Coaches to watch in 2023-24; Hotseat edition

[DefenseBB]

As noted in the thread on the main page post "Slightly OT Define Coaching Success" by @Puppy Love, I had been researching the current 65 + 11 Big East coaches/teams to see which are on the "watch list" either by fans, by ADs, by press or by all 3. I looked at analytics listed as

• Overall Won/Loss records at the current school (and any other D1 schools)
• Conference W/L record at the current school
• Where the school finished within the conference while at the school (placement)
• How many times did the team qualify for either the NCAAT or the WNIT
• Did the coach have any success within the NCAAT or the WNIT
• What trend is the program showing-improving, declining or just treading water and status quo
• What is the program's pedigree for commitment/success in WCBB. Tennessee has much higher expectations than Alabama, Missouri or Florida, so the coach has a much higher bar to have to achieve.
• What program perceptions have to be taken under advisement. For example, Texas Tech fired their former coach before hiring Krista Gurlich, who if all things were equal, has an abysmal record but seems to be well respected and liked so she will be given a few more years than her actual record would warrant. Other programs may also decide the "headline risk" of off-court issues may prompt a change when a current W/L record might lead to a bit more time.

The emboldened underlined criteria I weighed ranked higher than the just underlined items. For the P5 schools, many teams are known to "pad" their schedule with easy Out of Conference wins to get to 20+ wins in a season. For some P5 schools, just qualifying for the NCAAT is a bit of a minimum standard so how well have they done in the post season against other teams is critical.

The other trend that is now emerging is the P5 +BE are now "shortening the tolerance" on how much time coaches have to turn programs around. Usually, the coach had the full 5 or 6 years of that 1st contract but now with more money and the transfer portal, school Athletic Directors are willing to actually fire or "early retire" coaches who are not winning enough and buyout the contract. We saw Tina Thompson get relieved after just 4 years of her 5 year contract last year, both Sue Samrau and Suzy Merchant "retire" and Lindsay Whalen get "reassigned" during their still active contracts.

With that as the back-drop of criteria and adding in the old coaching adage of "hired to get fired" as no job is ever-lasting, I will attempt to be pragmatic in my assessments and try to keep my personal bias out of the write-up. Last note, I am trying to note the concerns and am not trying to be a "negative" critic but as the nature of this "Watch list" is connoted as negative, I tried to be as matter of fact as possible.

