Matt McMahon, come on down...

[hbk999]

4) The Sun Belt coaches are John Brady, Steve Shields, Ron Hunter, Bob Marlin, Keith Richard, Scott Cross, Matthew Graves, Ray Harper, Danny Kaspar, and Phil Cunningham. If you think this is a league that draws big name castoffs then you are delusional about the state of this conference and the program.

The first guy you named was coaching an SEC team in the Final Four less than a decade ago, was he not? And Lefty Driesell coached Georgia State for a few years.

Not to mention various examples of small schools from other similar conferences (e.g., Cremins at CofC, Mike Jarvis at FAU, etc.)

You're correct. Good call. The best pedigree of the list but I was implying name recognition.

[APPARJ]

4) The Sun Belt coaches are John Brady, Steve Shields, Ron Hunter, Bob Marlin, Keith Richard, Scott Cross, Matthew Graves, Ray Harper, Danny Kaspar, and Phil Cunningham. If you think this is a league that draws big name castoffs then you are delusional about the state of this conference and the program.

The first guy you named was coaching an SEC team in the Final Four less than a decade ago, was he not? And Lefty Driesell coached Georgia State for a few years.

Not to mention various examples of small schools from other similar conferences (e.g., Cremins at CofC, Mike Jarvis at FAU, etc.)

All I got from that post was that in the Sun Belt there is currently one active coach that had legitmate success at a big school almost a decade ago. He was fired 2 years later and has been in Jonesboro, AR ever since. I would say Mr. Brady is the exception, not the rule.

[EastHallApp]

4) The Sun Belt coaches are John Brady, Steve Shields, Ron Hunter, Bob Marlin, Keith Richard, Scott Cross, Matthew Graves, Ray Harper, Danny Kaspar, and Phil Cunningham. If you think this is a league that draws big name castoffs then you are delusional about the state of this conference and the program.

The first guy you named was coaching an SEC team in the Final Four less than a decade ago, was he not? And Lefty Driesell coached Georgia State for a few years.

Not to mention various examples of small schools from other similar conferences (e.g., Cremins at CofC, Mike Jarvis at FAU, etc.)

All I got from that post was that in the Sun Belt there is currently one active coach that had legitmate success at a big school almost a decade ago. He was fired 2 years later and has been in Jonesboro, AR ever since. I would say Mr. Brady is the exception, not the rule.

For sure. And to be clear, i never thought Brady was a particularly good coach at LSU, just one who had a loaded frontcourt.

My point was only that it wouldn't be THAT unheard of for App to hire an out of work coach who had previously had some success at a big school. i'm not saying that's what we should, or will, do.

[WVAPPeer]

"I tend to agree about a ONE year stop but have another perspective in being a proponent of a Bruce Pearl hire. I view it as a lucrative short term investment. We most likely could get him at a discount due to the show-cause, we get a proven winner, someone who has experience drumming up interest at a "football" school... All things we desperately need. Knowing it is more than likely a short term situation, we should lock him up in a contract WKU style (bobby petrino). Have a big buyout ($1 million) and include in that buyout the requirement for the school that he leaves for to play a home game in Boone while students are in town. This does 3 things:
1- shows all of us (alumni and fans) the admin is serious about b-ball being important to the university and not the afterthought it has been by slipping into the "we can't do that at Appalachian" mindset. We need something "BIG" to happen to get the attention of fans. This would do it and set '14/'15 up to be exciting.
2- when he leaves, the sizable buyout would position us to up the level of coach we are able to afford to hire. Potentially a "career hire."
3- we get a much needed high profile home game."

And why would Pearl sign a contract like this??? - no "name" coach is going to sign a contract like this to come to APP State --- maybe for a down program in a top conference but not for a very bad program in a one-bid conference ---

[app97]

How about McMahon with Houston Fancher as the experienced associate head coach? Not that Fancher would come back to Boone after being dismissed. But, those 2 guys seemed to run a clean program and did a decent job recruiting.

