Now That The Novelty Has Died Down Some...

Hawkfnntn said:
I totally agree with the first paragraph of what you wrote every word of it. The 2nd one I guess this is the first I'm hearing of Matt Gatens and how he's looked at. I guess I'd want to reserve judgement of that sort of take till we see where he ends up at. I totally get why Ben wouldn't keep him on. I myself would've kept him on but I'm on the outside and don't know Matt from Adam and Eve besides what little I've seen him talk publicly. Being an Iowa guy who's been recruiting the state for yrs now I only saw upside to keeping him on. But I acknowledge there's a lot I don't know too.
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He's not really someone that is respected highly in the coaching world, but he's young and hasn't coached very long, so I am sure that has as much to do with it as anything. I am just telling you, he was not seen as some lynch pin Iowa needed to retain and Iowa likely upgraded his seat. I know that's hard to hear, but just because he's a former Hawkeye doesn't necessarily mean that he was the best coach Ben could hire. He'll land somewhere and he will continue to grow and become a better coach. I am just saying...today, right now, Matt Gatens isn't thought of as a high-level assistant coach at the Power 4 level. You know who is though? Luke Barnwell. No chance you keep a guy like Matt when you can get a guy like Luke, regardless of where they played.
 
HawkeyeHypnosis said:
Never said majority miss Fran. I’m saying it will be a few years before any results are even comparable. He’s the most winning coach in Iowa basketball history, deserves a bit more respect than he was given in my opinion. Don’t know where you get haven’t moved on? I’ve said over and over I am happy with the hire and will be supportive of the new coach and players. Ben hasn’t coached a single game as a Hawkeye and time will tell if this was a great move or not.
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Though what is the point if a select few miss him? There will always be that. In a few years Fran's contract would have been done and he would really be getting old. Not sure why you would miss him in a few years and Ben gets the same early grace that Fran did so not that fair to judge early. Loses the whole team so starting pretty bare similar to Fran but the program is in a better place than after Lickliter. Think the missing Fran thing is just not applicable. Let's just wait and see and evaluate how Ben does. Even if he turns out a bad choice it was Fran's time to go.

Fran got respect but he did not get very high marks. Most wins but also most losses. You can get that with Tournaments and going to 20 game conference seasons so it needs context or adjustment. If he had a better percentage and got a few more of those wins they should/could have had he would have gotten higher marks. Some people also lost respect due to the behavior which you have to admit that is fair as well.
 
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The way Fran treated the media never bothered me. The way that Fran treated the refs never bothered me. I kind of like that firey attitude and DGAF what people think about me front. I like that he was a big baby and petty. I thought it was part of Fran's edge that made him good at what he did.

What bothered me most about Fran was the last 2 seasons of not being good at basketball. Period. You don't get 2 years of bad basketball at Iowa. You might survive a rebuilding year, when you're 15 years in your tenure, but back to back misses? That's going to have you on the chopping block just about anywhere but especially at a P4 program...the NCAA is literally set up for the teams from the top 4 conferences to get a distinct advantage, when you don't take that opportunity and do something with it, you should hire someone who can.
 
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InGoodCo said:
The way Fran treated the media never bothered me. The way that Fran treated the refs never bothered me. I kind of like that firey attitude and DGAF what people think about me front. I like that he was a big baby and petty. I thought it was part of Fran's edge that made him good at what he did.

What bothered me most about Fran was the last 2 seasons of not being good at basketball. Period. You don't get 2 years of bad basketball at Iowa. You might survive a rebuilding year, when you're 15 years in your tenure, but back to back misses? That's going to have you on the chopping block just about anywhere but especially at a P4 program...the NCAA is literally set up for the teams from the top 4 conferences to get a distinct advantage, when you don't take that opportunity and do something with it, you should hire someone who can.
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I think if the fans were engaged, Carver still had decent crowds, and the donors were happy, Fran gets another year. Especially with the class he had coming in. Fran's failure to engage with the fans and the donors put him on a shorter leash than he otherwise might have been. Sort of like Bo Pelini at Nebraska.

Personally, I loved Frans interactions with the media and his Frantrums. He was a breath of fresh aired compared to Coach Speak Ferentz.
 
ajdwhs87 said:
Though what is the point if a select few miss him? There will always be that. In a few years Fran's contract would have been done and he would really be getting old. Not sure why you would miss him in a few years and Ben gets the same early grace that Fran did so not that fair to judge early. Loses the whole team so starting pretty bare similar to Fran but the program is in a better place than after Lickliter. Think the missing Fran thing is just not applicable. Let's just wait and see and evaluate how Ben does. Even if he turns out a bad choice it was Fran's time to go.

Fran got respect but he did not get very high marks. Most wins but also most losses. You can get that with Tournaments and going to 20 game conference seasons so it needs context or adjustment. If he had a better percentage and got a few more of those wins they should/could have had he would have gotten higher marks. Some people also lost respect due to the behavior which you have to admit that is fair as well.
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You can have your opinion. I just don’t agree with it. Every coaches tenure has context. You could say that about every coach, if they would have gotten more wins… I can agree some may not have liked some of his behavior, although I believe more people liked his fiery personality than didn’t. But over the last two years he hasn’t even been Td up all that much let alone had any freakouts. His stare-down with the ref will live on forever.
 
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HawkeyeHypnosis said:
You can have your opinion. I just don’t agree with it. Every coaches tenure has context. You could say that about every coach, if they would have gotten more wins… I can agree some may not have liked some of his behavior, although I believe more people liked his fiery personality than didn’t. But over the last two years he hasn’t even been Td up all that much let alone had any freakouts. His stare-down with the ref will live on forever.
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The ref not T'ing Fran up for the stare down was the most restraint I have ever seen any ref have in any sport. You dip your head after a strike call in MLB and you get run.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
I think if the fans were engaged, Carver still had decent crowds, and the donors were happy, Fran gets another year. Especially with the class he had coming in. Fran's failure to engage with the fans and the donors put him on a shorter leash than he otherwise might have been. Sort of like Bo Pelini at Nebraska.

Personally, I loved Frans interactions with the media and his Frantrums. He was a breath of fresh aired compared to Coach Speak Ferentz.
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1000% There woulda been a line in the sand somewhere if the fan attendance was better it woulda made Beths decision way tougher. I'm not sure where that line woulda been but with it being as bad as it was it was it just made it easy.

I enjoyed how Fran interacted with the media for the most part. It was his selective shutting out of some in the media and grudges he evidently held that doesn't sit well. He totally shut out WHO tv in Dsm for quite awhile I guess over something Keith Murphy said as he was emcying an event he was at. I can't remember what it was off the top of my head but it got Margrett mad and that was that. Scott Dochterman evidently had no relationship with Fran either but he won't speak to what that's all about. But there's a reason whatever it is.

Those sort of things don't help coaches they just don't. And Iowa doesn't have the type of media that makes huge deals over that sort of stuff. Hell it wasn't till after he was fired that they even revisited those things. The Murphy incident happened quite a long time ago yet Fran held that grudge like no other. Murphy doesn't have a mean bone in his body I found all that to just be odd.
 
Zstatman said:
I like that
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Generally had a winning record. Usually top half of the conference. Brought in some NBA level talent and a Wooden award winner. But, just could not generate any momentum in the tournament. He will do well at Penn as there will be no expectation of a tournament run, but he will win a lot.

I do think Fran had bad luck. I know you make your own breaks, but sometimes a kid throws up a 30 footer from the baseline and it banks in. Fran really should have gotten one of those Garza or Murray teams to the Sweet 16. But. He didn't.
 
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