NIU AD on his way to Evanston
looks like the search to replace Mark Murphy is over. i don't know any NU fans that are all fired up about this hire. i don't really know a thing about Jim Phillips, but the move just seems uninspired to me. i guess all that stuff about grad dates is good, but i really just care about how this will affect men's hoops.
during Phillips's time at NIU, the basketball squad won 39.6% of their games. during that same time period Northwestern actually won MORE - 42.7%. that doesn't bode well. however, you can't really blame him for seasons before this, since Rob Judson was hired under the previous AD. and at least we know he's not afraid to fire people, having replaced Judson with Ricardo Patton before this season.
at least now that they have someone in place, they can begin taking a hard look at what Carmody has done and not been able to do. hopefully the new guy doesn't just wander in and say, "hey, these guys just beat Michigan and almost beat IU. let's give Carmody a couple years to really see what he can do with the program!"
during Phillips's time at NIU, the basketball squad won 39.6% of their games. during that same time period Northwestern actually won MORE - 42.7%. that doesn't bode well. however, you can't really blame him for seasons before this, since Rob Judson was hired under the previous AD. and at least we know he's not afraid to fire people, having replaced Judson with Ricardo Patton before this season.
at least now that they have someone in place, they can begin taking a hard look at what Carmody has done and not been able to do. hopefully the new guy doesn't just wander in and say, "hey, these guys just beat Michigan and almost beat IU. let's give Carmody a couple years to really see what he can do with the program!"
posted by Fire Bill Carmody at
3:47 PM
7 Comments:
my buddies and I were talking about this, and we got back to thinking... mark murphy was somewhat of a surprise hire whom no one knew about, and he did alright...
phillips' legacy will be basketball. football is on its way up, and the country club sports are doing fine. let's start with a new coach, try to recruit, and then start filling the arena with OUR OWN fans.
maintaining the status quo, however is not the way to start at a new place.
last thought maybe he can get the big ten network on comcast. that has gone on wayyy too long.
all great points, and i hope you're right. if he looks at the bb program and sees that it could be his big chance, maybe he'll come through. it certainly wasn't a bad stepping stone job for Murphy, so maybe Phillips will go at it the same way.
so if you are interested in a new coach, this is not the best news. we all knew that bienen was going to wield his Princeton clout eventually. I wonder if this is just Phillips making nice at first...
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/northwestern/cs-080228-bill-carmody,1,4098033.story
jeez that article is depressing. "Have we always had the horses and recruited the strongest players? I can't tell you that's the case." and whose fault might that be?
i guess, also, that maybe phillips wants to figure out exactly what he has in the basketball sense. you figure that any guy who came in and just canned the coach would piss off the guy who hired him (bienen) and hence would probably not get hired in the first place.
even if phillips wants to make a change, it seems like the administration is handcuffing him.
the most likely scenario as I see it, carmody gets one additional year under phillips. maybe coble turns into pistol pete next year (he's shown flashes), moore continues to shoot 3's like he did at Crisler, and some of the young guys like Nash, Capocci and Juice mature. if not, I think bienen's gotta realize that it is time to make a change. just recruit a big guy!
Incoming athletic director Jim Phillips won't have to decide whether basketball coach Bill Carmody will return for a ninth season.
Northwestern President Henry Bienen made that clear during a telephone interview.
"Absolutely," he said. "I'm disappointed, just like coach Carmody is, in how we've done in the Big Ten the last two years. But I think we have the nucleus of a good team."
Asked how much longer Carmody has on his contract, Bienen replied: "I think Bill has next year plus two or three. Maybe it tells you something that I haven't even looked."
Well, seeing as the president of the University doesn't give a shit about the direction of the basketball program, I guess its ok if the alumni stop caring as well. Fortunately I have a graduate school alma mater that I can root for and send money to. I hope most of the rest of you are covered there too.
Just announced: NU President and Chief Carmody Apologist Henry Bienen is retiring 8/31/09!
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