Jim Crews- I'm ALL-IN

[TheBand]

While Tanner does appear to be a good young coach (at least Majerus thought so), he's been here for 1 season, so we can't point to any results yet. Regardless, even if Tanner has all the skills to be a good recruiter, the NCAA doesn't limit each school to 1 good recruiter. Anyway, it would benefit us to have an assistant who not only had the skills to be a good recruiter, but also had the connections with the AAU programs and high schools. Tanner can build those connections, but he's a young guy who is likely still working on that.

+1

[moytoy12]

Personally, I think this is a remarkable post. Roy did little to hide his personal disdain for Crews when it was first reported that Majerus was looking to bring him on as an assistant. When Jensen left right before the season and Crews came aboard, Roy was open about how much he disliked the move and thought that Crews would bring too much negativity and harsh criticism to the locker room, especially combined with Majerus. Basically, too many 'bad cops' and not enough 'good cops.'

The fact that Roy has changed his outlook over these past two seasons about Crews, despite his deeply held personal misgivings, should help to give a lot of the rest of us pause in how we are looking at the man and the current coaching situation. Basically, if Roy can come around to the school's decision on giving the reins to Crews, why can't the rest of us? We can all just keep repeating the mantras of recruiting and past perfromances at other schools until the cows come home, but what good is that going to do at this point? Everyone has said their peace dozens of times over, time to just get on board and hope that Crews and Co. know what they are doing. No need to pre-criticize this current coaching staff anymore than we've already done.

It's all about getting in the NBE. If we don't, game over. Kaput. Gotta wait to get in the NBE before we get a coach.

[billikendave]

It's all about getting in the NBE. If we don't, game over. Kaput. Gotta wait to get in the NBE before we get a coach.

Think this is the other way around. It is my belief that the coaching instability is what kept us out. From an outsider's perspective, I think there is a real question whether SLU is for real or whether SLU is going back to mediocrity without Majerus. The outsider perspective (and some insider too) is Majerus was a bolt from the sky that no one expected. SLU paid for a coach (by its standards even though it was cheap for a Rickma type coach) and upped their budget. Remember the cellphone and charter flight debate. Chaifetz opened. SLU looked serious about upgrading basketball.

Now, Majerus passes away. Crews, a retread who was out of coaching after a mediocre time at Evansville/Army, takes over a veteran, Majerus team and excels. Fantasitc job this season. What is the reality? SLU is really at crossroads.

I guarantee (my opinion only) this is why the BE took Creighton first. They wanted to see how SLU shakes out. If it looks like Romar/Sodeberg era SLU is returning, Richmond or VCU and Dayton may look better.

[DeSmetBilliken]

desmet, just the fact that it didnt blow up is a huge accomplishment.

i will say, as others have commented, i think that the offense was far more agressive this season than any previous rickma year. whether that is a credit to crews or the players with their added maturity gravitated to it, is a question that only the players and staff could tell us. my guess is out of respect to rickma it is an answer we wont get.

i also compliment the way the carter situation went down. who knows the real reason, it could have easily gotten ugly. whatever the reason for leaving, carter wasnt happy, and the ties were cut and i thought neither side took a punch over it.

i also was surprised that we never saw any level of player discontent, considering there were plenty of PT scenarios that could have errupted. to control that as well as it was is a huge accomplishment.

last i appreciate the way crews handled the success. you can bet there are plenty of ncaa coaches that would have used the scenario to paint themselves as the hero super coach, i thought throughout the whole season crews really played the success low key and humble and it came off very good with the fans. especially the casual fans that very well may want to be billiken fans going forward and buy season tickets and donate dollars.

the bottom line is beyond looking at a mediocre at best previous couple of coaching stints that has questionable endings and debatable reasons for his lukewarm (evansville) to downright cold (army) results and stories about his relationships with his players at both stops, there is no solid known reason not to give him his chance if he wants it.

I suppose these are fair points. Personally, I'm not a big fan of the idea of having a parade for someone because they managed to prevent something from turning into a complete debacle, but maybe I'm underestimating just how easily this season could have become a debacle.

