Coach Whitesell

[billiken_roy]

Good point. Identifying the next shaka or smart is obviously not easy. There are over 300 D1 schools, and you mention 2 success stories from hiring young up and comers. (Of course there are others as well) It would be a big gamble in my opinion to hire a young up and comer and install a new system now. Maybe after this season, but I really would hate to change the system that got us to where we are now.

count me in the corner of hating the term "system". there is no secret "system" so to speak.. there surely is a mindset. an understanding of expectations. a way of motivating. but the offense and defenses that the billikens have been using for the last 5 years is nothing special. what brought the success is finding the right pieces that fit into the way rickma directs the players and getting the most out of that talent to play the game in a manner that results in wins.

my guess is any coach (including crews) would watch a number of hours of tape, talk to the players and continue to employ the exact same plays and sets as the billikens have been running the last 5 years. the difference is in the way the players recieve and implement feedback from the "coach". imo crews is the totally wrong person to be in that seat. he is a rickma wannabe that will only convey that message in a manner that will not be recieved the same way. i actually think him being in the seat is a trainwreck waiting to happen. remember, this is the guy army rangers hated.

bring me a high level assistant. or bring me the up and coming lower level head coach asap. we will be miles ahead. if not, we are rolling the dice with status quo. betting that "an old dog learned new tricks" to improve himself and raise the team up to their full potential. i for one wont take that bet.

[slufan13]

I'm not sure a coach would take this but maybe we could hire someone who could be an assistant for us this year with the promise that he'll be head coach next year. That way he can go out and recruit his players. The current players could get used to him a bit and he could implement some parts of his strategy to the team, while still keeping Majerus/Crews' strategy mostly in place. It would also fill the empty assistant spot.

I don't know if someone would agree to that or what (I doubt it but someone could see this as a golden opportunity), but if May/Biondi don't want to hire a head coach now, I at least wish they would attempt to do this.

[willie]

So Roy if it!s OK for a coach to leave if someone offers more money is it OK for a player to sell his services to the highest bidder ,especially if he has a family?it seems to me your endorsing the Kentucky's of the world.Is it all right for a player to get what he can get?

[3Bill]

Roy - you are wrong about our system. Majerus has a very unique way of doing things. The schemes he runs and the way he prepares is foreign to most players and coaches. A new coach would not walk in and employ the same system. The players RM has recruited fit his system and some would not be good in a different system

[billiken_roy]

not following you willie. are you endorsing illegal pay for college players? are you talking about nba free agency? i indeed am for anyone increasing their worth. but not sure how you are defining a college athlete "selling his services"?

if you mean putting themselves in the best position to better themselves after college, by all means. however a "slu" student athlete typically isnt on the same plane as a kentucky basketball player. a slu student athlete needs to get the degree. get the education.. the chances of playing at the next level isnt good. so selling out for the bright lights for a slulike student athlete might not pay off long term. a kentucky basketball player, basically doesnt want an education. they just want exposure to increase their basketball net worth.

this is apples and oranges.

[billiken_roy]

Roy - you are wrong about our system. Majerus has a very unique way of doing things. The schemes he runs and the way he prepares is foreign to most players and coaches. A new coach would not walk in and employ the same system. The players RM has recruited fit his system and some would not be good in a different system

you are actually talking semantics. majerus preaches precision. he preaches a level of dedication and output. he preaches a mindset and awareness. but he runs the same plays. crews "6 inches" is probably just as much off as the asst coach from say michigan state's "6 inches" will be as compared to rickma. but when they draw it on the chalkboard, the x's and o's would look the same. it is the way it is explained, the way it is expected to be executed that is different. there is no way i believe for one second crews can communicate that any better than many many many other coaches around the world.

[billiken_roy]

Roy - you are wrong about our system. Majerus has a very unique way of doing things. The schemes he runs and the way he prepares is foreign to most players and coaches. A new coach would not walk in and employ the same system. The players RM has recruited fit his system and some would not be good in a different system

your response really intrigues me. besides my original thoughts right above, honestly, do you think the likes of tom izzo or even chris mack watch slu film and sit there in total amazement and say, "how are they doing that? there is no way we can guard that." again there is nothing foreign about what we do. it is the way we do it with the players we have. awareness and reactions.

[brianstl]

I think you need to wait until after the season to hire a coach. That said...................... you need to announce that the Majerus era is over, you need to form the search committee now, you need to let Crews/Whitsell know that they both will be canidates and you need to bump Whitsell's pay.

[willie]

Yes I understand one is legal and the other is not but you seem to be advocating that it's OK for a coach to jump to the highest bidder if it helps his family.How about honoring a contract.

