Would you let Marty finish the season?

[Play Angry]

You have basically all of your roster back next year. Why would you fire Marty after the season? If he struggles next season with everyone back then fine. But not now. That would be ridiculous.

Was this post lagged for 11 months and just now hit the forum?

[Cdizzle]

You have basically all of your roster back next year. Why would you fire Marty after the season? If he struggles next season with everyone back then fine. But not now. That would be ridiculous.

Pretty sure this has been the Evansville rallying cry for like 5 of the last 7 years now.

[tribecalledquest]

You have basically all of your roster back next year. Why would you fire Marty after the season? If he struggles next season with everyone back then fine. But not now. That would be ridiculous.

Pretty sure this has been the Evansville rallying cry for like 5 of the last 7 years now.

True.

[GoAcesgo]

I have been a Marty supporter up till the last 3 games, I say if you going to do it this is the year, that way the new coach has some talent to work with.

[IndyTreeFan]

Hi everyone. I don't post much because I don't want to be accused of being a fair weather bandwagon poster. So, I just don't post much... But I do enjoy reading. And I don't find WSU fans nearly as offensive as some people do...

I have a question for Evansville fans - is the problem Marty, or the support of the University? I ask this because as you all know, Indiana State sucked for so long, and we blamed the coaches, and always thought the next one would be the cure. But it never was.

Come to find out, every coach since Bill Hodges had been shackled by ISU in terms of the staff he could have, how many scholarships he could give (yes, sometimes it was less than the NCAA limit), and most importantly, where he could recruit from. It's only been since Lansing has been here, and maybe the end of the McKenna regime, that we could recruit all 50 states. We finally got a President and AD that understood the marketing value of D-I athletics, and things changed in terms of support from the University. In light of this, looking back, I'm sure that all the coaches we had at ISU (except Ron Green) could have been successful, given the appropriate backing of the University.

So, and I'm no fan of Marty, is the problem really him, or is it a more systemic issue with the University administration? I mean, if you have $60 for your recruiting budget, good things are NOT going to happen.

I'm curious as to what the E'ville fans' take on this is.

[rlh04d]

Serious question for Evansville fans:

Who do you want to replace Marty?

Is there an option out there better than Simmons for ~$250k a year? I don't know if it changed with the addition of Loyola, but Simmons had the lowest salary in the Valley prior to Loyola coming on board.

Is it a situation for most Evansville fans where the gamble of the unproven coach that's willing to take a salary that low is worth more than the guarantee of what Simmons will keep providing -- 4-7th place finishes, 14-21 wins, and ~.500 in conference?

Seriously, let's throw some names out there. I'm interested in seeing the kind of coaches Evansville could realistically look at bringing in.

I don't think Simmons is a good coach at all ... and yet I think you can argue he's overachieving at UE.

[rlh04d]

Hi everyone. I don't post much because I don't want to be accused of being a fair weather bandwagon poster. So, I just don't post much... But I do enjoy reading. And I don't find WSU fans nearly as offensive as some people do...

I have a question for Evansville fans - is the problem Marty, or the support of the University? I ask this because as you all know, Indiana State sucked for so long, and we blamed the coaches, and always thought the next one would be the cure. But it never was.

Come to find out, every coach since Bill Hodges had been shackled by ISU in terms of the staff he could have, how many scholarships he could give (yes, sometimes it was less than the NCAA limit), and most importantly, where he could recruit from. It's only been since Lansing has been here, and maybe the end of the McKenna regime, that we could recruit all 50 states. We finally got a President and AD that understood the marketing value of D-I athletics, and things changed in terms of support from the University. In light of this, looking back, I'm sure that all the coaches we had at ISU (except Ron Green) could have been successful, given the appropriate backing of the University.

So, and I'm no fan of Marty, is the problem really him, or is it a more systemic issue with the University administration? I mean, if you have $60 for your recruiting budget, good things are NOT going to happen.

I'm curious as to what the E'ville fans' take on this is.

You beat me to this

[Cdizzle]

At this point, though, the blind squirrel should at least start looking around for the acorn. Maybe they don't find it for a couple of hires, but what did they lose? Some 4-7th place finishes and .500 seasons? I'm sure there are plenty of up-and-coming assistant coaches that would be thrilled to have a chance at their own gig. They might not all work out. But maybe one of those hires actually works out.

And maybe that guy skips town after 4 years, but I'll bet the overall available budget goes up just about any time a coach is hired away, because he is leaving a winning team with more fans and interest than when he found it.

