New Coach At SMU ?

[MeanGreen61]

Florida Atlantic and former North Carolina head coach Matt Doherty will become the next coach at SMU, according to sources close to the situation.

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/5525248

[Buford_Julep]

How can you hire someone who went 8-20 at North Carolina?

He has an extreme in-your-face coaching style that doesn't wear well with his players. Rashad McCants said, "Guys were frustrated and it wasn't because of the losing. It was mostly because we had to go to practice every day saying 'Man, we've got to deal with this guy.' "

Although he had players like Sean May, Raymond Felton and Rashad McCants he lasted just 3 years at North Carolina.

His first season North Carolina reached #1 in the polls, but wound up losing 7 games and losing in the second round of the NCAA. The next two seasons North Carolina failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.

Doherty blames a fan message board for his being fired by North Carolina, not the player revolt or his terrible (by NC standards) record.

Edited April 22, 2006 by Buford_Julep

[Zeke]

Doherty blames a fan message board for his being fired by North Carolina, not the player revolt or his terrible (by NC standards) record.

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Is it commonplace that coaches think that message boards have this kind of power?

[Buford_Julep]

Is it commonplace that coaches think that message boards have this kind of power?

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Pasted from Wikipedia web site:

In 2002-2003 the Tar Heels rebounded and improved dramatically from their embarrassing 2002 campaign but still fell short of what North Carolina fans had come to expect, finishing 19-16 and earning a berth in the NIT. Throughout the year many players (particularly Sean May) and other program insiders had publicly voiced their displeasure with Doherty and his aggressive style, and fans began to call for Doherty's head on sports talk radio, in the newspapers, and internet message boards, particularly Inside Carolina, a UNC sports website towards which Doherty still holds some animosity. On April 1, 2003, Doherty tendered his resignation.

[LoveMG]

Is it commonplace that coaches think that message boards have this kind of power?

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dickey assigns a coach to read gmg and report back to him. tell him this:

[eulesseagle]

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/colleges/14422797.htm

From the Fort Worth Star Telegram on Coach D.

Wants to up the salaries of his assistants to $300,000. Nice.

[emmitt01]

Back on the subject of SMU's new coach Doherty, apparently Dallas ISD coaches are saying that SMU is not welcome in their gyms. Seems they're still upset about the firing of Tubbs who they saw as one of their black brethren.

[Buford_Julep]

Here is a cut and paste from Pony.com. The poster understands SMU's image and the typical reactions of today's fans in the face of adversity.

"Doherty fits the SMU image fairly perfectly. GQ and at least somewhat arrogant. He's a good fit and could possibly have some success. I guess I have been hoping we could change our image some, but thats probably not in the cards. I'll support Doherty. Like I said before, I hope you all don't abandon him after some inevitable hard times. But most of you will. If you are honest most of you who did give up on Tubbs gave up after his first recruiting class which didnt produce the high profile recruits imagined. How long can Doherty go without producing a signature recruit? Its an honest question. Will the air go out of the balloon this spring if he doesnt make a splash with the 3 scholarships he now has?"

[SouthernMustang]

At least there is proof that Doherty can recruit and coach. He was named National Coach of the Year. Did he fall on some rough times? Yeah, sure he did. But I think taking a step back from the game let him think about things. The same type of situations certainly haven't hurt coaches like Mike Price or George O'Leary.

I was against the hiring of Tubbs. Copeland was basically pressured by the DISD high school basketball coach's "Union" into hiring him. They promised recruits and support. They said they'd encourage their kids to go to SMU..

Yeah -- um, during Tubbs tenure attendance fell and we landed 0 DISD recruits. Recruiting was worse under Tubbs than Dement. We lost games to teams that we beat handily during Dement's worst year. What was the difference in record? Tubbs scheduled teams like Long Beach State and Sister's of the Poor for our entire non-conf schedule. Dement played Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Tennessee. Tubbs even LOST to some of these bad teams. Or else SMU would've fired a 16-17 win/season coach. Tubbs couldn't coach.. and even though DISD showed no support for SMU, they blame SMU for the firing. They don't have to live up to there end of the bargain?

SMU's Athletic Department hired a new CEO in Orsini... if a new CEO comes into a company and sees a top manager that is producing underwhelming and barely mediocre results, he's going to can the guy and bring in a new name he thinks will be exciting and turn things around. It's no different. I agree SMU could've been clearer with the reasons for firing, violations, etc.

But for DISD and one DMN reporter who will remain unamed to play the race card is just ridiculous. With better records, our RPI fell under Tubbs tenure. We hired him to change things immediately. Dement had a talented squad that he let squander away. Tubbs just made things worse.

Copeland's taking the blame, but this is an Orsini move. I applaud Orsini for his proactivity with the basketball situation... it shows that the school is willing to take risks and pull the strings to make athletics strong again. For once, I am excited about the future of SMU revenue sports.

[Go_UTA]

SouthernMustang, you are too nice of a guy.

Come on, man, live up to expectations. To do this rivalry some good, you need to come over here and be a real ass. You might be able to single-handedly draw an extra dozen or so fans to the game. Hell, I might even go.

They will hate you but love doing it.