David Cox officially let go by URI (formerly, "Fire Cox")

[SGreenwell]

Penders left us with Kenny Green and Jeff Kent, but also saddled us with Eric Leslie.

Again the 2 year thing makes it tough to meter the "impact" of their career, but it's one of 2 times URI made it to a second weekend.

Hurley got us to back to backs and left the program probably in the best place since Skinner.

I think there's a fair debate between Hurley/Penders/Skinner about their impact/abilities here, but I think Keaney/Harrick are unimpeachable.

Eh, Keaney is #1 for me, but I think there's at least a debate to be had about Harrick for the reasons that PMMM brought up. I know it's a nice story that Harrick going to Georgia was really a 50-50 decision for him, but if he was planning to stay at URI, he really left himself a weird roster of knuckleheads to coach that didn't fit well together.

It also wasn't like Skinner was some slouch - he got Boston College to a Sweet Sixteen, and B-R helpfully notes that for Harrick's first team, "74.3% of minutes played and 75.2% of scoring return from 1996-97 roster." If we're allowed hypotheticals, I can envision a scenario where URI just pays Skinner, he coaches that 1997-98 squad to another NCAA tournament - who knows how they finish? - and the program avoids some pretty chaotic years.

[bigappleram]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

[Rhody15]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

Since Harrick wasn’t squeaky clean I would bet some posters here would say he was a worse coach than Baron and Cox.

(Half kidding, kinda.)

[SGreenwell]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

[ramster]

All that matters is the timing of the announcement follow a reasonable protocol that represents the Head Coach and the School respectfully. I’d say the majority of schools wait til after the conference tournaments and Selection Sunday.
Probably 25-30 announcements each year. Maybe more this year with atypical past two years.

[TruePoint]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

Since Harrick wasn’t squeaky clean I would bet some posters here would say he was a worse coach than Baron and Cox.

(Half kidding, kinda.)

The Jim Harrick kind of dirtiness doesn’t bother me a ton, and I haven’t thought a lot about where I’d rank him until 3 minutes ago, but I do think it is at least worth mentioning that comparing Harrick and Hurley is a little bit apples and oranges. Harrick inherited a tournament team and maximized it before leaving the program nearly in shambles. From a PROGRAM standpoint, the job that Dan did to revive a program on life support and and get it to where it was at its peak in his final year is one of the great program building jobs I’ve seen and he left behind something that should have been turnkey for the next guy. Everything about the program was better when he left. It’s too bad that they couldn’t hold on in that Oregon game or I think you’d have a really good case that he should be ranked #1 (after Keaney), as the second weekend is the one thing missing from his resume. On the other hand, Harrick was 50 seconds or whatever it was from the Final Four so that would have made him bulletproof, potentially Keaney level.

[bigappleram]

Agree if it's best coaches in my lifetime as a fan that's my list. If it changes to program building then the list looks different. Al and Dan move way up vs Penders and Harrick. But if it's a general poll of best coaches and all that factors into that I am still hard pressed to say anyone was better than Harrick. His 1 recruit is arguably the greatest recruit to ever pick URI (only thing close would be Sly) and his on court results are the best we have ever achieved.

[Billyboy78]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

You're not considering the class he had coming in? 3 or 4 McDonald's AA including Jason Kapono who went on to score over 2000 points at UCLA and would have been one of the best players in our history?

[SGreenwell]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

You're not considering the class he had coming in? 3 or 4 McDonald's AA including Jason Kapono who went on to score over 2000 points at UCLA and would have been one of the best players in our history?

Given the... history that Harrick recruits had with eligibility and character issues, I suppose I'm pessimistic on the idea he and others would have actually ended up at URI had Harrick stayed. It's not like he followed him to Georgia. Kapono was from Long Beach and ended up going to UCLA. Harrick's run at Georgia featured two future NBA players - Damien Wilkens and Jarvis Hayes, who were both transfers. The best freshman he recruited there was Chris Daniels.

[ramster]

Coaching is a results oriented business. Not sure how you can say the guy who achieved the biggest results (Elite 8) is ranked below numerous other coaches. Wins matter...he won in the biggest way, everything else is noise. You can say whatever you want about Harrick based on your own personal beliefs but anyone in the game will tell you the dude was an excellent coach and knows the game inside and out. He directly made Cuttino Mobley a multi multi millionaire and got an 8,000 seat arena built on campus. Name any other Rhody coach in the modern era with that legacy. Since mid 80s the list has to look something like this...

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

You're not considering the class he had coming in? 3 or 4 McDonald's AA including Jason Kapono who went on to score over 2000 points at UCLA and would have been one of the best players in our history?