[billiken_roy]

Yes I understand one is legal and the other is not but you seem to be advocating that it's OK for a coach to jump to the highest bidder if it helps his family.How about honoring a contract.

do you know that the contract didnt have a provision to move on? if it defined parameters to move on and the parties involved complied, i dont have a problem with it. if the coach in question jumped the contract and violated a contract legally, then the violated school should indeed consider their remedies and the costs to pursue and react accordingly.

i.e. i do not like it if they do not honor all aspects of the contract and think it is a one way street. like kshoe, i tend to think our remedy in slu's situation is an assistant coach at a high level school. i doubt most of those coaches have long term contracts and i would bet their "outs" are not prohibitive.

[JMM28]

Yet again Roy comes around in times of trouble and is nowhere to be seen in good times.

I wish people would give up the hope on hiring a new HC right away. Unless we are looking at someone who is completely out of coaching - they won't leave their school at this point in time. If they did, I would ultimately question their loyalty to SLU.

A new coach coming in would view 3 open scholarships as a positive, I believe. Not only would he have players in his pipeline, but he would also like the ability to put his mark on a built team right away. Going into next year with McCall, Jett, Cartrr, Evans, Drew, Loe, GG, Manning, and McBroom would be enough to again contend with the tops of the A10. Having 3 open scholarships would be good to take some risks in the spring.

[billiken_roy]

Yet again Roy comes around in times of trouble and is nowhere to be seen in good times.

I wish people would give up the hope on hiring a new HC right away. Unless we are looking at someone who is completely out of coaching - they won't leave their school at this point in time. If they did, I would ultimately question their loyalty to SLU.

A new coach coming in would view 3 open scholarships as a positive, I believe. Not only would he have players in his pipeline, but he would also like the ability to put his mark on a built team right away. Going into next year with McCall, Jett, Cartrr, Evans, Drew, Loe, GG, Manning, and McBroom would be enough to again contend with the tops of the A10. Having 3 open scholarships would be good to take some risks in the spring.

pardon me if i only get involved when it it good discussion good debate and miss out on the so stimulating discussion about jerking each other off over a win or a great play etc.

that said, your last paragraph is a fantastic point. that should have been your post.

[JohnnyJumpUp]

I'm pretty sure Whitesell isn't going anywhere. Lavin is going to hire an ex player of his. Majerus will be in touch with the coaches throughout the season and maybe make an appearance at senior night. Majerus will be in better health by next summer and will sign a three year deal with SLU and resume duties as head coach of this team.

[3Bill]

Roy - yes, i do think opposing coaches look at SLU game film and scratch their heads wondering about the complexity of our system and the number of set schemes coach rm runs. are they unable to figure it out? no, not the good ones. but it takes a lot more work to prepare for a game against RM than it does just about any other team. just ask every coach in america that has played against rm. i know you hate majerus but the man is an x's and o's genius and it takes someone familiar with his system and the plays he runs to effectively coach his system.

[3Bill]

Roy - sorry again but during the romar/soderberg eras you were the king of "jerking off" as you say, over great plays and wins. only your excitement was delusional. when we actually had something to cheer about, you played debbie downer. you need to cancel your tickets and go root for lindenwood, belleville west, tom keefe, and whoever else's butt you're up these days.

[brianstl]

I'm pretty sure Whitesell isn't going anywhere. Lavin is going to hire an ex player of his. Majerus will be in touch with the coaches throughout the season and maybe make an appearance at senior night. Majerus will be in better health by next summer and will sign a three year deal with SLU and resume duties as head coach of this team.

So you really would feel comfortable with the possibility of going through this multiple years with Majerus like Utah did?

[JohnnyJumpUp]

So you really would feel comfortable with the possibility of going through this multiple years with Majerus like Utah did?

Negative, that's just how I think it's going to go.

[brianstl]

Negative, that's just how I think it's going to go.

Gotcha

[slu72 fan]

So is Whitesell gone or potentially gone?

Greg Gard, asst. to Bo Ryan at Wisconsin would be a good addition to the coaching staff. The badgers play the most similar style of basketball to the Bills.

He was listed in the top 40 Assistants link that someone posted earlier. Probably impossible to get unless he came on the prospect of taking over as head coach once Crews was done.

Look for a new AC this week. There's not going to be a new HC until this season ends, if RM doesn't return. It's very unlikely he'll return. Not a word from him, his girlfriend or family to the team should tell everyone the seriousness of his condition. This is a guy that communicated with his players regularly until July.

If the team meets expectations this year, and if RM doesn't return, there will be plenty of candidates to take over a good team, with a nice nucleus of returning players. We'll need a new coach who has a couple of players or recruits to come with them.

Hiring a long term HC now isnt going to happen. The school will need to pull the trigger on a new HC, if required, the moment this season concludes. If this year fizzles, it's back to the norm.

Damn, it's hard being a Billiken Fan!!

