Lon Kruger is retiring at OU

untjim1995 · March 25, 2021

Just announced...I’m sure McCasland will be considered

NorthTexasSportsNetwork · March 25, 2021

Very underrated coach. Have a lot of respect for him because of him agreeing to play a game down here. Not many P5 coaches do that.

MCMLXXX · March 25, 2021

Prediction!

Tony Benford gets the job. He will look good in Crimson.

wardly · March 25, 2021

Kruger retires at OU, Mccasland on short list.

Tom McKrackin · March 25, 2021

Oh no!

Wag Tag · March 25, 2021

Would the ORU coach be considered above Mc?

xyresic · March 25, 2021

14 minutes ago, Wag Tag said:

Would the ORU coach be considered above Mc?

They are from the same coaching tree, probably yes at this point especially since Mills once almost fought Kevin Bacon- ha.

I am all for keeping Grant (and a huge fan - I posted years ago that he was a home run hire and took some heat) and giving him a pay bump to stay. If we do lose him I think we can reload. Cooley alluded to it - Grant's defense is great but his style of play will lead to tough teams rather than ones with blue chips and I think to hit the next level of success we might ultimately need to go that route.

OU opened up the vault to swipe Kruger from UNLV while the Prez was there so it would be ironic if his retirement caused Grant to get snagged from us. Kruger's son who was an OU assistant was just hired as the new UNLV head coach so maybe he is retiring to assist him there in some way now that he is a first time HC.

I think we will be fine either way, just interested to see if anything happens if we roll with Hodge and keep a similar philosophy or if we take a chance and try to take another step up.

Edited March 25, 2021 by xyresic

Wag Tag · March 25, 2021

14 minutes ago, xyresic said:

They are from the same coaching tree, probably yes at this point especially since Mills once almost fought Kevin Bacon- ha.

I am all for keeping Grant (and a huge fan - I posted years ago that he was a home run hire and took some heat) and giving him a pay bump to stay. If we do lose him I think we can reload. Cooley alluded to it - Grant's defense is great but his style of play will lead to tough teams rather than ones with blue chips and I think to hit the next level of success we might ultimately need to go that route.

OU opened up the vault to swipe Kruger from UNLV while the Prez was there so it would be ironic if his retirement caused Grant to get snagged from us. Kruger's son who was an OU assistant was just hired as the new UNLV head coach so maybe he is retiring to assist him there in some way now that he is a first time HC.

I think we will be fine either way, just interested to see if anything happens if we roll with Hodge and keep a similar philosophy or if we take a chance and try to take another step up.

Does Hodge have head coaching experience? That was a big point with Wren... I would go after the SFA coach in a heartbeat! GMG

xyresic · March 25, 2021

13 minutes ago, Wag Tag said:

Does Hodge have head coaching experience? That was a big point with Wren... I would go after the SFA coach in a heartbeat! GMG

Hodge was a JuCo head coach prior to being an assistant with Colorado State then has been with Mac since that time.

CMJ · March 25, 2021

I would prefer to hire from within if we could. It's always a tossup because I'm seen promoting assistants succeed and fail, but if we want to keep the same culture my choice would be to try and snag a staff member should McCasland leave.

emmitt01 · March 25, 2021

27 minutes ago, CMJ said:

I would prefer to hire from within if we could. It's always a tossup because I'm seen promoting assistants succeed and fail, but if we want to keep the same culture my choice would be to try and snag a staff member should McCasland leave.

Shaka Smart may be available soon. Kidding, not kidding.

Of course I am not assuming Mac is gone, as I think we could be on the verge of changing this school's basketball profile.

HoustonEagle · March 25, 2021

5 minutes ago, emmitt01 said:

Shaka Smart may be available soon. Kidding, not kidding.

Of course I am not assuming Mac is gone, as I think we could be on the verge of changing this school's basketball profile.

Move the basketball forum to the top and Mac stays. Etch that in stone.

kingwoodgreen · March 26, 2021

2 hours ago, emmitt01 said:

Shaka Smart may be available soon. Kidding, not kidding.

Of course I am not assuming Mac is gone, as I think we could be on the verge of changing this school's basketball profile.

I would not be opposed to that as an option if we lose coach. In fact that would in my opinion keep this momentum we have going...

Coach Andy Mac · March 26, 2021

This concerns me deeply. That said, the immediate replacement is Coach Ross Hodge period end of story. GMG

untjim1995 · March 26, 2021

https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/oklahoma-coaching-candidates-grant-mccasland-paul-mills-or-mark-turgeon-could-be-fits-to-replace-lon-kruger/amp/

PlummMeanGreen · March 26, 2021

From all I hear it really wouldn’t be money that would cause Coach Mac to leave Denton. I think he knows significantly more money will come if he stays in Denton.

I think quality of family life & not having to Coach under a constant “win or else” attitude from administration, staff & alums (like he’d have in Norman & elsewhere) would come into play.

“IF” Coach Mac were to leave I would not worry about Wren Baker screw-in’ up his replacement hire.
Like many of you, I feel good about UNT’s future at the next level in a tournament sort of way. In fact, North Texas athletics across the board is fixin’ to explode (& that mean’t in a positive way, of course). Negative Neds may have to go somewhere else to be, uh, negative? 🤢

MeanGreenTexan · March 26, 2021

15 minutes ago, PlummMeanGreen said:

From all I hear it really wouldn’t be money that would cause Coach Mac to leave Denton. I think he knows significantly more money will come if he stays in Denton.

I think quality of family life & not having to Coach under a constant “win or else” attitude from administration, staff & alums (like he’d have in Norman & elsewhere) would come into play.

