Aside from Indiana is there another coaching job more attractive than Gophers?

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howeda7 said:
The Indiana basketball job is rapidly becoming the equivalent of the Nebraska football job. A no-win trap of unreasonable expectations from a fan base stuck in a time warp.
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The state of Indiana loves basketball. I find it to be different than Nebraska football, which arguably defied the odds by becoming a power in the first place.
 


matt said:
Maybe this is a better way to put it: if Indiana and Minnesota both have the same coach as their top target, which school do you think the coach is more likely to pick? Any coach that does not have Minnesota ties is much more likely to sign a contract with Indiana. Pay, which you mentioned above, is likely to be a primary reason. Even for the coaches that do have Minnesota ties (Muss, Dutcher, Medved), I think it’s closer to 50/50 which university they would select.
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Which goes back to my original question. Other than pay why would anyone think it's actually a better job?. Obviously if a couple of boosters can come up with a completely unreasonable amount of money to get you fired after only 4 years that doesn't sound like a good place to be to me.
 


Ten million buys a lot of Tums!
 



CentralGopher said:
Which goes back to my original question. Other than pay why would anyone think it's actually a better job?. Obviously if a couple of boosters can come up with a completely unreasonable amount of money to get you fired after only 4 years that doesn't sound like a good place to be to me.
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What jobs in the Big Ten do you think are better or worse jobs than Minnesota (if any) and why? While people will have slightly different answers/priorities to that question, I venture to guess that the same answers you give to that question also apply to a Minnesota-Indiana comparison.
 

CentralGopher said:
Other than pay, is Indiana really that attractive of a job?.
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Basketball in Indiana is hockey in Minnesota. Full disclosure Indiana transplant. Top dollar pay, superior facilities, recruiting hotbed (Indianapolis and beyond) and a rabid fanbase.
 

mplarson7 said:
As a life long Gopher fan and an IU grad, definitely more attractive than Minnesota.

I was there when Crean finally turned them around, the whole of Bloomington erupted when Watford hit that buzzer beater vs #1 Kentucky. I've been in Assembly Hall when IU was a top 5 team...when that stadium is rocking, the Barn doesn't even compare. The word in Bloomington right now is that between the $10m buyout for Archie and a buyout for a new coach...they are being funded by 2 total donors. I don't foresee that being the case for Minnesota, unless someone wants to correct me on that.

So yes, Indiana is still a very attractive job.
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Yes and Mark Cuban did not contribute to the buyout contrary to popular belief.
 



GopherWeatherGuy said:
Exactly, nearly everyone agrees that Indiana is a better job than Minnesota.

Utah is very comparable to the Gophers. There are different reasons to rank each one above the other, but still comparable.
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Then you get into qualitative stuff, and there are a million things. Maybe we can all agree that different things are attractive to different people.
 

restovich said:
Indiana is still potentially an attractive job. Better than Nebraska football. While a demanding fan base, the potential for a recruting advantage is always there. It is a little dated, but I remember Jim dutcher circa 1979 or 1980 ruefully saying "At Minnesota, we recruit. Indiana *selects*"
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It has been sort of feast or famine since Knight. Been to NCAA Tourney 9 of the past 21 years since Knight, three B1G titles including tie, five seasons under .500 overall, 10 seasons at .500 or below in B1G.
 





cjbfbp said:
Yet, Crean still was fired. Don't get me wrong, I didn't like the guy but after his first three probation era seasons he didn't have a losing record, had 4 NCAA tournaments, and 3 final 16 finishes. Mike Davis took them to 4 NCAA tournaments in 6 years including a national final game and he was forced out.

"Very attractive" depends on the eye of the beholder. That's a very high pressure job and the fact that they have a small number of willing deep pocket donors for buyouts makes it even more so. I respect their desire and willingness to spend what it takes to be among the very best but they could churn through a lot of coaches before they ever find another one who will perform at a level close to Bobby Knight. Hell, a coach like Branch McCracken wouldn't last there more than four or five years these days.
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If you are a person with a lot of confidence, you are not going into the Indiana job with the thought of what is the bare minimum I need to achieve to keep this job.
 

WriterGoph said:
It's a good question. Given the conference and the lack of national exposure/attention, I don't think one can consider Utah more attractive.

I was waiting to see if Marquette opened up, but I am guessing at this point, they will stick with Wojo for another year. Marquette *could* potentially be considered more attractive by some folks.
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Surprised Wojo is still kicking, usually if things aren't working there, the coach gets an implied message it's time to go.
 


Indiana finished in the top 10 in the AP poll once in the last 27 years. Not exactly a traditional powerhouse anymore. Perception of some (older) fans is that they are still that way.
 
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cjbfbp said:
I didn't say that no one would come here. After all, we did get Murphy and Mason from warmer climates. But, many people simply won't live here if they have the choice to live somewhere else.
And that might not be restricted to non-Minnesotans. Did you ever wonder if that might be one of the reasons why many of our good young athletes choose to go elsewhere?
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Yes, I have thought of that often, but for me it's mistaken reasoning. I played varsity sports in college farther south. Later I came to MN, loved it, and have stayed. I still get ample opportunities to play any sport I want. Why go to some redneck state because the sun shines and it's above freezing in winter? But to each his/her own; people have their preferences. My main point is: a great coach who can recruit has a fertile territory here and will succeed, but the U has not hired many great coaches for decades now.
 

I wonder how many of us writing in these post have ever actually lived in Bloomington, Indiana? I think you'd have to love basketball a whole heckuva lot.
 

