(04-07-2013 04:09 AM)NJRedMan Wrote:  http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/22020860/former-ucla-coach-ben-howland-would-be-interested-in-rutgers

Great get if this is true.

(04-07-2013 06:27 AM)Maize Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 04:09 AM)NJRedMan Wrote:  http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/22020860/former-ucla-coach-ben-howland-would-be-interested-in-rutgers

Great get if this is true.

That would be a serious upgrade for Rutgers. Very good coach and very tied in the NYC area.

(04-07-2013 08:58 AM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  What kind of an idiot would take the Rutgers job before they even had an AD? I can assure you, Ben Howland is a lot of things but an idiot is not among them.

Here's some info on Howland:

Ben Howland is a West Coast guy. Before coming to Pitt, all of his coaching experience came at Western schools. Pitt, which was rarely good in basketball - a little like Rutgers today - hired him from Northern Arizona on the recommendation of Sonny Vaccaro - addidas' former basketball ops president. Vaccaro, a Pittsburgh native, co-founded the Dapper Dan Roundball Classic - the first high school all-star game. That game eventually became the McDonald's All-American Game.

Howland is a great coach but when he came to Pitt, it was the perfect storm. Pitt was just completing the Petersen Events Center - which was a MASSIVE upgrade over Fitzgerald Field House. That has proven to be an enormous recruiting tool.

Also, Howland had a great young assistant named Jamie Dixon. They were a helluva strategic tandem. So good in fact that even though Pitt was never among the most talented teams in the Big East, we were ALWAYS competing for the league championship. At one point Pitt played in something like seven Big East Championship games in eight years or something ridiculous like that. All this despite never producing a single first round draft pick.

That's just ridiculously good coaching - plain and simple.

Another factor that doesn't get talked about nearly enough is that Pitt already had Orlando Antigua in the fold. Antigua was a former Panther player - and a good one at that. Antigua was an AWESOME recruiter - primarily because his brother, Oliver is a prominent and extremely well connected HS coach in NYC. Oliver was a former GA at Pitt.

The Antigua's brought in Barry "Slice" Rohrsson, who ultimately became the staff's ace recruiter. Slice came to Pitt from UNLV I believe and he brought in all of the NYC recruits to Pittsburgh including Karl Krauser, LeVance Fields, Ronald Ramon and Keith Benjamin among others.

Orlando Antigua is now Kentucky's top recruiter under John Calipari, another Pittsburgh native and former Pitt assistant. In fact, Calipari recruited Antigua to Pitt. Rohrsson left Pitt to take the head job at Manhattan but flamed out there and is now in the D League I believe.

See how interwoven this all is? That could be difficult to replicate at Rutgers. The first thing Howland would have to do would be to recruit Rohrsson to come and work for him again. That too could be a challenge because Ben has a rep for being difficult to work with and Slice may not be in any hurry to reform their partnership.

Howland would be a great choice by Rutgers, IMHO. However, he has his warts and his hire guarantees nothing. Also, if I were Howland, I would wait until I saw who I was working for before signing on with anyone.

(04-07-2013 06:31 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  I think Rutgers is going to hire Hurley.

(04-07-2013 08:42 PM)brista21 Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 06:31 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  I think Rutgers is going to hire Hurley.

I really hope not, but fear your right. Hurley is not the answer for the program.

(04-07-2013 09:42 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  The most nervous person right now outside of the school prez has GOT to be Kyle Flood. A new AD probably wants his own FB coach in place and if he underachieves this season he could see himself on his way out as the Knights enter their new home in the B1G and the increased level of play.

(04-07-2013 10:18 PM)RutgersMike Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 09:42 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  The most nervous person right now outside of the school prez has GOT to be Kyle Flood. A new AD probably wants his own FB coach in place and if he underachieves this season he could see himself on his way out as the Knights enter their new home in the B1G and the increased level of play.

True, but every current RU coach is feeling nervous. Men's basketball is the priority now and for the forseeable future, so the media spotlight should be off Flood for the next three years. CVS has to be on edge though.

(04-07-2013 11:01 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 10:18 PM)RutgersMike Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 09:42 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  The most nervous person right now outside of the school prez has GOT to be Kyle Flood. A new AD probably wants his own FB coach in place and if he underachieves this season he could see himself on his way out as the Knights enter their new home in the B1G and the increased level of play.

True, but every current RU coach is feeling nervous. Men's basketball is the priority now and for the forseeable future, so the media spotlight should be off Flood for the next three years. CVS has to be on edge though.

I think FB is still the major player at Rutgers. The impending move to the B1G will really put pressure on Flood to show he is the man who can succeed in the new conference. If he struggles in the AAC with the best recruiting class in school history he will have very little support from the boosters. No way a new AD (and possible president) will stand by him. Their move up makes them a much more attractive job to quality HC's.

At least that what I think.

(04-08-2013 02:56 AM)Rich52c Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 11:01 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 10:18 PM)RutgersMike Wrote:  

(04-07-2013 09:42 PM)NJRedMan Wrote:  The most nervous person right now outside of the school prez has GOT to be Kyle Flood. A new AD probably wants his own FB coach in place and if he underachieves this season he could see himself on his way out as the Knights enter their new home in the B1G and the increased level of play.

True, but every current RU coach is feeling nervous. Men's basketball is the priority now and for the forseeable future, so the media spotlight should be off Flood for the next three years. CVS has to be on edge though.

I think FB is still the major player at Rutgers. The impending move to the B1G will really put pressure on Flood to show he is the man who can succeed in the new conference. If he struggles in the AAC with the best recruiting class in school history he will have very little support from the boosters. No way a new AD (and possible president) will stand by him. Their move up makes them a much more attractive job to quality HC's.

At least that what I think.

I believe Delaney is helping Rutgers find a new AD.Someone like an associate AD at Big 10 school rather someone without the needed experience Rutgers typically hires.As for the men's bb coach,given Rutgers financial difficulties in athletics it will be someone young like the hc of Iona or Manhattan .

(04-08-2013 09:32 AM)94panther Wrote:  I could see Howland taking a year off, and having the pick of multiple jobs next year.