Need a new coach? Xavier's the place
Posted: Monday, April 06, 2009 2:46 PM
Filed Under:
Coaches, Mid-majors
Quick tip for any major program seeking to hire a coach in the next few years: Pursue whomever Xavier picks to replace Sean Miller.
Seriously. It’ll save you a lot of time and effort, provided your sales pitch is good enough.
Xavier, along with Gonzaga, is the mid-major no BCS school wants to play. And the coaches are a big reason why.
The Musketeers haven’t botched a coaching hire in years. The last four – Pete Gillen, Skip Prosser, Thad Matta and Miller – were all great recruiters, solid strategists and knew how to win in the NCAA tournament.
Since Gillen was hired in 1985, the Musketeers have been to the NCAA tournament 18 times – missing the big dance just six times in that span. They’ve been to four Sweet 16s, two Elite Eights, won 14 regular-season titles and nine conference tourney crowns.
Nice work, eh?
Those four coaches all did OK after Xavier, too. Gillen took Providence to the 1997 Elite Eight before jumping to Virginia. Prosser won an ACC title with Chris Paul and recruited most of the current roster. Matta led Ohio State to the 2007 Final Four.
Arizona may have pursued other coaches before Miller, but he’ll be perfect to ensure the Wildcats don’t flop in the post-Lute Olson era. Ask Xavier. It wanted to keep him around for the next 8 years.
So it you’re a school that could potentially need a new coach next season – like St. John’s, Maryland or Oregon – keep an eye on Xavier’s new coach. Odds are, he’ll be a keeper.
