Scale of 1 to 10, rate Fran's first season

9 the only thing missing was a few more wins. The attitude, the energy, the passion are amazing. Plus they wait Fran and the staff have hit the trail is awesome.
 
5....which means it met my expectations. Our record was right where I thought it would be. Had some TERRIBLE losses (South Dakota State and Wake Forest) and a great win (Purdue).
 
You are what your record says you are. Nine other coaches in the Big Ten had better conference records. Therefore, I'd rate him as the tenth best coach in the Big Ten.
 
ColumbusHawk said:
You are what your record says you are. Nine other coaches in the Big Ten had better conference records. Therefore, I'd rate him as the tenth best coach in the Big Ten.
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John Wooden couldn't have coached this team to a Big 10 title.... this is just stupid.
 
Wooden could not have coached this team to more wins. But, there are coaches that have come into new situations and been able to change the roster very quickly. So giving Fran an entire pass on the roster thing is a little questionable. Of course most often it is like Roy said, it is really hard to turn a team around quickly, but it has been done. In fact, it was done by one of last year's new hires.

So just like people who say he is a 1 because his team was 10th in the conference are off, so are the people that ate giving him an 8 or a 9.
 
Iowafarmgirl said:
I am going with 6.5.

Our record is exactly where I expected it. We played some good teams tough, but we were almost non-existant outside of CHA. I like the players Fran has brought in so far, but Gatens and May have not developed under Frannie Mac as expected.

However, I am optimistic; The players seem to love to play for McC, we have a homecourt advantage again, and if our younger players like Marble and Basabe develop over the summer, we will have a team ready to finally jump to the middle of the pack in the B1G.
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Usually you quote me and make me look silly.......I'd like to return the favor, but I think you nailed it........Well done.
 
6.5 which is way better than I would have given the past 3 seasons. The program earned points for actually making me care about the program again and try to make the time to see games. I haven't got to the point where I will DVR the game if I can't watch it, but that time may come. I haven't actually made it a point to try and watch a game since they lost to Northwestern State in the NCAA's. The style of play earned a point for being more entertaining than last year, most of the time. I was having flashbacks to last year during the last 5 minutes of yesterday's loss. Fran's enthusiasm for the game, willingness to rip and praise players during the game, and he seems to enjoy being there. Lickliter never seemed comfortable during the three years he was there. I'd like to give more points, but there were still too many defensive lapses on the perimeter. The offense got completely out of sync sometimes and sometimes individuals would seem to disappear, like Gatens in the 2nd half. Overall though I was quite pleased. I didn't really have the highest hopes, .500 would have been awesome, then when Cully and Gatens got hurt my expectations got even lower.

I still enjoyed the season and am looking forward to next year.
 
CAARHawk said:
Wooden could not have coached this team to more wins. But, there are coaches that have come into new situations and been able to change the roster very quickly. So giving Fran an entire pass on the roster thing is a little questionable. Of course most often it is like Roy said, it is really hard to turn a team around quickly, but it has been done. In fact, it was done by one of last year's new hires.

So just like people who say he is a 1 because his team was 10th in the conference are off, so are the people that ate giving him an 8 or a 9.
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I think this is tough because expectations affect your rating. I rated a 8 because he brought in 2 quality recruits. I don't want to even think what this season would have been without Cartwright and Basable. To be real honest I wasn't really excited about the hire when it was announced. I knew Fran had turned around a couple programs but I was worried he wouldn't be able to recruit at the Big 10 level. Now that I have seen him bring in 2 recruits that are agruably our 2 best players, I have faith. Perhaps my rating is more towards the optimism I have for the future because I had little expectations knowing the roster he inherited and may seem too high if you are focusing on wins and losses.
 
atxhawk said:
6.5 which is way better than I would have given the past 3 seasons. The program earned points for actually making me care about the program again and try to make the time to see games. I haven't got to the point where I will DVR the game if I can't watch it, but that time may come. I haven't actually made it a point to try and watch a game since they lost to Northwestern State in the NCAA's. The style of play earned a point for being more entertaining than last year, most of the time. I was having flashbacks to last year during the last 5 minutes of yesterday's loss. Fran's enthusiasm for the game, willingness to rip and praise players during the game, and he seems to enjoy being there. Lickliter never seemed comfortable during the three years he was there. I'd like to give more points, but there were still too many defensive lapses on the perimeter. The offense got completely out of sync sometimes and sometimes individuals would seem to disappear, like Gatens in the 2nd half. Overall though I was quite pleased. I didn't really have the highest hopes, .500 would have been awesome, then when Cully and Gatens got hurt my expectations got even lower.

I still enjoyed the season and am looking forward to next year.
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This improved as the season went on. I think that is part of the optimism is that you can see improvement on both offense and defense.
 
ibahawkeye said:
This improved as the season went on. I think that is part of the optimism is that you can see improvement on both offense and defense.
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Except for the game at MSU when Appling was 4-5 from 3pt range. The inconsistencies drove me crazy in this area. They would do well for a while and then forget to ID the shooters and give up open looks.
 
A 6 and maybe a 7. I think the future is bright though and am excited about Iowa basketball again. If he gets two players (maybe 3) ready to contribute this spring I think we're ready to make a move.
 
I am going to say 8...Sure the record wasn't great....but I am fairly sure if we played some of those early teams again. (SDSU, LBSU) We would not have too much of a problem beating them. We improved, which is something we have not done for ages.
 