1.Harrick
2.Kraft
3.Penders
4.Hurley
5.Skinner
6.Baron
7.Claude/Malone/Cox
8.Jerry D

BAR,
I agree with your list, just going back to include Jack Kraft. To be honest I had a very hard time putting Baron ahead of Claude/Malone/Cox. Maybe Malone goes to 6 and Baron goes to 7 with Claude/Cox. Baron had that brand, spanken new Ryan Center and never recruited the caliber of players that Harrick and Hurley did who Baron was in-between and for an awful (and I mean awful) long time. Kraft put us on the map with the best player I've seen in my lifetime with UR in Sly:
- Sylvester Sly Williams
- Jiggy Williamson, from the great Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven CT. Jiggy's teammate Bruce "Soup" Campbell was very highly recruited and went to PC. Juggy's brother was Super John Williamson, also played at Wilbur Cross, New Mexico State and had a strong ABA and NBA Career. 30 ppg game one year with NY Nets. Could shoot the lights out
- Stan Wright
- Jimmy Wright (Stan's little 6'8" brother)
- John Nelson who I'd love to see in a 3 point shooting contest with Jimmy Baron. They didn't have the 3 point shot then
- Irv Chatman who Jack Kraft got to fill the center role for defense and rim protecting. Highly recruited HS player from NYC who went to Tennessee - played with Bernie and Ernie. Transfers were quite rare back them. Was big news for Chatman to come to Rhody.
- Percy Davis and Willie Middlebrooks from Warwick RI. Both were walk ons that earned scholarships with Jack Kraft. Davis could sky, amazing jumper. Middlebrooks was a good shooter


As for Harrick:

He only left URI not as strong as they would have been because he left:
Odom was hoped to have stayed if Jerry D got the HC job. That was the plan. But he didn't
Odom was the #2 ranked HS player in the Nation his Senior year. He was front cover of the Parade Magazine Annual All American Team. He announced going to play for Jerry Tarkanian at UNLV, but ended up at URI with Jim Harrick. Highest ranked HS player ever at URI

During his last Winter/Spring:
Harrick was heavily involved with recruiting Jason Kapono as Billyboy said. Kapono was buddies with Josh Kronke who went on to Missouri. URI was very close to landing both of those guys. They were talking of going to the same school - URI.

Harrick also was heavily involved with 6'11" highly ranked Ivan Kartelo who went to Notre Dame and then transferred to Purdue

and with 6'11' Jabari Smith who went to LSU and the NBA. His Son 6'10" Jabari Smith at Auburn is expected to be the #1 pick in this year's NBA Draft.

Harrick had things rolling. Ryan Center came about because of Harrick, Tom Ryan, Governor Lincoln Almond, and others.

In 1997 ESPN Nationally broadcast Midnight Madness from URI, Duke, South Carolina and Tennessee. Digger Phelps was under a tent outside Keaney Gym with the Broadcast team. Jim Harrick crowd surfed in Keaney Gym. Robert Carothers made the gutsy call to hire Jim Harrick when Al Skinner departed for BC.
Amazing times. We soon moved from Keaney Gym to the beautiful Ryan Center.

To me Harrick is easily #2, behind the Legendary Frank Keaney

[PlayMikeMotenMore]

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

You're not considering the class he had coming in? 3 or 4 McDonald's AA including Jason Kapono who went on to score over 2000 points at UCLA and would have been one of the best players in our history?

1.Harrick
2.Kraft
3.Penders
4.Hurley
5.Skinner
6.Baron
7.Claude/Malone/Cox
8.Jerry D

BAR,
I agree with your list, just going back to include Jack Kraft. To be honest I had a very hard time putting Baron ahead of Claude/Malone/Cox. Maybe Malone goes to 6 and Baron goes to 7 with Claude/Cox. Baron had that brand, spanken new Ryan Center and never recruited the caliber of players that Harrick and Hurley did who Baron was in-between and for an awful (and I mean awful) long time. Kraft put us on the map with the best player I've seen in my lifetime with UR in Sly:
- Sylvester Sly Williams
- Jiggy Williamson, from the great Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven CT. Jiggy's teammate Bruce "Soup" Campbell was very highly recruited and went to PC. Juggy's brother was Super John Williamson, also played at Wilbur Cross, New Mexico State and had a strong ABA and NBA Career. 30 ppg game one year with NY Nets. Could shoot the lights out
- Stan Wright
- Jimmy Wright (Stan's little 6'8" brother)
- John Nelson who I'd love to see in a 3 point shooting contest with Jimmy Baron. They didn't have the 3 point shot then
- Irv Chatman who Jack Kraft got to fill the center role for defense and rim protecting. Highly recruited HS player from NYC who went to Tennessee - played with Bernie and Ernie. Transfers were quite rare back them. Was big news for Chatman to come to Rhody.
- Percy Davis and Willie Middlebrooks from Warwick RI. Both were walk ons that earned scholarships with Jack Kraft. Davis could sky, amazing jumper. Middlebrooks was a good shooter


As for Harrick:

He only left URI not as strong as they would have been because he left:
Odom was hoped to have stayed if Jerry D got the HC job. That was the plan. But he didn't
Odom was the #2 ranked HS player in the Nation his Senior year. He was front cover of the Parade Magazine Annual All American Team. He announced going to play for Jerry Tarkanian at UNLV, but ended up at URI with Jim Harrick. Highest ranked HS player ever at URI

During his last Winter/Spring:
Harrick was heavily involved with recruiting Jason Kapono as Billyboy said. Kapono was buddies with Josh Kronke who went on to Missouri. URI was very close to landing both of those guys. They were talking of going to the same school - URI.

Harrick also was heavily involved with 6'11" highly ranked Ivan Kartelo who went to Notre Dame and then transferred to Purdue

and with 6'11' Jabari Smith who went to LSU and the NBA. His Son 6'10" Jabari Smith at Auburn is expected to be the #1 pick in this year's NBA Draft.

