G-MAC All-Sports and Conference Business Thread

[BlueBlood]

Strange he made the jump now as Thomas More finally achieved D2 status.

I'm guessing it's just when the perfect opportunity presented itself. It looks like he went from an assistant at NKU to the head coach at TMU and now back to NKU as the head coach. He moved up the coaching ladder twice and didn't need to change neighborhoods. That's pretty unusual in college sports.

[Bballfan]

Could be right about that. The Horizon League is tough to achieve consistent success just because so many coaches either (a) get fired or (b) have success and move on. It is a group of D1 schools that occasionally pop up with some attention (Oakland men this year, IUPUI women a few years ago, and Youngstown State was a football powerhouse in small school D1 but not because of the Horizon League lol). I think he will do well there though. Just tough for another good coach in the conference to leave. He will be hard to replace, just like Kate Bruce a few years ago.

[unc4life]

Thomas More has been a good addition to the conference, but their women's coach just got hired at Northern Kentucky. Has had an excellent record at Thomas More and will be sorely missed. Strange he made the jump now as Thomas More finally achieved D2 status. He should do well there.

Three GMAC schools are now without a women's basketball coach: Thomas More, Ohio Dominican, Lake Erie. Now two of those schools are pretty much train wrecks in all sports, but the conference is not headed in the right direction in terms of women's basketball when just a couple years ago the conference produced 4 regional qualifiers.

Its never strange to see a D2 coach go to a D1 job. The difference is very very big. Huge pay increase, better facilities, multi year guaranteed contracts. We have also seen over the years some very good D2 women's coaches go from D2 to mid level D1 to Major D1 in a short time. Glenville States Kim Caldwell went from D2 to Marshall to Tennessee in 3 years.

[Bballfan]

It is strange when a coach that is successful didn't make the move sooner is what I am saying. He is a very good coach, but to be at one place for over a decade and then make the move, just surprised he did. And not all D2 coaches aspire to be D1 coaches. More pay, facilities, etc. but the quality of life is awful. I know Caldwell made a huge jump in 3 years. Let's see what she does now at Tennessee trying to compete with the big dogs at a school where they have unrealistic expectations for womens' basketball in this day and age, just like Nebraska Football. It isn't the 90's anymore.

On a completely different note another D2 school who potentially would be a GMAC option is off the table. Mercyhurst is making the jump to D1. While a lot of schools are struggling to just survive, you look at Mercyhurst and say huh? The Mountain East is picking up Point Park to replace them. Another crappy NAIA school (like Roosevelt in Chicago) who is only making the move to get NCAA money I am sure and the conference was desperate to get a replacement, just like the GLIAC getting Roosevelt.