I agree on the comments about the offense. We don't know how much was Crews or players' improvements caused this, but there's one thing that I think can be attributed to Crews. With Majerus, it seemed that when we would build up a 20 point lead, we'd turn the offense down significantly. I always wondered if Majerus was trying to avoid completely blowing an opponent out of the gym. Crews didn't seem to have this same philosophy, which I liked.

I've seen a number of people here posting arguments in favor of Crews which end with phrases like "he deserves a chance." Maybe I'm reading into this too much, but when I see arguments calling for someone to be given a chance, it gives me the idea that the person's, in this case Crews', qualifications and record aren't impressive enough to be given the position on those alone, and that we should then resort to some secondary argument based on fairness. Even if a fairness argument is logical, it doesn't exactly get someone excited. All things considered, I think we would all like to think that SLU went out there and found the coach that is the best possible fit for this basketball program to continue to get better. Maybe after searching, that person would still be Jim Crews, and maybe we'll hear something like that when he is hired permanently. If it is, so be it. I'd feel better if someone would actually say we hired Crews because he is the most qualified candidate, rather than saying that we hired him because he deserves a chance.

[Taj79]

So the dunderheads that have elected to keep DePaul, Seton Hall and Providence know enough about predicting basketball prowess as evidenced by what? The best part of the New Big East are the"new" guys. Short of Georgetown and Marquette, the three additions are currently shining in much brighter lights than the other 5 of the C7. Nova got lucky. And Chuck Barkley calls Marquette's brand of basketball "ugly."

The C7 kept "The Big East" for obvious reasons but it's not THEE Big East brand. That is more attributable to Syracuse, Uconn, Pitt and some more of the dearly departed. They banked on the cachet of the name to carry the day. But do not believe for a moment this is your grandaddy's Big East. Again, I thinbk they took who they took for a number of interchangable reason, with recent success guiding the way.

[SLU_PT_2k11]

Think this is the other way around. It is my belief that the coaching instability is what kept us out. From an outsider's perspective, I think there is a real question whether SLU is for real or whether SLU is going back to mediocrity without Majerus. The outsider perspective (and some insider too) is Majerus was a bolt from the sky that no one expected. SLU paid for a coach (by its standards even though it was cheap for a Rickma type coach) and upped their budget. Remember the cellphone and charter flight debate. Chaifetz opened. SLU looked serious about upgrading basketball.

Now, Majerus passes away. Crews, a retread who was out of coaching after a mediocre time at Evansville/Army, takes over a veteran, Majerus team and excels. Fantasitc job this season. What is the reality? SLU is really at crossroads.

I guarantee (my opinion only) this is why the BE took Creighton first. They wanted to see how SLU shakes out. If it looks like Romar/Sodeberg era SLU is returning, Richmond or VCU and Dayton may look better.

yeah solid points. agree

[jbizzle09]

I think moytoy12 needed a sarcasm font for his post.

[moytoy12]

I think moytoy12 needed a sarcasm font for his post.

+1

[billikendave]

I think moytoy12 needed a sarcasm font for his post.

Sorry, I am Sim Buhllar slow sometimes.....

[kmbilliken]

This has drug out too long. Apparently Crews wants the job and has certain terms that must be met. Meet them and sign him or move on. If we move on, it means we're going cheap and headed in the wrong direction. This is a SLU administrative decision, so I don't have much faith in this going right.

[gister]

You think Fr. B knows anything about college hoops other than the Billikens' budget numbers? The guy scheduled a trip to Asia for the A-10 tourney and the first round of the NCAA's. And did the same thing last year. Yeah, he knows tons. The key phrase in your post is "take us to new heights." RM took us to new heights and JC kept us there this year. And hopefully a little higher next year with basically the same players. What has everyone concerned is can he maintain that altitude after all of RM's guys have left?

I don't know how much Fr. B knows about college hoops. I do know that he is at most home games. So I think it is wrong to assume he has no interest beyond numbers and doesn't care about the program. Of course, just going to the games doesn't mean he is a rabid fan, but it shows he wants to show support for the team.

[Billiken Rich]

This has drug out too long. Apparently Crews wants the job and has certain terms that must be met. Meet them and sign him or move on. If we move on, it means we're going cheap and headed in the wrong direction. This is a SLU administrative decision, so I don't have much faith in this going right.