Harrick had things rolling. Ryan Center came about because of Harrick, Tom Ryan, Governor Lincoln Almond, and others.

In 1997 ESPN Nationally broadcast Midnight Madness from URI, Duke, South Carolina and Tennessee. Digger Phelps was under a tent outside Keaney Gym with the Broadcast team. Jim Harrick crowd surfed in Keaney Gym. Robert Carothers made the gutsy call to hire Jim Harrick when Al Skinner departed for BC.
Amazing times. We soon moved from Keaney Gym to the beautiful Ryan Center.

To me Harrick is easily #2, behind the Legendary Frank Keaney

Well if you're going to show Harrick so much love, then he and everyone:

1) Ought to kiss the tush of Al Skinner for setting him up with a senior/junior laden squad that was ready to win. Harrick walked into a gold mine.
2) Ought to admit that the 2nd year of the supposed greatest-to-2nd-greatest URI coach was an absolute trainwreck of an underachieving season...until a single shot was made. Jim Harrick was closer to David Cox that season than he was Frank Keaney.
3) Ought to admit that the clean, winning program he inherited was left in shambles by him. (It's like renting a waterfront beach house for a weekend and then trashing it before you leave.)

There is no way to prove/disprove a future event if things had been different...unless we're talking about the Back To the Future movie.

If Al had stuck around, would Mobley have made the NBA? (Ask Jared Dudley, Troy Bell, Reggie Jackson) Would URI have gone to the Elite 8? Would the Ryan Center (eventually) been built? Easy to say "no way...that's all due to Harrick." But you just don't know. You can't say "well Skinner's BC teams never went to the Elite 8." One has nothing to do with the other. Corelation is not the same as causation.

You can guess, surmise, say woulda/should/coulda...but we'll never know. Just like we'll never know if Tom Brady would've led the Pats to six Super Bowls if it had not been for Mo Lewis knocking out Bledsoe. We'll just never know...

[RIFan]

Let’s stick to firing Cox, we can all agree on that.

[Rhody72]

In the would of, could of, should of category, Harrick's 1999 team would have beaten Sean Colson's UNCC team in the NCAAT had David Arigbabu not left the team in January to return to Germany. Also, I believe Luther Clay was an Al Skinner recruit through his connection to Max Good.

[RamStock]

Well perhaps I go back a lot farther back into URI's past and I can define "truly enjoyable times" differently than you. Secondly, (and I've stated this before), URI is like a lot of A10 programs. URI is not a basketball factory. Like St. Joe's, GW, and now St. Bonaventure, they've had periods of high performance and other periods of shall we say "below average" teams. That really is more than the rule than the exception for most programs. (Auburn, USC, UVA, and others have has had awful stretches of their programs too.) Butler, George Mason, Loyola, etc. had/have visions of being the next Gonzaga. But how many Gonzaga's are out there?

You can say what you want about removing stats and records. You might think it's foolish. Clearly, those forfeitures of records have meaning because otherwise people like you wouldn't be bothered by it. You can still have your memories, that's fine. But when my kids are older, they won't find those marks in the record books.

I don't care about what the people at UMASS in the 90's say about the Camby days. I care about what's going at URI today. And I agree with you. Hire the right coach to win the right way. There are plenty of those coaches out there. Go find him!

People like me aren’t bothered by a forfeit of things like Michigan or Umass because that is who played in the Final Four. I hated both teams, but would laugh at someone who said their games didn’t happen and only three teams were in the Final Four. I highly doubt your kids are going to be looking through old record books of a final four that Umass played in the early 90’s anyway. Bottom line is these recent URI teams are forgettable and they need to fix it or they will continue to be a non factor with PC dominating the basketball scene in Rhode Island

You don't know my kids (I don't think) so don't assume what you think my kids will or won't do.

People like you aren't bothered by a forfeit from teams that cheated. Great. People like me are bothered by it...and I'm even more bothered by it when teams I'm invested in playing by the rules lose out on something because of the cheating teams. So we'll leave it at that.

Screw PC. They've now won one Big East title since the Big East was created. (That's 1 more than you and me combined.) That shows how you little of a factor PC has been in that conference over the years. The rest of the Big East doesn't give a hoot about PC and whatever success they have. And I don't give a hoot either because I don't have a URI inferiority complex like others do.

We get it now that you are a saint! I'm not sure why you need to categorize everything with "people like you and people like me." I want a coach that will build the program back into a winner. I don't want a Jim Baron or David Cox. This isn't 4th grade recreational sports and it does matter if you win. PC is in a much better conference than URI-not even close. We are not even near where their program is right now with Cooley.

[SGreenwell]

People like me aren’t bothered by a forfeit of things like Michigan or Umass because that is who played in the Final Four. I hated both teams, but would laugh at someone who said their games didn’t happen and only three teams were in the Final Four. I highly doubt your kids are going to be looking through old record books of a final four that Umass played in the early 90’s anyway. Bottom line is these recent URI teams are forgettable and they need to fix it or they will continue to be a non factor with PC dominating the basketball scene in Rhode Island

You don't know my kids (I don't think) so don't assume what you think my kids will or won't do.

People like you aren't bothered by a forfeit from teams that cheated. Great. People like me are bothered by it...and I'm even more bothered by it when teams I'm invested in playing by the rules lose out on something because of the cheating teams. So we'll leave it at that.

