Next coach?
- Thread starter sportsfanatic27
- Start date
I'll agree that these are the ones that immediately come to mind and would be considered by many/most as good to great hires. That said, 3 of the 4 of them are flyers from an actual coaching standpoint. I'll also agree that they are all less than likely to take the job.
So, next tier...
Casey Cunningham- Cael assistant. Good recruiting ties and certainly should know how to coach elite talent. Has ties with the Paulsons so could potentially keep one of them if we deem that important in wrestler/recruit retention.
Cody Sanderson- Would he ever leave Cael? He's the man behind the man and by most accounts is responsible for much of the day to day operation of PSU. Hafta think he may be the best administrative candidate we could get. Great recruiting ties but can he or Cunningham recruit elite kids without Cael's name?
Donny Pritzlaff- Has been considered an elite assistant for several years. Recruiting and performance at UW Madison definitely improved while he was there. He's a New Jersey native and has reestablished ties there in his time at Rutgers. NJ would be a great pipeline to tap into. Not sure if there is any desire to return to the mid west.
Mark Perry- Not much middle ground here. People either think he's awesome or worthless. Has seemed to recruit well, including Martinez to Illinois, but as buf aptly pointed out the other day, he hasn't done a very good job of protecting his back yard at Illinois.
J Jaggers- Has been a part of a huge program build at tOSU. Elite recruiting ties in wrestling hotbeds. I would think he would be among the top assistant candidates.
Others??
Sleepers/flyers (from my point of view with no inside info)
Daryl Weber- Took over the Christianburg high school program that Dresser left and has maintained elite high school status.....again, high school. Don Bosco product who went from walk on to Natl Champ at Iowa. Has been around elite coaches his whole life.
Ben Askren (who for some reason I have talked myself into believing is a great candidate)- ELITE qualifications as a wrestler. Has a wrestling academy that could bring great youth talent to Ames on a regular basis. Has the kind of personality that would draw in fans and I believe, recruits and had a very entertaining brand of wrestling, ala Cael, that could be appealing.
Others? Thoughts? Hate mail?
Wow - didn't realize we had $50 to $100 million just laying around to build a Div. I hockey facility...
Your response in the Dapper Dan thread leads me to believe it's Allar. You don't have to say anything just blink twice if that's right.
High stakes here. Just hope Pollard realizes the attendance and fan interest potential in great wrestling. Peripheral fans like me had season tix throughout the Cael years and the first couple of Jackson's, and thousands like me would come right back. With a national-contending program, our home attendance would explode, and the black curtain would be taken down.
He's thinking big, I hope.
He's thinking big, I hope.
Cael is sitting in wrestling mecca, churning out championships like water out of the spigot. Two Olympians this year out of NLWC, and a couple of USA backups. His experiment is just coming to fruition. He's not going anywhere.
He's just as likely looking to kill the program once and for all. The numbers Judoka shared the other day are really concerning.
I was hoping Gomez was the one buf was referring to. 2 already is not great. Allar would be my guess too, since he probably would've chose Minnesota without the whole J Rob scandal.
Verkleeren's tweet wasn't real encouraging either.
And now Downey is already wondering (out loud) where he might go next year.
My feeling is comprising a "working group" of former alum is the way to go. I think we can all agree that JP is one of, if not the best AD we have had at ISU. With that said, I don't think collegiate wrestling is one of his strong suites. Reach out to former alum, get them together and have them come up with a short list for JP to interview.
I would reach out to Kelly Ward, Santana, Hummel, of course the Gibbons Brothers, Kreiger, Van Arsdale, Varner, Reader(I'm sure I'm missing somebody, feel free to interject) and of course Bobby. I'd even want KJ's input. Bobby can chair the committee. They can get together via social media or in person and come up with a list of 3-4 guys and present it to JP.
It's the only way to get it done. We have to make the correct hire.....
I would reach out to Kelly Ward, Santana, Hummel, of course the Gibbons Brothers, Kreiger, Van Arsdale, Varner, Reader(I'm sure I'm missing somebody, feel free to interject) and of course Bobby. I'd even want KJ's input. Bobby can chair the committee. They can get together via social media or in person and come up with a list of 3-4 guys and present it to JP.
It's the only way to get it done. We have to make the correct hire.....
JP killed wrestling the day he let Cael go to Penn Station.
ISU would have to add a sport if it killed wrestling. We are currently at the minimum.
This used to be a top 3 wrestling destination but the prospects thrown around don't raise the needle to me. Has the program fallen that far down? I think the best thing that can be done to get a "big time" hire would be for JP to make a commitment of resources to the program. Question is will he and can he? Guess if he could he would have done it with Cael.
So, one of the top recruiting classes in the nation has just been cut in two. And others might leave as well. Be careful what you ask for.
I guess KJ stepping down now was probably the best way to handle this, once this was determined.
I guess KJ stepping down now was probably the best way to handle this, once this was determined.
NONE of the prospects mentioned move the needle for you? I've seen Dake, Taylor, Burroughs, Popolizio and Terry Brands mentioned at one time or another, along with a who's who of assistant coaches. Yes, the program has fallen a long ways and I'm not sure how realistic any of the people mentioned are, but I think we've listed most of the big time candidates that are out there. Short of Gable, Cael or John Smith, who moves the needle for you?
The timing may not be the best, though I thought it necessary. Seems a lot of the biggest names are still competing.
Not that he would or wouldn't be the best (and I think he might be), but I went and looked at Kevin Dresser's bio at Virginia Tech and read an article. If you look at the success he has had there and the fact his wife is a native and the age of their kids, and ask yourself whether you would leave.
