Kevin

On 1/8/2020 at 6:49 AM, Jeseph said:

Can somebody please talk me down the ledge on this hire?

We kept JW largely for continuity - - players stayed and I commend him for that but what else has been positive?

This team plays undisciplined, often uninspired basketball and the defense is atrocious in almost every facet.

Roster changes happen and there are “growing pains” with a new coach but we now have 4 inexplicable, losses. There is NO excuse to get blown out by a MAC opponent after the 5 years of growth in this program.

As a fan and a recurring donor I am, to say the least, incredibly disappointed to see our momentum fizzle our and I am getting concerned about the future.

Please tell me that this is a knee-jerk reaction. I don’t like our trajectory.

Desperately hoping this post gets saved and thrown in my face when things get “fixed”...

Jeseph was right back on 1/8/2020

Does his offer have to match Becky burke? 250k?

I feel like that could be a thing in this search.

Missing out on your top three choices is a mess right now. Whitesell was a mess of a hire for many reasons and now they can't get anyone to take this job.

On 1/8/2020 at 9:34 AM, dutchcountry7 said:

Yes, your reaction isn't logical.  We were spoiled the last year but all college basketball teams have head scratching losses and inconsistencies.  Just last night UVA lost to BC.

The program that the OP says is so great just lost last night to Drake and is no better than UB right now despite not having the turmoil our Bulls have faced.  I don't know a single program where the fans haven't said they lost a head scratcher of a game they shouldn't have this year.  It's not like we have more history and better recruits than UConn where Hurley is in his second year and suffered a confusing lose to St. Joe's.   All teams have a few of these.  There is a reason why we didn't run the table last year in the MAC despite being significantly better than every team.

The team took a step back as they rebuild and they are still one of the best teams in the conference.  That is what happens when you've got a great program and your coach is doing a good job.

Seriously, last year's team finished the OOC slate with one win over an NCAA at-large team.  And it looks like this year's team could do the same (DePaul is in the running for an at-large).  The only difference is a few setbacks early in the season. 

The sky isn't falling.  The program is in good hands. 

"the sky isn't falling. The program is in good hands"

LOL

I'd take your losses or no one takes you seriously. 

1 hour ago, dutchcountry7 said:

Nothing changed.  Everything I said there is a fact.  And Whitesell was the correct hire for UB at the time given the field of candidates and dynamics within the program. 

I know you want to beat the dead horse that your buddy Hodgeson should have got the job but it was the correct decision to not hire him.  That hasn't changed.

Curious you dig up this old comment and want to circle back on it.  Is it your attempt to discredit me after I posted the following about your boy?

There is a reason not one write up about the hiring at Arkansas State has mentioned player development or game management.  It's all about recruiting.  And recruiting (as in keeping the team together) is what Whitesell accomplished when he given the head coach position.  His teams did not reach their potential but the more important thing is that the program didn't experience a freefall and mass rebuild after Oats left and his recruiter told the players UB recruited to go elsewhere.

A freefall and mass rebuild is the norm when losing a coach of Oat's caliber.  The fact the team didn't have a mass exodus of players is significant.  Whitesell's KenPom and winning percentage in his first three years are indicative of the stability he brought to the program (2020: #148/.625; 2021: #77/.640; 2022: #130/.633).  This year was the drop off (#211/.469) and the admin made the change based on that fact.  

Everyone's criticism is that Whitesell didn't do enough with the players he had.  But somehow people think hiring a recruiter with basically no applicable coaching experience is a panacea?   

 

 

 

 

Talk about beating a dead horse with "my boy". We can go circles here, but when he boarded that plane, he wasn't my top choice for the job. It's Hodgson by the way, it's not really that hard to spell that right (as you used to knock me for calling him "coach B"). 

I said it three years ago, Whitesell would be a failing head coach, so much so that the university fired him early and took another 100k hit.  You can send me all that you want on the team's "rebuild". He was a terrible hire that set the team back many years. A freefall is not a must. What happened to the Kent State freefall? 

I knew I could count on you to circle back to try your best to call it the right hire. After all, being paid by UB athletics has its duties on here. 

1 hour ago, Tee4three said:

Kevin coming for the receipts 

I'm kind of scared 

I'm mad that I removed the original points because I really liked it. 

I'll never come for you Tee4three

On 1/6/2020 at 2:41 PM, Reverend_Goose said:

Everyone just keep in mind that this is the guy who freaked the fuck out three games into Oats' first season.

He'll be sucking up to the Whitesell era a year or two from now when they're back in tourney form. Maybe even this year. Like clockwork.

Update?

On 1/5/2020 at 7:05 PM, dutchcountry7 said:

I stopped reading here since this post is clearly nonsense.  
 

Loyola was not a good program before Jim.  They had one winning season in the 15 years before they hired him Jim.  That was three different coaches tried to win at Loyola in that time. 
 

Jim has three winning seasons in his seven years there.  He also was playing in the Horizon Conference with Butler who made the NCAA finals. 
 

Jim made the program respectable and lates the groundwork for the promotion to the Missouri Valley Conference.  
 