I must give the man an 8. Love the fire from him. Obviously he can judge talent. One of his recruits makes the all-freshman team and the other leads the league in assists.
He's brought enthusiasm back to the fan base and to the players.
The difference between the team now and at the beginning of the season is stunning. If the current team played the beginning of the seasons' team, we'd kick our own *****!
The FT shooting would probably still suck, that's on the players, not FM.
The biggest reason of all is this: Last year I couldn't wait to end our misery and this season I'm sorry to see the season conclude. Can't wait 'til next year. And it's been awhile since I've said that.
Well done, Hawks.
Well done, FM.
Well done, Gary Barta.
 
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Gotta give it an 8 ... and here is why:

* Player improvement ... While not putting up huge numbers, I think the majority of our players showed improvement. That means they are getting good coaching. Progressing versus regressing is always a good thing. I know and Gatens might not be progressing like we would all hope, but overall, I think players have improved their games ... maybe even more so on the defensive end ...

* Competitiveness ... Have not studied the final numbers but we were in awful lot of games up until the very last few minutes. That is a good sign. This team never quit. Despite a poor record, this team fought. The win against Purdue was a shining example.

* Style of play ... Definitely more enjoyable to watch. While we did not necessarily have the horses in place to run the system Fran is accustomed to, he did get the most out of what was in the stable.

* Attitude of players ... Fran seems to have won the players over ... They understand what he is trying to do and what he wants to accomplish ... That is huge and maybe the biggest telling factor ... When players buy into the system and when players (current and former) see the good things happening in Iowa City that is a strong sign you have a good coach in place ...

* National recognition ... For a team that finished with a poor record, Fran and company received more props from national media than any other team with 10 or 11 wins ... That says a lot ... In general, people see what Fran is doing ... It is building the foundation one brick at a time ... You have to have that solid foundation of the rest of the building will crumble...

* Confidence ... Fran knows what he is doing ... From day 1 ... Fran has sang the same tune ... He knows where the program needs to be and he knows how to get there ...

* Excitement ... From a personal perspective, this is the most excited I have been about Iowa basketball in 10 seasons ... Attendance figures are up .. Overall excitement is up ...

Overall ... the wins and losses are about what is expected ... But knowing Fran is able to identify players like Cartwright and Basabe says a lot ... He knows talent when he sees it ... The team has a newfound focus ... Anything less than an 8 would be hard for me to validate ... Fran has it going in the right direction ...
 
Think back to the last week of last year's season. Jump ahead 12 months. This next sentence perfectly sums up why Fran deserves a 9 or 10: Newcomers Cartwright and Basabe led the Hawkeyes in the defeat of #6 Purdue, but Archie and Brommer were key in the victory in front of the rabid crowd at Carver.

Think of where we were exactly a year ago. Weak roster with talent well below that of second tier conference teams, record losses to Minnesota and Wisconsin to end the season, a horrible style, rumors of the two best players leaving (again)...do you think there was a lower point in Iowa basketball history in the last 50 years? 60 years? 80 years?

Fast forward to the Purdue game. Can you recall the last time you saw Iowa basketball players compete that hard? Fight (and beat) a top 10 team for every loose ball?

The turnaround this season was remarkable. Think about it. If you had been told that we'd hire a coach who, within weeks, found a point guard who would lead the Big Ten in assists and a kid from New York who would be the most impressive freshman after Sullinger, and you'd figure we somehow found a way to bring Pearl or Majerus or Jay Wright to Iowa City. And now also consider that these two gems appear to be good guys and great teammates, with everything on the up and up.

Also consider that Fran got the existing players (of marginal big ten talent) to play an uptempo style, and developed the team to produce a last third of the season run of beating Michigan State by 20, taking Wisconsin to overtime, taking Michigan to overtime, defeating Purdue, and pushing the Spartans to the brink in the conference tourney.
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
Think back to the last week of last year's season. Jump ahead 12 months. This next sentence perfectly sums up why Fran deserves a 9 or 10: Newcomers Cartwright and Basabe led the Hawkeyes in the defeat of #6 Purdue, but Archie and Brommer were key in the victory in front of the rabid crowd at Carver.

Think of where we were exactly a year ago. Weak roster with talent well below that of second tier conference teams, record losses to Minnesota and Wisconsin to end the season, a horrible style, rumors of the two best players leaving (again)...do you think there was a lower point in Iowa basketball history in the last 50 years? 60 years? 80 years?

Fast forward to the Purdue game. Can you recall the last time you saw Iowa basketball players compete that hard? Fight (and beat) a top 10 team for every loose ball?

The turnaround this season was remarkable. Think about it. If you had been told that we'd hire a coach who, within weeks, found a point guard who would lead the Big Ten in assists and a kid from New York who would be the most impressive freshman after Sullinger, and you'd figure we somehow found a way to bring Pearl or Majerus or Jay Wright to Iowa City. And now also consider that these two gems appear to be good guys and great teammates, with everything on the up and up.

Also consider that Fran got the existing players (of marginal big ten talent) to play an uptempo style, and developed the team to produce a last third of the season run of beating Michigan State by 20, taking Wisconsin to overtime, taking Michigan to overtime, defeating Purdue, and pushing the Spartans to the brink in the conference tourney.
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Amen!
 
i think those of you who gave him an 8,9, 10 are forgetting what our record was. We still lost a ton of games. That being said, the optimism is completely back in the program. You can feel a breath of fresh air has been breathed into the program. We are on the right track and I love it. So with that I would rate the season a 6. We have a long ways to go, but I feel like we could make a significant jump next year.
 
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