I read this article today in the Raleigh N&O and some of my memories, especially of discussions here on DBR over 6 years ago and since that time don't quite match with this piece. Especially this quote:
“Most of the people, who are still at Duke, wanted to hire (Dorrell),” Alleva said this week. “He’s a good guy, but he was working on the West coast and I didn’t think he was the right fit.”
http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/11/...cutcliffe.html
My recollection was that a search committee was formed and they had to reign in/veto Alleva's choice of Dorrell and hired Cut instead, which, of course, as AD, Alleva ultimately approved and gets the final credit.
I'd really appreciate hearing from Jim Sumner and Olympic Fan and others much closer to/familiar with/having better memories of those events leading up to Cut's hire and clarifying this writing in the N&O.
Thanks.
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
Thanks for the responses so far. According to Alleva's quotes and the memories to the contrary of those who have posted here so far, it's starting to sound like "It's Not About The Truth."
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
One way or another we are well on our way to having the David Cutcliffe field at Wallace Wade Stadium.
And we no longer have Joe Alleva, so that's two for one in my book.
Here is a great article outlining the Cutcliffe hire process and the specifics of each serious candidate (plus a few nuggets on a handful of not-so-serious candidates).
Among the piece's money quotes:
"According to sources, Alleva liked Dorrell a lot and even pushed for him to be hired at one point...Duke's power brokers rejected Alleva's recommendation of Dorrell, however, and chose to continue the process. According to sources, the Dorrell-to-Duke scenario was close enough to happening that calls had been made in preparation for a next-day press conference, just in case."
The article also lambastes Duke's 2004 head coach search as "lazy at best, and woefully incompetent at worst."
Overall, devildeac, it seems to cleave closer to your recollections of the events in question than to Alleva's revisionist self-congratulation in the above-linked piece.
My understanding has always been that Alleva pushed Dorrell but did not get his way.
Many thanks again to the additional folks who responded and re-inforced my occasionally (frequently?) faulty recollection of the events around Cut's hire. I have left a message on Joe Giglio's voice mail tactfully suggesting he might want to interview a few more honest folks in Duke's athletic department and administration who were connected with the hire instead of just trusting Boatin' Joe's self-gratulatory and somewhat inaccurate portrayal of the process. We shall see.
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
Keep us up to date! Regardless of who gets the real credit in the end though, I'm sure I'm joined by everyone in still celebrating his hire. I've spent many games hollering wondering what the hell he was doing in more than a few past games, and I know I shouted "Fire Roper" enough to lose my voice after at least one game. I've always been a fan of Coach Cut's presence on campus and his will to make us the team we are, but I do admit having doubts after walking away after a few head scratching losses. I love that it takes more than one AD (and a bunch of opinionated fans) to make decisions and stay a steady course. LGD!!
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
Wasn't sure where to put this and certainly didn't want to start a new thread about a football coach's dress code:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/ncaaf--...213353667.html
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.