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BASKETBALL Coach McDevitt

TrueBlue147

All Conference
Mar 19, 2008
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I know many reasons why he should
be let go but what's your best arguments on why Mcdevitt should be our coach next year?
 
Welp, do not have much for ya on that one. But there are two reasons why he probably will be offered an extension. M and M. Probably 2-3 more years. Best case is 2 years but all/most Assistants only have 1 year so they only have his buyout to worry about after next season. Something else to consider is if they offer 2, and somewhere closer to his home or a situation he likes better offers him maybe a bit lower salary but a longer term and he decides to leave. I know that chances of that are probably low but if his contract is up its a possibility.
 
I'm just gonna say it. He shouldn't be. He's 93-112 with zero reg season or tourney champs. Only 3 winning seasons in 7 years and only 2 seasons with 20+ wins.
He will be extended if we follow the pattern, but he shouldn't be. They can argue about giving time etc but we didn't have to give CRI time, and CKD had a 118-96 record after seven years. While a lot weren't happy due to no post season and not even hitting 20 wins, he still only had a losing record once in his first seven.

CKD hit gold year 10, but things are different now. There is no building a team anymore as it is almost year to year rebuild, two years tops. This year was essentially built for it all and McD still couldn't do it. If it wasn't for being in a good conference and playing schools like UT, we wouldn't have even been in the NIT.

It's time for a reset.
 
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What would be the number 1 reason for rehire?
Simply, it's the path of least resistance. Another 1 year extension alleviates a lot of work. And work can be really hard at times.
 
If his contract is up, why would they extend it? He’s clearly not going to elevate the program. Right now you’re hearing so many stories of schools like MT who hired the right coach and Bam! they have historic seasons. That’s not going to happen with McDevitt. He bought the right players, he just couldn’t do anything with him.
 
He and his family are well liked and respected in the community.
His players are fun to watch and don’t cause off the court problems
His player like him and enjoy playing for him.
He is as good a coach as anyone in cusa and can win if he can continue to recruit.
Sooner or later he will catch lightening in a a bottle and make a run.
 
Here’s my opinion. This is a hard job. It’s also a business. If you can’t achieve goals this far in, it’s time to switch directions.

M&M won’t though. Which is why crowds dwindle. Interest wanes. And the same old people post on facebook on how they are proud of the coaches.
 
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He and his family are well liked and respected in the community.
His players are fun to watch and don’t cause off the court problems
His player like him and enjoy playing for him.
He is as good a coach as anyone in cusa and can win if he can continue to recruit.
Sooner or later he will catch lightening in a a bottle and make a run.
The exact same things could be said about Stock (minus the recruiting part). But apathy sets in, and this day in age with conference realignment not done, the big guys wanting to expand the tourney to get rid of the little guys, etc, schools can't let apathy set in.

Patience and waiting for sooner or later isn't a virtue schools can have anymore.
Here’s my opinion. This is a hard job. It’s also a business. If you can’t achieve goals this far in, it’s time to switch directions.

M&M won’t though. Which is why crowds dwindle. Interest wanes. And the same old people post on facebook on how they are proud of the coaches.
I noticed that. Nothing but "proud of our guys" etc. And while that is a great sentiment, is no one pissed we lost? Does no one look at McD's numbers and see what I see? I mean seriously.
 
FYI with the BRAA you can dedicate your donation to a specific program. I give mine fully to women’s basketball, will be giving more next year if Rick retires.
I have a close friend who known has Rick from his days in Shelbyville and I went with him to a game vs NMSU and asked him with him being a Bama fan and both grandkids graduated and go from/to Bama, and his response was to support his friend.

I also asked when Rick was planning to retire, and he said that he is waiting to see if Matt is going to get any consideration or chance to take over the program when he does. M&M will not give a straight answer.

Other tidbit he said is that a majority of coaches do not get along with Massaro.
 
I have a close friend who known has Rick from his days in Shelbyville and I went with him to a game vs NMSU and asked him with him being a Bama fan and both grandkids graduated and go from/to Bama, and his response was to support his friend.

I also asked when Rick was planning to retire, and he said that he is waiting to see if Matt is going to get any consideration or chance to take over the program when he does. M&M will not give a straight answer.

Other tidbit he said is that a majority of coaches do not get along with Massaro.
I would quite frankly be shocked if Matt is not the choice to lead the program when Rick is done. My thought is they probably have already accepted it, since he’s the associate HC and a former SEC head coach. All about timing for when CRI decides to step away though. It’s nice to have that freedom versus what we have with McDevitt - kind of waiting game to see what we are willing to accept in terms of program performance.

I’m of the opinion that he is turning things upward at the right time so perhaps a one year extension with mandatory 20+ wins would be sufficient. But I’m not the one making any of the decisions.
 
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I would quite frankly be shocked if Matt is not the choice to lead the program when Rick is done. My thought is they probably have already accepted it, since he’s the associate HC and a former SEC head coach. All about timing for when CRI decides to step away though. It’s nice to have that freedom versus what we have with McDevitt - kind of waiting game to see what we are willing to accept in terms of program performance.

I’m of the opinion that he is turning things upward at the right time so perhaps a one year extension with mandatory 20+ wins would be sufficient. But I’m not the one making any of the decisions.
I would think Matt is the logical choice.

