UL Basketball Coach ... NEXT

[Turbine]

and created an APR mess that Lee inherited.

I agree with everything you said about Evans except this ^ it simply IS NOT TRUE!

[MetryCajun]

_ I agree with everything you said about Evans except this ^ it simply IS NOT TRUE! _

I think some people think if you say it enough it becomes true. Evans had his flaws, but APR problems were not on his watch.

[Turbine]

_ I think some people think if you say it enough it becomes true. Evans had his flaws, but APR problems were not on his watch. _

I agree

The very misleading phrase that has been bandied about by those that know better is. . .

"Robert cleaned up the mess after Jessie"

The statement in itself is not untrue; it just sends listeners to the wrong conclusion.

The implication is that he cleaned up Jessie's mess when the truth is he cleaned up his own mess. Robert's mess was "after Jessie” but he wasn’t cleaning up Jessie’s mess.

[rhineaux]

_ How about

Joe Dooley

Norm Roberts

Billy G... _

Joe Dooley is a coach that I wouldn't mind seeing get some consideration. I thought that he could be a candidate last year, which is when most of us thought that this job would come open.

Former HC at ECU, 57-52 in 4 seasons.
Current Head Asst under Bill Self at KU.
Ranked as one of the Top Recruiters in the country.
Was a finalist for the Holy Cross job last year.

On the outside, the biggest drawback to him would be his lack of familiarity of the area, but that could be built quickly.

He didn't have great success as a HC at ECU, but does have that experience and has tutored under one of the best coaches in the country for the past 7 years.

His credentials compare fairly well to other names thrown around. He doesn't have a 30 win season as a HC like Kennedy. He does have HC Experience, unlike Pierre, and has worked under a better coach(es). He doesn't have the number of years as a Head Coach like Kaspar, but has experience competing on a level similar to UL (as HC at ECU, and as AC at UNM and Wyoming) and at a higher level as an Assistant at KU.

I guess what I'm getting at is that few of the names thrown out there are significantly better than the others, and if they are better, it will be that much harder to convince them to choose UL over a much larger, richer program. In the second tier, each guy brings something that others don't. None of them really have the full package. But, that is why they're not in the upper tier.

[zephyr]

_ I agree

The very misleading phrase that has been bandied about by those that know better is. . .

"Robert cleaned up the mess after Jessie"

The statement in itself is not untrue; it just sends listeners to the wrong conclusion.

The implication is that he cleaned up Jessie's mess when the truth is he cleaned up his own mess. Robert's mess was "after Jessie” but he wasn’t cleaning up Jessie’s mess. _

Maybe you can tell us when the APR became an issue of enforcement? Evans did not have to operate his program under the APR guidelines that are apparent in the collegiate landscape today if I'm not mistaken. Therefore, he didn't necessarily have a "mess" by NCAA guidelines but Jesse clearly didn't run the program as clean as you would indicate. You also mentioned that while the APR mess was not his, he clearly had his issues. If he won consistently and didn't have APR problems, what were his "issues"?

[zephyr]

_ Personally, if I were going to hire a coach that I knew had baggage, I'd pick Gillespie over Floyd. If Gillispie grabs another DUI, then it will give UL a black eye, but that's it. If Floyd does something shady, then UL will get that black eye and perhaps much more, negating whatever good he did for the program. Secondly, even if Floyd didn't really do anything wrong, other than use bad judgement, he's still been in the middle of this significant investigation with the NCAA, and I would imagine that they're going to keep a close eye on him. With what this school has recently gone through (APR, T-shirt "scandal", etc), I don't know if that makes for a good marriage.

As for Gillispie, Coach Hall recently said that the guy is a ball coach. He's also known as a grinder and has had success in multiple places. I don't even hold the UK stuff against him...I don't think he was what some of the UK Boosters really wanted and there was conflict from the beginning. As for his drinking, he did spend some time getting treatment, so one would hope that he's been able to overcome his issues.