#1. Charmin Smith-Cal, PAC-12: with the move to a new conference on the horizon, her current 4-year record of 37-65 and conference record of 10-51 (16.4% winning percentage) is just bad. Her average finish is 11.25 (last). Her fate is probably already sealed but perhaps a great run this year could rejuvenate her career.
#2. Amanda Butler-Clemson, ACC; Her 69-87 Overall and 27-60 (31.0%) Conference record are not good. Her average finish in 5 years is 11th, which is dead last of the coaches with 2 or more years in the league. She has made the NCAAT one time (her 1st year), the WNIT this past year, hasn't really recruited well, hasn't garnered any blue chip transfers and the trend is flat at best. She needs to show something in year 6.
#3. Carolyn Kieger-Penn State, BigTen; This will be year 5 for Kieger and to say she has struggled to gain any traction would be an understatement. Her Overall record at PSU is 41-73 with her 16-57 Conference (21.9%), her 12.25 average placing is dead last of all the B10 coaches and her trend of no real improvement says she's in trouble. Yes, the PSU program was bad when she took it over but given what has happened in Illinois with Shauna Green and that Minnesota has fired Whalen and hired Dawn Plitzuweit from WVU/So.Datkota St the landscape has changed for the worst for Ms. Kieger.
#4. Robin Pingeton-Missouri, SEC; There were contentious meetings held in March of last year when Mizzou was blown out by Kansas in the WNIT about what do with Pingeton. Ultimately the AD decided to give her one more year as her buyout would have cost $1.2 million significantly more than the last year of this contract. Her conference record of 82-92 in 11 years, with her post Sophie Cunningham struggles and her average place of 7.54 is 3rd worst among SEC coaches with 3 or more years in the league. Given some of the transfers out and off-court drama, she is definitely on the "watch list".
#5. Kyra Elzy-Kentucky, SEC; Kyra inherited a Wildcat team nationally ranked with a 1st All-America and top 10 ranked recruiting class and in 3 short years has completely burned it to the ground. Mitchell's last year was 22-8, Elzy then went 18-9/19-12/11-18 the conference record also shows troubling trends in Conference play with records of 9-6/8-8/2-14 plus her teams off-court drama and transfers out has Wildcat nation in a tizzy. With Oklahoma and Texas joining the SEC next year Kentucky might want to do a re-organization sooner rather than later if this year is more of the same.
Others to note:
Krista Gerlich-Tex Tech, B12; All the peripherals scream "hot seat" like her 15-39 Conference record (27.8%), her second to last average place in the Big 12 but she's only been there for 3 years, the Tech program suffered abuse allegations under Marlene Stallings so given Krista was a Tech player and she seems to have the team support and the school probably doesn't want to do another search, she probably will live out her contract with the hope that she can find some success.
Joanna Bernabei-McNamee-BC, ACC; She just completed year 5 and while the promise of years 2 and 4 gave hope, last year and the overall view is a bit bleak. Her overall record is 78-69 which is nice but below that facade is a 31-52 ACC record (37.3%), her average placement is 9.6-second worst in the conference and with only 1 post-season appearance (WNIT '22). The fact no news about an extension over the past 2 years is ominous.
Joe McKeown-Northwestern, BigTen; Joe has been with NW since 2008-09 after 19 hugely successful years at GW so his overall record of 759-393 is impressive, however his 241-198 record at NW, his conference record of 104-152 (40.6%) and average placement of 7.85 is second worst to Kieger above for coaches with 3 or more years in the league shows he has not been nearly as successful. Joe will be 68 next May so my guess is if this season offers more of the same, he will "retire".
Brandon Schneider-Kansas, B12; His name would probably be #1 or #2 given his poor criteria results-Overall Jayhawk record of 107-136 (44.0% in 8 years) with an abysmal conference record of 34-110 (23.6%) and an average finish of 8.62 (last of all the Big 12 coaches) but he had a strong year last year by Kansas standards of 25-11, 9-9 and they won the WNIT which usually foreshadows next season success. He has bought some time.
Kristy Curry-Alabama, SEC; She signed an extension this past June until 2027 which I find curious as in 10 years at 'Bama, she is 173-143 but a meek 61-99 (38.1%) and her average placement in SEC play is 9.2 which is the worst of all SEC coaches with 3 or more years in the league. Plus she has only made 2 NCAAT during her tenure. I get she has made 2 of the last 3 NCAATs but her ranking among the SEC will only deteriorate when Texas and Oklahoma join. But hey, if they offer you the money, you take it.
Big East edition:
The Big East has 4 new coaches this year after a rather surprising off-season of change (good for the schools to focus on the programs!). So to me using the criteria above, there are not any the 7 non-newbies on the watch list. There are a few to keep an eye on this year in:
Tony Bozella-Seton Hall, BE; Tony has been at SHU for 10 years and his overall record of 190-127 and 98-85 are pretty good but his trend is down and he did lose his best player to the portal. His recruiting has not been good and he needs to continue to use the transfer portal to remain competitive.
Doug Brun-DePaul, BE; WHAT you say? Yes, Doug has lifetime employment at DePaul on a program he built. However, his last 2 years have been trending down and he just lost his best player he has had in his whole career to the transfer portal, plus he is 72 years old so his "retirement" may be imminent.
Joe Tartamella-St.John's, BE: Joe had a resurgent year last year and he seems to be using the transfer portal well so as I said, he is NOT on the hot seat but prior to last year, his last NCAAT was 2015-16 and with the Big East getting more competitive, Joe needs to maintain what he achieved last year.

I look forward to hearing from my fine colleagues here on your thoughts.

​

 

[nwhoopfan]

While it is very early in her tenure, Adair at Arizona St. has managed to bump Cal up to the second worst program in the conference. If this year is as disastrous as Year 1 was, they might want to think real hard about making a coaching change as they move to a new conference.

 

[SECbbfan24]

I think Robin's days at Missouri are numbered. Elzy's days are also numbered, no quality top talents on the way, excluding the one year where Howard carried that team, I don't think she is a very good coach. The contract was ridiculous.

