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Tuesday, February 3, 2009
UGA basketball can win titles, if AD hires right coach
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In his four and a half years as Georgia’s athletic director, Damon Evans has hired a women’s golf coach, a women’s soccer coach and a women’s volleyball coach.
I’m sure they’re all very fine people, and one day I might even know their names.
This isn’t to short-change anything that Evans has accomplished during his tenure. Georgia has one of the premier athletic departments in the nation. It scores high in the campus version of mind-body-spirit: facilities- fundraising-wins. Evans is a significant reason why.
But his resume has a blank page.
Fair or unfair, an athletics director often is judged by the success of the football and/or basketball coaches he hires. Evans didn’t hire Mark Richt or Dennis Felton (though he had input on the Felton hiring, whom he just fired). That’s not a knock on him. It’s just circumstances.
Florida’s Jeremy Foley probably has excelled in areas most people don’t realize. All most us know is, he’s the guy who hired Urban Meyer and Billy Donovan. For that, we view him as Zeus.
“Not to discount any of the hires we’ve made here,” Evans said Tuesday, “but I understand the magnitude of this.”
Firing Felton was not a sudden thought. The belief is that Evans planned to do so 11 months ago. Then the Bulldogs went on that improbable run in the SEC tournament, and Evans really had no choice but to hope there would be some sort of carryover. There wasn’t.
To realize where this is going, you need to understand something about Evans. Basketball is one of his passions. He was the MVP of high school team and might’ve played it in college, except that, well, no D-1 school was offering a scholarship.
When he was the associate A.D. under Vince Dooley, Evans and other coaches often played pickup basketball games. One of the players in those games, swim coach Jack Bauerle, joked: “I tried never to argue with him because I sensed one day he might be my boss. He’s a pretty competitive guy. Even though those games were just for fun, they weren’t leisurely. If Damon ever lost, he’d say, ‘OK, we’re doing this one again.’ “
Evans was a wide receiver at Georgia. But the basketball team’s struggles always have gnawed at him, particularly with the rise of programs at Florida and Tennessee.
“I’ve been thinking about building Georgia basketball for a long, long time — ever since I first got here,” he said. “We’ve had a few good stints, but that’s not enough. I’m looking at things from a business standpoint. When you stand back, you ask: What is not living up to its potential? What can give us more visibility and create more excitement on campus? Basketball hasn’t allowed us to do that.”
Evans said he wants a coach who has experience running a major program. He wants someone who understands how athletics and academics work together. Finally, he wants someone “who can get out there and recruit players and bring some talent to the university.”
I can think of a lot of reasons why Bobby Knight is a bad fit in Athens, but there’s a big one right there: Not a lot of top recruits want to play for him. It’s the primary reason his teams failed to win an NCAA tournament game in nine of his last 13 seasons. (And do you want a 68-year-old, to say nothing of an obstinate, ticking time bomb, when you’re trying to establish long-term success?)
How high are Evans’ expectations?
“I want to win championships,” he said. “I think we have to awake the sleeping giant.”
It’s an attitude that’s long overdue. Evans pushed for the new training facility adjacent to Stegeman Coliseum, and said of criticism of the arena: “When you lose, people look for excuses why.”
He’s right. Guess what, folks: Sanford Stadium is no palace. Neither are half the college basketball arenas in the country. If games sell out, it’s because of the product. It doesn’t matter if the place looks like a cow pen. Have you been to Cameron Indoor Stadium?
There is only one excuse for losing at Georgia: hiring the wrong coach. That’s where Evans comes. That’s where he’ll be judged.
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Phelps getting a free pass?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
And now for the Tuesday Countdown:
10 - Just wondering: Is the water in Michael Phelps’ bong chlorinated?
9 - Look, I don’t want this to become a referendum on marijuana. People get high. Bankers. Moms. Football players. Olympians. Even that little junior sitting next to you who’s doing so well in school. But Phelps is skating here like I can’t believe.
8 - In the November following the 2004 Olympics, he was arrested for underage drinking and a DUI. In the November following the 2008 Olympics, he was pictured inhaling with those Olympian lungs out of a bong, the photo only surfacing now. (November must be the off month for training.) Neither incident is extraordinary for somebody his age. But I get the feeling the IOC, the USOC and all of Phelps sponsors are so desperate for a smiling face and a marketing tool that they’re hoping this all goes away.
7 - Phelps isn’t a bad kid. He’s a dumb kid - and, at 23, actually not even a kid. But this shouldn’t be viewed as just some athlete under an enormous amount of pressure letting off a little steam. Phelps was the centerpiece of the Olympics. People celebrated his eight gold medals in Beijing. He was a member of “Project Believe,” a U.S. anti-doping initiative. And, yes, while that “dope” primarily references performance-enhancing drugs — which pot surely isn’t — the message is the same: Live clean.
6 - But it seems nobody here wants to tarnish the Olympic hero. The USOC has barely slapped his hand. The IOC has held his hand. No sponsor has walked away, or even hinted they will. Omega, the Swiss watchmaker, actually termed this a private matter. Speedo, which pays Phelps millions, called him a “valued member of the Speedo team.” Well, hell. Why don’t we just throw him a parade?
5 - Off the record, I would be willing to write President Barack Obama’s memoirs if he asked me. But much like Bobby Knight, I don’t want to seem like I’m pursuing the job, so if you could just leak that to the Washington Post I would appreciate it. Now, where did my mirror go?
4 - Remember that arrest of drunken Mississippi basketball coach Andy Kennedy in December? A Cincinnati TV station (WLWT) obtained the police cruiser video. But here’s a story with a partial transcript and it includes this great exchange. Kennedy: “I’m here for the Big East/SEC challenge. I’m playing Louisville … tomorrow. I was the UC head coach. I am going to be on national television. If I’m not standing there at 9 p.m. tomorrow, this is an international altercation. It’s not worth it, please trust me.” Officer: “You think we’ve never arrested somebody that’s made national media? We deal with the Bengals all the time.”
3 - I’m probably in the minority on this. But, as great a defensive lineman as Albert Haynesworth is, I’m not sure blowing the entire off-season budget on one player is a smart idea for the Falcons. Nor would it be in line with the philosophies of the two franchises that general manager Thomas Dimitroff admires most: New England and Pittsburgh.
2 - News item: Philips Arena suites may be wired for sounds from the player benches next season. Comment: Great. Now hockey fans can hear the Thrashers swear in seven languages during the power play.
1 - Manny Ramirez has now turned down a two-year, $45 million contract and a one-year, $25 million offer from the Dodgers. Question: Are Ramirez and Scott Boros hitting off the same bong as Michael Phelps?