 

Is there an update to this nonsense post?

1 hour ago, UBinMD said:

In all fairness, the fire JW thread was 4 years old. I think it started the day of his hire.

No, it started halfway through his first year after I had some data. I wish I didn't delete it because every ounce of it was correct. 

The only thing about McCollum is does he have a pipeline into D1 players? The only difference with say a dominant HS coach is that those players go on to major programs (Wes Clark). He also wouldn't be able to come with much of a transfer class either. D2 talent doesn't usually translate, even the top of that league. 

He would need to be linked up with a D1 recruiting pro. I'd be more worried about that than the Xs and Os which he clearly excels at, unlike Whitesell. 

That said I love the win percentage. I just need him to come up with a premier recruiting plan and coach. 

49 minutes ago, clodney said:

Funny that we're talking about Zid posting his dunks on social media after losses and 2 years ago we were talking about Graves doing the same thing. Sounds like the hallmark of the Whitesell era. Loads of talent but no discipline or team mentality - a stark contrast to what Oats built.

The big losses and posting of Segu's personal highlight reel on Instagram too. 

9 minutes ago, Dabulls said:

I also noticed Foley dropped the “former” on his twitter bio. Wonder if the new coach liked his JUCO pipeline 

Asking around. 

With the timing of Jones' announcement, I'm assuming UB has chosen its coach and/or leader. I'm guessing they are still left in the tournament. 

They were one year too late in letting Whitesell go. We should be one year further in the development of our team.

4 minutes ago, ub2019 said:

 

Yes. That's what I've heard inside the program as well on my end. Who knows if they will listen to extra advice from the search firm this time. 

Cohen loves the Buffalo area too.

1 hour ago, Dabulls said:

Does anyone know how CSA works? Or the agency UB is using to find a new coach. Do they just put out feelers to certain people?

They hire them and then dont use the information they provide.

By the way, I was also told that "cohen would take the job". Unsure where he ranks on our list. 

Hearing from sources that Saddi has the most traction at the moment 

If we hire another retread in Anderson, that will be the nail in the coffin. 

Hoping its not that

20 minutes ago, Tee4three said:

I'm often a get the best coach (X's and O's) and the secondary coaches will kind of take care of themselves because usually the top recruiters have really only been top recruiters at power 5 schools

It's why hodgson intrigues me, he has already demonstrated he could recruit here and took his recruiting up a notch at Alabama 

Hodgson literally coaches the #1 team in the country. 

He should be the top of the list with Cohen.

48 minutes ago, BrooklynBull said:

I know him and like him as a person and am a donor.  My answer is no.  I would not want anyone associated in any with Alabama basketball this season.  If Alabama was in the middle of the pack of the SEC this year, I think they would have cleaned house already.  The only reason they did not is because they have a shot to win it all.  As time goes on the fallout could go from the president, to the AD to the entire staff.  Think Binghamton.  They had their scandal with a crime and all those people lost their jobs.

3 minutes ago, xDerekRx said:

For those reasons I do like him as an option and a hire. It would be fun to see what he could do here as a head of the program.

Was there any bad blood between him and the school from his "interview" before he followed Nate?

Nah, I really dont believe so. I think he just knew that Jim would get the job. 

Just now, xDerekRx said:

A lot of people probably know Hodgson better than me based on his popularity but would he make a good head coach? I know he recruits great and probably would be fun to see as a younger guy with young energy...

I just recall when Oats left most people were concerned that he was much more of a recruiter.

He proved he coach recruit the top players in the world. 

He's learned how to build rosters and manage the UB alumni team that won it all. 

He can get a basketball guy for his staff just like Oats did. 

Lets keep all of the candidates tracked here. Ill do the best I can to use any sources I have to rally anything I hear again. 

Who do you want? Obvious coach Hodgson is on the list. The donors want him. 

3 hours ago, JFH47 said:

Whoever it was from UB who gave and then extended the contract with Whitesell should never be allowed to be at the negotiation table again!

He was the safe choice after Oates left but he never should have been extended especially with those staggering buyout numbers. Knowledgeable basketball people knew we wasn’t going anywhere. He is an assistant coach at best. 
 

Mark Alnutt should also been shown the door. Can anyone recall what he has accomplished?

I am a longtime season ticket holder and will renew once again and pay the extremely inflated seat license fee. 
 

Any thoughts?

I actually like this comment. Many people (myself included) were very wary of this elevation just because he would keep Williams/Segu. The whole reason this thread started was because of my feelings that he did not have the resume to take over what was at the time, a top and budding mid major program. 

I got called a hack. That one hurt. 

10 hours ago, clodney said:

I eagerly await April 6 to reiterate my comments from a year ago. 

Is it 400k or 300k now? Doesn't it make sense that 300k with three seasons left? 

3 minutes ago, DooleyBull06 said:

Where have you been all year?

Took the year off. Didn't want to be fighting people. Focusing a lot on time consuming Bills coverage. 

Plus @Big 4 Hoops Bloggerreplaced me.