Furman HC Bob Richey

[rojomojo]

This is the guy I'd go for. His resume is solid at a small, private school in South Carolina. I love his energy and I think he brings a similar mentality that Grant did when he was here at UNT.  I have nothing against Ross Hodge, and I think he really would make a solid head coach, I just feel like for the sake of the program and staying relevant with the national media, hiring a coach like Bob Richey would make a bigger splash on a national level. 

If you think I'm crazy, just look at Bob Richey's resume... I'm telling you, he's worked magnificently in the shadows 

[rojomojo]

Also I know there's still a chance Grant stays but I just feel it's highly unlikely... Tech would've hired a new HC by now if it wasn't him. I am trying to prepare myself so I don't feel depressed when it's finally announced...

 

I got to have a conversation with Grant earlier this year and he's truly one of the most humble yet driven people I have ever met. He gives you countless reasons to root for him and I am so damn proud of what he's accomplished at UNT. He deserves to take his talents to the next level and as much as I wish I could be selfish and feel like he should stay, I know he's earned whatever is coming to him. Much love for Mac

[CMJ]

Hodge unless he doesn't want it.

[rojomojo]

1 minute ago, CMJ said:

Hodge unless he doesn't want it.

Okay but why? Educate me

[rojomojo]

Just now, NT80 said:

He just signed a contract extension with Furman 6 days ago.  He has NO connections to Texas on his bio at all.  Nice record at Furman, but no thanks.

In state connections are not important in college basketball... Trust me

[UNTLifer]

3 minutes ago, rojomojo said:

 Trust me

Can't you wait until the middle of the second half tomorrow night to throw this into the middle of the game thread?

Edited March 30, 2023 by UNTLifer

[NT80]

4 minutes ago, CMJ said:

Hodge unless he doesn't want it.

Hodge is the brains behind our defense and in-game adjustments.  We need to keep him!

[CMJ]

7 minutes ago, rojomojo said:

Okay but why? Educate me

Look, no one necessarily ever knows who will or won't work out in new coaches.  However, when you have a successful program I want continuity so everyone doesn't skip town.  Especially now with the transfer portal.

[Cr1028]

Did you say Bob Ritchie?

[PlummMeanGreen]

5 hours ago, rojomojo said:

Also I know there's still a chance Grant stays but I just feel it's highly unlikely... Tech would've hired a new HC by now if it wasn't him. I am trying to prepare myself so I don't feel depressed when it's finally announced...

 

I got to have a conversation with Grant earlier this year and he's truly one of the most humble yet driven people I have ever met. He gives you countless reasons to root for him and I am so damn proud of what he's accomplished at UNT. He deserves to take his talents to the next level and as much as I wish I could be selfish and feel like he should stay, I know he's earned whatever is coming to him. Much love for Mac

I am selfish & I hope he stays.  Bet his family does to.  He’s got a lifetime job in Denton & can move UNT to the next level. I just thought he could do better than TT.  They sure have gone through the coaches in Lubbock plus the  RR’s have only gone to one more Final 4 than UNT.🙄

Sorry, but  I’ve never seen Lubbock as a bastion for the “finer” black athlete (unless the Cotton Eyed Joe is part of their dance repertoire).  Texas sportswriters from decades past have said the same thing. 

My family got to Texas in 1834 by way of Illinois,  but best I know Lubbock was not on their check list of places to settle. 

[Glory to the Green]

8 hours ago, rojomojo said:

He deserves to take his talents to the next level

It’s definitely more money and the Big XII have great athletes, but like FAU has proven, more money does not equal better team.  I wish Grant the best, but I’m not so sure “the next level” is accurate anymore. 

[emmitt01]

My list of priorities in our next coach.

Number one, continue the winning ways that Grant has established.

Then, if you look waaaaaaaay down at the bottom of the list, you might find the part where I care about the attention of national media.

[Hunter Green]

9 hours ago, rojomojo said:

This is the guy I'd go for. His resume is solid at a small, private school in South Carolina. I love his energy and I think he brings a similar mentality that Grant did when he was here at UNT.  I have nothing against Ross Hodge, and I think he really would make a solid head coach, I just feel like for the sake of the program and staying relevant with the national media, hiring a coach like Bob Richey would make a bigger splash on a national level. 

If you think I'm crazy, just look at Bob Richey's resume... I'm telling you, he's worked magnificently in the shadows 

We're assuming Ross isn't going to Lubuttocks too.

[MeanGreenTexan]

2 minutes ago, Hunter Green said:

We're assuming Ross isn't going to Lubuttocks too.

Handed the keys to a running Ferrari, or continue riding shotgun in someone else's red-dirt-covered Ferrari...

Which one would you prefer?   

Every Asst. Coach wants to eventually become a Head Coach.  It's a no brainer.   If he's offered the NT job (which, if he's not, I have some serious questions about Mosley's judgement), he's going to take it.   He'll go to Lubbock if he's not offered the NT job.

[MGNation92]

5 minutes ago, Hunter Green said:

We're assuming Ross isn't going to Lubuttocks too.

Everything I've seen he wants to be a head coach. I imagine if the opportunity is afforded to him, he's gonna take it.

Much like Mosley under Baker, Hodge has been with Mac a long time learning from him, so I imagine the transition would be smooth, and we'd continue to do well.

Back to back years of the number 1 defense in the nation is pretty hard to say no to if you're Mosley.

[emmitt01]

9 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Handed the keys to a running Ferrari, or continue riding shotgun in someone else's red-dirt-covered Ferrari...

Which one would you prefer?   

Every Asst. Coach wants to eventually become a Head Coach.  It's a no brainer.   If he's offered the NT job (which, if he's not, I have some serious questions about Mosley's judgement), he's going to take it.   He'll go to Lubbock if he's not offered the NT job.