Or....if we could get Bobby Lutz, he could keep Kummer on staff since they worked together at uncc. Or, would Kummer even be desirable to keep in Boone? Sometimes, I've wondered if he should have been running the program the last few years. You could see him clenching his jaws and grimacing constantly while watching Capel's players make mistakes. He's worked under Lutz and Melvin Watkins at uncc and Texas A&M. He was probably the best coach on staff the last few years, if experience matters.

You bring up an interesting point about Kummer, that I never thought about before....because frankly, I saw him do nothing during the games. It looked to me like he was going through the motions.

I saw Sampson and Gainey "coaching" the kids up during games. Sampson was the only one to email me back about a recruit as I emailed all three assistants.

I think the new head coach would be hard pressed to ask back anyone off this staff....not impossible but hard pressed. ....and not that they do not deserve to come back from a "coaching" stand point. But I just think starting over might be the best proposition.

just an observation. I think Kummer worked mainly with "bigs" during practice. If that's the case, then he definitely helped players like Spagnolo, Healy, and Obacha, 2 of whom were walk--ons and essentially became the go-to player on their teams. Obacha turned into a rebounding beast. Also, Kummer emailed me back last year after I congratulated them on their effort against Davidson in the tourney. I think I only copied him and Capel, though. I didn't expect to hear back from the head coach.

[AppDawg]

This does 3 things:
1- shows all of us (alumni and fans) the admin is serious about b-ball being important to the university and not the afterthought it has been by slipping into the "we can't do that at Appalachian" mindset. We need something "BIG" to happen to get the attention of fans. This would do it and set '14/'15 up to be exciting.
2- when he leaves, the sizable buyout would position us to up the level of coach we are able to afford to hire. Potentially a "career hire."
3- we get a much needed high profile home game."

And why would Pearl sign a contract like this??? - no "name" coach is going to sign a contract like this to come to APP State --- maybe for a down program in a top conference but not for a very bad program in a one-bid conference ---

I think Pearl may sign a contract similar to this because he needs a school to take a chance on him - whatever it takes to get "back-in-the game." All is contingent upon how much he misses coaching. Same as Petrino at WKU. Now, would another "name" coach who doesn't have some baggage be willing to? Perhaps not, but as stated before, what do we have to lose? Shoot for the moon and put ourselves in the best position for the future. In the near term, I think our greater need is monetary (vs. wins). I am not discounting the need to build a "sustained" program, but where we currently are we need to take a leap now and make a quick spalsh, not wait 7+ years like it took HF to rebuild the program. If that happens, we lose virtually another generation of alumni who do not view B-Ball as a "key" sport on the Mountain. Is $1 million to steep? Perhaps, but that can be negotiated. You never know what will stick until it is offered - worse the other party can do is say "no." I do think the home game should be included no matter who we hire as our hope would be he is good enough such that a marquee D-1 program will want him in the future.

[WVAPPeer]

I do think you are correct appdawg on the status of the program and what needs to happen to try to resurrect the program as soon as possible - I just believe it is a huge "mountain" to climb and I just don't think "name" coaches are going to want to make that tough journey ---

[hapapp]

I do think you are correct appdawg on the status of the program and what needs to happen to try to resurrect the program as soon as possible - I just believe it is a huge "mountain" to climb and I just don't think "name" coaches are going to want to make that tough journey ---

I agree. Besides the program doesn't need someone who is gone the moment something bigger or better comes along. It would be a quick splash but I'm not sure it helps build a program.

