S.F. (5-15) lost to mighty Santa Clara (11-9) 66-48, so Fed Ex Eddie is still at 799.
I hope that Coach K (792) gets there first.
Is he counting his son's wins during his various leaves of absence as his own? Can we petition the NCAA to get these stricken from his record, as unc fans like to say?
The thing I find most confusing is why USF would so willingly act as a pawn in his scheme to get the last two W's. Their season appears to have been a wash anyway, so it's certainly not as if he's really hurting them on the court this year (in fact, I'm sure he still has decent coaching chops, at least as good as anyone else they could have lined up on such short notice). But it can't be helping their recruiting or other long-term planning for it to be common knowledge that Sutton isn't coming back next year. Moreover, such a transparent grasp at a number is embarrassing for the school (though perhaps not as embarrassing as Sutton's obvious, public fall from grace).
If getting to milestone wins is this big of a deal for coaches, don't you think taking back the wins from tainted programs would be an appropriate action in curbing potential NCAA violations? Aside from having to resign from Kentucky, what did failing to run a tight ship really cost Sutton?
No, I think his 48 wins at UofK, or at the very least, the 21 from '87 through 89 ought to be removed from his all time win stats.
Solid argument. If a team has to erase victories, championships, etc., so should a coach.
"Limp towards 800." Perfectly described.
If that is the case, UK wouldn't have 7 championships.
How does OSU feel about all this? They've been on ESPN quite a bit recently, so I've had the chance to see a couple of their home games where the court proudly declares that it is the Eddie Sutton Court, yet Eddie is off coaching at another school. That has to be embarrassing? I'll admit that I don't know why he left OSU, as I assumed it was to ensure that his son got the job after him.
In February of 2006, Eddie took a leave of absence after her had an auto accident and was cited with a DUI. His son Sean coached out the year, but Daddy got credit for the 4 - 3 record while was he was on leave. He retired at the end of the year.
Maybe the guy just wants to coach. Any of us would drop what we're doing in a NY minute if given the chance, right?
On the other hand, to the extent that he is chasing a record, I agree it is a fool's game.
Devil is in the details. He took the job midseason, without seeing the campus or meeting his players. Oh yes, he took the job while USF still had a coach! Big surprise, the Pump Brothers brokered the deal. The prior Coach was told at Christmas that he had been replaced.
Just slimey.
OK. Maybe I am jealous and would have taken the job too. As Jay Bilas said, the 900th is the toughest win to get
One thing is certain, however. When Eddie does finally reach that 800th victory, he'll go down in the history books as...the exact same coach he was with 798.
Sorry, Ed, but 800 victories won't place you in the Knight, Krzyzewski, Wooden, Rupp, Smith, Allen, [insert about 10, perhaps 27 more names here] debate. The fact that it took such a long, embarrasing, humbling journey, at probably the only school in the country who would have drug in your tired old bones, to take a line from Hoosiers, after such a disgraceful exit at Oklahoma State, will only drive you further away from the discussion.
With that said, I almost feel sorry for him.