Too cheap for Crews? I think you may have that backwards. I'd hope Crews' replacement would be costing a fair deal more than he.

[STLBillikens]

Everyone keeps talking about young hotshot recruiter and everyone keeps forgetting about Tanner Bronson. The guy has learned from Majerus what kind of player to look for. He has learned what it takes to develop players. He is our hotshot recruiter.

I think he still needs to prove himself.

[Cowboy]

Think this is the other way around. It is my belief that the coaching instability is what kept us out. From an outsider's perspective, I think there is a real question whether SLU is for real or whether SLU is going back to mediocrity without Majerus. The outsider perspective (and some insider too) is Majerus was a bolt from the sky that no one expected. SLU paid for a coach (by its standards even though it was cheap for a Rickma type coach) and upped their budget. Remember the cellphone and charter flight debate. Chaifetz opened. SLU looked serious about upgrading basketball.

Now, Majerus passes away. Crews, a retread who was out of coaching after a mediocre time at Evansville/Army, takes over a veteran, Majerus team and excels. Fantasitc job this season. What is the reality? SLU is really at crossroads.

I guarantee (my opinion only) this is why the BE took Creighton first. They wanted to see how SLU shakes out. If it looks like Romar/Sodeberg era SLU is returning, Richmond or VCU and Dayton may look better.

-the article from the Omaha newspaper paints a different picture, imo

[billikendave]

-the article from the Omaha newspaper paints a different picture, imo

What i was trying to say was explain why we weren't in the BE as 10 teams. I think we would always be 11 or 12. Personal loyalty aside, i think Creighton was the right move for the BE. The BE wants to see how SLU does before asking it to be part of the conference. Are we for real or not?

As far as the Omaha article, what I got out of that is Fr. Lannon worked it really hard to get in through his personal relationships. On top of that "Lannon focused on the positives — the school's fan base, its top-notch venues and the success of its programs." Creighton is well established and has a track record and has been the class of the Missouri Valley basketball for many years.

No comment on whether Biondi/May lobbied as hard or wanted it as much as Creighton. But, our program is not nearly as stable and proven as Creighton is. No consistent history like Creighton has. And, no coach.

[moytoy12]

What i was trying to say was explain why we weren't in the BE as 10 teams. I think we would always be 11 or 12. Personal loyalty aside, i think Creighton was the right move for the BE. The BE wants to see how SLU does before asking it to be part of the conference. Are we for real or not?

As far as the Omaha article, what I got out of that is Fr. Lannon worked it really hard to get in through his personal relationships. On top of that "Lannon focused on the positives — the school's fan base, its top-notch venues and the success of its programs." Creighton is well established and has a track record and has been the class of the Missouri Valley basketball for many years.

No comment on whether Biondi/May lobbied as hard or wanted it as much as Creighton. But, our program is not nearly as stable and proven as Creighton is. No consistent history like Creighton has. And, no coach.

Good points. I'm not so sure why people have a difficult time understanding why Creighton was chosen over us.

[GraveDigger]

Having left STL in 1976, I have kept up with the Bills from a distance, checking box scores and the past couple of seasons listening to Ramsey and Austin since I've retired, if I can't catch them on TV.

In the article by Haenchen, he quotes a source as saying "Chris May isn’t exactly a basketball expert”. Is there any validity in that? Why would the school hire an AD without a strong basketball background if that's the only real potential revenue producer they've got? Some of you local guys, help me out here. Is the writer off base or did the school hire a bean-counter instead of a guy with some vision?

[davidnark]

I guarantee (my opinion only) this is why the BE took Creighton first. They wanted to see how SLU shakes out. If it looks like Romar/Sodeberg era SLU is returning, Richmond or VCU and Dayton may look better.

