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Sounds like Crews has the job


HenryB

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If SLU gives him the job its not going to be one of those Im just happy to go with this until retirement deals. Jim is energized. Recruiting sounds good to him now.

Maaaaybe bc we're big east bound?? :3

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<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Billiken Rich" data-cid="348153" data-time="1362199188"><p>

Really??? Sucked???<br />

<br />

JC is doing well. Rick was better. Brad Sodeberg would have this team in the same spot in my opinion. He could not recruit to this level. Assuming Crews can may very well be a mistake we can ill afford.<br />

<br />

Pompous ass??? Go f yourself pal. I've been through this before...... </p></blockquote>

Soderberg could do this?

Thats to much and shows your agenda.

Crews has been great. If you dont want to keep him going forward I understand but u dont need to make up

i'll go billiken rich even further, i think a good high school coach could have won with this team. rickma laid it all out, he had them prepared, crews job was to keep the status quo and make sure everyone's focus was on point.

if you think that is all there is to being a successful head coach at the high d-1 level, you are sadly mistaken. if crews is the answer, how come he refused to recruit last summer? i have come to accept his on court abilities, but that proves nothing for the capabilities of success going forward. this next recruiting class is HUGE. fail and we might be sent to depaul level forever. you are ready to let crews be that guy?

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Where to begin - this thread is all over the place.

1. Carter - it appears that he would not have made it under RM if he could not handle the constructive criticism he was getting from the coaches now here so while I wish he had stayed maybe it was best in the long run that he leave sooner rather than later. I don't hang that on Crews. However, it does complicated the cycle of recruiting issue we face.

2. Those who say "I am OK with hiring Crews as long as he can recruit". Well, isn't that the $64K question - this is what all the discussion has been about. To say this is nonsensical - the point is some do not know if he can recruit or not so to hire him to find out is rather like closing the barn door after the horse is out. If you hire him and he can not recruit then it is to late!

3. Those who say making a Final 4 run will solve the recruiting issue - ask Weber when he was at IL. After he made the Final 4 with Self's kids, he said he learned that the impact of that success really did not kick in for 2 years since the kids being recruited right afterwards are already close to other schools - the impact of the run was with h.s. sophs and juniors. So, even if we do make a Final 4 run - by the way some are acting like this is done already but we are a long way from that still and only time will tell - it will be 2 years from now before we really benefit.

4. Glaze and Carter will help fill in the voids next year from CR and CE graduating. Will they fill in well - we can only hope so.

5. Hire Crews and bring in a hot shot recruiter - why would a hot shot recruiter come here as oppose to MI, FL or you name it. Do you really think we will pay the $500K it will take to get a hot recruiter to come? Don't be naive - our hot shot recruiter was RM as well as the coach - he had others do the leg work but he was the draw.

6. If we hire Crews then - I said this before - he will probably keep the same staff in tact - if they are really hitting the streets hard recruiting then why would he clean house - whatever they gained would be lost. So, the question really is - can this group get the recruiting job done? once again the $64K question.

7. May has one chance to get this right - does he really want to give up the chance to hire his own guy? Does he really want to hook is wagon to Crews because if the hire does not work he will be out also. Think about it that is all I am saying.

8. C7 - getting in solves all the our troubles. It makes Crews a super recruiter, makes recruits want to pay us to come here, will make enough money to fund all of SLU's programs. Look, getting in is a very good thing for us but it alone does not solve everything. The build it and they will come thought is the same as the get in the C7 and the recruits will automatically come - it will help but we still have to keep winning.

I am just concerned about a lot of things and we have to attack each one individually - hopefully Tuesday solves on issue and then the rest will have to be worked through by the powers to be. I just hope they make the right decisions and do not simply take the easy way.

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You are not going to win at SLU by being a super recruiter. You win by sticking to a system and finding the right players to fill it. You follow th Gonzaga/Butler model. Gonzaga has exactly one top 25 recruiting class in the last decade. The roster of the soon to be #1 team in the country has exactly 1 top 100 prospect.

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I've got no agenda and I was not a fan of Brad, certainly not of his recruiting. That fact is though that he was a fine coach and a terrible recruiter. I was there. I saw it. I honestly beilive he was Crews' equal. If Crews can recruit fine. If not, we are screwed if he's our coach. Anyone who says otherwise has an agenda.

Totally. Wisconsin had the same opinion of Brad. Nobody is saying Crews can't recruit, we're saying it is completely unproven. And if he can't do it, we're screwed. After next year we are in serious trouble if we don't get a better pipeline...Mike Crawford waiting in the wings doesn't exactly excite me.

