Crean's coaching level

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

That's the kind of guy I want running our program.  He wins, we have good graduation rates, our players seem to be very good people, they aren't arrests and scandals, we don't run afoul of NCAA violations, and he is a tireless worker for the school (OK, so maybe some of it is self-promoting).

Jeez, what's not to like?

This is a great point... "what's not to like?"... I've never heard anybody actually provide any realistic answer. It's always something speculative about his "attitude" or "personality"... It's never about how he actually runs the program.

Also, for those who are convinced that MU would be just fine if Crean left... I will point you to 1978 until 1998 as proof that losing a great coach at MU is a big deal. The truly elite programs rebound quickly... smaller programs like MU probably don't. It's certainly possible (Xavier has done well over the years), but not likely.

There are certainly better coaches out there... but I'll take our current coach 100 time out of 100 because of what he has shown me so far.

There's more to it than attitude and personality.  Do you think he's a good game coach?  Do you think he has a good feel for the game?  I think he's a fish out of water once the ball is tipped.

That's a fair point... but when you look at the overall state of the program, I would argue that he's a good enough game coach. I don't think he is as instinctual as some other coaches... but the numbers speak for themselves. He's doing a LOT of things right... so picking out one aspect and griping isn't enough of a reason to think that we need a new coach.

I have never said we need a new coach, PRN said yesterday that pushing him out was insane.  I think both our points is that this guy doesn't walk on water and replacing him IF HE LEFT would not be impossible.   

I hear ya, I know you aren't implying that we want a new coach... just replying to the general idea that their is somebody else out there who is just as good.

Because Crean isn't the best in certain aspects of coaching doesn't mean MU will be able to replace him with an equally good coach.

Crean does a TON of things well, and some things just "ok". Like I said, given the overall state of the program, I would argue that even in the areas where he isn't "great", he is doing well enough to make MU a very good program.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

...and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field...

He was attacked for calling a press conference to announce this donation...and rightfully so!

Thanks for reminding me.

[Pakuni]

There are a number of posters on this board who claim it's natural for assistants to continue to climb up the ladder if they're ambitious. Yet Crean himself stayed at MSU for about 5 years. Is he not ambitious? How long was Tom Izzo under Jud Heathcoate?

Actually, Tom Crean moved quite a bit early in his coaching career. He went from Michigan State to Western Kentucky to Pitt and back to Michigan State in a span of seven years. In his second tenure at MSU he was first an assistant coach and then elevated to associate head coach. Again, more climbing up the ladder.

In terms of climbing up the ladder, there's not much higher than one could go as an assistant than being the associate head coach at a program that was fast becoming one of the elites of college basketball.

By the way, what's your evidence/sourcing for MU being forced to "overpay" its assistants. What are the salaries of MU's assistants and how do those compare with others across the country?
It would be swell if you would occasionally take the time to support some of your statements with facts. But I won't count on it.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

...and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field...

He was attacked for calling a press conference to announce this donation...and rightfully so!

Thanks for reminding me.

Can you please show us and/or tell us how you know that Crean wanted to call the presser?

Thanks.

Common sense tells me that MU wanted to do the presser to promote the soccer stadium and use the Crean's generous donation to kick off the campaign.

That makes sense, right?

[Pardner]

Anyone think Joani is tougher on TC about his in game coaching than us keyboard hacks?  

[MUSF]

That's the kind of guy I want running our program.  He wins, we have good graduation rates, our players seem to be very good people, they aren't arrests and scandals, we don't run afoul of NCAA violations, and he is a tireless worker for the school (OK, so maybe some of it is self-promoting).

Jeez, what's not to like?

This is a great point... "what's not to like?"... I've never heard anybody actually provide any realistic answer. It's always something speculative about his "attitude" or "personality"... It's never about how he actually runs the program.

Also, for those who are convinced that MU would be just fine if Crean left... I will point you to 1978 until 1998 as proof that losing a great coach at MU is a big deal. The truly elite programs rebound quickly... smaller programs like MU probably don't. It's certainly possible (Xavier has done well over the years), but not likely.

There are certainly better coaches out there... but I'll take our current coach 100 time out of 100 because of what he has shown me so far.