“IF” Coach Mac were to leave I would not worry about Wren Baker screw-in’ up his replacement hire.
Like many of you, I feel good about UNT’s future at the next level in a tournament sort of way. In fact, North Texas athletics across the board is fixin’ to explode (& that mean’t in a positive way, of course). Negative Neds may have to go somewhere else to be, uh, negative? 🤢

There's a couple of things here that are indicative of small-time thinking...

1. I don't think your/my/UNT's idea of "significantly more" money is the same as Oklahoma's, or any other power conference school for that matter. Money talks, and OU has Millions (plural) more/year to offer than we do.

2. If any coach is not under "win or else" pressure from Baker, then Baker needs to go. That's his job. You're already starting to see a lot of heat directed at Littrell from fans. I can't imagine Wren is happy with Littrell right now either. It will get VERY LOUD (and he'll probably be fired) if he throws a 3rd-straight 4-win season out there. And, honestly, if our coach doesn't believe he could go to Norman and win there (or anywhere), then we have the wrong guy. Coach McCasland is not Phil Bennett, just happy to be coaching. He is driven & I bet he feels like his system can win anywhere.

CMJ · March 26, 2021

There's a difference in "win or else" pressure at a Power School vs here.

Here it's competing for conference titles and getting to the NCAA Tournament. At a Power School it's not being satisfied unless you make the tournament every year with a run to the Sweet 16 every couple of years.

At the Blue Bloods it's getting to the Sweet 16 four out of five seasons with a Final Four run at least once every 3-4 seasons.

Edited March 26, 2021 by CMJ

MeanGreenTexan · March 26, 2021

2 minutes ago, PlummMeanGreen said:

With those who grew up in financial comfort, money is not the end all. I believe that describes our HBC. I think our coach would make a good fit for OU & he might get a job offer, but I don’t think he’ll take this job now (if offered). He’s good at his craft & knows others will come. (All Coach Mac’s closest buddies in the NCAA who have head coaches jobs have spent many years at all their respective jobs).

Small time thinking?😊 Let me tell you where I got all my “small time” thinking” training. In fact, wish more in Denton had had similar.
Until age 22, I followed UH Coog basketball (& football) & did until I transferred to NTSU in January of 1972. Saw the Elvin Hayes, Don Chaney, Ken Spain, Theodus Lee, etc. freshman basketball team play at Delmar Field House. Attended the grand opening of Hofheinz Pavilion (as I did the Super Pit) & thoroughly enjoyed watching Guy Lewis’ UH basketball program get established & then grow; yet the icing on the cake for me was attending (with my late dad) the “Game of the Century” in the Houston Astrodome between Lew Alcindor & Elvin Hayes. Broadcaster Dick Enberg said that game established college basketball as a sports commodity on television and paved the way for the modern March Madness has television coverage.

Small time thinking? Heck! I’ve wanted NT to emulate UH’s kind of small time thinking the last half century since my first English Literature class in 1972. Honestly, I think UNT can still catch up to UH in many areas in athletics. For some of us—they need to hurry.😳

If McCasland is offered the Oklahoma job, he's gone. That is a very good job!

He'd have access to all of the top talent in Texas (DFW, mainly), mounds of money (you cannot honestly tell me there's not a significant difference in $.5mil/yr and $2.75mil/yr), and a lot more spotlight/eyeballs on him than what NT provides.

The Houston history lesson was nice. I always like your posts like that... but I am confused on how it relates to the "small time thinking" I'm talking about. I just don't think Coach McCasland would stick around here (turn down a high-major job) because he likes not having pressure on him, or is happy with a salary that's 5X smaller than the job he turned down.

If you had the opportunity to multiply your yearly salary X5, and have more people know about your business, but you had to move up to Norman,OK to do it... would you?

MeanGreenTexan · March 26, 2021

Just now, CMJ said:

There's a difference in "win or else" pressure at a Power School vs here.

Here it's competing for conference titles and getting to the NCAA Tournament. At a Power School it's not being satisfied unless you make the tournament every year with a run to the Sweet 16 every couple of years.

At the Blue Bloods it's getting to the Sweet 16 four out of five seasons with a Final Four run once ever 3-4 seasons.

Right. With the way McCasland talks, I have no doubt he believes he could do just that, anywhere.

As much as I'd like it to be, I don't think North Texas is his final coaching stop. He's not going to be our Coach K, or Dean Smith. And that's ok.

PlummMeanGreen · March 26, 2021

😆Are you Coach Mac’s agent you seem so concerned about his future— away from Denton.

MeanGreenTexan · March 26, 2021

6 minutes ago, PlummMeanGreen said:

😆Are you Coach Mac’s agent you seem so concerned about his future— away from Denton.

hip hop television GIF by WE tv

McCasland is an North Texas EMPLOYEE... not an alumnus with deep connections to the University like you & me.

Coach Andy Mac · March 26, 2021

CMJ · March 26, 2021

I liked Beard at Tech. It was nice to see that program being able to challenge the more traditional basketball schools. Hell, he nearly won a National Title there. Sorry to see him go - but I understand why. Austin has got to be easier to recruit to than Lubbock.

Edited March 26, 2021 by CMJ

BillySee58 · March 26, 2021

20 minutes ago, Coach Andy Mac said:

6 minutes ago, CMJ said:

I liked Beard at Tech. It was nice to see that program being able to challenge the more traditional basketball schools. Hell, he nearly won a National Title there. Sorry to see him go - but I understand why. Austin has got to be easier to recruit to than Lubbock.

That is a fake Rothstein account