Having said that, Crews hasn't been given a chance and given the team's success he probably deserves it. We don't know if he can recruit, but if you put him in a situation where he isn't a lame duck, gave him this nationally ranked team to showcase along with a great stadium, the new Big East (and this message board of hot heads obsessing over everything), he just might be able to do it. Then again he may not...it is a risk. You would also have to confirm that he is 100% committed to this job and the common perception so far has been that he isn't and he viewed this position as a favor to Majerus and the school. Who knows.

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I don't think he could be worse at finding the right targets for SLU than Romar was and I am a Romar fan. He just didn't seem to do a good job at deciding on the proper people to target. Spent a lot of time on kids we were never going to land.

Romar was a scumbag who was obviously using this school as a stepping stone to bigger things. The only thing he was good at was playing whiffle ball with frat boys in the quad.

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You are not going to win at SLU by being a super recruiter. You win by sticking to a system and finding the right players to fill it. You follow th Gonzaga/Butler model. Gonzaga has exactly one top 25 recruiting class in the last decade. The roster of the soon to be #1 team in the country has exactly 1 top 100 prospect.

Agreed

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You are not going to win at SLU by being a super recruiter. You win by sticking to a system and finding the right players to fill it. You follow th Gonzaga/Butler model. Gonzaga has exactly one top 25 recruiting class in the last decade. The roster of the soon to be #1 team in the country has exactly 1 top 100 prospect.

I'm sorry. I guess I now know why there all those mid-major filling up the brackets and knocking off Duke every other day. Just get a system and recruit players to fit it. Brilliant!

Can Crews recruit the three star recruits needed to fit Rick's system? The jury is still way, way out on that. No one is asking for a scumbag like Calipari. Crews hasn't recruited anyone good or bad in over a decade. I CAN'T BE THE ONLY ONE WHO SEES THAT THIS IS ONE HELL OF A GAMBLE! (or a product of the same flawed decision making that led to Brad Sodeburg)

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He didn't exactly leave on a high note and then did nothing at army, You have to go back a long, long way in the past to find a great team recruited by Crews......Last tourney in 98? Before that 92? Call me unimpressed.....

SEMORich, I was just providing some information for the board. He was considered a golden boy, then things did not pan out.

I am not saying Crews is the MAN for us. Tought call. He might be OK with the new league, since recruiting will be 1,000% easier. Majerus worked goddam miracles* with recruiting plus implemented a dynamic player development and defensive and offensive systems, then was a master game strategist and game coach.

I think Crews can do the coaching but we do not know if he can do the recruiting.

It will be a difficult decision, especially if Crews wins the A-10, wins a game or two in the A-10 tourney, and wins a game or two in the NCAA's.

Who will we be able to get who is clearly better? If so, I would be on board with the new coach... it has to be a 3-5 yr deal. An up and comer if it is the RIGHT man. But who?

Again, tough call.

*Into a bad conference situation... The A-10, a mid major (though risen, now crashing), bad TV situation, fraught with bad / unidentifiable teams, geography from hell, no former national championship teams. 4* kids want to play in the "bigs".

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SEMORich, I was just providing some information for the board. He was considered a golden boy, then things did not pan out.

I am not saying Crews is the MAN for us. Tought call. He might be OK with the new league, since recruiting will be 1,000% easier. Majerus worked goddam miracles* with recruiting plus implemented a dynamic player development and defensive and offensive systems, then was a master game strategist and game coach.

I think Crews can do the coaching but we do not know if he can do the recruiting.

It will be a difficult decision, especially if Crews wins the A-10, wins a game or two in the A-10 tourney, and wins a game or two in the NCAA's.

Who will we be able to get who is clearly better? If so, I would be on board with the new coach... it has to be a 3-5 yr deal. An up and comer if it is the RIGHT man. But who?

Again, tough call.

*into a bad conference situation... The A-10, a mid major (though risen, now crashing), bad TV situation, fraught with bad / unidentifiable teams, geography from hell, no former national championship teams.

I get all that. Especially the golden boy who didn't pan out part. Is that what we want?

The most important question is who is the best person for the job? I can't see too many people answering Crews wholeheartedly..........

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Agree. It is the conference that will make or break us in this situation.

Majerus was an incredible, superior recruiter to be able to get the kids he got like BC to come all the way to SLU to play in the A-10 / mid major conference, with it's terrible TV exposure, and having so many weak teams.

If we get in the C7+, recruiting will be SO much easier. So Crews could be the answer.

I still would wonder if we could get a younger hot shot successful head coach from a small school (Lehigh guy?) or a golden boy assistant from a big name school who could come here and coach and recruit aggressively. It depends.

