Wolverine In Exile

March 15th, 2009 at 7:43 PM ^

So a one trick pony who made one good sustained NCAA run and replaced a coach who while reviled did win a national championship and multiple deep ncaa runs can't hack it at a big time school who expects to win every year.

This never happens (except in NCAA basketball where it happens once every 2-3 years)

Jorel

March 15th, 2009 at 8:28 PM ^

Surprising. And Gillespie wasn't a one-hit wonder (nor a one-trick pony, which, actually, I don't think applies). He had three really good seasons at A&M, especially considering how horrible the Aggies were before he arrived. He also led a major turnaround at UTEP, which was horrid before his stint there.

His resume was about as good as it could be for only five years as a HC. I wanted him as M's coach.

Wolverine In Exile

March 15th, 2009 at 8:07 PM ^

karma hits you in the racist nut sack. I wasn't a huge fan of Tubby at Kentucky, but I kind of thought of him as Lloyd of Basketball. his kids didn't get in an inordinate amount of trouble for the cesspool that Kentucky bball can be at times and his teams were almost always sufficiently competitive although underachieving.

skegemogpoint

March 15th, 2009 at 8:23 PM ^

comments on Tubby are misplaced. Great guy, represented the university well but was really, really lazy and let recruiting dwindle. At least Lloyd continued to work. And the racist card doesn't work either because it was UK who hired the guy in the first place and it is UK who has already named Joker Phillips as successor to Rich brooks in football. How many other schools (including my beloved UM) have EVER had a black football and basketball coach?

Gillispie will get the gas, not because of W/L, but because he is an alcoholic who is abusive to players, staff and administration. Wait and see. 72 hours from his last game, he will be on the first flight back to TX.

jmblue

March 15th, 2009 at 8:34 PM ^

Yeah, Tubby at UK was sort of a rich man's Larry Coker. He inherited a loaded program and won it all in the first year, but then allowed it to gradually decline over the years. I'm not sure they would have done any better the last two seasons with him there.

lablue

March 15th, 2009 at 8:39 PM ^

Michigan's last 2 basketball head coaches were black. The question should be more like how many colleges have ever had a black football coach? There are only a handful in the country that currently do.

I don't really like getting into these sort of "I'm not racist, I have a black friend" type of debates. Just because Kentucky will have a black football coach and basketball coach doesn't mean racism no longer exists in the Kentucky A.D. Exception does not equal rule.

bronxblue

March 15th, 2009 at 10:11 PM ^

Yeah, I don't think that Tubby was forced out because of his race (though it certainly sounded like there was a vocal minority that held that against him and never fully accepted his leadership because of it), but that team simply was no longer an elite program toward the end of his tenure. UK is used to competing for NCs, but toward the end Florida and even Tennessee were better SEC programs, and the talent level for the Wildcats was far lower than it had been under Pitino. Sure, Tubby played the game right and kept his reasonably clean, but even some of his higher-ranked clubs were more the product of stout defense and down competition than clubs that could compete for NCs on a year-by-year basis.

I'm a little surprised the plug was pulled on Gillispie after only 2 years, but if the reports coming out of Lexington concerning his attitude and (alleged) drinking program are true, then I guess the move had to be made. Provided Meeks comes back for his senior year and Paterson doesn't bolt (and I have no idea the probability), this team might be able to bounce back pretty quickly.

marco dane

March 15th, 2009 at 10:06 PM ^

I listen to sports talk radio. The last two years of TS at tucky was quite ugly. There is a radio station out of tucky that I can listen to,when not listening over the internet,the call in show had some of the most racially hateful calls I have ever heard exposue by a fanbase about their coach. I for one am glad he left those mfer's. If he couldn't bring in a class every year like Roy or Mike...then he wasn't tucky material. Although his record of going to the tourney and overall SEC record were quite good....but not good enough for most of the faithful.

I'm glad Tubby has Minny dancing...and tucky fans are going to watch their team play UNLV in the NIT! Billy G has one more season to get his stuff together,imo. The SEC will be weak again next season... so no excuse for Billy G not challenging for the regular season title and tourney championship.

jmblue

March 16th, 2009 at 11:49 AM ^

I don't doubt for a minute that some UK fans are racist. I also know - from personal experience - that some of our own fans are incredibly racist, too. We need to get off our high horses here, seriously. There is no more evidence that Tubby's forced resignation was racially motivated than there is for the firings of Ellerbe and Amaker.

chitownblue (not verified)

March 16th, 2009 at 12:45 PM ^

The difference, I suppose, is that Kentucky has a huge historical racist precedent that Michigan doesn't. Adolph Rupp was an avowed racist, and Kentucky led the SEC segregation bandwagon for years - they were litereally the poster boy for keeping blacks out of NCAA basketball. Michigan doesn't have any of that baggage.

Further, Tubby Smith had fans decrying his hire from the start (despite a good resume) and people on his ass from the jump, for no apparent reason. I don't recall any of this happening with Amaker or Ellerbe.

Look, obviously Rupp is gone, and the fanbase is different than it was. But Kentucky occupies a unique spot in the racial history of NCAA basketball - I think it makes sense that people still remember.

Tim Waymen

March 16th, 2009 at 11:33 AM ^

That is probably false, but the fans are crazy regardless. 2 seasons with Gillespie and they're going nuts. They had an excellent coach in Tubby Smith and they ran him out the door because he only won one NC.

As for racism, there is a very bad legacy there as with many schools in the South. Adolph Rupp was a racist. (Thankfully, TX Western beat KY for the 1966 NC with an all-black starting 5.) Don't quote me on this one though, but IIRC KY was the first SEC school to integrate in football. I know that Alabama was the second. I forget. (Watch Breaking the Huddle on HBO. It was fascinating.)

skegemogpoint

March 16th, 2009 at 5:12 PM ^

WTF is wrong with you guys? Tubby Smith left on his own volition. Yes, he was taking serious heat from the fan base and AD, RIGHTFULLY SO, because he inherited a dominant program and ran it into mediocrity. That's a fact. Pitino took UK to final fours in 93, 96, 97 and it was every one of his recruits that went to the final 4 in 98. Tubby was a good coach and a good guy who represented well BUT he was not getting it anywhere near done on the court by UK stds and he was a notoriously LAZY recruiter. Really, don't argue this point because this is all fact. Tubby is perfect for Minny.

As for what happened in the SEC and UK in the 1950's and 60'2, who cares? There are no remanants of that in the current administration or staff and more to the point it has nothing whatsoever to do w/ this thread.

I simply posted that bill clyde was a goner because I know it to be true and thought I'd share it here w/ you as it is not public info - yet. That's it. Dont turn a simple post into a lunatic's rant. Also, don't be surprised if Thad Matta is 1 of 3-4 peoploe who gets some love from UK. Watch and learn and tell your friends you read it first at mgoblog.