There's more to it than attitude and personality.  Do you think he's a good game coach?  Do you think he has a good feel for the game?  I think he's a fish out of water once the ball is tipped.

That's a fair point... but when you look at the overall state of the program, I would argue that he's a good enough game coach. I don't think he is as instinctual as some other coaches... but the numbers speak for themselves. He's doing a LOT of things right... so picking out one aspect and griping isn't enough of a reason to think that we need a new coach.

I have never said we need a new coach, PRN said yesterday that pushing him out was insane.  I think both our points is that this guy doesn't walk on water and replacing him IF HE LEFT would not be impossible.   

Really that is all you two want?  Peaopl on this board to admit that A: crean can't walk on water and B: our program would not cease to exist if he left?  Ok fine, you win.  He isn't the jesus of baskeball coaches and we would still have a team if he got hit by a bus.  I propose that we taser the genatalia of anyone who argues against either of these points.  I think each new member when they sign up should have to first take a test that looks like this:
1) does crean walk on water?
a) yes
b) no
2) would we still have a team if crean left?
a) yes
b) no
And if anyone got either wrong we could record their IP and ban them from the site completely forever.

There, now can we stop hearing senseless bashing along the lines of 'He can't look at a game intellegently because he paces too much.'  I don't see how anyone who can read this board would come away thinking 'all those guys want is for people to realize he doesn't walk on water.' when he is called 'a fish out of water' and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field, having a game scheduled at the same time as the packer game, any time a player is hurt in practice, any time someone he employes is offered a raise and a promotion by an outside organization, any time he recruits anyone under 6'9, any time he loses a game where his best players spend the entire game missing wide open 17 footers, you can claim that people who get obsessed and attack him on a personal level on a weekly basis are just trying to convince people that he isn't perfect but all it does is make people who have a realistic view of him (ie. me) have to spend time defending him from crazies who get mad over things he doesn't even have control over.

Best post ever. I'm out.

[Wade-A-Minute]

Just finished reading this entire thread. WOW. Have to throw my 2 cents in.  First, GT and his supporters need to stop crying in their milk. GT was an absolute BORE on the radio. Secondly, I sit within ear shot of the coaching staff and have since the Dukiet era. TC is by far the best of the bunch. He is extremely positive and productive when addressing his players after substitutions. For those who think he is not a good game coach, let's not forget that his team is competing successfully in auguably the best conference in the country with the some of the best coaches in the country. The recruits will come with more time in the BEAST. KO was an a$$. It was embarassing listening to him berate and swear at our players and literally bringing some to tears. Let's not forget about him getting on the team bus after the loss to Duke wearing Tennessee clothing. Better game coach??? Can't really compare him to TC. He was coaching against Dayton, Loyola, Butler, SLU, etc. not GTown, UCONN, SYR, etc. I'll take my chances with TC. It's been a long time since this program has seen such upward momentum.

[ChicosBailBonds]

How do you get on this e-mail list?

Favre retired and the sun came up the next day. If Crean bolts, we'd be just fine. Just think maybe we'll attract someone even more capable. I mean, is that even a possibility? Yeah, Tom's been here 9 seasons, but he's not the Second Coming. He'll be a much better coach at his next gig. Has been learning on the job here and slowly at that.
I agree with Rican. Talent level overall is subpar for a power conference like the BE. Maybe Tom's a better coach than I think. Has a knack for rubbing some the wrong way. Not believable when listening to him. Would make a great used car salesman, though. In summary, doesn't float my boat.

I can imagine the words that were uttered after these guys left


McGuire..."we'll be just fine"
Raymonds..."we'll be just fine"
Majerus..."we'll be just fine"
O'Neill..."we'll be just fine"
Sendek...."we'll be just fine"


Etc, etc.

Equally silly are the statements from the Crean "doesn't float my boat" crowd that some of us think he walks on water.  None of us do think that. Al didn't walk on water either. We just think the bitching is silly and out of whack with reality and realize how many idiotic mistakes we've made at the university not to trust them to make a good hire....nor do I think we would get someone for the long haul, a failing this program has had for 20+ years until Crean came to town.