He and Kennedy would be my first choices. Dennis Felton and Mark Gottfried would also have to be up there somewhere near the top. IF Floyd isn't planning to hold out for the Hornets job after this season, and is interested, I wouldn't hate the hire, but I would always be waiting for the other shoe to drop. If either Butch Pierre or Danny Kaspar are hired, I would hope they're several spots down on the list, and only after the first choices declined UL's offers for Major Coaching jobs. I don't think either one of those guys creates the "buzz" that the Athletic Dept says they want. _

That and Gillespie had much less success on the hardcourt and is not necessarily the proven recruiter that Floyd is.

[ManAboutTown]

_ Maybe you can tell us when the APR became an issue of enforcement? Evans did not have to operate his program under the APR guidelines that are apparent in the collegiate landscape today if I'm not mistaken. Therefore, he didn't necessarily have a "mess" by NCAA guidelines but Jesse clearly didn't run the program as clean as you would indicate. You also mentioned that while the APR mess was not his, he clearly had his issues. If he won consistently and didn't have APR problems, what were his "issues"? _

Jessie Evans may not have directly impacted the APR issue, but he cultivated a situation in which "not so great guys" could come, and get away with a lot of things. Robert had to change that culture. And that is a difficult thing to do, especially in South Louisiana, especially in basketball. For that, Jessie had a hand in the issues, IMO.

[MetryCajun]

_ Maybe you can tell us when the APR became an issue of enforcement? Evans did not have to operate his program under the APR guidelines that are apparent in the collegiate landscape today if I'm not mistaken. Therefore, he didn't necessarily have a "mess" by NCAA guidelines but Jesse clearly didn't run the program as clean as you would indicate. You also mentioned that while the APR mess was not his, he clearly had his issues. If he won consistently and didn't have APR problems, what were his "issues"? _

Zephyr,
The point is Lee did not have a mess to clean up. He inherited one of the most talented teams UL has had since the death penalty. The problems occured when he lost out on a couple of recruits(Francis & Cooper) and brought in a few JC's like Fields that did not work out. He then cleaned house and brought in a ton of Freshmen (many were inelligible). This is when APR came front in center.

Evans was not the complete package, but it is a little annoying people are casting Lee as a crusader for the players. The fact is he ran off so many players his first few years it enabled him to keep his job this past year.

[Turbine]

_ Maybe you can tell us when the APR became an issue of enforcement? Evans did not have to operate his program under the APR guidelines that are apparent in the collegiate landscape today if I'm not mistaken. Therefore, he didn't necessarily have a "mess" by NCAA guidelines but Jesse clearly didn't run the program as clean as you would indicate. You also mentioned that while the APR mess was not his, he clearly had his issues. If he won consistently and didn't have APR problems, what were his "issues"? _

The big knock on Jessie was the perception that he only had players who were going to be in the system for 2 years. Even though he was regularly winning 20 games some felt the 2-year players were limiting UL's full winning potential.

The APR was "announced" by the NCAA in the spring of 2004 which was after Jessie’s last season yet for some reason the NCAA decided to backwards date compliance and used 2003-04 as its first year. And yes Evans backdated APR cost Lee a single scholarship but only for the year of the report and certainly wasn't a "mess" it wsa a little lower than Bustle's first backdated APR score.

The score average (historical) would have been overcome with just 2 good years. Instead Lee had a year of his own that could never be overcome until it moved completely off the historical calendar, and in the end that is the only way he cleaned up his own APR mess.

Here is a link to the first thread on the subject APR

[Turbine]

_ Jessie Evans may not have directly impacted the APR issue, but he cultivated a situation in which "not so great guys" could come, and get away with a lot of things. Robert had to change that culture. And that is a difficult thing to do, especially in South Louisiana, especially in basketball. For that, Jessie had a hand in the issues, IMO. _

Here is what Lee did in his first year to change the culture.

He dumped 2 of Evans Sophomore players Cedric Williams and Matt Foster along with Evans last frosh, Chris Cucchiara and he sat out Brett Hebert who played again in Lee's 2nd year.

In Lee's first year retained and played these Evans guys.
Chris Cameron
Orien Greene
Brian Hamilton
Adam James
Dwayne Mitchell
Ross Mouton
Tiras Wade
Alphonso Williams

He also brought in a big freshman class