BenFred Article 12/23

[slu92]

I just finished reading BenFred’s article in today’s PD….very good read except the part about how well Chris May has performed his job duties. Listen, I know the guy very casually, he wouldn’t know me from the next guy, however I know a few big donors, I’m a season ticket holder, I know former employees, coaches, refs etc that worked with him and dept over the years and this isn’t the overall story I have heard. Not even close. 
 

1. MSOC-May gets credit for hiring Kalish. It was Jim Kavanaugh who told May after like almost 10 candidates turned the job down to hire the guy who at the time was working for JK and Gallagher. He did hire McGinty and that was a disaster. Almost buried entire program for good. Plus May didn’t even like Kalish going all the way back to SIUE days bc his teams beat SLU like a red headed stepchild. 

2. WSOC- not a knock on Sheilds, she’s fine but was only hired initially as a one year temp bc of how late in the hiring season when Kat Mertz left for Oregon. May didn’t think she was ready for that job but had no other options. 100% it worked out and Shields is great but he totally would’ve hired another coach with more experience at that time if he could’ve. The guys behind that programs success are Vince Gentile and Chris Allen, local club guys that could/can recruit great local talent over the years. They are wizards behind that curtain. 
 

3. WBB-Lisa Stone? For years she was second coming of Pat Summit and turned out to be a total dud. Sure she raised program but who with half a brain wouldn’t have done same thing it was boardline a bad D3 level program historically. Last year was great glad they made a NCAA tournament. However….their record was 16-17, get blasted away round 1 by TN and Tillett is now considered the second coming of Kim Mulkey with a career SLU sub .500 record? Jury totally still out, I like her but come on.

4. MBB - Crews? Ford? We all know the stats and sure 20 wins a year, non against a top 25 ranked team is great, plus $2.5 million a year….May literally said Calbert Cheney was a recruiting secret weapon and Jim Crews is as taking program to a whole other level…problem was that level was down, not up. Travis is 7-6 one of those wins against a D2 team with a bad schedule on purpose too. 
 

5. Big East-this alone should’ve sent May packing. I’ve been told by multiple people close to department he was told right away hey we are in A10 to position ourselves in case BE expands, blows up. He literally dismissed that ever happening and then got out maneuvered by Butler and Creighton. Hands down he dropped the ball, even old Fox Sports Midwest execs I know said exact same thing, they tease me all the time, they were there. Said thank Chris May for staying in A10.

6. Baseball- almost forgot….program wins with zero help from May except doing minimal tasks and acting like he moved mountains. DeSmet, yes DeSmet has an all turfed field, with press box and seating. Vianney has that and a players clubhouse with AC/Heat and running water! When SLU first hosted A10 May said next time they host things will be very different, like not having a plywood temporary press box….uh, SLU got that taken away bc of facilities. DeSmet. Vianney. Chaminade. It’s laughable. 

Sure everyone can say this is a cheap attempt to go after Chris May. Or it’s fake news. Whatever. All I know is I love program and want it to succeed. I don’t see anything changing until new, smarter leadership is in place. May has gotten a free ride his whole time at SLU. After reading BenFred today I thought “how does Chris May get a pass on all this?” Read each point and really think it all through. I trust this info and my gut. I just don’t understand how other people don’t connect the dots and see it. If May was a compete monster but smart, I’d live with it. I just can’t take the stupidity. 

If anything comes from it I genuinely hope May hears or reads about this post. It’s a dose of reality he may never admit but deep down knows it’s all true. He’s just fooling himself at end of the day, it’s actually sad. Plus this article totally smells of desperation from May asking local media to put a positive spin on his tenure, bc I imagine he is finally starting to feel the heat. As he should. I think May and Ford have pictures of Cusamano as well. It’s so obvious and embarrassing. 
 

Merry Christmas everyone and hopefully conference season will be good to all of us. Truly hope so. 

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

9 minutes ago, slu92 said:

Lisa Stone? For years she was second coming of Pat Summit and turned out to be a total dud.

Ok, this is unfair.

[TheA_Bomb]

What was the whole article about? Chris May? 

[slu92]

I don’t think it is. You should look more into why Lisa Stone was canned by Barry Alvarez at WI. Says a lot about her character and for years CM talked her up like no other. Program was so bad anyone half decent could’ve raised it up. Honestly why May never approached Incarnate Word head coach to build it, might mimic what wsoc has done is a head scratcher. Again just my opinion. Feel free to DM me if you don’t find anything on why Stone was fired by WI. It’s interesting. 

[slu92]

Just now, TheA_Bomb said:

What was the whole article about? Chris May? 