I think the email list is at   stuckin1977@warriors.com

[ATWizJr]

been reading this thread for a while and find it quite amusing.  As a fan of the program for 50 years, I will tell you that we are lucky to have Crean and it is unrealistic to think that the program would not suffer reverses if he were to leave or be forced out.  Crean's successes have been posted on this thread ad nauseum.  Let's not kick around the obvious.   If you think we can do better you are not paying attention. Period.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Rawdog, that was funny!! 

[us patriot]

To address the point about not being genuine, I have heard that from people before.  Here is what happened to me.

My family finished eating at a restaurant and as we were walking out we saw Joani, Lazar, a recruit, and the recruits father waiting for a table.  When we got outside and were walking away from the entrance we saw Crean walking toward the door after parking his car.  My boys said "hi coach" and we kept walking.  Crean then says "Hey guys, come here. Let me introduce you to some people"  So we go back inside with him to get introduced to everyone.  He then walks away and comes back with some menus and has Lazar and the recruit sign autographs for my kids.

I would think that the last thing he is interested in when trying to convince a recruit to come to MU is making sure that my kids get introduced and get an autograph, but he did.  So I am not really sure why I continue to hear that he is not genuine.

[Pardner]

As best as I can discern, it is 33-3 in favor of TC (92%).  Sounds like the halftime score against UWM.  GT, on the other hand, suffered a reverse shutout as an announcer I hate to report.  I think it is time to put this one to bed.

[ChicosBailBonds]

To address the point about not being genuine, I have heard that from people before.  Here is what happened to me.

My family finished eating at a restaurant and as we were walking out we saw Joani, Lazar, a recruit, and the recruits father waiting for a table.  When we got outside and were walking away from the entrance we saw Crean walking toward the door after parking his car.  My boys said "hi coach" and we kept walking.  Crean then says "Hey guys, come here. Let me introduce you to some people"  So we go back inside with him to get introduced to everyone.  He then walks away and comes back with some menus and has Lazar and the recruit sign autographs for my kids.

I would think that the last thing he is interested in when trying to convince a recruit to come to MU is making sure that my kids get introduced and get an autograph, but he did.  So I am not really sure why I continue to hear that he is not genuine.

I am a firm believer that you can find out a lot about someone from who they married.  In other words, if the spouse is cool and genuine then usually so is the other one.  Not always, but usually I have found this to be the case.

Joanie is a class act so that speaks volumes to me about the sincerity and genuineness of her husband.

The guy had basically no father, is a self starter, definitely a type A in a big way....that turns off some people.  So be it.  I want that kind of guy running my country, running our military, running my company and running my basketball team.  I'll take different kind of people running other things in life, but those are the types I want for those leadership positions.

[bilsu]

I really do not see how Crean rubs people the wrong way. The only way this occurs is that you hate the MU program. It is like my attitude about Hilary and O'Bama, which is more a reflection of me being a staunch republican than anything else. We have not had a coach so dedicated to Marquette and so representative of MU values since Hank Raymonds. You guys talk about getting another Kevin O'Neal. Kevin O'Neal was fouled mouthed and and saw MU only as a stepping stone. Crean's been here 9 years and I hope he is here another 30. Why I understand the desire for more success, the idea we would not miss Crean or be better off without him is just plain stupid. I was young, but I was at McGuire's first game here so I seen every coach you have seen at MU. I really don't understand why someone is so upset about the athletic director we hired. Frankly, I do not know the athelitc director, but I do not have any reason to believe he cannot run the athletic department. The only think I can think is that the person bitching about this was one of the 60 people who applied for the job. Finally, there are more important things in life than basketball. Why don't you guys quit your bitching and go out and do something good and meaningful in this world. I love MU ball, but I am not going to let a loss send my life into despair and I am certainly not going to spend my time bashing someone, because we lost.

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

To address the point about not being genuine, I have heard that from people before.  Here is what happened to me.

My family finished eating at a restaurant and as we were walking out we saw Joani, Lazar, a recruit, and the recruits father waiting for a table.  When we got outside and were walking away from the entrance we saw Crean walking toward the door after parking his car.  My boys said "hi coach" and we kept walking.  Crean then says "Hey guys, come here. Let me introduce you to some people"  So we go back inside with him to get introduced to everyone.  He then walks away and comes back with some menus and has Lazar and the recruit sign autographs for my kids.

