experience, and brought in Dusty May who had an established track record of success at Florida Atlantic. He took them to the Final Four in 2023.

Michigan is currently 20-5, ranked #12, and could possibly be as high as a 2 seed in the tourney if they win the Big Ten Tournament. They performed that turnaround in one season.

Lessons learned:
-in today's college basketball environment, you can turn things around very quickly with the right leadership
-it's smarter to hire coaches who have demonstrated they can win as a head coach as opposed to just crossing your fingers and hoping for the best

Disclaimer: Red is obviously a solid human being and not a total douche like Juwan.

Exactly. So many posters on here don’t realize how fast things can turn around with a new coach. The negativity about the death of the program is extremely frustrating.

 

[M2MPrinciples]

I’d love for us to get good again so we can (among other reasons) play the Johnnies at MSG. As things currently stand Rick has no reason to say yes.

 

[atlanticuse]

Juwan took over a 30-7 team and went 19-12 his first year - similar to Red*.
In his SECOND year, he was 23-5 (yes, it was the second Covid year), and finished #4.
They were a 1 seed and lost a close game in the Elite 8.
But then he had two mediocre/almost-500 seasons, WITH top-25 appearances (as high as #4 preseason), before shatting the bed at 8-24. That looks more like Hubert Davis, less like Red.

That's 5 seasons, with a record of 87-72, with two NCAAT appearances.

Red didn't learn ANYTHING his first year, the team collapsed this year. Now what?
We're relying on super Freshmen to save the program next year? Who will stick around one season then go to the NBA or transfer to blue chip programs?

*20 Red wins included Chaminade.

 

[kirbivore]

Out of curiosity… how many guys did Michigan bring in via the portal? And how many returning players are there? Are the core pieces new additions or returnees?

The only thing I know about them without using the google machine is that center with the huge schnozz was a transfer from Yale.

 

[richard levy]

i brought this up on another thread, Vanderbilt, after 9-23 last year, fired coach, brought in Mark Byington from James Madison. He flipped the entire roster and in arguably the toughest conference is considered a lock for NCAA, anywhere from #7-10 seed depending on this week. Four wins over ranked teams, Tennessee/Kentucky/A&M/Mizzou

 

[NKR1978]

He was also let go after his 5th year as head coach.

Because he was 23-5 and went to the Elite 8 in his 2nd year.

 

[SUFaninNJ]

Because he was 23-5 and went to the Elite 8 in his 2nd year.

Right

 

[Col. Bleep]

I’d love for us to get good again so we can (among other reasons) play the Johnnies at MSG. As things currently stand Rick has no reason to say yes.

Don’t know about that.
It likely would
Sell out notwithstanding the sorry state of the Orange.
And he likely would love to put a beating on them in a packed MSG.

SU has got to get back to the level where that would be a big game of national interest.

 

[RF2044]

Exactly. So many posters on here don’t realize how fast things can turn around with a new coach. The negativity about the death of the program is extremely frustrating.

I would just caveat your first sentence by emphasizing the RIGHT coach, not just a new coach.

Which is why it will be vitally important to emphasize merit-based criteria if / when Red is replaced, and conduct proper due diligence to identify the best candidate from a group of coaches with a proven track record -- instead of emphasizing "nice to have" criteria over more relevant, job-related criteria.

Coaching is performance based. When you hire someone unqualified to a big time, P4 role -- you reap what you sow in terms of the ensuring results. As this ~20 loss season / our abysmal KenPom and NET ratings demonstrate.

If we want to right the ship, then both the AD and the University need to take a completely different approach and get serious the next time around, instead of worrying about Hop, GMac, etc. and artificially constraining the pool of candidates.

 

[kirbivore]

i brought this up on another thread, Vanderbilt, after 9-23 last year, fired coach, brought in Mark Byington from James Madison. He flipped the entire roster and in arguably the toughest conference is considered a lock for NCAA, anywhere from #7-10 seed depending on this week. Four wins over ranked teams, Tennessee/Kentucky/A&M/Mizzou

How much does Vandy spend on NIL in that conference? I'd guess middle of the pack at best.

 

[M2MPrinciples]

Don’t know about that.
It likely would
Sell out notwithstanding the sorry state of the Orange.
And he likely would love to put a beating on them in a packed MSG.

SU has got to get back to the level where that would be a big game of national interest.

I mean more that scheduling us in particular does nothing for St. John's. It won't help their NET or prepare them for the tournament. If he wants a Quad 3-4 win he can schedule a CAA/NEC/MAAC team at Carnesecca for $30K or whatever. If he wants to challenge his team he'll schedule a top-half B1G team with an NYC presence or do a home-and-home with a national program.

 

[IthacaMatt]

Exactly. So many posters on here don’t realize how fast things can turn around with a new coach. The negativity about the death of the program is extremely frustrating.

It's because people don't trust the Administration to make good or timely decisions. They will literally wait until the house has burned down before they call the Fire Dept.