Gary Williams Retires

[oakvillebluedevil]

http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebask...seasons-050511

Wow. Another big change coming.

[JasonEvans]

Huge news.

Unlike some of the other ACC programs that have had some trouble finding a good replacement coach lately, I think Maryland is a more attractive job because they have had some big successes in the past decade and the program is seen as a priority for the university (unlike Clemson, Miami, Ga Tech, and some other schools where football comes first).

I have not even begun to think about replacements for Gary. I need to think a bit about which former assistants or players might be compelling potential replacements. No one really jumps to mind though.

I wonder if this had something to do with Jordan Williams' final decision to head to the NBA.

-Jason "we may have mocked him, but Gary could coach... he will be missed" Evans

[dukenilnil]

hope he and his family are healthy. It seems rather abrupt.

[Mike Corey]

hope he and his family are healthy. It seems rather abrupt.

He's just dehydrated, no worries.

[fisheyes]

Sure seems to be for real:

http://www.umterps.com/sports/m-bask...050511aab.html

He's staying on as Assistant AD and will be fund raising.

Wow.

[Biscuit King]

Speak for yourself, Evans. I won't miss the sweaty jerk.

As for replacements, I assume the brilliant Jimmy Patsos will be on the list. And maybe Dave Dickerson. If they are smart, though, they'll go outside the coaching tree.

[NovaScotian]

Wow, this is quite the shock. Maybe he just didn't have another year of underperforming in duke and unc's shadow in him. Too bad his last year was a let down - if he left after vasquez's senior year at least he could have gone out on top in the acc (sort of).

[SmartDevil]

hope he and his family are healthy. It seems rather abrupt.

According to the often unreliable DC sports radio stations, Gary got married again two weeks ago.

[JasonEvans]

According to the often unreliable DC sports radio stations, Gary got married again two weeks ago.

Part of how I will always remember Gary (a small part) is this photo --



--Jason "the chicken bone in his hand just makes this photo!" Evans

[tommy]

Huge news.

Unlike some of the other ACC programs that have had some trouble finding a good replacement coach lately, I think Maryland is a more attractive job because they have had some big successes in the past decade and the program is seen as a priority for the university (unlike Clemson, Miami, Ga Tech, and some other schools where football comes first).

I have not even begun to think about replacements for Gary. I need to think a bit about which former assistants or players might be compelling potential replacements. No one really jumps to mind though.

I wonder if this had something to do with Jordan Williams' final decision to head to the NBA.

-Jason "we may have mocked him, but Gary could coach... he will be missed" Evans

Wow. Didn't see this one coming at all.

Replacements? What about The Citadel's Head Coach?

[SCMatt33]

Huge news.

Unlike some of the other ACC programs that have had some trouble finding a good replacement coach lately, I think Maryland is a more attractive job because they have had some big successes in the past decade and the program is seen as a priority for the university (unlike Clemson, Miami, Ga Tech, and some other schools where football comes first).

I have not even begun to think about replacements for Gary. I need to think a bit about which former assistants or players might be compelling potential replacements. No one really jumps to mind though.

I wonder if this had something to do with Jordan Williams' final decision to head to the NBA.

-Jason "we may have mocked him, but Gary could coach... he will be missed" Evans

I seriously doubt that Jordan Williams had any influence. If he did, Gary wouldn't retire so soon afterward. I would assume he had been ready to do this for a while and just made the final call now. If anything, Jordan Williams only influenced him in that Gary would have wanted to let Jordan make his announcement first so that he didn't steal his thunder.

His decision is a little late in terms of coach movement as most of the coaches who want to move have moved, which could limit Maryland's options depending on who they want to hire. That being said, he is the only coach to win a title or even reach the Final Four at Maryland, so I think he earned the right to take his time with the decision.

I guess now, the only sweating that Gary will be doing will be on the beach or the golf course or chasing around grandchildren.

I couldn't comment on this without reminding everyone that Gary Williams final game as a head coach ended up being a loss to Duke.

[JasonEvans]

I seriously doubt that Jordan Williams had any influence. If he did, Gary wouldn't retire so soon afterward. I would assume he had been ready to do this for a while and just made the final call now. If anything, Jordan Williams only influenced him in that Gary would have wanted to let Jordan make his announcement first so that he didn't steal his thunder.