[West Pine Jim]

Look for a new AC this week. There's not going to be a new HC until this season ends, if RM doesn't return. It's very unlikely he'll return. Not a word from him, his girlfriend or family to the team should tell everyone the seriousness of his condition. This is a guy that communicated with his players regularly until July.

If the team meets expectations this year, and if RM doesn't return, there will be plenty of candidates to take over a good team, with a nice nucleus of returning players. We'll need a new coach who has a couple of players or recruits to come with them.

Hiring a long term HC now isnt going to happen. The school will need to pull the trigger on a new HC, if required, the moment this season concludes. If this year fizzles, it's back to the norm.

Damn, it's hard being a Billiken Fan!!

I hope we get a new AC this week. Otherwise, I think I agree with this assessment.

[slu72]

We're not getting a new HC until after this season. The powers that be will evaluate Crews and if they feel he's done a credible job, mark my words, they'll hire him. The big thing here is, what's a credible job? Here's what it should be; go dancing, sign a few recruits we were in on under RM, and no one leaves, unless it's for academic or discipline reasons. And if it's academic and discipline reasons, that has to be taken into account as well.

[slufanskip]

I think you need to wait until after the season to hire a coach. That said...................... you need to announce that the Majerus era is over, you need to form the search committee now, you need to let Crews/Whitsell know that they both will be canidates and you need to bump Whitsell's pay.

You've already announced Crews is interm. Just sit down with him and guage his long term interest. IF he is a real candidate assure him of that and move on. IF he isn't be honest and let the chips fall where they may. Don't mislead or use him

I think you look at both opportunities, now and after the season

We should have already had an idea of coaches we think we are interested in, some current asst's and some current HC's. We should put be able to guage the interest of any of the asst's we have identified as on a short list. It there is mutual interest, then talk to them now. If you find the guy that knocks your socks off hire him. However, don't do it out of some need to get it done now.

If you don't find the guy, you're ready to start looking immediately after the season. SLU will be a very good job. In fact I'd say SLU beats a BCS school in the bottom half or third of their league. There is no big rebuild, great facilities, great education, and a conference with NCAA invites near or occasionally above some of the so called power conference.

Are Gonzaga's or X's head coaches in better positions than Oregon St, or Colorado, or Auburn ... etc? Imo, they are and SLU with a 2nd straight NCAA tourney build and a strong core of players is moving into that level of school. Even if they are a little weak in this recruiting class the new guy would have the Jett/McCall class as Sr's, the Manning/Grandy as Jr's and the Drew/Carter as Sophs. The next year forward he could have Manning, Glaze, Carter, Drew, and McBroom looking to be the starting 5.

We'll be fine,relax and make the smart move, do your homework and react as needed

[jjray]

We're not getting a new HC until after this season. The powers that be will evaluate Crews and if they feel he's done a credible job, mark my words, they'll hire him. The big thing here is, what's a credible job? Here's what it should be; go dancing, sign a few recruits we were in on under RM, and no one leaves, unless it's for academic or discipline reasons. And if it's academic and discipline reasons, that has to be taken into account as well.

He can't sign any recruits while he's the interim. No kid with multiple offers is going to sign with SLU until there is a permanent coach in place. To think otherwise is delusional. However, I think you are right that there will be no new HC until after the season. What that means is that SLU will piss away essentially a whole year of recruiting time. The new HC (even if it is Crews) hired at the end of March / early Apr only has table scraps left to choose from for that year's recruiting class.

[WestCoastBilliken]

He can't sign any recruits while he's the interim. No kid with multiple offers is going to sign with SLU until there is a permanent coach in place. To think otherwise is delusional. However, I think you are right that there will be no new HC until after the season. What that means is that SLU will piss away essentially a whole year of recruiting time. The new HC (even if it is Crews) hired at the end of March / early Apr only has table scraps left to choose from for that year's recruiting class.

And a new coach couldn't pull kids from his current recruit pool next year? I hope we are at least hiring a big enough coach next year where the kids are going to that school to specifically play for that coach...

[jjray]

And a new coach couldn't pull kids from his current recruit pool next year? I hope we are at least hiring a big enough coach next year where the kids are going to that school to specifically play for that coach...

When we hired Rick Majerus, how many players did he bring with? Let's be realistic with expectations. If we hire a rising assistant or low level D1 coach in late March after a committee search, do you really expect the new coach to land serious recruits immediately? I would agree its possible but not probable. Especially not bigs because it is harder to find under-recruited bigs. Undersized guards always slip through the cracks but serviceable bigs rarely do. About the only way I see our program being able to do some level of solid recruiting is if the team plays well during the season and the administration removes the interim tag from Crews while there is still time to sign a few players. If we lurch to a committee search after the season then 2013 class recruiting is pretty much dead in the water.