The Coaching Carousel

Now that we are at the end of another sports season, the coaching carousel begins once again. Up to this point there were just a few positions that were available, and those came and went, being filled by up and comers trying to make a name for themselves. Then the bomb drops, and Kentucky, the Mecca of college basketball, announces the dismissal of their coach, there winning coach.

I often wonder what goes through the minds of athletic directors and school presidents, that make these seemingly knee-jerk decisions. Is 22 and 14 a bad season? Maybe in Kentucky it is, but with a team rebuilding, that seems pretty reasonable to me. I know that I am not from there, nor have I ever lived there, but letting someone go with that record seems awfully harsh to me. The next question I have is, what is the new time line for rebuilding a program. I find it hard to believe that two years is enough, but I guess if you coach in Kentucky, you better make miracles happen in just one.

I do want to congratulate John Calipari on his hiring with Kentucky. As much as I do not agree with them firing there coach so quickly, they certainly hired one of the best college coaches to ever coach the game. The schools reputation combined with his recruiting ability, certainly will give Kentucky a decided edge in the future of the SEC. For a basketball coach to be paid that much in a "football" conference is a testament to coach Calipari's ability. He will certainly be under fire, and under the close watchful eyes of the Kentucky faithful, but he is a man that can do it and do his job well. I did wonder if he went for the money, but, it's Kentucky, so it really doesn't matter. Anyone would be crazy to turn down a position like that, even if he did not make as much as they are paying him.

Another hot coach right now is Missouri's Mike Anderson. Here is a man who took a team picked to finish 7th in their conference, and all he did was lead them to third place in the regular season, and conference tournament champions. As a result of this success, and his impeccable character, he was being wooed by other schools for considerably more money than Missouri could offer him. However, true to his character, and to the students that he recruited, he made the decision to stay and be a part of the Missouri program for the next 7 years. In a "give me what I deserve or else society", coach Anderson chose the road less traveled, and one can only hope that he will be rewarded for his faithfulness to the school, to the players and to the community. He is truly a man of integrity.

As we watch the carousel go round and round, it will certainly be fascinating to see where coaches go or stay, and what the coaches' motivations might be in there decisions. I am all for making money, but that should not be the sole motivation for making a profession change. The better job may not be the highest paying job.

See you all next time.