Screw PC. They've now won one Big East title since the Big East was created. (That's 1 more than you and me combined.) That shows how you little of a factor PC has been in that conference over the years. The rest of the Big East doesn't give a hoot about PC and whatever success they have. And I don't give a hoot either because I don't have a URI inferiority complex like others do.

We get it now that you are a saint! I'm not sure why you need to categorize everything with "people like you and people like me." I want a coach that will build the program back into a winner. I don't want a Jim Baron or David Cox. This isn't 4th grade recreational sports and it does matter if you win. PC is in a much better conference than URI-not even close. We are not even near where their program is right now with Cooley.

Just to reiterate something TP said a while ago - It isn't a binary decision here. I think Hurley ran a pretty clean program for example. I guess my mindset has always been that URI doesn't need to deal with the baggage of someone like Pitino - We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good. Also, for this particular hiring cycle, I don't think he's available anyway, and I don't think there is someone with a comparable level of baggage that we would be considering.

[ramster]

It sure is fun to relive

URI’s 1st A10 Championship 1999

[NYGFan_Section208]

You don't know my kids (I don't think) so don't assume what you think my kids will or won't do.

People like you aren't bothered by a forfeit from teams that cheated. Great. People like me are bothered by it...and I'm even more bothered by it when teams I'm invested in playing by the rules lose out on something because of the cheating teams. So we'll leave it at that.

Screw PC. They've now won one Big East title since the Big East was created. (That's 1 more than you and me combined.) That shows how you little of a factor PC has been in that conference over the years. The rest of the Big East doesn't give a hoot about PC and whatever success they have. And I don't give a hoot either because I don't have a URI inferiority complex like others do.

We get it now that you are a saint! I'm not sure why you need to categorize everything with "people like you and people like me." I want a coach that will build the program back into a winner. I don't want a Jim Baron or David Cox. This isn't 4th grade recreational sports and it does matter if you win. PC is in a much better conference than URI-not even close. We are not even near where their program is right now with Cooley.

Just to reiterate something TP said a while ago - It isn't a binary decision here. I think Hurley ran a pretty clean program for example. I guess my mindset has always been that URI doesn't need to deal with the baggage of someone like Pitino - We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good. Also, for this particular hiring cycle, I don't think he's available anyway, and I don't think there is someone with a comparable level of baggage that we would be considering.

What makes us think, at this point "We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good"?
Serious question...who, that was good, did we pass on last time to hire Cox?* Are we as "attractive" now as we were when he was hired?

*Will stand corrected if you've got good names we passed on...my mem'ry is turrble...

[ramster]

We get it now that you are a saint! I'm not sure why you need to categorize everything with "people like you and people like me." I want a coach that will build the program back into a winner. I don't want a Jim Baron or David Cox. This isn't 4th grade recreational sports and it does matter if you win. PC is in a much better conference than URI-not even close. We are not even near where their program is right now with Cooley.

Just to reiterate something TP said a while ago - It isn't a binary decision here. I think Hurley ran a pretty clean program for example. I guess my mindset has always been that URI doesn't need to deal with the baggage of someone like Pitino - We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good. Also, for this particular hiring cycle, I don't think he's available anyway, and I don't think there is someone with a comparable level of baggage that we would be considering.

What makes us think, at this point "We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good"?
Serious question...who, that was good, did we pass on last time to hire Cox?* Are we as "attractive" now as we were when he was hired?

*Will stand corrected if you've got good names we passed on...my mem'ry is turrble...

I have no names.
We screwed up not hiring Pitino.
4 years of proof right in front of us and counting

[SGreenwell]

We get it now that you are a saint! I'm not sure why you need to categorize everything with "people like you and people like me." I want a coach that will build the program back into a winner. I don't want a Jim Baron or David Cox. This isn't 4th grade recreational sports and it does matter if you win. PC is in a much better conference than URI-not even close. We are not even near where their program is right now with Cooley.

Just to reiterate something TP said a while ago - It isn't a binary decision here. I think Hurley ran a pretty clean program for example. I guess my mindset has always been that URI doesn't need to deal with the baggage of someone like Pitino - We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good. Also, for this particular hiring cycle, I don't think he's available anyway, and I don't think there is someone with a comparable level of baggage that we would be considering.

What makes us think, at this point "We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good"?
Serious question...who, that was good, did we pass on last time to hire Cox?* Are we as "attractive" now as we were when he was hired?

*Will stand corrected if you've got good names we passed on...my mem'ry is turrble...

I don't think we cast a particularly wide net last time, because Cox was seen as such a favorite for the job, and had the contract clause that required a payout if he wasn't picked. Becker was an option in that poll, and he would be the guy I'd want now, if Archie Miller isn't available. Nate Oats also obviously looks pretty good right now too.

According to Zagsblog from around that time, URI interviewed Micah Shrewsberry and Joe Dooley. The latter is probably on the verge of getting fired by ECU, and Shrewsberry is 12-13 in his first year at Penn State.

[NYGFan_Section208]

Just to reiterate something TP said a while ago - It isn't a binary decision here. I think Hurley ran a pretty clean program for example. I guess my mindset has always been that URI doesn't need to deal with the baggage of someone like Pitino - We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good. Also, for this particular hiring cycle, I don't think he's available anyway, and I don't think there is someone with a comparable level of baggage that we would be considering.