[Maddog1956]

I think Pearl may sign a contract similar to this because he needs a school to take a chance on him - whatever it takes to get "back-in-the game." All is contingent upon how much he misses coaching. Same as Petrino at WKU. Now, would another "name" coach who doesn't have some baggage be willing to? Perhaps not, but as stated before, what do we have to lose? Shoot for the moon and put ourselves in the best position for the future. In the near term, I think our greater need is monetary (vs. wins). I am not discounting the need to build a "sustained" program, but where we currently are we need to take a leap now and make a quick spalsh, not wait 7+ years like it took HF to rebuild the program. If that happens, we lose virtually another generation of alumni who do not view B-Ball as a "key" sport on the Mountain. Is $1 million to steep? Perhaps, but that can be negotiated. You never know what will stick until it is offered - worse the other party can do is say "no." I do think the home game should be included no matter who we hire as our hope would be he is good enough such that a marquee D-1 program will want him in the future.

Is it really worth getting a named coach for a couple years when the first year or two he's playing with players recruited by someone else, and the year he leaves all the players ask out of their LOI? I'm not sure it helps that much. I don't care how good of coach we get he can't teach players to shoot at this point of the game. He might motivate players better but that's about it. I'm sure if he's considered "tainted" to some degree it's going to take awhile to get the best recruits also.

I think I'd just as get someone at a lower level that has shown success at whatever level he is on. If they have a ties and desire to be at APP even better. It would be different if they brought their players with them but they don't.

[appstfan]

Here is another potential--

John Pelphrey enters the third season of his second stint as a UF assistant coach and ninth year overall with the Gators. He has been on staff for three SEC Championship teams, the team’s past two Elite Eight appearances and the 2000 national championship game appearance. Overall, the team is 179-84 (.681) with Pelphrey on the bench.

Pelphrey returned to the Florida staff after nine seasons as a head coach, five at South Alabama and four at Arkansas. He previously served as an assistant coach with the Gators for six seasons from 1996-2002 and helped the team to a 124-65 record with a then-school record four straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Pelphrey was instrumental in the Gators advancing to their first national championship game in 2000, following a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 1999. Since Pelphrey’s return to Gainesville, the Gators are 55-19 (.743) with a pair of Elite Eight appearances. During the 2012-13 season, Pelphrey routinely drew the toughest scouts, and the Gators went 9-4 in those games, including dominant wins in Gainesville vs. Marquette, Missouri and Kentucky.

Following his initial stay at Florida, the Paintsville, Ky., native went on to serve as head coach at South Alabama for five seasons from 2002-2007 and Arkansas for four seasons from 2007-11, earning two trips to the NCAA Tournament. Pelphrey holds a career 149-122 record (.550) as head coach, including an 80-63 mark (.559) at South Alabama and a record of 69-59 (.539) at Arkansas.

In 2005-06, Pelphrey guided the South Alabama Jaguars to a Sun Belt championship and the conference tournament title. That led to a spot in the NCAA Tournament, where South Alabama fell to Florida on the Gators’ way to their first national championship. Pelphrey earned Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year honors that season as his team led the league in scoring margin and 3-point defense and finished second in steals and scoring defense. South Alabama also improved its offensive output by 11 points over the previous season and finished 24-7.

In his final season at South Alabama, Pelphrey guided the Jaguars to a 20-12 mark (13-5 Sun Belt) and an appearance in the NIT.

In 2007, Pelphrey was tabbed to lead the Arkansas program and responded by leading the team to 23 wins in 2007-08, the best total by a first-year coach in the school’s history. The Razorbacks also went to the SEC Tournament final and into the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Arkansas’ win against No. 24 Indiana in the Big Dance was its first since 1999. That squad finished with a 23-12 record and reached as high as No. 18 in the national polls and posted a 6-2 record against ranked opponents. Those 23 wins were the most at Arkansas since 1999.

During his stint as the Razorbacks’ head coach, Pelphrey coached four All-SEC performers (Sonny Weems, Michael Washington, Courtney Fortson, Rotnei Clarke) and two SEC All-Freshman honorees (Fortson, Marshawn Powell). He was also instrumental in recruiting eventual All-SEC performer B.J. Young.