No BenFred said he should be given credit for soccer and basketball program success. Uh? Really? He shouldn’t get a free pass at all, he’s THE problem. 

[billikenfan05]

13 minutes ago, BrettJollyComedyHour said:

Ok, this is unfair.

It totally is. And incorrect really. Stone took over a program that hadn't had had a coach with a winning record since before I was born. He also takes shots at Katie Shields after saying he wasn't taking a shot. Katie hired Allen, you get credit for that. Among the fact that she has created a program with a culture that makes kids not only want to stay home, but come home to win. McGinty also wasn't a disaster he just wasn't a great college head coach. He's found a great niche with USNT system as a goalkeeper coach. 

 

[3star_recruit]

I don't trust the Board of Trustees to upgrade from Chris May.  He's a competent AD.  Several programs have improved under his tenure.  But men's basketball did not capitalize on its 2019 NCAA appearance.   Ford's Bully Ball teams just fell short.  Perkins got hurt and never regained his form.

I have no doubt that May can hire another head coach with NCAA appearances on his resume if it comes to that.   Hiring a coach with 3 or 4 NCAA appearances but without the stench of failure at SLU would result in MBMs flooding the Billiken Victory Fund with dollars.  Or so I've read.

[billikenfan05]

7 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

I don't trust the Board of Trustees to upgrade from Chris May.  He's a competent AD.  Several programs have improved under his tenure.  But men's basketball did not capitalize on its 2019 NCAA appearance.   Ford's Bully Ball teams just fell short.  Perkins got hurt and never regained his form.

I have no doubt that May can hire another head coach with NCAA appearances on his resume if it comes to that.   Hiring a coach with 3 or 4 NCAA appearances but without the stench of failure at SLU would result in MBMs flooding the Billiken Victory Fund with dollars.  Or so I've read.

I agree with most of this. I don't know if he's a competent AD, I think he knows enough to be dangerous. He's an incredibly gifted fundraiser and was hired to be Biondi's bankroller/yes man. Now he's got a meek academic for a president and the keys to the joint. May went out of pocket with the Travis Ford hire, from what I understand. Interviewed him and fell in love. I do think that if you hire someone that can excite the fan base you will see an influx of cash. That and the BVF not just asking the same 15 people for money. But we're going to need the money men/women to be a guiding hand in the hiring, otherwise May will go out and grab Crean or another Ford adjacent coach.

[JMM28]

11 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

I don't trust the Board of Trustees to upgrade from Chris May.  He's a competent AD.  Several programs have improved under his tenure.  But men's basketball did not capitalize on its 2019 NCAA appearance.   Ford's Bully Ball teams just fell short.  Perkins got hurt and never regained his form.

I have no doubt that May can hire another head coach with NCAA appearances on his resume if it comes to that.   Hiring a coach with 3 or 4 NCAA appearances but without the stench of failure at SLU would result in MBMs flooding the Billiken Victory Fund with dollars.  Or so I've read.

I don't think you can let an AD hire a 3rd coach after 2 firings. But Pestello is charmin soft and the board is weak so who knows...

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

12 minutes ago, billikenfan05 said:

Interviewed him and fell in love.

Lol a match made in hell.

[cheeseman]

52 minutes ago, slu92 said:

I just finished reading BenFred’s article in today’s PD….very good read except the part about how well Chris May has performed his job duties. Listen, I know the guy very casually, he wouldn’t know me from the next guy, however I know a few big donors, I’m a season ticket holder, I know former employees, coaches, refs etc that worked with him and dept over the years and this isn’t the overall story I have heard. Not even close. 
 

1. MSOC-May gets credit for hiring Kalish. It was Jim Kavanaugh who told May after like almost 10 candidates turned the job down to hire the guy who at the time was working for JK and Gallagher. He did hire McGinty and that was a disaster. Almost buried entire program for good. Plus May didn’t even like Kalish going all the way back to SIUE days bc his teams beat SLU like a red headed stepchild. 

2. WSOC- not a knock on Sheilds, she’s fine but was only hired initially as a one year temp bc of how late in the hiring season when Kat Mertz left for Oregon. May didn’t think she was ready for that job but had no other options. 100% it worked out and Shields is great but he totally would’ve hired another coach with more experience at that time if he could’ve. The guys behind that programs success are Vince Gentile and Chris Allen, local club guys that could/can recruit great local talent over the years. They are wizards behind that curtain. 
 