Curry at Alabama is not on the hot seat quite yet. They have made the NCAAT 2 of the last 3 years and are starting to get much much better quality HS recruits/transfers. Now I don't think they are gonna compete with the top group but they will probably end up being middle of the pack. Unless Alabama is committed to spending the money into the WBB program, the expectations for that program seems limited.

One person I'm very intrigued with is how Kelly Graves (Oregon) does this year. Things have been sliding a bit and have had issues with lots of talent transferring out recently. He isn't on the hot seat but if the current trend continues things will be interesting in the future.

 

[YoDore]

As noted in the thread on the main page post "Slightly OT Define Coaching Success" by @Puppy Love, I had been researching the current 65 + 11 Big East coaches/teams to see which are on the "watch list" either by fans, by ADs, by press or by all 3. I looked at analytics listed as

• Overall Won/Loss records at the current school (and any other D1 schools)
• Conference W/L record at the current school
• Where the school finished within the conference while at the school (placement)
• How many times did the team qualify for either the NCAAT or the WNIT
• Did the coach have any success within the NCAAT or the WNIT
• What trend is the program showing-improving, declining or just treading water and status quo
• What is the program's pedigree for commitment/success in WCBB. Tennessee has much higher expectations than Alabama, Missouri or Florida, so the coach has a much higher bar to have to achieve.
• What program perceptions have to be taken under advisement. For example, Texas Tech fired their former coach before hiring Krista Gurlich, who if all things were equal, has an abysmal record but seems to be well respected and liked so she will be given a few more years than her actual record would warrant. Other programs may also decide the "headline risk" of off-court issues may prompt a change when a current W/L record might lead to a bit more time.

The emboldened underlined criteria I weighed ranked higher than the just underlined items. For the P5 schools, many teams are known to "pad" their schedule with easy Out of Conference wins to get to 20+ wins in a season. For some P5 schools, just qualifying for the NCAAT is a bit of a minimum standard so how well have they done in the post season against other teams is critical.

The other trend that is now emerging is the P5 +BE are now "shortening the tolerance" on how much time coaches have to turn programs around. Usually, the coach had the full 5 or 6 years of that 1st contract but now with more money and the transfer portal, school Athletic Directors are willing to actually fire or "early retire" coaches who are not winning enough and buyout the contract. We saw Tina Thompson get relieved after just 4 years of her 5 year contract last year, both Sue Samrau and Suzy Merchant "retire" and Lindsay Whalen get "reassigned" during their still active contracts.

With that as the back-drop of criteria and adding in the old coaching adage of "hired to get fired" as no job is ever-lasting, I will attempt to be pragmatic in my assessments and try to keep my personal bias out of the write-up. Last note, I am trying to note the concerns and am not trying to be a "negative" critic but as the nature of this "Watch list" is connoted as negative, I tried to be as matter of fact as possible.