I strongly disagree. This has nothing to do with coaches. The decision-makers for the NBE are smart enough to know that coaches change with the blink of an eye. I just read that Brad Stevens was at UCLA interviewing today. IMO, the biggest difference between SLU and Creighton is that Creighton's President was fully-engaged and had the relationships and political influence to get the right backers behind him and his school. This was Biondi's to lose and--unfortunately--he did. I am with the camp that believes Biondi's time has long passed, and we need a change. Biondi had the chance to get his school unlimited exposure through the BE affiliation, and he failed miserably in round one. There is just no other way to sugarcoat Biondi's failure. The timing of his fundraising trip is disappointing and telling. If this donors cared about SLU, they certainly would have been willing to host him a few weeks earlier or later.

[davidnark]

Good points. I'm not so sure why people have a difficult time understanding why Creighton was chosen over us.

Because it defied logic and common sense. We are a bigger school, in a bigger market, with a preferable geographic location, and newer, better on-campus facilities. Plus, our program has had significant recent success, and Creighton hasn't exactly been a regular in the top 10 or a final four team. This was ours to lose, and Biondi fumbled it away.

[MB73]

Because it defied logic and common sense. We are a bigger school, in a bigger market, with a preferable geographic location, and newer, better on-campus facilities. Plus, our program has had significant recent success, and Creighton hasn't exactly been a regular in the top 10 or a final four team. This was ours to lose, and Biondi fumbled it away.

I strongly disagree. This has nothing to do with coaches. The decision-makers for the NBE are smart enough to know that coaches change with the blink of an eye. I just read that Brad Stevens was at UCLA interviewing today. IMO, the biggest difference between SLU and Creighton is that Creighton's President was fully-engaged and had the relationships and political influence to get the right backers behind him and his school. This was Biondi's to lose and--unfortunately--he did. I am with the camp that believes Biondi's time has long passed, and we need a change. Biondi had the chance to get his school unlimited exposure through the BE affiliation, and he failed miserably in round one. There is just no other way to sugarcoat Biondi's failure. The timing of his fundraising trip is disappointing and telling. If this donors cared about SLU, they certainly would have been willing to host him a few weeks earlier or later.

Nailed it.

[TheOldie]

I strongly disagree. This has nothing to do with coaches. The decision-makers for the NBE are smart enough to know that coaches change with the blink of an eye. I just read that Brad Stevens was at UCLA interviewing today. IMO, the biggest difference between SLU and Creighton is that Creighton's President was fully-engaged and had the relationships and political influence to get the right backers behind him and his school. This was Biondi's to lose and--unfortunately--he did. I am with the camp that believes Biondi's time has long passed, and we need a change. Biondi had the chance to get his school unlimited exposure through the BE affiliation, and he failed miserably in round one. There is just no other way to sugarcoat Biondi's failure. The timing of his fundraising trip is disappointing and telling. If this donors cared about SLU, they certainly would have been willing to host him a few weeks earlier or later.

Come on and get a dose of reality. The donors have no clue as to March Madness. It would been a slap in the face to request a scheduling change for a sporting event

[davidnark]

Come on and get a dose of reality. The donors have no clue as to March Madness. It would been a slap in the face to request a scheduling change for a sporting event

It had nothing to do with the sporting event and everything to do with ensuring we were invited to be part of the premier catholic university affiliation for the next 25+ years. If a major corporation were in the middle of M&A negotiations, the CEO certainly wouldn't leave the country for several weeks to raise a little capital. Biondi should have spent his nights and days finding every chance he had to get in front of his presidential colleagues at the BE7. I don't know what he did or didn't do, but I do know he didn't do everything he could if he was in Asia while his colleagues were all in the states. Those are facts, and we should all be disappointed.

[JettFlight5]

Come on and get a dose of reality. The donors have no clue as to March Madness. It would been a slap in the face to request a scheduling change for a sporting event

So what? The most important thing happening involving Saint Louis University in awhile is the Big East going forward. I don't care how offended a few people overseas get. It's irrelevant when compared to what he should have been doing here. No excuse for the trip and the timing.

[JettFlight5]

I guess the more succinct way to put my thoughts is this:

That sporting event is more important than anything Father Biondi could have been doing overseas.

[kmbilliken]

We live in the age of communication. Biondi could easily keep up, even if he is overseas. He could also get the Crews deal done. He chooses not to. That shows his level of commitment. The other BE schools have to realize he is not committed to the athletic department and may not want us as a partner because of it.