I would think that the last thing he is interested in when trying to convince a recruit to come to MU is making sure that my kids get introduced and get an autograph, but he did.  So I am not really sure why I continue to hear that he is not genuine.

I've had similar (not to that extent) experiences. The people who have disagreements about Crean's character may have had different experiences, I don't know. I've been  very impressed by Crean's interest in random people: each time I've interacted with him he has come across as genuinely interested and appreciative of people's interest/devotion to the program. I've never heard otherwise from a single student.

I may be projecting my own disgust with the Administration (at the end of a long academic career at this place) into the following comment, but I think some of the criticism of Crean is somewhat misplaced disappointment in the manner in which Marquette operates, in this instance in the most publicly available forum, the basketball program.

Marquette has had great strides over the past couple decades but a number of business/academic/etc decisions have had people scratching their head (look at Gold, for example). I think, with Crean, people are upset that Wild "gives Crean too free a hand," or whatever, given that Crean is clearly one of the highest paid coaches in basketball and seems to have pretty free reign in his arena of the Athletic Dept.

I don't blame Crean for being self-interested; in fact as a student of economics I take it that every person is self-interested (not the same as selfish). Crean's smart to take whatever salary he can get out of MU. To some, though, Crean's huge salary and "free hand" don't equate with the results one might expect from someone getting such a high salary. I agree with many of these criticisms.

But the problem isn't (to a great extent) Crean, it's Wild's complete inability to play poker with Crean, to have a "more exact" - so to speak - cause/effect between Crean's performance and the reward for his performance. People see that MU appears to have the money to dish out for a high salary, and when the same results of other coaches with similar salaries achieving perhaps more in the tournament don't materialize at MU, they get upset.

That's how I see things anyways, or where any of my criticism might come from. Does the University have to offer Crean a premium for coming to Milwaukee because it's "such a horrible place" or something? I don't know, maybe, maybe not. But I don't think that criticism of the University for opening up its coffers so willingly automatically earns one the pejoratives of "hater" or "basher" etc.

[MUSF]

To address the point about not being genuine, I have heard that from people before.  Here is what happened to me.

My family finished eating at a restaurant and as we were walking out we saw Joani, Lazar, a recruit, and the recruits father waiting for a table.  When we got outside and were walking away from the entrance we saw Crean walking toward the door after parking his car.  My boys said "hi coach" and we kept walking.  Crean then says "Hey guys, come here. Let me introduce you to some people"  So we go back inside with him to get introduced to everyone.  He then walks away and comes back with some menus and has Lazar and the recruit sign autographs for my kids.

I would think that the last thing he is interested in when trying to convince a recruit to come to MU is making sure that my kids get introduced and get an autograph, but he did.  So I am not really sure why I continue to hear that he is not genuine.

I've had similar (not to that extent) experiences. The people who have disagreements about Crean's character may have had different experiences, I don't know. I've been  very impressed by Crean's interest in random people: each time I've interacted with him he has come across as genuinely interested and appreciative of people's interest/devotion to the program. I've never heard otherwise from a single student.

I may be projecting my own disgust with the Administration (at the end of a long academic career at this place) into the following comment, but I think some of the criticism of Crean is somewhat misplaced disappointment in the manner in which Marquette operates, in this instance in the most publicly available forum, the basketball program.

Marquette has had great strides over the past couple decades but a number of business/academic/etc decisions have had people scratching their head (look at Gold, for example). I think, with Crean, people are upset that Wild "gives Crean too free a hand," or whatever, given that Crean is clearly one of the highest paid coaches in basketball and seems to have pretty free reign in his arena of the Athletic Dept.

I don't blame Crean for being self-interested; in fact as a student of economics I take it that every person is self-interested (not the same as selfish). Crean's smart to take whatever salary he can get out of MU. To some, though, Crean's huge salary and "free hand" don't equate with the results one might expect from someone getting such a high salary. I agree with many of these criticisms.

But the problem isn't (to a great extent) Crean, it's Wild's complete inability to play poker with Crean, to have a "more exact" - so to speak - cause/effect between Crean's performance and the reward for his performance. People see that MU appears to have the money to dish out for a high salary, and when the same results of other coaches with similar salaries achieving perhaps more in the tournament don't materialize at MU, they get upset.