#1. Charmin Smith-Cal, PAC-12: with the move to a new conference on the horizon, her current 4-year record of 37-65 and conference record of 10-51 (16.4% winning percentage) is just bad. Her average finish is 11.25 (last). Her fate is probably already sealed but perhaps a great run this year could rejuvenate her career.
#2. Amanda Butler-Clemson, ACC; Her 69-87 Overall and 27-60 (31.0%) Conference record are not good. Her average finish in 5 years is 11th, which is dead last of the coaches with 2 or more years in the league. She has made the NCAAT one time (her 1st year), the WNIT this past year, hasn't really recruited well, hasn't garnered any blue chip transfers and the trend is flat at best. She needs to show something in year 6.
#3. Carolyn Kieger-Penn State, BigTen; This will be year 5 for Kieger and to say she has struggled to gain any traction would be an understatement. Her Overall record at PSU is 41-73 with her 16-57 Conference (21.9%), her 12.25 average placing is dead last of all the B10 coaches and her trend of no real improvement says she's in trouble. Yes, the PSU program was bad when she took it over but given what has happened in Illinois with Shauna Green and that Minnesota has fired Whalen and hired Dawn Plitzuweit from WVU/So.Datkota St the landscape has changed for the worst for Ms. Kieger.
#4. Robin Pingeton-Missouri, SEC; There were contentious meetings held in March of last year when Mizzou was blown out by Kansas in the WNIT about what do with Pingeton. Ultimately the AD decided to give her one more year as her buyout would have cost $1.2 million significantly more than the last year of this contract. Her conference record of 82-92 in 11 years, with her post Sophie Cunningham struggles and her average place of 7.54 is 3rd worst among SEC coaches with 3 or more years in the league. Given some of the transfers out and off-court drama, she is definitely on the "watch list".
#5. Kyra Elzy-Kentucky, SEC; Kyra inherited a Wildcat team nationally ranked with a 1st All-America and top 10 ranked recruiting class and in 3 short years has completely burned it to the ground. Mitchell's last year was 22-8, Elzy then went 18-9/19-12/11-18 the conference record also shows troubling trends in Conference play with records of 9-6/8-8/2-14 plus her teams off-court drama and transfers out has Wildcat nation in a tizzy. With Oklahoma and Texas joining the SEC next year Kentucky might want to do a re-organization sooner rather than later if this year is more of the same.
Others to note:
Krista Gerlich-Tex Tech, B12; All the peripherals scream "hot seat" like her 15-39 Conference record (27.8%), her second to last average place in the Big 12 but she's only been there for 3 years, the Tech program suffered abuse allegations under Marlene Stallings so given Krista was a Tech player and she seems to have the team support and the school probably doesn't want to do another search, she probably will live out her contract with the hope that she can find some success.
Joanna Bernabei-McNamee-BC, ACC; She just completed year 5 and while the promise of years 2 and 4 gave hope, last year and the overall view is a bit bleak. Her overall record is 78-69 which is nice but below that facade is a 31-52 ACC record (37.3%), her average placement is 9.6-second worst in the conference and with only 1 post-season appearance (WNIT '22). The fact no news about an extension over the past 2 years is ominous.
Joe McKeown-Northwestern, BigTen; Joe has been with NW since 2008-09 after 19 hugely successful years at GW so his overall record of 759-393 is impressive, however his 241-198 record at NW, his conference record of 104-152 (40.6%) and average placement of 7.85 is second worst to Kieger above for coaches with 3 or more years in the league shows he has not been nearly as successful. Joe will be 68 next May so my guess is if this season offers more of the same, he will "retire".
Brandon Schneider-Kansas, B12; His name would probably be #1 or #2 given his poor criteria results-Overall Jayhawk record of 107-136 (44.0% in 8 years) with an abysmal conference record of 34-110 (23.6%) and an average finish of 8.62 (last of all the Big 12 coaches) but he had a strong year last year by Kansas standards of 25-11, 9-9 and they won the WNIT which usually foreshadows next season success. He has bought some time.
Kristy Curry-Alabama, SEC; She signed an extension this past June until 2027 which I find curious as in 10 years at 'Bama, she is 173-143 but a meek 61-99 (38.1%) and her average placement in SEC play is 9.2 which is the worst of all SEC coaches with 3 or more years in the league. Plus she has only made 2 NCAAT during her tenure. I get she has made 2 of the last 3 NCAATs but her ranking among the SEC will only deteriorate when Texas and Oklahoma join. But hey, if they offer you the money, you take it.
Big East edition:
The Big East has 4 new coaches this year after a rather surprising off-season of change (good for the schools to focus on the programs!). So to me using the criteria above, there are not any the 7 non-newbies on the watch list. There are a few to keep an eye on this year in:
Tony Bozella-Seton Hall, BE; Tony has been at SHU for 10 years and his overall record of 190-127 and 98-85 are pretty good but his trend is down and he did lose his best player to the portal. His recruiting has not been good and he needs to continue to use the transfer portal to remain competitive.
Doug Brun-DePaul, BE; WHAT you say? Yes, Doug has lifetime employment at DePaul on a program he built. However, his last 2 years have been trending down and he just lost his best player he has had in his whole career to the transfer portal, plus he is 72 years old so his "retirement" may be imminent.
Joe Tartamella-St.John's, BE: Joe had a resurgent year last year and he seems to be using the transfer portal well so as I said, he is NOT on the hot seat but prior to last year, his last NCAAT was 2015-16 and with the Big East getting more competitive, Joe needs to maintain what he achieved last year.