What makes us think, at this point "We're an attractive enough job to just hire someone good"?
Serious question...who, that was good, did we pass on last time to hire Cox?* Are we as "attractive" now as we were when he was hired?

*Will stand corrected if you've got good names we passed on...my mem'ry is turrble...

I don't think we cast a particularly wide net last time, because Cox was seen as such a favorite for the job, and had the contract clause that required a payout if he wasn't picked. Becker was an option in that poll, and he would be the guy I'd want now, if Archie Miller isn't available. Nate Oats also obviously looks pretty good right now too.

According to Zagsblog from around that time, URI interviewed Micah Shrewsberry and Joe Dooley. The latter is probably on the verge of getting fired by ECU, and Shrewsberry is 12-13 in his first year at Penn State.

Depressing...

[theblueram]

It sure is fun to relive

URI’s 1st A10 Championship 1999

That game was amazing. What a finish.

[reef]

He was here for two years, and essentially recruited two significant players to URI - Lamar Odom and Luther Clay. I can understand the argument for him at #2, but I'd personally value Skinner more. (Not sure about Penders or Hurley.) I'm valuing stability and length of results a bit more here, but yeah, I get why some others would value "peak" more. Just a difference of opinions.

You're not considering the class he had coming in? 3 or 4 McDonald's AA including Jason Kapono who went on to score over 2000 points at UCLA and would have been one of the best players in our history?

1.Harrick
2.Kraft
3.Penders
4.Hurley
5.Skinner
6.Baron
7.Claude/Malone/Cox
8.Jerry D

BAR,
I agree with your list, just going back to include Jack Kraft. To be honest I had a very hard time putting Baron ahead of Claude/Malone/Cox. Maybe Malone goes to 6 and Baron goes to 7 with Claude/Cox. Baron had that brand, spanken new Ryan Center and never recruited the caliber of players that Harrick and Hurley did who Baron was in-between and for an awful (and I mean awful) long time. Kraft put us on the map with the best player I've seen in my lifetime with UR in Sly:
- Sylvester Sly Williams
- Jiggy Williamson, from the great Wilbur Cross High School in New Haven CT. Jiggy's teammate Bruce "Soup" Campbell was very highly recruited and went to PC. Juggy's brother was Super John Williamson, also played at Wilbur Cross, New Mexico State and had a strong ABA and NBA Career. 30 ppg game one year with NY Nets. Could shoot the lights out
- Stan Wright
- Jimmy Wright (Stan's little 6'8" brother)
- John Nelson who I'd love to see in a 3 point shooting contest with Jimmy Baron. They didn't have the 3 point shot then
- Irv Chatman who Jack Kraft got to fill the center role for defense and rim protecting. Highly recruited HS player from NYC who went to Tennessee - played with Bernie and Ernie. Transfers were quite rare back them. Was big news for Chatman to come to Rhody.
- Percy Davis and Willie Middlebrooks from Warwick RI. Both were walk ons that earned scholarships with Jack Kraft. Davis could sky, amazing jumper. Middlebrooks was a good shooter


As for Harrick:

He only left URI not as strong as they would have been because he left:
Odom was hoped to have stayed if Jerry D got the HC job. That was the plan. But he didn't
Odom was the #2 ranked HS player in the Nation his Senior year. He was front cover of the Parade Magazine Annual All American Team. He announced going to play for Jerry Tarkanian at UNLV, but ended up at URI with Jim Harrick. Highest ranked HS player ever at URI

During his last Winter/Spring:
Harrick was heavily involved with recruiting Jason Kapono as Billyboy said. Kapono was buddies with Josh Kronke who went on to Missouri. URI was very close to landing both of those guys. They were talking of going to the same school - URI.

Harrick also was heavily involved with 6'11" highly ranked Ivan Kartelo who went to Notre Dame and then transferred to Purdue

and with 6'11' Jabari Smith who went to LSU and the NBA. His Son 6'10" Jabari Smith at Auburn is expected to be the #1 pick in this year's NBA Draft.

Harrick had things rolling. Ryan Center came about because of Harrick, Tom Ryan, Governor Lincoln Almond, and others.

In 1997 ESPN Nationally broadcast Midnight Madness from URI, Duke, South Carolina and Tennessee. Digger Phelps was under a tent outside Keaney Gym with the Broadcast team. Jim Harrick crowd surfed in Keaney Gym. Robert Carothers made the gutsy call to hire Jim Harrick when Al Skinner departed for BC.
Amazing times. We soon moved from Keaney Gym to the beautiful Ryan Center.

To me Harrick is easily #2, behind the Legendary Frank Keaney

Not a bad list I would have Hurley higher up maybe over Penders

[RI_Bred]

It sure is fun to relive

URI’s 1st A10 Championship 1999

I was there! It was awesome. What a road trip.

[Smokinjimit2]

Harrick
Penders
Hurley
Skinner
Baron
Claude/Malone/Cox
Jerry D

Baron is below Claude Cox and Malone.

Remember when Hurley took over how bad the program was. There was a strong chance we wouldn’t have won a game with Baron.

[bigappleram]

Yes Baron’s last season was a horror show but there is no way you can legitimately rank his tenure below Cox or Malone.