You misunderstood (and I did not make myself clear). I did not mean that Gary retired because Jordan Williams was leaving. I meant that Jordan may have made up his mind t leave because Gary told him he was retiring.

Does that make more sense?

-Jason "sorry for the mixup" Evans

[moonpie23]

the face of the ACC basketball profile is continually changing... i'm gonna miss the sweat machine myself..

[OZZIE4DUKE]

Very surprising indeed. I didn't see this one coming.

I think they will have a far wider range of highly qualified and interested candidates than did NC State. And I'm pretty sure that Debbie Yow won't try to influence any of them not to take the job...

[gethlives]

This is an extremely attractive job--I would say clearly the third best in the league and maybe a top 15 job in the country so I think that they will look beyond just folks with Maryland ties. I think, for instance, Shaka Smart, would be a real candidate this is clearly the step up that NC State wasn't necessarily. Even someone like a Jamie Dixon or a Jay Wright is a possibility though that is probably a lateral move for them. Point being, I think they will get a real good hire

[SCMatt33]

You misunderstood (and I did not make myself clear). I did not mean that Gary retired because Jordan Williams was leaving. I meant that Jordan may have made up his mind t leave because Gary told him he was retiring.

Does that make more sense?

-Jason "sorry for the mixup" Evans

That makes much more sense. Stupid pronouns and ambiguity. I just read that math equation thread on the off-topic board and I'm sick of ambiguity right now. GRRRR.

On the replacement front, I wonder how much the AD will look to win the press conference. To do that they will need a big name (which I'm not sure they'll get, especially this late) or at least a proven recruiter given their frustrations with Gary's recruiting style over the past few years. If they don't see what they like right now, I could see them going the "caretaker" route and hire an older guy to be there for three or four years and try again. With Jordan Williams gone, it's not exactly like they're on the verge of a Final Four anyway.

[JasonEvans]

What about Chuck Dreisell, son of the legendary lefthander? Chuck coached for several years at a Div III school and has been on the staff at James Madison and Georgetown before coming to Maryland, where he was an assistant for 4 years. He left Maryland to be the head coach at The Citadel last year. They weren't very good, but it was his first year on the job and that is not an easy program at which to win. He would seem to have at least some respectable experience and might be considered for the job.

Keith Booth is currently on Gary's staff and has been for several years. He has no head coaching experience, but was a very successful player in college and then in the NBA. I wonder if he will get a look.

Rick Barnes and Fran Fraschilla both coached under Gary at Ohio State. I don't think Barnes is leaving Texas for Maryland and Fran pretty much coached his way out of another big-time job when he was at St John. Is being an assistant to Gary in the past enough of a connection for Maryland to consider you? If so, Fran Dunphy could be in the mix too as he was on Gary's staff at American. Fran has done a really nice job at Temple and Penn. He's older, but would be a nice hire if Maryland can get him.

I think they should really look at Jimmy Patsos, who was an assistant at Maryland for 13 years. He is currently at Loyola (MD), which is a woeful program that had not had a winning season in more than a decade when he took them over in 2004. He hasn't turned them into world-beaters, but they've had winning seasons in 4 of the past 6 years -- which is like a miracle at Loyola. They had one year they won 19 games. He's in his mid-40s, so he's young enough to perhaps stay in the job for a while. I think he'd be a strong candidate.

--Jason "Any other ideas?" Evans

[MChambers]

Keith Booth is currently on Gary's staff and has been for several years. He has no head coaching experience, but was a very successful player in college and then in the NBA. I wonder if he will get a look.

Booth was a good college player, but he scored a total of 130 points in the NBA. Might be a good coach, however, and it would be nice to hear Bobby Cremins pronounce his name once more.

[OldPhiKap]

Wow, big blow for the conference.

Not a "fan" by any stretch but he brought fire and competitiveness to the plate.

It's late in the game to get a replacement, though.

[WVDUKEFAN]

Not a "fan" per se, either, but I always thought Coach Williams was a class act. I'd take him over Ole' Roy any day of the week.