That's how I see things anyways, or where any of my criticism might come from. Does the University have to offer Crean a premium for coming to Milwaukee because it's "such a horrible place" or something? I don't know, maybe, maybe not. But I don't think that criticism of the University for opening up its coffers so willingly automatically earns one the pejoratives of "hater" or "basher" etc.

I too felt very frustrated with the administration at times during my MU days. What I came to realize is that, being a religious institution and more specifically a Catholic institution, MU often has a difficult conflict of interests within the staff and administration that makes for some questionable policies and decisions. Stay with me on this.

Planning is very important in my line of work and it is a collaborative effort. Whenever a poor plan is produced, the planning team often can't adequately explain the reasoning behind the plan. Poor plans are often the result of concessions and compromises that take from multiple ideas and the end state is a poor conglomeration of multiple ideas or a bastardized version of someones original plan. Such is the case with many MU decisions including the dreaded Gold. In an effort to offend no one, they offended everyone. Most of all, they un-intentionally insulted everyones intelligence.

Fr. Wild is in an awful position. He is the head of a major university that requires devotion to academic advancement and shrewd business acumen. On the other hand, he is a priest who has sworn a vow of obedience and ultimately answers to the church and depending on your affiliation God. So my point is, if you are expecting Fr. Wild SJ to be a steely eyed "poker player," and shrewd negotiator, you probably are going to be disappointed.

To the specific point of Crean's salary, I don't think he is overpaid. MU is at a disadvantage athletically for a lot of reasons that have been discussed here previously. If we want a good coach, we probably have to pay a little more than a lot of seemingly equal programs would pay for the same caliber coach.

As for the, "Crean's huge salary and "free hand" don't equate with the results one might expect from someone getting such a high salary," argument; what results do you and others expect? Sweet sixteen every year? Every other year? NCAAs every year? What is a final four worth? The point that many of us are trying to make, is that some people are simply malcontents and their expectations are unrealistic. Crean has been more successful than any coach since Al by any measure of success you might use.

Other Crean critics obviously have some personal problem with him and they rightfully get the label, "bashers/haters."

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

To address the point about not being genuine, I have heard that from people before.  Here is what happened to me.

My family finished eating at a restaurant and as we were walking out we saw Joani, Lazar, a recruit, and the recruits father waiting for a table.  When we got outside and were walking away from the entrance we saw Crean walking toward the door after parking his car.  My boys said "hi coach" and we kept walking.  Crean then says "Hey guys, come here. Let me introduce you to some people"  So we go back inside with him to get introduced to everyone.  He then walks away and comes back with some menus and has Lazar and the recruit sign autographs for my kids.

I would think that the last thing he is interested in when trying to convince a recruit to come to MU is making sure that my kids get introduced and get an autograph, but he did.  So I am not really sure why I continue to hear that he is not genuine.

I've had similar (not to that extent) experiences. The people who have disagreements about Crean's character may have had different experiences, I don't know. I've been  very impressed by Crean's interest in random people: each time I've interacted with him he has come across as genuinely interested and appreciative of people's interest/devotion to the program. I've never heard otherwise from a single student.

I may be projecting my own disgust with the Administration (at the end of a long academic career at this place) into the following comment, but I think some of the criticism of Crean is somewhat misplaced disappointment in the manner in which Marquette operates, in this instance in the most publicly available forum, the basketball program.

Marquette has had great strides over the past couple decades but a number of business/academic/etc decisions have had people scratching their head (look at Gold, for example). I think, with Crean, people are upset that Wild "gives Crean too free a hand," or whatever, given that Crean is clearly one of the highest paid coaches in basketball and seems to have pretty free reign in his arena of the Athletic Dept.

I don't blame Crean for being self-interested; in fact as a student of economics I take it that every person is self-interested (not the same as selfish). Crean's smart to take whatever salary he can get out of MU. To some, though, Crean's huge salary and "free hand" don't equate with the results one might expect from someone getting such a high salary. I agree with many of these criticisms.

But the problem isn't (to a great extent) Crean, it's Wild's complete inability to play poker with Crean, to have a "more exact" - so to speak - cause/effect between Crean's performance and the reward for his performance. People see that MU appears to have the money to dish out for a high salary, and when the same results of other coaches with similar salaries achieving perhaps more in the tournament don't materialize at MU, they get upset.

