If it happens should Fran be fired?
It depends on what you want/think Iowa should be. Some say look at how bad it was before and lower the bar so he shouldn't be. I think Iowa can be Wisconsin, Gonzaga, Baylor, and the like. if they can we can but not with Fran.
Actually I would like a very good or excellent coach. Not just a pretty good one. One who knows what it takes to win in this conference and in the post season. Not counting the first three years after Lackluster they have faded most every year. The last 16 games of every year were .500 or below except one year. That year they were 9-7 and they had a dream match up with Davidson which was perfect for them. Last year was cut short but they were 6-6 in the last 12 games. They are not over .500 in those last 16 games total even excluding the first 3 years. If you play 33 to 35 games a year and nearly the last half you are fading out while others are ramping up for the post season you are doing something wrong. You play to get to the conference tourney and NCAA. It sucks to play and then towards the end you are not a player and you are not to be taken seriously and you know it is over.
You get stomped so many times when you get to a big game. Michigan, Gonzaga, Villanova, Duke, Pudue, whatever. This Michigan game was pulling away where others where 19 point games where Iowa was down nearly 30 at one point and made it more respectable.
Many times we are up and down showing Fran is slow to adjust. We get down by these big ass margins in some big games. Even if you come back against Cincinnati it is a bad sign. You should not keep getting buried and stop runs better. Against a better team they were not making that comeback. Slower to react and make adjustments Fran and his staff will never go far in the postseason. Too slow you lose a game and you are done. Too late to figure it out after the game when you are one and done.
Face it, his championship defense video aside, this team hasn't played better defense till year 9 lol! Since his teams are not conditioned as well as others they fade physically and can't keep up that defense late in the year anyhow. Not happy their hands are not up all the time but they don't seem to have the wind to do it. Why do other teams not wear down and are rounding into shape for the postseason and we get worn down even with a deep bench?
Also see the good but not great coaching. Teams that don't pass well and have trouble inbounding, pass off the back foot too much and throw some bad or incorrect types of passes. Conner is a good passer and the rest of team very very average. Yet Conner gets this rep as a great passer but just the best on this so-so passing team.
They finally should have a good record down the stretch this year but with most likely the player of the year hopefully they should. Still, they are only 5-5 in the last ten games! Where have I seen this before.
For my liking, I think Fran has run his course. How many years do you need to see the same thing with the slow learning. Even with some better defense they still are far from great with foot work and not conditioned for a post season run. Face it if Garza was a better physical specimen would he be here? How many real, not just lucky to have him get to you POY types are you gonna get under Fran?
I want more than the so-so fundamentals, not B1G caliber conditioned, always not in the discussion when the post season comes around type of team. A coach who can adjust on the fly better. Admit it, by far the most games where it is close one half then totally not in the other half esp. in bigger games. Too many once they figure us out and adjust we are down near 20 and it is over. I want smarter quicker counter adjustments and staying in more big games.
Long rant but could have just said he just isn't more than average or good in any aspect and Iowa has not been worth mentioning or going anywhere in any post season tournament except the one NIT but that was at home and we still lost the home game in overtime. I want to go somewhere. Under Fran we are not going anywhere. So time for Fran to go. Wasting the Garza years is enough to show the ceiling is hit and another few years is not gonna change anything. Winning 20 games with a pretty weak non-con and by some time in Feb. you are a non-factor is not what I think the ceiling for Iowa should be.
