…..with a stand-up double”. That’s how Ol’ Diz might describe Frau Yow’s much maligned and befuddling coach search culminating in Mark Gottfried. Dizzy Dean took liberties with the English language for the sake of colorful imagery.
“Sliding into 2nd with a stand-up double” works for me. From 2nd, a single can drive in the run. I don’t know how Gary Williams might describe it. Probably less charitably.
Mark Gottfried is a veteran coach with documented experience on “the big stage”. He has won 250+ games at a major school in a very major conference. That’s a lot more than Shaka Smart has won for what that’s worth.
Did Frau spread enough fertilizer at the presser to blow up the Oklahoma City Federal Bldg? She sure did, but everybody does at a “Meet Our New Messiah” press conference. Find an old tape of Dickie & Meez introducing Matt Doherty. Yikes!
Mark Gottfried will not be intimidated by Roy or by Mike. Likewise, neither Roy nor Mike are considering early retirement because Mark Freakin’ Gottfried has come to The Triangle. Kinda like Bill Self feels about Frank Haith I bet.
Gottfried worked for Jim Harrick at UCLA. Jim Harrick has a national championship and a major cheating conviction on his permanent record. Both are facts. Mark Gottfried was a legacy at Alabama but got thrown out for some reasons. Those reasons WILL come out, along with a lot of silly conjecture from rival fans. Count on that for certain.
24 hours prior to introducing “THE guy I was looking for all along”; Frau Yow sent out a very very curious e-mail to WuffNation. Even Wuffs intensely loyal to Frau thought the e-mail was very very curious. I know because they told me so.
Then she introduced a guy that absolutely no one had on any radar.
Then she rocked the nation’s AD and basketball coach community on it’s collective heels with a haymaker slam at Gary Williams. By the time the assembled media had caught it’s breath all the Sean Miller, Shaka, Gregg Marshall yadda yadda didn’t matter any longer.
Give Frau credit …. she cleared the deck with the hatchet she hurled at Gary Williams. Everything before that was “nuked”. Now it’s Frau and Mark against the world. Wuffs love that scenario and will eagerly fall in step.
NOTE: Can you imagine Lil’ Dickie hurlin’ a hatchet like that? YIKES! …. reminds me of the Ed Ames’ moment on Johnny Carson’s show! …. noted bomb-thrower Greg Doyel sides w/ Frau calling Gary Williams “a spineless little coward”. Having Doyel on her side is like having Jeffrey Dahmer endorse Amedeo’s.
Frau had lost a lot of her lunatic fringe with a Frau version of a Lee Fowler coach search. The loonies wanted a homer. The loonies got a stand-up double. Usually once an AD loses his/her lunatric fringe it’s a permanent severing. She may have reeled her loonies back into the Pack with the Gary slam. It was a smart play. Unprofessional … sure. But perfect for her fan base.
Gottfried is a veteran coach with experience with the daily stuff that major college coaches do. Hiring a staff, managing a staff, recruiting, practice plans, game management, media manipulation, etc etc. He is a glib fellow at ease in front of a mic and a camera.
As I watched the presser, he reminded me of BUTCH DAVIS. Take that however you wish. He seems comfortable that he can make others believe whatever he wants them to believe. Thats a valuable skill in today’s sports combat. I believe he will win over WuffNation with comparative ease …. much easier than TO’B.
He will win more often than Sidney. He has a more engaging persona than Herb. He will recruit aggressively. What “type” of recruits? Too early to tell. Probably less Eagle Scouty than he will want you to believe.
If he wins, who will care? He’s used to blood thirsty fans with its share of wing-nuts. Only Wins Over Rivals quenches the blood lust of wing-nuts.
He’s never worked for “the infamous Debbie Yow”. It’s safe to say now that not everyone finds that enjoyable. Any doubt of that was deleted yesterday. Ya reckon.
Rival fans will bombard the choice from every predictable angle. Its what rival fans always do. I like the choice because I’m betting it generates lots of column fodder. It’s always about column fodder.