[NYGFan_Section208]

Wow....the actual Baron era predates me here, but from what you read about him on this board, it sounds like he was the worst thing that ever happened to anything. To have folks saying DC is worse...yikers....is he really that bad?

[LIRAM]

Baron is John Wooden compared to those three. His initial rebuild was impressive from the Jerry debacle. Just couldn't get us to dance. The A-10 was a very solid league in those days. Obviously just kidding with the John Wooden reference but you get the idea.

[ElmCityRhody]

enough talking

fire this coach already

exit stage left and get off our court

FIRE COX
FIRE COX
FIRE COX

[Blue Man]

Yes Baron’s last season was a horror show but there is no way you can legitimately rank his tenure below Cox or Malone.

Technically Baron brought us to a slightly better place by the end of his tenure - and even though we fell short, there was some excitement or hope in there. Obviously in retrospect it was a masterclass in mediocrity and near-achievement. But it wasn't as bad as the last 2 years have been - really the whole 4 when you look at the trajectory, lost recruits, and the place the program was in when Cox took over.

Baron had a rebuild. He didn't rebuild it into a championship program, but he did get us to be competitive for most of his time here. Made a conference final, was in bubble discussion most of the time, just on the wrong side. Cox was gifted a championship-caliber program. If you imagine what Hurley or Pitino would've done with that same roster, this is rock bottom.

There were some big, close games in there under Baron. We obviously choked or fell short in Feb/Mar, never beat a ranked team, and legit we were screwed out of a dance seat in 2010. We at least got some big games in the Ryan Center too, just never won them. The A-10 had legit teams then too - Xavier (we never beat), Temple (we never beat), and the #1 undefeated team in the country St Joes (we never beat). I can at least understand those losses. But for as much of a "failure" as Baron's tenure was here - it's nowhere near the disaster that the Cox experiment became.

He's been gifted the easiest A-10 in my lifetime. His teams have blown DOUBLE DIGIT leads to really bad teams. Not just this year, but the whole time. Baron may not have been able to win the big ones - but he never lost the embarrassing ones.

In terms of recruiting and retention, Baron > Cox.

Baron couldn't coach either, but at least he recruited and retained the kind of guys who could win games. They just couldn't adjust when other teams would.

I wasn't ashamed, disinterested, or indifferent about URI under Baron - I was just disappointed. I had higher expectations and we just never got over the hump.

Now? In my opinion this is worse than Jerry D. Obviously Jerry D was embarrassing, but it was a quick firing and turnaround. At least we had the NIT immediately upon Baron's hiring. That was at least fun.

I've never cared less about this team. Never liked this team less. Nevermind not going to games in person, I've never just straight up not watched games or not even known when a game was being played.

I know I'm not alone.

Less than 2 weeks to a new beginning and maybe a sense of hope.

[Rhode_Island_Red]

Yes Baron’s last season was a horror show but there is no way you can legitimately rank his tenure below Cox or Malone.

In my time (back to my enrollment in 1976) nothing, nothing, NOTHING could ever be worse than the Jerry Duh shitshow. On paper, Claude English's tenure looks pretty bad, but he had absolutely zero support from the administration. Brendan Malone was horrible -- he was a supreme control freak in a profession populated entirely by control freaks who alienated everyone -- but he brought in most of the players who got us to the Sweet 16 in 1988. Jim Baron's teams were generally good defensively, but the inanity of his offensive schemes was often papered over by the individual talents of his players (most notably Jimmy Baron and Delroy James).

Cox took over a program that was loaded with potential, but there's an old saying among coaches -- potential can get you fired.

[Rhody15]

Yes Baron’s last season was a horror show but there is no way you can legitimately rank his tenure below Cox or Malone.

Technically Baron brought us to a slightly better place by the end of his tenure - and even though we fell short, there was some excitement or hope in there. Obviously in retrospect it was a masterclass in mediocrity and near-achievement. But it wasn't as bad as the last 2 years have been - really the whole 4 when you look at the trajectory, lost recruits, and the place the program was in when Cox took over.

Baron had a rebuild. He didn't rebuild it into a championship program, but he did get us to be competitive for most of his time here. Made a conference final, was in bubble discussion most of the time, just on the wrong side. Cox was gifted a championship-caliber program. If you imagine what Hurley or Pitino would've done with that same roster, this is rock bottom.

There were some big, close games in there under Baron. We obviously choked or fell short in Feb/Mar, never beat a ranked team, and legit we were screwed out of a dance seat in 2010. We at least got some big games in the Ryan Center too, just never won them. The A-10 had legit teams then too - Xavier (we never beat), Temple (we never beat), and the #1 undefeated team in the country St Joes (we never beat). I can at least understand those losses. But for as much of a "failure" as Baron's tenure was here - it's nowhere near the disaster that the Cox experiment became.

He's been gifted the easiest A-10 in my lifetime. His teams have blown DOUBLE DIGIT leads to really bad teams. Not just this year, but the whole time. Baron may not have been able to win the big ones - but he never lost the embarrassing ones.

In terms of recruiting and retention, Baron > Cox.

Baron couldn't coach either, but at least he recruited and retained the kind of guys who could win games. They just couldn't adjust when other teams would.

I wasn't ashamed, disinterested, or indifferent about URI under Baron - I was just disappointed. I had higher expectations and we just never got over the hump.