I look forward to hearing from my fine colleagues here on your thoughts.

​

A tip of the hat to you. Outstanding work.

You pointed out Curry does seem to be leading a mini-resurgence in Tuscaloosa. I have no numbers to back it up, but I suspect they are slinging some money around via NIL. Unless the program totally drops off a cliff, I don't think she'll catch a lot of heat for a while.

As you noted, Butler has struggled. You would hope getting Imari Berry for '24 will boost recruiting, but, as talented as she is, I don't get the feeling Berry is quite the Pied Piper some of the other big-time recruits are. She's not a big social media girl (bless her) and doesn't have the summer league notoriety of some of the other top players.

Pretty much all the coaches you listed will be facing even tougher challenges starting next year with the new teams coming into their conferences via realignment. Believe me, I'm aware. My coach is trying to rebuild a once-proud program, and her job gets tougher next season with Oklahoma and Texas added to the picture. Luckily, she is no way no how on any kind of hot/warm/lukewarm seat. It's her job to do.

I had no idea of the contentious meetings surrounding Pingeton. I was surprised at some of the defections from last year's squad, though. They generally play a more finesse style than most SEC squads, much like Vandy and Arkansas do. Once Cunningham moved on, they never seemed to find a physical presence or a true team leader.

Thanks again for the post. I'm hungry for some women's basketball talk.

 

[GoChips20]

Excellent post with great analysis. Could Nell Fortner be in trouble at GT? They were dreadful last year, the worst offense in the P5 other than Arizona State (which is not company you want to be named with). Lost some experience this off-season so may be in for another tough stretch.

And how about Bart Brooks at Belmont? They went from making noise in the NCAAT to missing it altogether and losing their best two players to the portal in Bartley and Wells.

 

[Puppy Love]

I never posted my own thoughts about success in my post on the main board, but I think coaches need to win most of the games they ‘should’ win and a few of the ones where they are underdogs. The team should be improving through both recruiting/portal and coaching over time. Coaches need to limit self inflicted adversity and handle uncontrollable adversity (injuries) well. I agree that with a program like Tennessee, there is a much different expectation about what games you should win and what players you should be able to get. I’ve no thoughts good or bad about KJH, but there is already some unrest among their fans. I have to wonder how it will play out.

 

[DefenseBB]

While it is very early in her tenure, Adair at Arizona St. has managed to bump Cal up to the second worst program in the conference. If this year is as disastrous as Year 1 was, they might want to think real hard about making a coaching change as they move to a new conference.

Yes, Adair was atrocious but it was only year 1, I am not saying she won’t continue to struggle but I decided to give first and second year coaches some latitude. The converse can also be true that a coach who looked good in years 1 & 2 could be horribly bad by year 4. In fact Amanda Butler was great year 1 and has dropped mightily, same could be said for Joanna Bernabei-McNamee. Just remember in the Big 12 they still have, Gurlich, Schneider and Mattie so…

 

[triaddukefan]

If Lawson cant beat a certain light blue team, I'll be bringing the Hickory wood and some matches to Durham.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

I never posted my own thoughts about success in my post on the main board, but I think coaches need to win most of the games they ‘should’ win and a few of the ones where they are underdogs. The team should be improving through both recruiting/portal and coaching over time. Coaches need to limit self inflicted adversity and handle uncontrollable adversity (injuries) well. I agree that with a program like Tennessee, there is a much different expectation about what games you should win and what players you should be able to get. I’ve no thoughts good or bad about KJH, but there is already some unrest among their fans. I have to wonder how it will play out.

Your first and third lines, for sure. As a Rutgers fan during the later part of her career, Rutgers generally won the games they should win, but they couldn't pull upsets like they had previously. Regarding your second sentence, it isn't quite so clear with long term coaches; clearly at some point coaching is what it is, and - while I agree recruiting needs to be solid - it can be hard to recruit yet another great player to replace a great player. Again, using Vivian as an example - she was who she was. She came into Rutgers and performed exactly how you would expect given her background and record coming in (her "hype" both from outside and her words were, of course, something else).