[E-Villan]

Hi everyone. I don't post much because I don't want to be accused of being a fair weather bandwagon poster. So, I just don't post much... But I do enjoy reading. And I don't find WSU fans nearly as offensive as some people do...

I have a question for Evansville fans - is the problem Marty, or the support of the University? I ask this because as you all know, Indiana State sucked for so long, and we blamed the coaches, and always thought the next one would be the cure. But it never was.

Come to find out, every coach since Bill Hodges had been shackled by ISU in terms of the staff he could have, how many scholarships he could give (yes, sometimes it was less than the NCAA limit), and most importantly, where he could recruit from. It's only been since Lansing has been here, and maybe the end of the McKenna regime, that we could recruit all 50 states. We finally got a President and AD that understood the marketing value of D-I athletics, and things changed in terms of support from the University. In light of this, looking back, I'm sure that all the coaches we had at ISU (except Ron Green) could have been successful, given the appropriate backing of the University.

So, and I'm no fan of Marty, is the problem really him, or is it a more systemic issue with the University administration? I mean, if you have $60 for your recruiting budget, good things are NOT going to happen.

I'm curious as to what the E'ville fans' take on this is.

You beat me to this

Ok, you got me. I had vowed to never post on this board after what happened to Valley Talk. From a long time Evansville standpoint, let me try to answer yours and rl's questions.

1. I don't think recruiting and talent is the issue. Marty seems to be able to bring in some quality players. Are they utilized properly? No...but recruiting in itself isn't the issue.

2. Salary..good question. There is no question UE got a hometown discount with Marty. In return, Marty got an opportunity that many didn't feel he was ready or qualified for. It was a chance for both parties to take. A couple of years ago, a group of well heeled boosters formed for the purpose of addressing the financial shortfalls within the athletic department. At that time, they publicly gave a vote of confidence to Simmons. While they have been quiet of late, many feel they are busy at work behind the scenes. This wasn't a private thing as several articles appeared in the local media. I am certain our new AD is in close contact with many in this group. Crews wasn't the lowest paid coach in the Valley and I am pretty sure our next one won't be either..although salaries in of themselves don't mean anything. Lansing is making Simmons money while Lowery and Geno got nice contracts....but I agree we need to not settle on the next hire.

Like ISU, UE made some very poor hiring decisions in the last 20 years. Into the late 90's, we had a winning basketball team playing in front of the largest crowds in the Valley at that time, a competitive baseball team, a nationally ranked soccer team, and a low level football team, but playing the likes of Drake and Butler. Good entertainment and added athletic value to the campus. Long time President Wallace Graves retires, is replaced by a liberal arts guy, who promptly cans the football program, eliminating about 100 jocks from a small campus. When support wanes a little, he then goes public and wags his tongue about exploring a drop to D-2. We were still averaging around 9k at that time and were just 2 years removed from a Valley championship!! Many felt it was a way to run off Crews, which worked. He also publicly threatened to sell off the nationally recognized university radio station to a Clearchannel type outfit unless donations increased. Of course, that quickly backfired. Long time AD Jim Byers retires and a new AD was hired, who understood or cared nothing about the community. He brought in Merfeld, who also could never connect to the boosters or community..and that is what we faced in the 2000's.

We have a new president, who seems to be more concerned about the athletic program. We recently hired a new AD, who has yet to make his mark, but I remain hopeful it is a good hire. And, we have the above mentioned booster group, that should put us in a much better financial situation than when Marty was hired. Add that to a recently completed practice facility that is top-notch, and a pretty kick-arse arena to play in, and I think we are in a better place to attract talent than we have been in many years. Besides Wichita and Bradley, we are the only other school to average over 10K fans. Those fans are still here, just waiting for a reason to come back to the program. I still believe our upside is one of the better ones, I just hope our admins start to realize it as well.

[rlh04d]

Thanks for that ... that's a good read.

So two questions come up to me:

1) What kind of salary could Evansville realistically offer a new coach? I agree that salary is absolutely not the most important thing by any means, but logically you're not going to be able to bring in a coach by paying him less. The opening salary will determine what range of proven head coaches are available, or whether you'll have to limit a coaching search to current assistants and trust the AD to make a good decision.

2) Are there any coaches currently on the radar of Evansville fans that would be a real possibility (given Evansville being a clear step up or a clear salary raise from their current position) ?

Or if there isn't an answer to 2), is there a specific style of coach that needs to be brought in to bring some life back to Evansville?

If Evansville could keep both Mock and DJ for next year, next season might be a great opportunity for a new coach to walk in and not face a major rebuilding job. Keeping Mock might be tough, though.