Now? In my opinion this is worse than Jerry D. Obviously Jerry D was embarrassing, but it was a quick firing and turnaround. At least we had the NIT immediately upon Baron's hiring. That was at least fun.

I've never cared less about this team. Never liked this team less. Nevermind not going to games in person, I've never just straight up not watched games or not even known when a game was being played.

I know I'm not alone.

Less than 2 weeks to a new beginning and maybe a sense of hope.

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

[Rhody15]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

[RoadyJay]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

I think it’s just folks trying to speak it into existence.

I cringe every time I open Twitter, hoping I don’t see a tweet from the University stating it’s support for Cox… like I just read re: Ewing at Georgetown.

Yikes!

[adam914]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

I think it’s just folks trying to speak it into existence.

I cringe every time I open Twitter, hoping I don’t see a tweet from the University stating it’s support for Cox… like I just read re: Ewing at Georgetown.

Yikes!

This is my thought as well. I think its been a combo of hoping for the best/speaking into existence and a lot based off Goodman's tweet and comments.

[Bos8]

I would agree with Adam's post. If you asked me in December, I would have thought Cox would be back, no way he was out.
But I would say more then anything, when the national guys are running with it, USUALLY where there is smoke, there is fire. I will also say that Goodman is from the area, and remains very plugged in. I don't think he is just throwing things out to see what sticks.

[rambone 78]

For the first half or so of Baron's tenure here, his teams were good defensively, but extremely challenged offensively.

Then he went to Phoenix to learn more up tempo offense, and his teams got better on that end...but unfortunately the defense suffered.

Baron just could never get the right balance between the two.

[Rhode_Island_Red]

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

Then after learning we were going to the NIT, he went on the radio and talked about how excited he was to be going to the post-season. I almost drove into a ditch in Usquepaug when I heard that.

[Rhody15]

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

Then after learning we were going to the NIT, he went on the radio and talked about how excited he was to be going to the post-season. I almost drove into a ditch in Usquepaug when I heard that.

Ulmer as tripped! Always will be pissed at that, even if it was only the NIT.

[Rhode_Island_Red]

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

Then after learning we were going to the NIT, he went on the radio and talked about how excited he was to be going to the post-season. I almost drove into a ditch in Usquepaug when I heard that.

Ulmer as tripped! Always will be pissed at that, even if it was only the NIT.

Lamonte Ulmer -- maybe the best pure athlete we've ever had. His knack for stealing inbounds passes was something. And he scored 1,000 points in his career without having any plays called for him.

[Rhody72]

If you consider the players who could return, I don't see a pile of dead wood and I don't see potential all-conference 1st or 2nd team players. I think they are a group of average to above average players in potential. A problem is that many may not return whether Cox stays or leaves. On paper, it is not a bad group for a new coach to inherit. Many here have posted that Cox did not get the most out these players. So, there is some growth potential. There is more here than Baron or Hurley inherited but not as much as Harrick inherited.

[Blue Man]

Yes Baron’s last season was a horror show but there is no way you can legitimately rank his tenure below Cox or Malone.

Technically Baron brought us to a slightly better place by the end of his tenure - and even though we fell short, there was some excitement or hope in there. Obviously in retrospect it was a masterclass in mediocrity and near-achievement. But it wasn't as bad as the last 2 years have been - really the whole 4 when you look at the trajectory, lost recruits, and the place the program was in when Cox took over.

Baron had a rebuild. He didn't rebuild it into a championship program, but he did get us to be competitive for most of his time here. Made a conference final, was in bubble discussion most of the time, just on the wrong side. Cox was gifted a championship-caliber program. If you imagine what Hurley or Pitino would've done with that same roster, this is rock bottom.

There were some big, close games in there under Baron. We obviously choked or fell short in Feb/Mar, never beat a ranked team, and legit we were screwed out of a dance seat in 2010. We at least got some big games in the Ryan Center too, just never won them. The A-10 had legit teams then too - Xavier (we never beat), Temple (we never beat), and the #1 undefeated team in the country St Joes (we never beat). I can at least understand those losses. But for as much of a "failure" as Baron's tenure was here - it's nowhere near the disaster that the Cox experiment became.

He's been gifted the easiest A-10 in my lifetime. His teams have blown DOUBLE DIGIT leads to really bad teams. Not just this year, but the whole time. Baron may not have been able to win the big ones - but he never lost the embarrassing ones.

In terms of recruiting and retention, Baron > Cox.

Baron couldn't coach either, but at least he recruited and retained the kind of guys who could win games. They just couldn't adjust when other teams would.

I wasn't ashamed, disinterested, or indifferent about URI under Baron - I was just disappointed. I had higher expectations and we just never got over the hump.

Now? In my opinion this is worse than Jerry D. Obviously Jerry D was embarrassing, but it was a quick firing and turnaround. At least we had the NIT immediately upon Baron's hiring. That was at least fun.

I've never cared less about this team. Never liked this team less. Nevermind not going to games in person, I've never just straight up not watched games or not even known when a game was being played.

I know I'm not alone.

Less than 2 weeks to a new beginning and maybe a sense of hope.

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

We were 38th in RPI - which was the metric used at the time. One of the highest of all time left out of the field.

Despite our typical meltdown, and the well documented/terrible losses down the stretch. That's a screw job.