The relevance to the discussion above is that some of the coaches being listed - and legitimately to a point - are long term coaches with a back history at other places. Coaches like Butler, Barnabee-McNamee, and most especially Curry have to be judged with that factored in, as well as coaches like McKeown, Bruno and the like, who are clearly on the tail end of their careers.

Ultimately, I agree with the analysis posted.

 

[GamecockFam]

As a SEC fanatic, I can vouch that Elzy and Pingeton are the two with the hottest seats. I think both coaches need to make it to the NCAA tournament to retain their jobs. Pingeton may be able to do it but I see no hope with Coach Elzy. I really think this season is her farewell tour...

Also, I highly doubt Curry will be let go from Alabama after this season. Her recent success will give her the benefit of the doubt this next season but a bad season will probably put her on the list next year. Alabama tends to not focus on any sport but football and men's basketball, so she'll get a little more wiggle room.

 

[DefenseBB]

Excellent post with great analysis. Could Nell Fortner be in trouble at GT? They were dreadful last year, the worst offense in the P5 other than Arizona State (which is not company you want to be named with). Lost some experience this off-season so may be in for another tough stretch.

And how about Bart Brooks at Belmont? They went from making noise in the NCAAT to missing it altogether and losing their best two players to the portal in Bartley and Wells.

Fortner had a bad year last year in year 4, but you have to remember that she took over a program that had allegations of abuse, she would have made the NCAAT if they had one in 2020 and she made the NCAAT in the next two years, so that would have been 3 out of 4 years (vs. 2 for 4). She has 3 more years on her contract to 2027 so there is no way GT will axe her this year.

From a mid-major perspective, most of those teams cannot remotely afford to buy any coach out and will only fire coaches "with cause" like cheating allegations or abuse allegations. Brooks replace Cam Newbauer who was let after 4 years at Florida and Bart has gone 31-4; 21-9; 22-9; 21-6; 23-8; 23-12 in his 6 years and made the 2nd round in 2022 so there is NO WAY Belmont will get rid of him, nor should they unless so off-court program issues come to light as to why the transfers occurred. Heck, Brenda Frese has transfers EVERY Year and the Maryland Athletic department loves her.

 

[YoDore]

From a mid-major perspective, most of those teams cannot remotely afford to buy any coach out and will only fire coaches "with cause" like cheating allegations or abuse allegations. Brooks replace Cam Newbauer who was let after 4 years at Florida and Bart has gone 31-4; 21-9; 22-9; 21-6; 23-8; 23-12 in his 6 years and made the 2nd round in 2022 so there is NO WAY Belmont will get rid of him, nor should they unless so off-court program issues come to light as to why the transfers occurred. Heck, Brenda Frese has transfers EVERY Year and the Maryland Athletic department loves her.

Belmont is my favorite team after Vandy, and I watched almost every game they played last season. We have to remember last season they moved up from the OVC to the Missouri Valley Conference, which is a pretty big leap. They went 17-3 in the conference and tied Illinois State at the top of the standings, though State did have the tie-breaker.

Brooks is rock solid. My biggest fear is that some P5 school will scoop him up. He spent several years learning under Bruno, so I'm afraid when he finally retires, Brooks could be in the picture to replace him.

The loss of Wells and Bartley in the portal was shocking. Associate head coach Jamey Givens took to social media and said teams were contacting Belmont players before they even entered the portal.

All is not lost for the Bruins, though. They played almost the entire season without Wells' running mate at guard, Tuti Jones. She's back, and they also brought in a sophomore guard from Marquette who made the all-freshman team last season. The MVC is a big jump for them, but it still is not a post-oriented league, so I look for Belmont to be competitive again. But, Wells was their leader and their go-to in the clutch, and Bartley played above her size in the post. I think she might be surprised to find herself to be a well-paid role player at at Baylor, though.

 

[DefenseBB]

As I said in my initial post, Doug Bruno will be 72 on Nov 7 so my guess is if he has a similar season this year, compared to last year, he might be thinking of hanging up the whistle. Add in his back issues and I see this likelihood as an inevitability. Brooks would be a great hire for DePaul who would offer at least a doubling of his salary (currently $276K) by hiring him.

 

[GoChips20]

Thanks for the responses, @DefenseBB and @YoDore. I didn’t have all that history and hadn’t realized Belmont had such a strong year in their new conference. One of the reasons I love this board - a ton of knowledge on here.