As far as McD... I don't keep up with basketball enough to make an informed opinion TBH.
 
I don't think anyone (except those outside the program screaming nepotism) would fuss at Matt taking over.

He never worked for his Dad and yet still worked his way up to SEC head coach. That didn't pan out and I feel now as an assistant he has paid his dues and learned many lessons to earn a chance again. Those dues just happened to be paid on his Dad's staff.
There is zero doubt he is one hell of a recruiter and I honestly think Rick has let him handle a lot of the game prep anyway.

The headline should simply read "Current MT assistant and former SEC Head Coach Matt Insell promoted to take over same spot for the Lady Raiders." Simple as that.
 
I’m of the opinion that he is turning things upward at the right time so perhaps a one year extension with mandatory 20+ wins would be sufficient. But I’m not the one making any of the decisions.

This is exactly what's going to happen. Massaro is the most predictable AD in the country. His thought process will be this:

"Oh...uhm hur dur, McDevitt just had a good season in the final year of his contract. We are in a new era! Coaches can coach on 1 year deals now! I'm a genius!"

"Okay Mr McDevitt, We are giving you a 1 year extension. You did good last year on a 1 year deal so we are doing that again."

I'm guessing the athletic department will want to keep this quiet, if possible. Giving a 1 year deal is not a good look. If there's a lot of chatter about it, Massaro will give some corny statement press release and try to justify/rationalize it but it's not a good look regardless.
 
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I'd feel better about keeping McD if he had a more balanced roster this season with several returning players contributing this season. As someone else called it, this was his "mercenary" team full of seniors solely to have a good year this year to save his job. We lose A LOT of production to graduation. Alston, Tre Green, Loofe, Lands (maybe Counter) are the returning players with any production at all.
 
When is the next signing day for basketball? The only 2025 commit I can find on here is the PG from Webb. Do we not have any other solid commitments from the 2025 class?
 
When is the next signing day for basketball? The only 2025 commit I can find on here is the PG from Webb. Do we not have any other solid commitments from the 2025 class?

Probably not many roster spots available at the moment assuming we don't have a coaching change

Most players will be able to come back based on the recent JUCO ruling that states those years do not count towards eligibility. Only notable player I believe we lose is Mustafa which is a huge loss by the way. That's assuming nobody transfers out. Certainly a few will look for a pay day.

So with Mustafa gone that's one spot and I believe Fussell is out of eligibility as well (Shouldn't keep him anyway if not)

So as of right now I believe we only have 2 spots available. I'm close to certain they will give McDevitt at least 1 more year to ride this out with Weston, Porter, Counter, etc. assuming they come back.

I'm guessing there's a lot of talk going on behind the scenes right now regarding who is coming back and if it's worth extending Nick. If the players were smart they would try to leverage this for some $$ in their pockets.

If everyone comes back I think they keep him another year and basically run it back with a mercenary roster and a coach on a 1 year deal
 
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I forgot about the other guys having gone to JuCo first (Weston, Porter, Buford). Still need a big to replace Mostafa.
 
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He and his family are well liked and respected in the community.
His players are fun to watch and don’t cause off the court problems
His player like him and enjoy playing for him.
He is as good a coach as anyone in cusa and can win if he can continue to recruit.
Sooner or later he will catch lightening in a a bottle and make a run.
Therein lies the problem. Instead of being run like a Mid-Major Div. I college program with corresponding expectations and results, MTSU is run like a rural high school program.
 
Therein lies the problem. Instead of being run like a Mid-Major Div. I college program with corresponding expectations and results, MTSU is run like a rural high school program.
The calculus I think the administration is making is this: is it better to go through potential dud coaches with really terrible years, given that not every team is going to sustain success when trading coaches in and out every 2-3 seasons; OR is it better to get a coach you have confidence in and stick with them, if they succeed enough to keep you happy? They're obviously going for #2. That's why I think McDevitt will get at least one, if not 2, more years.
 
The calculus I think the administration is making is this: is it better to go through potential dud coaches with really terrible years, given that not every team is going to sustain success when trading coaches in and out every 2-3 seasons; OR is it better to get a coach you have confidence in and stick with them, if they succeed enough to keep you happy? They're obviously going for #2. That's why I think McDevitt will get at least one, if not 2, more years.
This is why I could never be an AD. Wouldn't bother me in the least to can a coach after 2-3yrs. I have specific minimum metrics to meet to keep my job. Coaches should to. Coaching is a job. An athletic department is a business with revenue and expenses.

No more than 4yr contracts with a 5th at my option. No bowl in 2yrs, bye. Two seasons with less than 20 wins in basketball, bye. No conf champ appearance in those 4yrs, bye. And if you strike gold and get poached, take the buyout money and do it again.
I'd either be the most loved or most hated AD of all time. There wouldn't be any in-between.
 
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The calculus I think the administration is making is this: is it better to go through potential dud coaches with really terrible years, given that not every team is going to sustain success when trading coaches in and out every 2-3 seasons; OR is it better to get a coach you have confidence in and stick with them, if they succeed enough to keep you happy? They're obviously going for #2. That's why I think McDevitt will get at least one, if not 2, more years.
Ole blue, the only calculus this group uses is 1) easiest path forward, 2) how long can I continue being derelict in my job before I have to start my Tennessee State pension.
 
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