[ElmCityRhody]

And I sent for the mayor but he's out to lunch I've got 20 more minutes to go
Then the sheriff said boy I gonna watch you die got 19 minutes to go
So I laughed in his face and I spit in his eye got 18 minutes to go
Now hear comes the preacher for to save my soul with 13 minutes to go
And he's talking bout' burnin' but I'm so cold I've 12 more minutes to go

[NYGFan_Section208]

And I sent for the mayor but he's out to lunch I've got 20 more minutes to go
Then the sheriff said boy I gonna watch you die got 19 minutes to go
So I laughed in his face and I spit in his eye got 18 minutes to go
Now hear comes the preacher for to save my soul with 13 minutes to go
And he's talking bout' burnin' but I'm so cold I've 12 more minutes to go

Queue up The Verve... Bittersweet Symphony

[McRam]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

If it hasn't been made by now, we have a bigger problem than Cox!

[RamStock]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

I have heard it from someone that spoke directly with a guy that was part of the committee with the hiring of Cox. He supported hiring Cox at the time, but said he is cooked. You really don’t even that information though to know that he will be let go.

[NYGFan_Section208]

People here who have posted definitively that Cox is gone, are you saying that because you have gotten word from inside the athletics department?

Or are trying to speak it into existence?

I think there have been 2/3 posters who have made it sound like the decision has already been made that he will be fired.

If it hasn't been made by now, we have a bigger problem than Cox!

Who said we don't?

[Rhode_Island_Red]

In the would of, could of, should of category, Harrick's 1999 team would have beaten Sean Colson's UNCC team in the NCAAT had David Arigbabu not left the team in January to return to Germany. Also, I believe Luther Clay was an Al Skinner recruit through his connection to Max Good.

We also would have won but for St. Daddy-o the Great's technical late in the second half. If not for those two points, we win in regulation.

[PeterRamTime]

Technically Baron brought us to a slightly better place by the end of his tenure - and even though we fell short, there was some excitement or hope in there. Obviously in retrospect it was a masterclass in mediocrity and near-achievement. But it wasn't as bad as the last 2 years have been - really the whole 4 when you look at the trajectory, lost recruits, and the place the program was in when Cox took over.

Baron had a rebuild. He didn't rebuild it into a championship program, but he did get us to be competitive for most of his time here. Made a conference final, was in bubble discussion most of the time, just on the wrong side. Cox was gifted a championship-caliber program. If you imagine what Hurley or Pitino would've done with that same roster, this is rock bottom.

There were some big, close games in there under Baron. We obviously choked or fell short in Feb/Mar, never beat a ranked team, and legit we were screwed out of a dance seat in 2010. We at least got some big games in the Ryan Center too, just never won them. The A-10 had legit teams then too - Xavier (we never beat), Temple (we never beat), and the #1 undefeated team in the country St Joes (we never beat). I can at least understand those losses. But for as much of a "failure" as Baron's tenure was here - it's nowhere near the disaster that the Cox experiment became.

He's been gifted the easiest A-10 in my lifetime. His teams have blown DOUBLE DIGIT leads to really bad teams. Not just this year, but the whole time. Baron may not have been able to win the big ones - but he never lost the embarrassing ones.

In terms of recruiting and retention, Baron > Cox.

Baron couldn't coach either, but at least he recruited and retained the kind of guys who could win games. They just couldn't adjust when other teams would.

I wasn't ashamed, disinterested, or indifferent about URI under Baron - I was just disappointed. I had higher expectations and we just never got over the hump.

Now? In my opinion this is worse than Jerry D. Obviously Jerry D was embarrassing, but it was a quick firing and turnaround. At least we had the NIT immediately upon Baron's hiring. That was at least fun.

I've never cared less about this team. Never liked this team less. Nevermind not going to games in person, I've never just straight up not watched games or not even known when a game was being played.

I know I'm not alone.

Less than 2 weeks to a new beginning and maybe a sense of hope.

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

We were 38th in RPI - which was the metric used at the time. One of the highest of all time left out of the field.

Despite our typical meltdown, and the well documented/terrible losses down the stretch. That's a screw job.

All we had to do was beat a dogshit UMass team and couldn't. Killed us. We didn't deserve it.

I remember them talking about us on college GameDay saying "all Rhode Island needs to do is beat UMass today and they're probably a lock"

[Not Mike Powell]

Eh, I don't think we got screwed in 2010.

We started 19-3, 7-2 in conference and were sitting pretty.

Including the A10 tourney, we ended the season 5-6, with a record of 23-9.

We were 38th in RPI - which was the metric used at the time. One of the highest of all time left out of the field.

Despite our typical meltdown, and the well documented/terrible losses down the stretch. That's a screw job.

All we had to do was beat a dogshit UMass team and couldn't. Killed us. We didn't deserve it.

I remember them talking about us on college GameDay saying "all Rhode Island needs to do is beat UMass today and they're probably a lock"

Still painful.

[Blue Man]

We were 38th in RPI - which was the metric used at the time. One of the highest of all time left out of the field.

Despite our typical meltdown, and the well documented/terrible losses down the stretch. That's a screw job.

All we had to do was beat a dogshit UMass team and couldn't. Killed us. We didn't deserve it.

I remember them talking about us on college GameDay saying "all Rhode Island needs to do is beat UMass today and they're probably a lock"

Still painful.

Moving pick. Travel. Fuck those refs.