T or F: Fire Lick and fans come back....

storminspank said:
Whether Lickliter is right or wrong for the school, he needs a bit more time to prove himself. Player retention problems (some on him, some on the players) have cause him to start in a massive hole. Next year's class should help him get out a bit. If we see signs of falling deeper into the hole, or not getting further out, then fine, start talking buyout.

The fact remains Iowa fans have a knack for running BB coaches out of town - from Lute to Mr. Davis. Iowa City is a fishbowl and sometimes the fans shoot at it instead of putting food in it.

Just this once, let's sit back and see what happens. I know it's not started out well, but going back to the drawing boards is something I, as a fan, would prefer not to do.
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Me either Stormin. I would prefer that Lick be the guy to get it done because I LIKE him. But that doesn't mean he will.

If Iowa were to fire him, which I believe is unlikely, the right coach could have a winning team in 2 years. It aint as hard as Lickliter is making it look.
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ClassyBeautiful
 
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Lick is going to be here another 2 years for sure.

He gets next year because of the recruiting class he has coming in. And because they will only be freshmen, he will get another year after that.

Also.....in these economic times Barta is not going to pony up the $$$ to buy out the remainder of Lick's contract.

Like it or not, Todd Lickliter is going to be coaching the Iowa BB team for awhile yet.

Am I happy with our program right now? Absolutely not. However, I want to see what he does with the guys he has coming in. If things turn around...great. If not...THEN it will be time to cut him loose.
 
DocsOffice said:
Get your freaking facts straight.

Iowa fans did not run Lute off. He and his wife, Bobbie, did not like the Iowa weather and Arizona was a great fit. They also had children living on the west coast.

Bob Bowlsby and Bill Krause decided not to extend Mr. Davis's contract.
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You REALLY believe that about Lute? REALLY? Listen to some of his interview or better yet talk to him about what happened to during his time in Iowa City. He left because of the fishbowl that was Hawkeye sports.

I realize BB didn't extend Davis' contract, but do you honestly think the fans weren't pining for a new coach? They were. Yes, yes they were.
 
storminspank said:
You REALLY believe that about Lute? REALLY? Listen to some of his interview or better yet talk to him about what happened to during his time in Iowa City. He left because of the fishbowl that was Hawkeye sports.

I realize BB didn't extend Davis' contract, but do you honestly think the fans weren't pining for a new coach? They were. Yes, yes they were.
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I remember listening to the pregame before Davis' last game at Iowa - Dolph and Bobby were taking calls and i would say 75% of the callers said they were ready for a new coach to take this program to the "next level". I remember Dolph and Bobby were defending Davis strongly. But Stormin is right, the majority of Hawk fans were ready and excited for a new coach
 
storminspank said:
You REALLY believe that about Lute? REALLY? Listen to some of his interview or better yet talk to him about what happened to during his time in Iowa City. He left because of the fishbowl that was Hawkeye sports.

I realize BB didn't extend Davis' contract, but do you honestly think the fans weren't pining for a new coach? They were. Yes, yes they were.
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You talk to Lute Olson? Wow! You are one lucky son of a gun! Do you work for the athletic department? How did you get to be such an insider?
 
MisterHappy said:
You talk to Lute Olson? Wow! You are one lucky son of a gun! Do you work for the athletic department? How did you get to be such an insider?
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You don't have to be an insider to know stormin is right about the Lute situation. It's pretty much common knowledge.

As for Davis, it wasn't the fans who ran him out. It was some of the high dollar boosters and Mr. Bowlsby.
 
Lute wasnt run off. Not liking the attention in a small area is one thing, being "run off" is completely different.

As for Lickliter needing more time, its a complete joke and hilarious in the many lame attempts to support the view of more time. This guy is failing, its on him, no one else. Minnesota was in as bad, or worse shape, look at how quickly he turned it around. Lickliter runs this program, so the failure to turn it around, to win, or even be marginally respectible is ALL ON HIM.
 
busabus114 said:
75% of the callers said they were ready for a new coach to take this program to the "next level".
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And how did that work out?????????????

Give the man the time it takes to build this program back to prominence the RIGHT WAY!!!!! That does not include bringing in lots of JUCO'S for a short term fix. It takes getting several years of solid recruiting classes that fit the style the coach wants to play and giving those recruits the years it takes to grow, mature and develop.

Did Coach get the right recruiting class the first year in? Probably not, as it takes time to develop NEW CONTACTS to recruit the players it takes in the Big Ten. Lick's old contacts were fine for the MAC but it took time to start building new relationships with the right people. I think some of those new relationships are starting to bring rewards. Cougill and Payne are probably the first examples. The next examples are Brust, Marble, McCabe and Larsen.

I have NO DOUBT that Coach Lick and AD Barta are as concerned as the fans are. I also believe they are "on the same page" about the manner and timing it will take to build the program the RIGHT WAY!!!!

I still believe by the time Gatens, Tucker, Fuller, etc are seniors we will see SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS toward what we all want.

However, as I have said before, if we see significant defections after this year I will become MORE deeply concerned and agree it will then be time for a change.
 
storminspank said:
You REALLY believe that about Lute? REALLY? Listen to some of his interview or better yet talk to him about what happened to during his time in Iowa City. He left because of the fishbowl that was Hawkeye sports.

I realize BB didn't extend Davis' contract, but do you honestly think the fans weren't pining for a new coach? They were. Yes, yes they were.
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How about the rumor going around that Lute had multiple gambling debts and owed lots of people money. Wasnt true but that was the sort of thing he was getting tired of dealing with.
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Kenizom
 
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It doesn't matter. Barta's going to come out at the end of the season and say something like this:

"We know we need to see improvement in the team and Todd knows that. We're disappointed in the progress this year and so is Todd. Todd's going to be our coach for next year and I believe he's the guy who can get this done"

Lick's here for at least another year so just deal with it. And if we go like 16-15 and 6-12 next year he'll be back for another. So what good does it do to whine about it?
 
SteveGarvey said:
Lick's here for at least another year so just deal with it. And if we go like 16-15 and 6-12 next year he'll be back for another. So what good does it do to whine about it?
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That's not good enough. We the fans have to wait FOUR YEARS for 16-15 and 6-12 in the Big Ten?!!! THAT IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH!
 
Iowa State will likely be in the same situation shortly and I think the answer is the same - winning is the only thing that will bring people back.
 
A Big False. A majority of fans said this back when we thought the fan support was dwindling by a thousand during the alford era......
The only way to right this ship fast is to part ways in the middle of the season and start the coaching search for a Big Name Coach to immediatley bring excitement ot the base, perk the interst of recruits and garner some national attention.
If you fire Lick and hire someone similar well then Iowa BBall will be no better off. It is much harder to get kids to come to Iowa City... I like Lick but this is not working out.
 
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