Prior to Pelphrey’s first stint as a Florida assistant, he spent two seasons on Donovan’s staff at Marshall, where the Thundering Herd went 18-9 in 1995 and 17-11 in 1996 after going 9-18 the year before they arrived. Prior to that, Pelphrey spent a season as an assistant coach under Eddie Sutton at Oklahoma State in 1994, where the Cowboys went 24-10 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Pelphrey began his coaching career following one season playing professionally in France and Spain.

Pelphrey played two years at Kentucky under Sutton and three under Rick Pitino. Part of UK’s class known at The Unforgettables, he was inducted into the Kentucky Hall of Fame in 2005 and named the Wildcats’ Student-Athlete of the Year in 1989. His jersey number (No. 34) was retired in 1992. During his Kentucky career, he started 90 of 114 games and finished with a career scoring average of 11.0 points.

Named Mr. Basketball in the state of Kentucky as a senior at Paintsville High School in 1987, he scored 2,477 points and grabbed 1,316 rebounds in his career.

Pelphrey is married to the former Tracy Lyon and they have a son, Jaxson and a daughter, Grace.

[App91]

Like Pelphrey, Pearl while interesting seems dirty. I do agree this has to be bigger than huge. All these recruits who want to back out need to do an about face. Can we wake up John Wooden? Biggest point for the MBB program in its history, at this point yes.

[T-Dog]

In the "Oh Lord No" department, there's rumors that Peterson is out at UNCW.

[appst89]

In the "Oh Lord No" department, there's rumors that Peterson is out at UNCW.

I have to believe that no one in Boone is that stupid.

[T-Dog]

I'm just preparing everyone for the inevitable "third time's the charm" jokes that'll be coming.

[BurlingtonApp]

What do you guys think about Levelle Moton from NCCU? He's done some extremely impressive things over there. I doubt he's looking to move for us, but he would be a hell of a hire.

[thegreengopher]

Regardless of what CC has said about wanting a prior head coach the obvious choice is still Matt McMahon. He is proven his prowess at being a great recruiter(DJ Thompson, Donald Sims, Jeremy Clayton, Nate Cranford Kellen Brand, in other words the major recruiter responsible for the four most successful years in App Bball history), he has been a major part of success for teams everywhere he has been, and he has a vested interest in the program and the school. He's highly regarded amongst his peers as well. He is a coach that brings enthusiasm, consistency, leadership intangibles, and the high basketball IQ that it takes to lead a program. We shouldn't make the mistake of passing him up again. I don't think he would be the type to "use" the school as just a stepping stone. Seems pretty obvious to me. Simply trying to make a "splash" isn't the right move. The right move is someone who has a genuine vested interest in the long term health of the program.

[EastHallApp]

I'm just preparing everyone for the inevitable "third time's the charm" jokes that'll be coming.

Well actually the first time was the charm, and even the second time wouldn't have been so bad if Cobb hadn't botched the hiring of his replacement. However, the whole "bald-faced liar" thing does kind of leave a bad taste in one's mouth.

[wataugan03]

What do you guys think about Levelle Moton from NCCU? He's done some extremely impressive things over there. I doubt he's looking to move for us, but he would be a hell of a hire.

Probably the best guy we have any chance at. He took a D1 transition team and quickly built it into the best team in the MEAC. He is a North Carolina guy, with real recruiting connections. He appears to be a rising star. Looks like NCCU pays him 140k. Could we steal him for 250? I don't know. Another couple years like the last two and he could be going all the way to the big time - so he might not want to start a rebuilding job at App. Plus he might be able to get a bigger better paying job than ours this offseason.

[AppHoops]

From our all time leading scorer:

DSims ‏@DSims0 3m
Going to tweet HIRE MCMAHON everyday till something happens!

[Kgfish]

From our all time leading scorer:

DSims ‏@DSims0 3m
Going to tweet HIRE MCMAHON everyday till something happens!

I thought Cobb said the reason he took a chance on Capel is because the players wanted him to be their coach. Sumthin ain't exactly adding up here.