High level Coaches

[BrunswickDawg]

So adding Ben Howland into our Athletic Department got me to thinking -

Have we ever had this many high level coaches working at MSU at one time? Dan is Maxwell Coach of the Year and 2 SEC COY awards this year (Athlon and AP), Cohen was 2006 COY @ Kentucky and 2013 ABCA Region COY, Vic Shaefer is the 2014-15 SEC COY by AP, Van Studeman is recognized as a top level pitching coach and has led the softball team to new heights, Steve Dudley has Track running circle around everyone and competing consistently at a national level, Ginger Brown-Lemm has taken women' golf to 2 straight NCAA Championships (we'd never been there before). Now add Ben Howland - we ain't poor ole' Missippi 'tate anymore.

[Eric Nies Grind Time]

Assuming we get Howland this is the best shape the athletic program has been in in my life....by a pretty wide margin. And people still hate Stricklin.

[messageboardsuperhero]

I was thinking about this as well. (Assuming we lock Howland down) Have we ever had coaching as a whole this good in the big 3 sports? Mullen, Cohen, and now Howland- all three of those coaches have NC game experience, either with us or at their previous jobs.

It's damn exciting. I've been pretty apathetic about basketball since the '09 tournament run, but this hire would have me all in again.

[smootness]

Assuming we get Howland this is the best shape the athletic program has been in in my life....by a pretty wide margin. And people still hate Stricklin.

If he pulls this off, then it doesn't matter what anyone thinks about him. It would be clear that Stricklin is not only serious about winning but winning at a big-time level.

It seems like he genuinely believes State can compete at an elite level in all sports and is doing what he needs to do to make it happen.

[msstate7]

If we get howland, he's probably the highest profile coach we've ever hired

[BrunswickDawg]

It seems like he genuinely believes State can compete at an elite level in all sports and is doing what he needs to do to make it happen.

But I thought all the best AD's only cared about our budget being "in the black"***

[smootness]

If we get howland, he's probably the highest profile coach we've ever hired

Absolutely. For a time there at UCLA, there were quite a few people who considered him to be as good as any coach in the country, or at worst just slightly under the level of guys like Coach K, Roy Williams, and that group.

Until Calipari won his national title 3 years ago, I don't think anyone would have said he was better than Howland.

[FlabLoser]

A sign of the times with TV money. I'm only surprised it didn't happen sooner.

I opined when the big SEC-ESPN deal was signed that this would help the small SEC schools more than the larger ones.

Larger schools that could already buy anything they wanted for their big 3 sports really don't get a lot out of being even richer, except maybe in minor sports. Maybe they build new swimming pools or add an Olympic sport.

For the SEC's "poor" schools, the ESPN deal was a budget multiplier. For those, the big 3 sports got an injection of quality. And there was plenty left over to make minor sports more respectable.

[Thompson92]

Plus the new volleyball coach is supposed to be legit, and women's tennis is the best it's been in a good ten years. Even our poorest-performing sports are on the rise.

[quickstrike2]

I don't think anyone hates Strick. I am a fan myself, I thought with Ray he might be guilty of personal pride. However, I don't think the fanbase airing frustrations because Strick does seem to listen and has handled things well. I think it is better to voice frustration than assume he knows, but that doesn't mean go full retard.

[Really Clark?]

Plus the new volleyball coach is supposed to be legit, and women's tennis is the best it's been in a good ten years. Even our poorest-performing sports are on the rise.

Men's tennis has been good as well although we promoted from within to fill that void last summer. Clay with Men's golf has built that up over time and the last few years have been the best we have ever had.