OFFICIAL Possible Basketball Coaches Thread

['SkersRule]

It just boggles my mind why we can't seem to hire a great basketball coach.

[huskerhill]

Does anyone have any ideas on why we can't hire a great men's basketball coach?

When you consider that your program's biggest claim to fame is being one of only 2 teams that have never won an NCAA Tournament game, it becomes fairly obvious.

 

I don't buy that as a reason.

 

Why not?

['SkersRule]

Why not?

 

Because coaches are by nature extremely competitive and they love challenges. And really, what better way to raise your coaching stock than to be able to say, "I made the Nebraska men's basketball program into a top notch program where invitations to the NCAA tournamnet are the norm." And if a coach "fails" while here it doesn't really hurt him because we suck at basketball anyway.

[T_O_Bull]

As most of you know I've been lobying for Rick Majeras as our next coach. It doesn't look like he was ever really in the mix so I will now change my alligence. I've read quite a bit about Tim Miles. He's got strong ties to the states surrounding Nebraska. Born and raised in South Dakota coached in North Dakota, Minnesota and Colorado so he will obviously be kown by high school coaches all through the upper mid-west. Not really a hot bed of BB talent but

sd has sent two of our young men to Billy Donavan's Florida Gator teams. First Mike Miller who now holds up Labron, Duane and the rest of the Miami Heat (tounge planted firmly in cheek) and currently Cody Larson a red shirt frosh on an Elite 8 team. If miles brings his recruiting assistant with him then we will have strong ties to the Chicago/Illinois area. Do the deal if you haven't already done so and then concentrate on acquiring a plane for the Nebrasket ball program T.O.

T_O_B

G>B>R

[Omaha-Husker]

Why not?

 

Because coaches are by nature extremely competitive and they love challenges. And really, what better way to raise your coaching stock than to be able to say, "I made the Nebraska men's basketball program into a top notch program where invitations to the NCAA tournamnet are the norm." And if a coach "fails" while here it doesn't really hurt him because we suck at basketball anyway.

 

Or you can say I went to Illinois(as an example) and say I am going to the final 4 on a regular basis.

 

Your logic says the Minnesota football program should be able to pull the same caliber coaches as Nebraska football.

['SkersRule]

Why not?

 

Because coaches are by nature extremely competitive and they love challenges. And really, what better way to raise your coaching stock than to be able to say, "I made the Nebraska men's basketball program into a top notch program where invitations to the NCAA tournamnet are the norm." And if a coach "fails" while here it doesn't really hurt him because we suck at basketball anyway.

 

Or you can say I went to Illinois(as an example) and say I am going to the final 4 on a regular basis.

 

Your logic says the Minnesota football program should be able to pull the same caliber coaches as Nebraska football.

 

Well in theory they should. And when it comes to college athletics Minnesota isn't worth being mentioned in the same breath as Nebraska. Unless you are talking strictly about ice hockey.

[T_O_Bull]

Ever since Bob Davaney came and we ended up with back to back NC's Nebraska has been a football school. After Davaney Osborne gave us 25 years of success. Never winning less than 9 games a season and many of those years were 9 win seasons when a team didn't play 11, 12 or 13 games in a season. Nebraska also went to 25 straight bowl games and the Osbourne Era ended with three more NC's in his last 4 years. When your fan base doesn't really notice that BB is being played until sometime around mid-January and there is maybe 6 weeks of the season left and then combine that with mediocre teams... Well there you have it. What coach wants to come into a situation like that?

T_O_B

G>B>R

 

So what came first, the chicken or the egg? I don't believe the explanation of why we can't hire a great men's basketball coach is because we're a "football" school. We have an awesome women's volleyball team--which plays to packed arenas during football season, the women's basketball team is rising, we are very good to great in wrestling, solid in soccer, swimming, and gymnastics.

 

The women's teams are where they are due to Title IX. Ever heard of it? Schools have been told to spend money on women's athletics. Again what 'great coach' wants to come into a situatioin where his program would be treated as an afterthought? The football team wins, the basketball team doesn't. The fan base doesn't care about BB until the season is almost over. What you believe or don't believe doesn't amount to a small hill of beans. This is how it has been for over 40 years.

T_O_B

G>B>R

[Omaha-Husker]

Why not?

 

Because coaches are by nature extremely competitive and they love challenges. And really, what better way to raise your coaching stock than to be able to say, "I made the Nebraska men's basketball program into a top notch program where invitations to the NCAA tournamnet are the norm." And if a coach "fails" while here it doesn't really hurt him because we suck at basketball anyway.

 

Or you can say I went to Illinois(as an example) and say I am going to the final 4 on a regular basis.

 

Your logic says the Minnesota football program should be able to pull the same caliber coaches as Nebraska football.