3. WBB-Lisa Stone? For years she was second coming of Pat Summit and turned out to be a total dud. Sure she raised program but who with half a brain wouldn’t have done same thing it was boardline a bad D3 level program historically. Last year was great glad they made a NCAA tournament. However….their record was 16-17, get blasted away round 1 by TN and Tillett is now considered the second coming of Kim Mulkey with a career SLU sub .500 record? Jury totally still out, I like her but come on.

4. MBB - Crews? Ford? We all know the stats and sure 20 wins a year, non against a top 25 ranked team is great, plus $2.5 million a year….May literally said Calbert Cheney was a recruiting secret weapon and Jim Crews is as taking program to a whole other level…problem was that level was down, not up. Travis is 7-6 one of those wins against a D2 team with a bad schedule on purpose too. 
 

5. Big East-this alone should’ve sent May packing. I’ve been told by multiple people close to department he was told right away hey we are in A10 to position ourselves in case BE expands, blows up. He literally dismissed that ever happening and then got out maneuvered by Butler and Creighton. Hands down he dropped the ball, even old Fox Sports Midwest execs I know said exact same thing, they tease me all the time, they were there. Said thank Chris May for staying in A10.

6. Baseball- almost forgot….program wins with zero help from May except doing minimal tasks and acting like he moved mountains. DeSmet, yes DeSmet has an all turfed field, with press box and seating. Vianney has that and a players clubhouse with AC/Heat and running water! When SLU first hosted A10 May said next time they host things will be very different, like not having a plywood temporary press box….uh, SLU got that taken away bc of facilities. DeSmet. Vianney. Chaminade. It’s laughable. 

Sure everyone can say this is a cheap attempt to go after Chris May. Or it’s fake news. Whatever. All I know is I love program and want it to succeed. I don’t see anything changing until new, smarter leadership is in place. May has gotten a free ride his whole time at SLU. After reading BenFred today I thought “how does Chris May get a pass on all this?” Read each point and really think it all through. I trust this info and my gut. I just don’t understand how other people don’t connect the dots and see it. If May was a compete monster but smart, I’d live with it. I just can’t take the stupidity. 

If anything comes from it I genuinely hope May hears or reads about this post. It’s a dose of reality he may never admit but deep down knows it’s all true. He’s just fooling himself at end of the day, it’s actually sad. Plus this article totally smells of desperation from May asking local media to put a positive spin on his tenure, bc I imagine he is finally starting to feel the heat. As he should. I think May and Ford have pictures of Cusamano as well. It’s so obvious and embarrassing. 
 

Merry Christmas everyone and hopefully conference season will be good to all of us. Truly hope so. 

I am sure May had a hand in the BE matter but I know from talking to another Jesuit President that Biondi was hated among them all.  The guy at Creighton was well liked.  I was told the Presidents simply were not that interested in having to deal with Biondi.  I also have not been that impressed with May's hiring record overall.

[3star_recruit]

28 minutes ago, billikenfan05 said:

I agree with most of this. I don't know if he's a competent AD, I think he knows enough to be dangerous. He's an incredibly gifted fundraiser and was hired to be Biondi's bankroller/yes man. Now he's got a meek academic for a president and the keys to the joint. May went out of pocket with the Travis Ford hire, from what I understand. Interviewed him and fell in love. I do think that if you hire someone that can excite the fan base you will see an influx of cash. That and the BVF not just asking the same 15 people for money. But we're going to need the money men/women to be a guiding hand in the hiring, otherwise May will go out and grab Crean or another Ford adjacent coach.

Which money men are well-versed in hiring/evaluating basketball coaches?  May probably has a spreadsheet of every coach under 55 with 3 or more NCAA appearances.  That's the world he inhabits.

[Cowboy II]

-again, this is fantasy that we were on the cusp of being in the BEast 

[billikenfan05]

51 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

Which money men are well-versed in hiring/evaluating basketball coaches?  May probably has a spreadsheet of every coach under 55 with 3 or more NCAA appearances.  That's the world he inhabits.

I'm hoping someone knows Chris Mack...Honestly that was me thinking wishfully.

[Dr. Holly Hills]

50 minutes ago, 3star_recruit said:

Which money men are well-versed in hiring/evaluating basketball coaches?  May probably has a spreadsheet of every coach under 55 with 3 or more NCAA appearances.  That's the world he inhabits.

If he’s around to make a 3rd hire, this would be it.  He doesn’t have the equity nor chutzpah to go after a diamond in the rough, Shaka Smart type.

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

Just now, Dr. Holly Hills said:

If he’s around to make a 3rd hire, this would be it.  He doesn’t have the equity nor chutzpah to go after a diamond in the rough, Shaka Smart type.