Hrothgar said:
Why go to some redneck state because the sun shines and it's above freezing in winter? But to each his/her own; people have their preferences. My main point is: a great coach who can recruit has a fertile territory here and will succeed, but the U has not hired many great coaches for decades now.
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Well, I have lived in a redneck state and redneck areas of states that normally aren't considered redneck states. I can't say that I would want to live in any of those places again but I'm 64. If I were younger and had less of an established idea of what I liked and didn't, I might choose climate over culture. Plus, college towns are always a little different no matter where they are located.
 

WoodburyTim said:
If you are a person with a lot of confidence, you are not going into the Indiana job with the thought of what is the bare minimum I need to achieve to keep this job.
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Sure, but that doesn't mean you won't be fired after a relatively short tenure like the rest of them.
 

cjbfbp said:
Well, I have lived in a redneck state and redneck areas of states that normally aren't considered redneck states. I can't say that I would want to live in any of those places again but I'm 64. If I were younger and had less of an established idea of what I liked and didn't, I might choose climate over culture. Plus, college towns are always a little different no matter where they are located.
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For every state anyone wants to call redneck, there are probably several people on this board who can name a cool town or city in that state that they have been to, maybe not lived in. There are all kinds of cool towns with great bars etc. Whatever one prefers. I like Minneapolis. I also think Oxford, MS is a great scene on a Saturday during football season, as an example. Same for Baton Rouge on a completely different level.
 

Hrothgar said:
I wonder how many of us writing in these post have ever actually lived in Bloomington, Indiana? I think you'd have to love basketball a whole heckuva lot.
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I lived in Bloomington for 4 years. I absolutely loved every minute I spent there, amazing college town. It's been 6 years since I've lived in Bloomington and still miss it.
 
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Number one criteria for any job: Who is your boss? Can you trust them? Will they stand behind you when times are tough?
How big of a supporter is administration? Will they help you succeed or tell you at every turn...that’s not how we do it here.

The rest you can overcome. Can’t accomplish any thing without somebody at the top believing in you, echoing you, supporting you, defending your vision.
 

matt said:
People are absolutely delusional if they think the college basketball world considers the Minnesota job on par with the Indiana job. I think an unbiased basketball fan would have Iowa State and Utah in the same tier as Minnesota.
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This is the correct take.

I love MN sports as much as anyone but debating whether our BB coaching job is more attractive than Indiana's is silly. Maybe someday.......
 

dlnavra said:
I also think Oxford, MS is a great scene on a Saturday during football season, as an example. Same for Baton Rouge on a completely different level.
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Oxford is a college town. They are always different from most of the areas in their states. I lived in Baton Rouge briefly for about 2 weeks in the early 80s. It could be much different now but I'd never live there again.
 

Hrothgar said:
Yes, I have thought of that often, but for me it's mistaken reasoning. I played varsity sports in college farther south. Later I came to MN, loved it, and have stayed. I still get ample opportunities to play any sport I want. Why go to some redneck state because the sun shines and it's above freezing in winter? But to each his/her own; people have their preferences. My main point is: a great coach who can recruit has a fertile territory here and will succeed, but the U has not hired many great coaches for decades now.
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In the South they’all call cockroaches palmetto bugs.
 

60's Guy said:
Number one criteria for any job: Who is your boss? Can you trust them? Will they stand behind you when times are tough?
How big of a supporter is administration? Will they help you succeed or tell you at every turn...that’s not how we do it here.

The rest you can overcome. Can’t accomplish any thing without somebody at the top believing in you, echoing you, supporting you, defending your vision.
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What if another job offered you double the pay and said we will give you $10 million if we fire you? I am sure you can understand why that would be attractive to many people, even if it isn’t for you.
 

mplarson7 said:
As a life long Gopher fan and an IU grad, definitely more attractive than Minnesota.

I was there when Crean finally turned them around, the whole of Bloomington erupted when Watford hit that buzzer beater vs #1 Kentucky. I've been in Assembly Hall when IU was a top 5 team...when that stadium is rocking, the Barn doesn't even compare. The word in Bloomington right now is that between the $10m buyout for Archie and a buyout for a new coach...they are being funded by 2 total donors. I don't foresee that being the case for Minnesota, unless someone wants to correct me on that.

So yes, Indiana is still a very attractive job.
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I have been to Assembly Hall in Indiana 5 or 6 times. It is the best building atmosphere in the conference but saying the Barn doesn’t even compare is just is not true. You must not have been at the games in 97. The Barn is as good as it gets when supporting a product that deserves it. I’m not arguing Assembly Hall isn’t better but from my experiences it is not like an insane difference.

Dan Dakich (who played at Indiana) called the Gophers upset of number 1 Indiana at the barn one of the top 5 loudest games he has been a part of. I’ll find the article. He said his notebook fell off the table it was shaking.

Yes I’m biased and passionate about the Barn. I just love that place.
 

TheBarnyard said:
I have been to Assembly Hall in Indiana 5 or 6 times. It is the best building atmosphere in the conference but saying the Barn doesn’t even compare is just is not true. You must not have been at the games in 97. The Barn is as good as it gets when supporting a product that deserves it. I’m not arguing Assembly Hall isn’t better but from my experiences it is not like an insane difference.

Dan Dakich (who played at Indiana) called the Gophers upset of number 1 Indiana at the barn one of the top 5 loudest games he has been a part of. I’ll find the article. He said his notebook fell off the table it was shaking.

Yes I’m biased and passionate about the Barn. I just love that place.
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1997 was a quarter century ago. It’s not relevant. Let it go
 

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