 

[Coler]

I think Curry at Bama is gonna be good for a while, especially if she continues to land better talent to go along with Essence Cody.

I expect Bama to be good this season.

 

[JellyBean]

Great topic! Greatly appreciate the breakdown.

Charmin Smith (Cal)- Yeah, I can see her being on the hot seat.
Amanda Butler (Clemson)- I gotta be honest, I can see her staying around a few more years at Clemson and I don't see her being on the hot seat, yet. She just seems to have a plan in place for the program and she is a pretty decent coach.
Kieger (Penn State)- I think she is nowhere near the hot seat. She has a few more years.
Pingeton (Missouri)-Not yet. She has maybe two years of credibility with that program.
Elzy (Kentucky)-Yup. I would be surprised if she is coaching next year at Kentucky.
Gerlich (Texas Tech)- Nowhere near the hot seat.
McKeown (Northwestern)-Nope. McKeown is so well loved in and around Evanston, Illinois. He will step down when he is ready. No hot seat that way.
Schneider (Kansas)- I think he has stashed enough credit away that he is good for a few more years.
Curry (Alabama)- Not yet. She has credibility. She has a few more years before the hot seat appears.
Bozella (Seton Hall)-Nope. Like others, he has credibility with that program and the administration.
Bruno (DePaul)-Nope. No hot seat this way. He will retire at DePaul.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Can’t imagine that Clemson is particuowlry close to firing Butler much less the second hottest seat in the sport. She signed a McD’s AA last year and improved from prior record and they could not care Less about basketball up there.

 

[Dillon77]

Can’t imagine that Clemson is particuowlry close to firing Butler much less the second hottest seat in the sport. She signed a McD’s AA last year and improved from prior record and they could not care Less about basketball up there.

Not so sure about that lack of interest in other sports besides the oblong spheroid.
Didn't Clemson spend big bucks on the basketball facilities? And they're doing well in women's soccer, as well the lacrosse program, which just had it's first year.

Re: hoop -- Ever since Clemson defeated ND in the ACC tourney in what seems like ages ago, I just see them slightly going downwards. That said, if her contract extends beyond a singular year. They'll keep her.

 

[Dillon77]

How the heck did I miss this? Hangover from the last-second loss to OSU in football? Watching pro basketball? In any case, great job @DefenseBB . Think you identified some very viable candidates for the proverbial hot seat. Some comments on a few:

- Carolyn Kieger, Penn State. Kieger has to know patience is beyond thin in Happy Valley, so she's brought in two three-time transfers in Ashely Owusu and Tay Valladay (from Va. Tech/Maryland and UVA,/Marquette respectively) to make a last stand with Leilani Kapinus and Makenna Marisa. Shay Ciezki comes back from an injury as does perpetually injured Alli Campbell. Who knows, Kieger could make stew of it.
- Joe McKeown, Northwestern. The Wildcat's version of Uncle Joe has had a great gig at GW and N'Western, but since Valerie Burton has graduated, this team looks like it's not going anywhere to fill up the relatively new facility.
Early Dillon druthers. If Penn State and N'Western bomb out, you could see something interesting.
If Marquette has a decent year, I could see Megan Duffy chasing/being courted for N'Western. And Kieger could end up back at Marquette.
- Joanna Bernabei-McNamee-BC. Have no idea what happened/continues to happen at Chestnut Hill. She started so well, but has been losing top players year after year. How long is that contract? If things go like they have the last two years, another new coach at Chestnut Hill.
- Kyra Elzy-Kentucky. Didn't someone extend her after one or two years of winning with the previous regime's players, even when there were some warning signs? Well, As D-BB says, program is a shell of what it was. This is Kentucky. Cut ties, eat the money and get someone new in there.
- Doug Bruno, DePaul. As an ND fan, have loved Coach Bruno for the rivalry games the two teams had for so long. But things haven't been quite right for awhile. A lot of transfer guards (including Anaya Peoples and Katlyn Gilbert, former ND teammates, and Michelle Sidor, who never took flight at Michigan) there. Could be mediocre. Could be ugly. At the least, get the transition plan in place.