He WANTS so badly to be thought of as some kind of genius, though. 

[3star_recruit]

1 hour ago, Dr. Holly Hills said:

If he’s around to make a 3rd hire, this would be it.  He doesn’t have the equity nor chutzpah to go after a diamond in the rough, Shaka Smart type.

Now that I think about it, the list of available coaches with the parameters I cited is a short list:

UNDER 55 WITH 3 OR MORE NCAA APPEARANCES

Chris Mack (9)
Travis Ford (7)
John Becker (5)
Bryce Drew (5)
Cuonzo Martin (4)
John Groce (4)
Andy Kennedy (3)

Everybody else is already in a P6 job or recently took another position.  Or am I missing somebody?

 

[TheChosenOne]

I have a tough time arguing that Chris May has not been a good athletic director during his time at SLU. My question and what needs to be the primary decision point is whether he is capable of continuing to lead us and lead us forward in the new landscape of NIL, conference realignment, etc. Plus, if we are being honest, men’s basketball is the only sport that matters at SLU.

I think the athletic department failed to understand the importance of NIL and instead of viewing it as an opportunity, decided to ignore it and took the approach that they could not be involved and did not keep track of how it was evolving. Heck, even this fall Troy Robertson did an interview where he took passive aggressive shots at programs succeeding with NIL and utilizing the laws of the state, the same laws some on this board claim May lobbied for. That is pure incompetence, and it is not Troy's fault, while involved he clearly is not schooled on NIL. That was a lack of leadership from the athletic director to understand the game changing nature of NIL, is that who we want to lead us forward?

Also, concerns that SLU can hire someone better should not be a factor considered. May or Ford either meet the expectations of the program and University or they don't. The next few months will be real interesting.

[slufan13]

Doesn't BenFred have anything better to do?

Doesn't he know any Ford talk has to be contained to one thread?

[brianstl]

Wasn’t Stone hired because Majerus was campaigning for her to get the job? I remembering hearing something like that at the time.

[brianstl]

1 hour ago, 3star_recruit said:

Now that I think about it, the list of available coaches with the parameters I cited is a short list:

UNDER 55 WITH 3 OR MORE NCAA APPEARANCES

Chris Mack (9)
Travis Ford (7)
John Becker (5)
Bryce Drew (5)
Cuonzo Martin (4)
John Groce (4)
Andy Kennedy (3)

Everybody else is already in a P6 job or recently took another position.  Or am I missing somebody?

 

Mack would be a great hire, but I don’t know if he would be interested.

Drew would have been the right hire the last time around and would again be a good hire.  
 

I don’t know if the administration would want to deal with the backlash that would come with hiring Becker.  Other than that He would be a good hire. 
 

I think Kennedy doesn’t get the credit he actually deserves as a coach, but he would be hard to sell to the fan base.  
 

I’m a pass on Martin and Groce.  The school isn’t going to hire a guy that washed out for Mizzou or the Illini.

I actually think the best thing might just be hiring a younger NBA or college assistant that is a strong teacher of the game, realizes everything about the college game is different now, isn’t set in their ways and is able to adapt to all the changes that are happening away from the court.  I would be fine with someone like Ahean, a name that came up over the off season.

[Slu let the dogs out?]

Let's go way outside the box and enter cuckoo fantasy land. Lure Mike McDaniel away from the Dolphins this spring, match his salary + $1 ($3,500,001), and then give him the summer to figure out this whole hoops thing. Confident he'd be a better Xs and Os coach than Ford by the first exhibition game.

That, or pay Mack whatever he wants. So easy to spend money that isn't mine...

May shouldn't be given a third opportunity to make the wrong hire.

[stmdragons]

I still want Ben McCollum. Not sure if that’s realistic or not, but he excites me far more than any of the coaches mentioned here aside from Mack. 

[wgstl]

5 minutes ago, stmdragons said:

I still want Ben McCollum. Not sure if that’s realistic or not, but he excites me far more than any of the coaches mentioned here aside from Mack. 

WPB has been chirping about Indiana st coach a bit. 

[TheA_Bomb]

As for a new AD?  Maybe the head assistant at JMU that AD seems to be killing it right now.  First year in D1 makes a bowl game and hosted Game Day.  Basketball team is undefeated.  Would need to see how their collective works (if they have one), game day operations, fund raising and marketing. But they're not some traditional D1 power and are thriving right now after their transition. The longtime JMU AD is retiring and they're looking to hire a new 1.

https://jmusports.com/staff-directory/geoff-polglase/3

Strategic planning, fund raising experience