More importantly, if Mac is the kind of man I think he is, he will push Hodge to take the North Texas job. I think Mac looks forward to seeing those who work for him shine in their own light, and I think he cares that much about North Texas.
 

Edited March 30, 2023 by emmitt01

[Wag Tag]

9 hours ago, CMJ said:

Hodge unless he doesn't want it.

Maybe, but you have to put the job out there and see the response.

[p_phelps]

9 hours ago, rojomojo said:

Okay but why? Educate me

Ummm back to back #1 defenses in the country... thats his thing not grant

[MeanGreenTexan]

1 minute ago, Wag Tag said:

Maybe, but you have to put the job out there and see the response.

Yeah, you're right...  If Hodge says no.

Otherwise, you're telling him he's not your guy, and he'll leave with McCasland.   And that would be really stupid.

[Wag Tag]

10 hours ago, rojomojo said:

Also I know there's still a chance Grant stays but I just feel it's highly unlikely... Tech would've hired a new HC by now if it wasn't him. I am trying to prepare myself so I don't feel depressed when it's finally announced...

 

I got to have a conversation with Grant earlier this year and he's truly one of the most humble yet driven people I have ever met. He gives you countless reasons to root for him and I am so damn proud of what he's accomplished at UNT. He deserves to take his talents to the next level and as much as I wish I could be selfish and feel like he should stay, I know he's earned whatever is coming to him. Much love for Mac

He really is what you are looking for in a head coach. Has always been a great representative of the UNT. He really has a passion for coaching young men. Sat next to his parents at a UTSA BB game a few years ago in San Antonio. His father was a minister so I could easily see where Mc got that passion. He deserves the best.

[PlummMeanGreen]

30 minutes ago, Wag Tag said:

He really is what you are looking for in a head coach. Has always been a great representative of the UNT. He really has a passion for coaching young men. Sat next to his parents at a UTSA BB game a few years ago in San Antonio. His father was a minister so I could easily see where Mc got that passion. He deserves the best.

How funny—I sat by his mother at last years LaTech game (attended by crooner Randy Travis & Company) & before the largest Super Pit crowd since 1980.

Mother Hodge was fun to talk to. I told her about some of the name players & schools we played in the 70’s & 80’s. She was duly impressed as I still am myself.  

[tmjerm]

The only fear I have is the Mosely connection with Golding getting in the way.  The tourney win over Texas was impressive but UTEP hasn’t been very impressive to me.  Let’s keep riding with Ross. 

[TheTastyGreek]

Coaches come and go. Consistent programs, the ones that turn non-basketball schools into Basketball Schools, promote from within when that happens.

They don't go looking for their next head coach once the man in the chair moves on. They have that guy right there, ready to go. They already made that next hire and started on-the-job training when they hired their first or second assistant.  

You don't need to worry about "getting their guys in" or whether or not "their system" works with the talent on hand. All the players already know them. Everyone in the incoming recruiting class already went through a recruiting cycle with them on the staff. They've been running the system already, and any changes they may want to make are likely incremental, and certainly informed by the talent on hand well beyond what anyone outside the building could possibly know. 

It doesn't take a year, or two, or three (or NEVER) for them to get up to speed. They don't have to establish local connections and build recruiting pipelines. They've already been doing it for you for years. Successfully, or else the previous coach wouldn't have been hired away. 

If you're someone that's annoyed by salary inflation or length of contracts? Historically, promote-from-within hires get less money and shorter contracts than people hired from outside of a program. They're cheaper, easier to move on from if you do have issues, but generally more successful, faster, than people who come in and remake a program in their own image. 

If a promote-from-within guy has head coach experience elsewhere? Great! Excellent bonus. If they don't? It's nothing like hiring a career assistant from outside the building. They already know the institution, the department, they have stability and connections and awareness of the circumstances and challenges of their new job. They aren't starting from scratch. They're just taking on a bigger burden beyond what they already did successfully at your school. 

When you're building a program... An actual PROGRAM, not a boom-and-bust, cross your fingers and hope one out of every two or three big outside hires succeeds, too? You promote from within, maintain what's working, minimize disruption, and keep the train rolling along. That's how schools where basketball was an afterthought become serious, then dangerous, then household names. 

Jared Mosley would have been a tremendous hire as our AD back when Wren Baker got the job. We were ridiculously fortunate to get both. One left, as people inevitably will outside of maybe 10 institutions in college sports. And the other slid over one desk and we haven't missed a step. 

Ross Hodge would have been a great hire back when we brought in McCasland. We were ridiculously fortunate to get both. WHEN McCasland leaves (whether this year, next, or somewhere else down the line), we're in an ideal position as long as Hodge hasn't left first. 

This is the easiest, no-brainer hire in the history of NT sports. Unless Hodge gets stupid money to go be a Big 12 assistant and declines the job? He's the guy. 

Maybe he fails. Most coaches do. But, it's the rare, beautiful situation where the sure thing and safe bet aren't settling for low expectations. He's the smart pick, the easy pick, the safe pick, and the best pick, all in one package. 

[TheTastyGreek]

Frankly, if McCasland is gone? The real question is, who does Ross Hodge bring in as his lead assistant? 

Because that's the guy you hope to have this same conversation about in 2-4 years. 

[NorthTexasWeLove]

13 minutes ago, TheTastyGreek said:

Frankly, if McCasland is gone? The real question is, who does Ross Hodge bring in as his lead assistant? 

Because that's the guy you hope to have this same conversation about in 2-4 years. 

Though true, let's lock Hodge up and worry about that after 4 more years of competitive 20+ win basketball seasons.