 

Well in theory they should. And when it comes to college athletics Minnesota isn't worth being mentioned in the same breath as Nebraska. Unless you are talking strictly about ice hockey.

 

I wasn't trying to equate the two athletic departments, but Minnesota's football facilities are much better than the teams they put on the field. Same for Nebraska basketball now.

 

It just comes down to the ability to win at any program. And Nebraska basketball has never shown an ability to win. It would take a special guy to turn down a better job to try and buck 100 years of Nebrasketball history.

['SkersRule]

The women's teams are where they are due to Title IX. Ever heard of it? Schools have been told to spend money on women's athletics. Again what 'great coach' wants to come into a situatioin where his program would be treated as an afterthought? The football team wins, the basketball team doesn't. The fan base doesn't care about BB until the season is almost over. What you believe or don't believe doesn't amount to a small hill of beans. This is how it has been for over 40 years.

T_O_B

G>B>R

 

So maybe the basketball team should work and play hard to give the fans a reason to attend? Fans can help enliven an atmosphere, but the players need to put the foundation in, meaning winning. If Nebraska men's basketball starts playing well and winning you'll see that arena packed football season or not. But the players have to start winning and the fans will follow. And just because title nine was passed doesn't mean success. Title nine has been in effect for a long time and it is just now that the women's bb team is making waves. But all this detracts from the original question: why can't Nebraska hire a great men's basketball coach? I thank you and others for your attempts to answer but I don't think anyone has given me any plausible reasons.

['SkersRule]

It just comes down to the ability to win at any program. And Nebraska basketball has never shown an ability to win. It would take a special guy to turn down a better job to try and buck 100 years of Nebrasketball history.

 

I agree not having a history of hoops on your side hurts, but if schools like Xavier, Gonzaga, and Creighton can make it to the NCAA tournament so can Nebraska given the right coach. Thinking about Nebraska basketball gives me a headache.

[Omaha-Husker]

Recruiting

History

Fan support(I get that IF the team wins people will attend, but right now the support isn't there)

Culture(The hard working graduating players model that Nebraska fans love and are proud of doesn't translate that well on the basketball court)

Did I mention recruiting?

[Omaha-Husker]

It just comes down to the ability to win at any program. And Nebraska basketball has never shown an ability to win. It would take a special guy to turn down a better job to try and buck 100 years of Nebrasketball history.

 

I agree not having a history of hoops on your side hurts, but if schools like Xavier, Gonzaga, and Creighton can make it to the NCAA tournament so can Nebraska given the right coach. Thinking about Nebraska basketball gives me a headache.

 

Xavier gets to recruit talent rich areas. Gonzaga found a great coach that was willing to stick around, hopefully that is Tim Miles for us. Creighton is by far the best program in it's conference, makes it easy to beat out peers when recruiting. Nebraska can't make that claim against it's peers.

['SkersRule]

For the longest time our baseball team was as bad as our men's basketball team currently is. Then we hired the guy who was three head coaches ago and right now his name completely eludes me. Point is, he was hired and made Nebraska baseball competitive in the NCAA tournament with even a couple of appearances in the college world series. The point is if it can be done in baseball it can be done it in basketball.

[T_O_Bull]

Why not?

 

Because coaches are by nature extremely competitive and they love challenges. And really, what better way to raise your coaching stock than to be able to say, "I made the Nebraska men's basketball program into a top notch program where invitations to the NCAA tournamnet are the norm." And if a coach "fails" while here it doesn't really hurt him because we suck at basketball anyway.

 

Or you can say I went to Illinois(as an example) and say I am going to the final 4 on a regular basis.

 

Your logic says the Minnesota football program should be able to pull the same caliber coaches as Nebraska football.

 

Well in theory they should. And when it comes to college athletics Minnesota isn't worth being mentioned in the same breath as Nebraska. Unless you are talking strictly about ice hockey.

 

Not a fan of Minnesota at any level but you should perhaps do a little research on their history in atheletics...

 

National Championships earned by the University of Minnesota...

• Football (6):
  

1934, 1935, 1936, 1940, 1941, 1960

• Men's Basketball (3):
  

1902, 1903, 1919

• Men's Ice Hockey (7):
  

1929, 1940, 1974, 1976, 1979, 2002, 2003

• Women's Ice Hockey (4):
  

2000, 2004, 2005, 2012

• Baseball (3):
  

1956, 1960, 1964

• Men's Golf (1):
  

2002

• Men's Outdoor Track and Field (1):
  

1948

• Wrestling (3):
  

2001, 2002, 2007

 

Seems they have done fairly well over the years and not just in Ice Hockey. Considering the climate the 3 baseball championships and 1 golf championship are quite impressive.

 

T_O_B

G>B>R

['SkersRule]

So maybe the "answer" to why we can't hire a great men's BB coach is that no great coaches want to come here. I don't know if that's true, but it sure does seem that way.