 

[Wildcatfan3]

I can only hope this is Elzy's last year at the helm. She has done about as poorly as one could do coming off a really solid run by Matthew Mitchell.

Hopefully Kentucky goes after a big name next off-season with Memorial upgraded and a fanbase who loves basketball behind it.

 

[GamecockFam]

I can only hope this is Elzy's last year at the helm. She has done about as poorly as one could do coming off a really solid run by Matthew Mitchell.

Hopefully Kentucky goes after a big name next off-season with Memorial upgraded and a fanbase who loves basketball behind it.

I expect they'll go for a proven coach this go around. It makes me wonder what "splash" hire they could get. I wouldn't expect it to rock the world like Kim Mulkey to LSU but I bet it would be someone with a proven record and consistent NCAA tournament teams. Is there any Kentucky native or former Kentucky player that is coaching at a high level?

Edit: I was looking through the ranks to see who in the top echelon would be a Kim Mulkey level of hire...Brenda Frese would be good fits for the Kentucky brand. I doubt it happens, but if Kentucky were to empty the coffers, it would probably be for a coach of her caliber.

 

[JellyBean]

I expect they'll go for a proven coach this go around. It makes me wonder what "splash" hire they could get. I wouldn't expect it to rock the world like Kim Mulkey to LSU but I bet it would be someone with a proven record and consistent NCAA tournament teams. Is there any Kentucky native or former Kentucky player that is coaching at a high level?

Edit: I was looking through the ranks to see who in the top echelon would be a Kim Mulkey level of hire...Brenda Frese would be good fits for the Kentucky brand. I doubt it happens, but if Kentucky were to empty the coffers, it would probably be for a coach of her caliber.

I don't think Kentucky need to hire a big name type of coach. They just need to hire a coach that can teach the game of basketball and recruit well. Mitchell was mediocre at Morehead State but went to Kentucky and struggled his first two years there and then year three, things took off. Coach Elzy is definitely on the hot seat this year but entering her 4th year, if she has an incredible year and her Kentucky program just shocks the SEC with wins against the top programs, she is getting a lifeline for another year or two. We shall see.

 

[GamecockFam]

I don't think Kentucky need to hire a big name type of coach. They just need to hire a coach that can teach the game of basketball and recruit well. Mitchell was mediocre at Morehead State but went to Kentucky and struggled his first two years there and then year three, things took off. Coach Elzy is definitely on the hot seat this year but entering her 4th year, if she has an incredible year and her Kentucky program just shocks the SEC with wins against the top programs, she is getting a lifeline for another year or two. We shall see.

The problem is that Coach Elzy is losing talent, not gaining it. They have Maddie Scherr returning, but that's about it. More than half of their team either transferred or graduated leaving a bunch of non-productive upperclassmen from a team that was tied for last in the SEC.

She did bring in Brooklyn Miles, which should help, but that's the only name of note, including incoming freshmen. And speaking of freshmen, they don't have much height on next year's team so they probably have to rely heavily on one to play the 5 (Janae Walker). That's a recipe for disaster in the SEC.

 

[Dillon77]

I expect they'll go for a proven coach this go around. It makes me wonder what "splash" hire they could get. I wouldn't expect it to rock the world like Kim Mulkey to LSU but I bet it would be someone with a proven record and consistent NCAA tournament teams. Is there any Kentucky native or former Kentucky player that is coaching at a high level?

Edit: I was looking through the ranks to see who in the top echelon would be a Kim Mulkey level of hire...Brenda Frese would be good fits for the Kentucky brand. I doubt it happens, but if Kentucky were to empty the coffers, it would probably be for a coach of her caliber.

You're right: At this point in her career and stature at Maryland, I doubt Brenda Frese is going anywhere.

However, I'm thinking opposite coach. Since Washington State is losing its conference, how about
Kamie Ethridge, a native Texan who might like to get a bit closer to her native state.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Can’t imagine that Clemson is particuowlry close to firing Butler much less the second hottest seat in the sport. She signed a McD’s AA last year and improved from prior record and they could not care Less about basketball up there.

Brad Brownell took over at Clemson from a guy who made four tournaments in his last four years.

After making the tournament in Brownell's first year, they've made two more in the 12 since.

And they give him raises.