That's how I see things anyways, or where any of my criticism might come from. Does the University have to offer Crean a premium for coming to Milwaukee because it's "such a horrible place" or something? I don't know, maybe, maybe not. But I don't think that criticism of the University for opening up its coffers so willingly automatically earns one the pejoratives of "hater" or "basher" etc.

I too felt very frustrated with the administration at times during my MU days. What I came to realize is that, being a religious institution and more specifically a Catholic institution, MU often has a difficult conflict of interests within the staff and administration that makes for some questionable policies and decisions. Stay with me on this.

Planning is very important in my line of work and it is a collaborative effort. Whenever a poor plan is produced, the planning team often can't adequately explain the reasoning behind the plan. Poor plans are often the result of concessions and compromises that take from multiple ideas and the end state is a poor conglomeration of multiple ideas or a bastardized version of someones original plan. Such is the case with many MU decisions including the dreaded Gold. In an effort to offend no one, they offended everyone. Most of all, they un-intentionally insulted everyones intelligence.

Fr. Wild is in an awful position. He is the head of a major university that requires devotion to academic advancement and shrewd business acumen. On the other hand, he is a priest who has sworn a vow of obedience and ultimately answers to the church and depending on your affiliation God. So my point is, if you are expecting Fr. Wild SJ to be a steely eyed "poker player," and shrewd negotiator, you probably are going to be disappointed.

To the specific point of Crean's salary, I don't think he is overpaid. MU is at a disadvantage athletically for a lot of reasons that have been discussed here previously. If we want a good coach, we probably have to pay a little more than a lot of seemingly equal programs would pay for the same caliber coach.

As for the, "Crean's huge salary and "free hand" don't equate with the results one might expect from someone getting such a high salary," argument; what results do you and others expect? Sweet sixteen every year? Every other year? NCAAs every year? What is a final four worth? The point that many of us are trying to make, is that some people are simply malcontents and their expectations are unrealistic. Crean has been more successful than any coach since Al by any measure of success you might use.

Other Crean critics obviously have some personal problem with him and they rightfully get the label, "bashers/haters."

Nice post.

Also, as a long time reader of this board, I have to say that this thread contains some of the most well written, thoughtful and even insightful posts ever written around here.

Obviously it helps that most people agree on this subject.... but the depth and quality of the thought and writing is impressive in this case. Some interesting points are being made, and some interesting counter-points are being made... all within a productive, open discussion.

(also RawDog's tazer bit was good too)

[ecompt]

I have screamed at the TV or in the arena for years when Tom has made what I thought was the wrong substitution or didn't react to game situations the way I thought he should. I screamed Saturday when we didn't pressure the ball or double-team Lopez down low on the winning shot. He is not the world's best game coach. But he runs a clean program and his kids graduate and we are more than competitive in one of the best conferences in the country. Do we miss out on getting the one-and-done kids the big boys get? Yep, and I'm glad we do. I would hate to think MU would become a factory for guys like Oden and Anthony who come to school, take their six credits the first half of freshman year, and then say "see ya." Crean does things the right way and is a great ambassador for the school. Does he crave the limelight? Probably. So did Al.

[lurch91]

Basically, he's not a very likable guy and I would love it if he accepted another job.

Who do you want to get to replace him?  It seems some people complain a lot without offering any solutions.

We've never had a problem attracting coaching candidates...ever. Kevin O'Neill was one of the hottest assistant coaches in the country when he took over. Deane was something of a hot commodity. Heck, even Bob Dukiet was one of the most highly regarded coaches in the country.

We'd be fine if Crean left.

Are you forgetting these highly regarded coaches (besides KO) didn't work out?  Dukiet locked the players out of the gym on accident, his tenure was rife with poor communication and poor performance.  And Deane was let go because he didn't see eye-to-eye with Cords in the fact that Deane didn't think MU could compete on a national level it once enjoyed.

So, 1 out of 3 ain't bad I guess.  Yes, Deane did "work out" in that he won lots of games, but did Deane get to an NCAA Final Four? He got to the NIT Finals on all borrowed players (players he never recruited).

