Fran Fraschilla: "Smart hire of Brian Gregory @USFMBB. "

[DiggetTime]

I've seen a lot of people panning the Gregory hire but I tend to agree with the Memphis fan and Fran Fraschilla on this one. For a rebuild situation, Gregory may be a sneaky good hire. I think he has a good name amongst his peers, so USF should have the scheduling component down. He's also familiar with the Florida recruiting grounds.

While Gregory wasn't my first choice, I like the hire. Especially now that we hear Bartow will be around. I think it's obvious that Pastner inherited a program in better shape than it was thought to be. USF simply couldn't gamble on two inexperienced guys in a row.

Did he set the table for Archie Miller too? Probably.

I don't know if he'll be the answer. He might be... But, I feel confident in saying that he is going to be part of the solution, even if its just making the job better for the next guy. I'm looking forward to seeing the next recruiting class.

I'm keeping an open mind.

Fran Fraschilla‏Verified account @franfraschilla 25m25 minutes ago

 

Smart hire of Brian Gregory @USFMBB. Great success at Dayton, won 21 last year at G-Tech & left nice foundation behind for new staff.

Edited March 14, 2017 by DiggetTime

[Ionbull]

50 minutes ago, DiggetTime said:

I've seen a lot of people panning the Gregory hire but I tend to agree with the Memphis fan and Fran Fraschilla on this one. For a rebuild situation, Gregory may be a sneaky good hire. I think he has a good name amongst his peers, so USF should have the scheduling component down. He's also familiar with the Florida recruiting grounds.

While Gregory wasn't my first choice, I like the hire. Especially now that we hear Bartow will be around. I think it's obvious that Pastner inherited a program in better shape than it was thought to be. USF simply couldn't gamble on two inexperienced guys in a row.

Did he set the table for Archie Miller too? Probably.

I don't know if he'll be the answer. He might be... But, I feel confident in saying that he is going to be part of the solution, even if its just making the job better for the next guy. I'm looking forward to seeing the next recruiting class.

I'm keeping an open mind.

Fran Fraschilla‏Verified account @franfraschilla 25m25 minutes ago

 

Smart hire of Brian Gregory @USFMBB. Great success at Dayton, won 21 last year at G-Tech & left nice foundation behind for new staff.

Yeah I'm satisfied. After the reports yesterday that the Akron Coach Dambrot was going to turn down the job my immediate concern became desirability of the program. The NCAA investigation and exodus of players could've deterred a lot of coaches, luckily Gregory wasn't one of them and we were able to make a hire quickly. This is important for recruiting and setting a foundation for the program moving forward. 

Who knows what will happen though! Keeping Bartow is huge, especially if the current players really like playing for him.

[BullyPulpit]

27 minutes ago, Ionbull said:

Yeah I'm satisfied. After the reports yesterday that the Akron Coach Dambrot was going to turn down the job my immediate concern became desirability of the program. The NCAA investigation and exodus of players could've deterred a lot of coaches, luckily Gregory wasn't one of them and we were able to make a hire quickly. This is important for recruiting and setting a foundation for the program moving forward. 

Who knows what will happen though! Keeping Bartow is huge, especially if the current players really like playing for him.

Bingo. I think someone had to be hired immediately and that we were not in a position to be choosy. Harlan did a good job of snagging a guy with a decent track record and coaching chops. Now we just need to pray that he can put out the dumpster fire, find enough players to field a team next season, and then build from there. The only thing I ask is that everyone gives him 3 seasons before freaking out. We are actually starting from below zero right now. I would rather be just starting the program from scratch than taking over the mess that has been left behind. 

[jg233]

What people forget is that we are not in a major conference anymore.  It is comparable to the A-10 where BG had a lot of success.  The AAC is a high Mid-Major conference and all we need is good high Mid-Major coach.

[Ionbull]

1 hour ago, BullyPulpit said:

Bingo. I think someone had to be hired immediately and that we were not in a position to be choosy. Harlan did a good job of snagging a guy with a decent track record and coaching chops. Now we just need to pray that he can put out the dumpster fire, find enough players to field a team next season, and then build from there. The only thing I ask is that everyone gives him 3 seasons before freaking out. We are actually starting from below zero right now. I would rather be just starting the program from scratch than taking over the mess that has been left behind. 

Yeah, Harlan would've had an inkling if waiting after postseason play would yield positive results or not; who really is on the hot seat or itching to leave a tourney team that would both want to come here and be the right fit?

Im not in the "need to wait x seasons before evaluating" boat. Harlan mentioned on his podcast with TDS that Antigua got fired because of (obviously) the W-L but also the 9 to 5. Need to see real tangible success in recruiting, with getting guys qualified, and the classroom. That needs to be first and foremost. Clean programs!

[CousinRicky]

2 hours ago, Ionbull said:

Yeah I'm satisfied. After the reports yesterday that the Akron Coach Dambrot was going to turn down the job my immediate concern became desirability of the program. The NCAA investigation and exodus of players could've deterred a lot of coaches, luckily Gregory wasn't one of them and we were able to make a hire quickly. This is important for recruiting and setting a foundation for the program moving forward. 

Who knows what will happen though! Keeping Bartow is huge, especially if the current players really like playing for him.

Not sure, but if they liked playing for him wouldn't Santos and Thorpe stayed?

[Bullrush33]

Antigua sucked on the floor sucked in the classroom and he cheated to get players and he still sucked. You can't be more sucky than that. 

[footnfan1]

6 year deal? That is pretty solid.

[DiggetTime]

4 hours ago, Ionbull said:

Yeah I'm satisfied. After the reports yesterday that the Akron Coach Dambrot was going to turn down the job my immediate concern became desirability of the program.

It's also good to know that Harlan did his due diligence.

Gregory may end up being better than Dambrot. His biggest sin is not winning fast enough at GT (even though they finally did surge at the end of his term).

It mystifies me that anyone would think it should be a quicker turnaround at Georgia Tech, considering Louisville, ND, Syracuse, and Pitt had just entered the conference when he started.

In a zero sum game, some of those coaches are going to lose.

Not making excuses, but I rest easier knowing that he finally did get it going and Pastner stepped into a situation that wasn't exactly dire.

 

[DiggetTime]

3 hours ago, jg233 said:

What people forget is that we are not in a major conference anymore.  It is comparable to the A-10 where BG had a lot of success.  The AAC is a high Mid-Major conference and all we need is good high Mid-Major coach.

The AAC certainly is a high major.

Lately, the struggles of UConn, Memphis, and Temple, haven't reflected that but those teams aren't going to stay down. Hell, UConn has won two Nattys in the last 6 years.

SMU and Cincinnati are playing as well as anyone in the country.

Gregory is going to have to claw his way up that ladder. It's not going to be a cakewalk. A lot of other programs in the conference have already upgraded their staffs, which is going to make it a grind as well.

Edited March 14, 2017 by DiggetTime