Quin Snyder anyone?! These hot "flavor of the month" are not the answer. SLU is always a hard sell. 3 times in top 25 in last 50 years. Academics issues; used to be too hard to get into now with the Biondi/tender/whatever. JC besides bringing the feel good element to the table, can use the same type adult handling your gifted child vibe that RM brought to SLU. All the knocks on his supposed lack of success in past coaching is laughable. Has Evansville done anything since he's been gone? And who would expect more from him or his successors, it's in a basketball crazed state with a lot of big name schools to choose over. And then Army, if you had skills how many schools in 1A would you choose above a service academy unless that's what you were going for in the first place? at least 64 in my estimation. David Robinson, add to that list of name players that went that direction. I'll take my answer off the air. BEAT GW KEEP THE STEAK ALIVE

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Quin Snyder anyone?! These hot "flavor of the month" are not the answer. SLU is always a hard sell. 3 times in top 25 in last 50 years. Academics issues; used to be too hard to get into now with the Biondi/tender/whatever. JC besides bringing the feel good element to the table, can use the same type adult handling your gifted child vibe that RM brought to SLU. All the knocks on his supposed lack of success in past coaching is laughable. Has Evansville done anything since he's been gone? And who would expect more from him or his successors, it's in a basketball crazed state with a lot of big name schools to choose over. And then Army, if you had skills how many schools in 1A would you choose above a service academy unless that's what you were going for in the first place? at least 64 in my estimation. David Robinson, add to that list of name players that went that direction. I'll take my answer off the air. BEAT GW KEEP THE STEAK ALIVE

Well, if you keep the steak alive, isn't that just a cow? ;)

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You are not going to win at SLU by being a super recruiter. You win by sticking to a system and finding the right players to fill it. You follow th Gonzaga/Butler model. Gonzaga has exactly one top 25 recruiting class in the last decade. The roster of the soon to be #1 team in the country has exactly 1 top 100 prospect.

Definitely in the running for post of the year!

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Quin Snyder anyone?! These hot "flavor of the month" are not the answer. SLU is always a hard sell. 3 times in top 25 in last 50 years. Academics issues; used to be too hard to get into now with the Biondi/tender/whatever. JC besides bringing the feel good element to the table, can use the same type adult handling your gifted child vibe that RM brought to SLU. All the knocks on his supposed lack of success in past coaching is laughable. Has Evansville done anything since he's been gone? And who would expect more from him or his successors, it's in a basketball crazed state with a lot of big name schools to choose over. And then Army, if you had skills how many schools in 1A would you choose above a service academy unless that's what you were going for in the first place? at least 64 in my estimation. David Robinson, add to that list of name players that went that direction. I'll take my answer off the air. BEAT GW KEEP THE STEAK ALIVE

There's a huge number of coaches in between Quinn and Brad. Most of them have recruiting resumes without an 11 year gap. Most of them didn't lead the last team they recruited to 7 and 21 finish.

I get the love for this season's run but if we were talking about replacing Crews with someone with his resume the wailing would be epic. There would be knashing of teeth, rending of garments, and basically all the worst parts of the bible. It'd be Brad Soderburg x 1000.....

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There's a huge number of coaches in between Quinn and Brad. Most of them have recruiting resumes without an 11 year gap. Most of them didn't lead the last team they recruited to 7 and 21 finish.

I get the love for this season's run but if we were talking about replacing Crews with someone with his resume the wailing would be epic. There would be knashing of teeth, rending of garments, and basically all the worst parts of the bible. It'd be Brad Soderburg x 1000.....[/quote

It's not fair to use Crews' record at Army as an indicator of his recruiting ability, and I know you are aware of this. What we do know however is that the man can coach. He has earned the job.

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A lot of what I'm about to say has already been posted in this thread, but it would be a huge hassle to try to quote it all, so here are my thoughts:

I can't say that I've really been ever in favor of the idea of Crews being retained at the end of the year. The fact that any success he had as a head coach around at least 20 years ago is rather troubling to me. People have said that we shouldn't count his record at Army against him because nobody ever does well there (except Coach K and Bobby Knight), but I assume he was the coach at Army for a reason. If he was seen as this total package back when he went there, I think he could've gotten a head coaching job that was better than at Army, unless he did and it was just something he wanted to do.

Crews has been a very good interim head coach this season. He hasn't shaken things up, and the results have been very good thus far. My concern, and it's a big one, lies with the recruiting. Majerus could get by with not going to the summer camps and sending his assistants because he'd watch the tape, find the players who would fit what he wanted, and do a pretty good job of getting enough of those players to come to SLU. He also could play the "I'm Rick Majerus, I've coached in the national championship game and have coached several NBA players" card. Unless Jim Crews coaches us to the Final 4 this year, he can't play that card.