So, we can live with 20+ win seasons, NCAA tournement invitations and solid student athletes that represent MU very well.  Or, we can try Door #3 and possibly shoot it all to hell with the next "highly regarded" coach.

EDIT:  And you think relying on a first time AD is going to find this next super-coach?  I'm not so sure it was MU's repetation that got those folks interested, I think Cords should get much of the praise for landing those coaches.

[MarquetteFan94]

...and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field...

He was attacked for calling a press conference to announce this donation...and rightfully so!

Thanks for reminding me.

Can you please show us and/or tell us how you know that Crean wanted to call the presser?

Thanks.

Common sense tells me that MU wanted to do the presser to promote the soccer stadium and use the Crean's generous donation to kick off the campaign.

That makes sense, right?

You won't get an answer....the most ridiculous thing is that he really believes that Crean called a press conference to promote his own donation....

[MarquetteFan94]

...and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field...

He was attacked for calling a press conference to announce this donation...and rightfully so!

Thanks for reminding me.

Can you please show us and/or tell us how you know that Crean wanted to call the presser?

Thanks.

Common sense tells me that MU wanted to do the presser to promote the soccer stadium and use the Crean's generous donation to kick off the campaign.

That makes sense, right?

You won't get an answer....the most ridiculous thing is that he really believes that Crean called a press conference to promote his own donation....

You guys are clueless.

You are ridiculous.  You honestly think that Crean said, "if I donate this $100,000 towards the campaign to build the new soccer stadium I demand that we hold a press conference to tell everyone how great I am."

What about the $1M donation that KBS Construction made for the same project...when Dennis Klein's (MU alum) name was plastered all over the press 3 weeks prior to the Crean announcement?  Is Dennis Klein self-promoting too?

What about the $51M donation the Eckstein's made for the new law school?  I can't believe we even know their names...how self-promoting of them.

Do you realize that Coach K and Roy Williams and SEVERAL other college coaches have charity organiaztions in their OWN name?!  I can't imagine how you'd react to the "Tom Crean Charity Organization of Milwaukee!"  

Coach K and Rick Pitino have their own frickin websites.

Ridiculous.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

...and is attacked for trying to raise cash for a soccer field...

He was attacked for calling a press conference to announce this donation...and rightfully so!

Thanks for reminding me.

Can you please show us and/or tell us how you know that Crean wanted to call the presser?

Thanks.

Common sense tells me that MU wanted to do the presser to promote the soccer stadium and use the Crean's generous donation to kick off the campaign.

That makes sense, right?

You won't get an answer....the most ridiculous thing is that he really believes that Crean called a press conference to promote his own donation....

You guys are clueless.

Hang on now... this shouldn't turn into a fight again. This has been a great thread, so let's keep up the good writing and insight.


The dollar value of the Crean's donation is tremendous... but MU would not be maximizing the true value of the donation without using such a generous gift to promote the soccer stadium and additional donations.

Therefore, MU (with Crean's input probably), called a press conference to promote the Crean's gift, and promote additional giving from other alumni.

It's a newsworthy story because not many (if any) other coaches are donating such large sums back to their university (and specifically another sport). The presser draws attention to the stadium and the need for donations. Tom Crean is MU's biggest celebrity, and biggest tool for promotion.

I'm really not sure why this doesn't seem to make sense to you.

PRN, I understand you think that Crean is a self-promoting a-hole... but honestly, the explanation I just provided above is far more likely than Crean demanding a presser to stroke his own ego.

I look forward to your perspective and insight.

[The Lens]

I think one of the issues with the soccer thing is that it was sold to us by people in the know on the Scout board as a "Major Annoucement at the Al"...

I think people were thinking major name assistant, new home and home series, etc etc.  It just seemed oversold and mostly by the scout board folks.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

I encourage all of you to believe what you want. But do so with the knowledge that you're absolutely, 100 percent wrong.

This was a couple years ago. I'm betting he wouldn't make the same mistake again.

[MUSF]

I think one of the issues with the soccer thing is that it was sold to us by people in the know on the Scout board as a "Major Annoucement at the Al"...

I think people were thinking major name assistant, new home and home series, etc etc.  It just seemed oversold and mostly by the scout board folks.

This is a fair criticism but I don't think that was Crean's call. Again, a poor execution by the administration.