OT-Imagine losing an entire class of freshmen

[RoyDodger]

This article was in Sunday's Albuquerque Journal. It tells the rather shocking story of the entire 2010-2011 University of New Mexico women's basketball freshman class (five) who departed after their first year without explanation. One result was the resignation of the team's longtime and fairly successful coach, Don Flanagan. I hadn't heard about this before, but certainly thought it would be of interest to my fellow UConn Husky fans.

 

[meyers7]

We lost our entire 2003-2004 Freshmen class. Wright, Robinson and Sherwood.

 

[Waquoit]

Flanagan is a CT guy, IIRC.

 

[01Neaggrad02]

Meyers is right... we also lost the entire 99 class of KJ, and we lost 3 of the 5 in the class 2014. Walker, Johnson, and I cannot recall the others name now... wow that is bad....

 

[Samanthabrown3]

We lost our entire 2003-2004 Freshmen class. Wright, Robinson and Sherwood.

Yeah, that was weird oats.

 

[Icebear]

We did not, however, lose them in one simultaneous event.

 

[meyers7]

Meyers is right....

Ah, that feels so good

we also lost the entire 99 class of KJ, and we lost 3 of the 5 in the class 2014. Walker, Johnson, and I cannot recall the others name now... wow that is bad....

We did get KJ for 2 years though. And Lauren Engeln (BC)

 

[Kibitzer]

We did not, however, lose them in one simultaneous event.

And we managed to survive, somehow.

 

[meyers7]

And we managed to survive, somehow.

Well, those years 2004/05, 2005/06 and 2006/07 were the "lean" years. A sweet 16 and two Elite Eights.

 

[wallman]

When I read the headline I was thinking tragic accident. Thankfully it was something else.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

I had forgotten. Very strange, to say the least. NM was one of the successful mid-major programs that one always heard of, like a Marist, Dayton, Utah before they joined the PAC, etc. But those sorts of programs have a much harder time recovering from personnel than larger programs, I think. Even the loss of more than one key player could throw things off-balance.

 

[RoyDodger]

Flanagan is a CT guy, IIRC.

In a UNM Lobos April 2011 announcement about Flanagan's retirement, it mentions that in 2002, "Flanagan was inducted into the East Hartford Connecticut Explorers Tip-Off Club Hall of Fame."

In the announcement, UNM states: "Flanagan totaled 32 years of coaching in the Duke City, counting a phenomenal 16-year run at Eldorado High School. Flanagan leaves the Lobos with every single coaching record, including eight NCAA Tournament appearances, five conference tournament titles and five WNIT appearances. Under Flanagan, the Lobos went from a downtrodden program into a perennial national contender."

Flanagan's successor, Yvonne Sanchez, has apparently struggled to rebuild the UNM Lobos, at least to this point.