This might be unfair, but I think that in recruiting today, if you're around 60 years old (Crews is 59) you could be a liability. You need to have something that is going to make 18 year old kids decide to come to your school. Normally a guy that age who is coaching can present past successes and a good run at the school. Jim Crews doesn't have this. This is a guy whose greatest season as a coach came 24 years ago, and that was an appearance in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament.

I'm not saying that we necessarily have to hire some hot-shot kid who might be the next Quinn Snyder. I think you can find a good head coach who has achieved success with fewer resources than he would have at SLU, and he would be able to provide a good combination of recruiting proficiency to fit his system and X's and O's ability.

I just look at things with the idea that there is a very decent chance that the SLU head coaching job might never look as good when they have an opening as it might look after the season. We'll have a program on the heels of back-to-back NCAA berths, outstanding facilities, the ability to seemingly pay a potential coach a good salary, plus a combination of a reasonably full cupboard next season and the chance for a new coach to make an early imprint in the program with open scholarships this spring and next fall. The thought of handing the permanent job to a guy whose only run of success as a head coach ended around 20 years ago, has not shown any demonstrated recruiting success since probably sometime in the 1990s, all on the basis that he has done well as an interim head coach for a team that was already good just doesn't seem right to me. If this was Porter Moser, Alex Jensen, or Chris Harriman, guys who were here for a few years and played a role in the development of the program, then I could understand it, but Crews is not a guy who was part of the foundation for the program. This is a guy who only came here because Majerus had to beg him to come.

Jim Crews seems like a good guy, and when they recognize this team in 10 or 20 years at halftime, I'll clap for the guy and I'll always respect his contribution to the program this year in a difficult situation.

With all of this negative stuff said, there's a very decent chance that Crews might be in the midst of leading us to our best season in the NCAA Tournament era. If does that, it'll be hard not to give him the job if he wants it, even if there may be good reasons not to.

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Which of the following could coach this team of Billikens to the NCAA tourney?

A. Kermit the Frog

B. Mao Tse Tung

C. Jim Crews

D. Joan of Arc

E. Richard Simmons

F. All of the above

Answer = F - All of the above

The job should have nothing to do with this season.

Here is what we know about Jim Crews so far. He can coach a team where all the following are true

A. 7 of the top 8 players are upper classmen who came within a few points of beating a #1 seed in the rd of 32 in the NCAA tourney last year

B. He didn't recruit a player on the squad

C. He's running the former coach's system (maybe a few tweaks)

D. He didn't teach the current players the system they run

The real question isn't can he do the above. It's can he recruit players and teach them a system that will lead them to becoming a consistent top 25 team. Nothing he has done this year gives us a clue to the answer of the real question. Nor does his past do anything to lead you to believe he can do the above.

Prior to this year his record at his previous schools has been adequate at best

RM asked him to come, but under what circumstance? His asst left at the last minute and he had to have someone. Would he have chosen Jim Crews if he had most of the Mid major head coaches and almost if not all the top Asst's in the country to choose from? The thing is Chris May will have all of that to choose from

All the media yelling to make Crews the permanent coach have no vested interest in the future of SLU basketball, however many are Coach Crew's friends and ex coaches. If they are wrong, who cares, they just move on to their next rant.

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Any anti Crews comments shall be considered treason. Wake the F up people
It's fine to want Crews back and you can make a good argument for it, but it is perfectly legit to question bringing him back given the unknowns about him and the implications the decision has on our program.

You don't even know that Crews wants this job and will treat it like a 365 day/year job.

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Its funny, some long time former Majerus doubters who now suddenly understand he was arguably the best thing to happen to SLU in the last 50 yrs are now condeming, disparaging Crews like they are the big expert.

Hey, I agree Crews may not be the absolute best answer for 2014+, but if he keeps winning and gets a win or two in the NCAA's and we get into the C7+, we may not need a super recruiter. He may be able to sell: 1) the new league, 2) our Majerus era success and that he will continue with the "system", 3) Chaifetz, 4) the quality of SLU academics, and get some very good players that also fit the "system" he is currently running successfully.

Haters, who do you have in mind to coach, then? If there are better ones out there, start telling us who they are. Will we be able to get them? Can we pay them enough? How do you know they will be better than Crews? Maybe Crews just finally got into the right situation. Someone gave him a chance. It happens.

Majerus was very complimentary of Crews and his basketball coaching accumen. How do we know SLU can do better? IF he continues to win, and we get the C7, I am starting to lean his way. Maybe someone is out there...

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