1. Tony Bennett: I am worried that by the time I finish this sentence Bennett will have taken the job at Marquette or somewhere else. His name is all over the place in coaching vacancy discussions among those who know college basketball. What he did very quickly after taking over for his father, Dick Bennett, at Washington St is remarkable. His teams play a very physical, grind-it-out type of basketball. To me he would have been a good fit at Indiana, where you need to be able to defend and grind out low possession games in order to win in the Big Ten. Even though that job has been filled, I still think his name should resurface elsewhere.
2. Sean Miller: This guy can coach. There has not been any drop off at all since Thad Matta left the Xavier program because Miller gets the most out of his players. The Musketeers made an elite 8 run this year and even though Miller just signed a big extension with a large buyout, many programs should be interested. He loses seniors Josh Duncan, Stanley Burrell, and Drew Lavender, so the team will not be as good next year. A good fit in my opinion would be Oklahoma St or Marquette.
3. Chris Lowery: One year ago, Lowery was one of the hottest coaches in the country. He had taken his Southern Illinois Salukis to the Sweet 16 and put up a great fight against Kansas. He interviewed at a couple schools including Michigan, but chose to remain at SIU. This year was a down year for the Salukis (18-15), but the trademark pressure defense was still there (a respectable 29th adjusted defense ranking). His ability to teach defense is sorely needed at programs like Alabama, Virginia, or Penn St (101, 123, 141 respectively). Then again, Penn St isn’t a promotion up from a Missouri Valley powerhouse like SIU. Dave Leitao seems secure for now at UVA, but Mark Gottfried could be on the hot seat with another 17-16 or worse record next season (unlikely with Ronald Steele coming back).
4. Scott Drew: The Baylor basketball program was in shambles only three years ago. They were perennial doormats in the Big 12 and had a murder suspect on the team. Drew, the brother of Bryce, is only 37 but has shown he can turn a program around quickly (NCAA berth this year). He might not even have to switch conferences and could work out as a backup plan for Oklahoma St.
5. Anthony Grant: Never before has one first round game meant more to a coach than last year’s upset over Duke was for Grant. It gave him instant credibility in the coaching business. As a disciple of Billy Donovan, he has that working to his advantage as well. In the last two seasons he has lead Virginia Commonwealth to a 52-14 record, one which not many schools can match. My guess is that he’ll take a job in the SEC at Auburn maybe or Georgia.
6. Norm Roberts: He took over in the middle of the 2004 season for Mike Jarvis and has put St John’s into a deep state of mediocrity. Actually mediocre is generous. He had a class of eight freshmen this year, but that is his only point of leverage with the AD. The Johnnies struggle to get a couple thousand people to the Garden, and it is my belief that he will be fired if he doesn’t at least get St John’s into the top 12 of the Big East next year.
7. Leonard Hamilton: Florida State is eternally on the bubble. They always manage to pull off one big marquee win, but then lose two games at home and are left NIT bound. It’s not that the recruits haven’t been there. Toney Douglass, Von Wafer, and Al Thornton were all big time talents. The NCAA berths just haven’t been there. Something tells me if they don’t crack the field of 65 next year, they’ll go in a different direction.
8. Bill Carmody: Let’s face it. Northwestern isn’t exactly a program with great tradition (Zero all time tournament berths). They’re in the Big Ten but aren’t even the best program in Chicago. I’d give it to Depaul or even Loyola. They went 1-17 this past season and are consistently dominated in the Big Ten. Carmody’s gotta be gone soon.
9. Jeff Lebo: Auburn is a football school. Don’t tell Sir Charles that, but with Lebo at the helm, the Tigers have fallen into SEC obscurity. They have gone 4-12 in conference the last two seasons. Lebo hasn’t done much recruiting-wise since he got there in 2004 and will be probably be gone sometime in the near future. I think Anthony Grant would be a good fit there in 2009.
10. Bobby Gonzalez: I actually think Gonzalez deserves another two years before the AD thinks about firing him. But, given the hotbed of the New York-New Jersey area for high school basketball talent, there is no excuse for not getting the players he needs. The Pirates of Seton Hall made the Big East Tournament this year (12 out of 16 teams make it), but that isn’t good enough. Soon enough the team will need to make the jump to the NCAA Tournament. Will Gonzalez be able to take them there in two years?
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