Head coach is sometimes the most
underrated position in sports. There have already been a total of 35
changes among the ranks of NCAA college basketball coaches since the end
of the 2011-2012 season. Some
coaches were
hired, some were fired,
and some simply moved on to a bigger
schools. Let's take a
look.
With national signing day behind us,
NCAA basketball bettors must now begin to assess the incoming as well monitor coaches changes to discover next year's Cinderalla team.
In
the blood
As a Duke fan, I'm going to have to be a little bit biased here. Don't worry,
Duke fans, Coach K isn't going
anywhere. However, former Blue Devil and NCAA all-time assist
leader Bobby
Hurley and
his
brother Dan are
taking the reins
at the University of
Rhode Island as
assistant coach and head coach respectively; they come by coaching honestly - their father, Bob Hurley Sr., is widely regarded
as one of the
greatest high school
coaches ever and was
elected into the
basketball hall of
fame.
Hurley, Sr.
could have even made
the
move himself, but
he's more
interested in
working with younger
kids.
Instead
it's Dan Hurley who
makes the move from
Wagner College, where he took a 7-24 team and turned it
into a 25-6 club in
just 2 seasons. This college
won't be contending
for a national
championship in
2012-2013, but I
promise you it will
be a powerhouse in the near future.
The
University of Illinois made a tough
decision, cutting ties
with head coach Bruce
Weber after a rough
17-15 campaign last
season and a 9th place
finish in the Big Ten.
Weber had a nice run
with the Fighting
Illini, leading them
to two Big Ten
Championships and an
appearance in the
NCAA
Championship game in
2005. Quality coaches like Weber don't remain idle long; the Kansas State
Wildcats hired Weber
after head coach Frank
Martin decided to make
the move to the
University of South
Carolina. The Wildcats
have made the NCAA
Tournament in 4 out of
the last 5 seasons. (FYI: it's rumored that Martin left KSU due to internal
reasons.)
Former
LSU head coach Trent
Johnson has left Baton Rogue for greener pastures at TCU, where he'll lead the
Horned Frogs in their
inaugural season in the
Big 12 conference. After a
successful 27-8 run in
2008-2009, Johnson's stock at LSU had fallen. He managed
to resuscitate the
program last season
and lead them into the
NIT, where they were
eliminated in the 1st
round. He turned an 11-20 team into an 18-14
team and hopes to do
better with TCU; this
is a program that
finished the season at
18-15 and can use some
work. They'll
certainly be tested as
they enter the Big 12
Having finished last season with a record of 12-18, the University
of Nebraska needed
some immediate help, getting it in the
form of former
Colorado State
University head coach
Tim Miles. In his last season at CSU, Miles
compiled a 20-12 record and garnered an
appearance in the NCAA
Tournament. Colorado
State upset top 20 teams
such as San Diego
State, New Mexico and
UNLV. They hadn't beaten a ranked
opponent since 2004!
Nebraska
appears to have a winner in Miles.
After firing Bruce
Weber, Illinois hired
40 year old John
Groce. Groce had major
success at Ohio
University with an
85-56 record and 2
trips to the
NCAA
tournament in 4 years. Last
season, he led OU to
the Sweet 16. With the addition of Groce, the Fighting Illini's
2012-2013 season
seems promising
indeed.