Horizon League "Off-Season" news

[ysuindy]

I thought maybe one thread to keep track of what goes on with our Horizon League foes this "off-season" even though we have teams still playing.

Loyola fired Jim Whitesell today - a record a few games over .500 in 7 seasons was not good enough

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/chicago-college-basketball/2011/03/jim-whitesell-out-at-loyola.html

[YsuPride]

Loyola has the balls to make a change yet we flounder in the basement each year.  Nice going Strollo!!!

[ItalianPenguin]

Loyola has the balls to make a change yet we flounder in the basement each year.  Nice going Strollo!!!

Indy--this is why on this site that you can't have a "news only" thread because idiots like this have to say the same things over and over again.

[ELPENGUIN]

You are so correct IP.  Why cannot these jerks stop making the same stupid remarks over and over.

[IAA Fan]

I suspect that all Butler coaches will get offers. Stevens would be foolish to go anywhere. Assistants Johnson, and especially Graves, will probably get some good offers. Graves is who Loyola wants.

[YsuPride]

You say I repeat the same thing over and over but you know I am correct.   Yens probably want to keep Strollo and Slocum because you must enjoy losing.  Open your eyes you fools!!!!!!
Don't start a thread that mentions a coaching change in our League when we need one if you don't want a reaction.  Let me sign off so I can enjoy watching this week the many Horizon League teams in a
post season tournament and only dream it could be us if we made a change and have fans that don't enjoy losing. 

Later and piece out brothers.

[ItalianPenguin]

"Piece" to you as well---hope there's not a YSU diploma on your wall.

[ysuindy]

Like an idiot I will try again.

Some coaching news updates:

UWM Coach Rob Jeter turned down Bradley and Loyola is said to have interest in Michigan State assistant Mark Montgomery and Indiana Assistant Tim Buckley (former head coach at Ball State) per the Chicago Tribune.  Story also mentions Isaih Thomas is interested in the job but Loyola has no interest in Zeke.

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/sports/cbsports-bradley-loyola-still-hunting-for-new-coaches-20110323,0,6016145.story

Indy Star reports Loyola may also have interest in former Butler and Iowa coach Todd Lickliter and Butler assistant Matthew Graves is being considered by Bradley.  The story also talks about former IUPUI coach Ron Hunter's decision to take the Georgia State job.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20110323/SPORTS0607/103230320/Following-Hunter-IUPUI-won-t-easy?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Sports

[ysuindy]

And we will add this from midmajority.com on basketball spending and the "red line"

http://www.midmajority.com/p/1994

The Horizon League quote

We always look for trends in these numbers from year to year. One interesting tidbit is that the average Horizon League athletic budget dropped from $9.7 million to $8.5 million. On the other hand, men's basketball spending increased by an average of $200,000 per school, from $1.6 million to $1.8 million. Who's spending more? Look at Detroit: $2.0m up to $2.6m, and to a smaller extent, Youngstown State ($.9m to $1.03m). But really look at Butler, who increased spending by $11 million in their Final Four fiscal year ($1.7m to $2.8m, 23 percent of a $12.4m overall budget).

[IAA Fan]

Good info Indy. That GAst job will be a good one to have. I am not sure how long they plan on waiting, but all indications are this school will stay I-AA/FCS for only a short time, if at all. I understand that 3 conferences have been in discussions with them. This will take basketball right up there as well. Most likely heading Independent, then colonial/a-10, then CUSA.

[ysuindy]

UWGB made the Women's Sweet 16 for the first time.  They lost to #1 seed Baylor 86-76.  UWGB finishes 34-2.

[ysuindy]

Loyola names former Illinois State and Arkansas Little Rock head coach Porter Moser as their head coach

http://loyolaramblers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/040511aaa.html?source=rss_teams_Loyola-Chicago_Ramblers

[ysuindy]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=6364568

ESPN reporting that UWM coach Rob Jeter has been contacted by Miami (FL) about their open job.

[ysuindy]

Not the Horizon League, but I think there is an impact on YSU and the Horizon League to the changes in the basketball program with our friends in Portage County.

In case you missed it, former Kent State coach Geno Ford left for Bradley at the end of March.  Last week Kent State filled the opening by promoting assistant coach Rob Senderoff.

Ford was making $300k per year at Kent and will reportedly make $700k at Bradley with a potential additional $200k in incentives.

http://www.pjstar.com/bradleyhoops/x855933262/Bradley-introduces-Geno-Ford-to-the-fans

Ford has a rather hefty termination fee to pay Kent - reportedly $1.2 million based on this story.  The link also includes a copy of Ford's contract at Kent.  The viewer that it is in is somewhat unusual - click on the arrow on the side of the gray box to advance pages.  It is interesting to see a contract.

http://kentwired.com/fords-departure-leaves-basketball-team-in-state-of-shock/

Needless to say the Kent boards provided some interesting reading.  Here is one thread, there are others

http://ncaabbs.com/showthread.php?tid=490852

Kent's new head coach Senderoff reportedly has three year contract for $250k per year.

http://www.recordpub.com/news/sports_article/5012629

Senderoff has NCAA imposed restrictions on his ability to recruit through May 25, 2011 for his role in the Kelvin Sampson phone call scandal

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/index.ssf/2011/04/kent_state_elevates_assistant.html

There is a lot to digest here:

This is not good for MAC basketball - losing the head coach of one your flagship programs to a middle of the road team in another mid-major conference.  I would equate this to YSU losing a reasonably successful head football coach to Massachusetts or Maine.

This furthers the decline of MAC basketball in the last decade since they began to devote more resources to football.  The MAC has not had an at-large selection to the men's basketball tournament since 1999.  MAC teams have won one game in the last 8 NCAA tournaments, Ohio's win over Georgetown in 2010.  That means the MAC will receive 7 units of NCAA basketball money next year.  For comparison's sake the Horizon League will receive 20 units next year.  That is over $3 million more to the Horizon League than to the MAC next year. The Horizon League has won at least one NCAA tournament game in the last 7 tournaments.  

Interesting also that Kent was quick to hire an NCAA rules violator in Senderoff - and the Kent boards were very vocal in backing this hiring from the start.  The recruiting restrictions likely won't matter much this year - they lose only one player and had some fall signees.  But you have to wonder how much negative recruiting will focus on that.  

Given YSU's track record in basketball - hirings and results, I don't have much room to talk.  But on an overall basis I have to think the last month has not been good for Kent State basketball and that can't be bad for Youngstown State basketball.  Getting competitive in the Horizon will start with getting competitive in Northeast Ohio - and YSU has to become better than a distant fourth among CSU, YSU, Kent and Akron.

[Wick250]

No MAC at-large selections since 1999!  Wow!  Documentation that the MAC has become a "one-and-done" conference!  Another Wow!  But here is our problem: perception is more important than reality.  I'm quite sure that the casual fans in the Mahoning Valley believe that the MAC is better than the Horizon League---despite Butler and such hard facts as these.  These simpletons also believe that any MAC football team could defeat an Appalachian State in their prime!  That is what we are up against as we struggle to build the program: tradition, media coverage, and fan stupidity.

Indy, as you have stated many times, we need to recruit that one stud that has somehow slipped through the recruiting cracks.