Illini Coaching Staff

#526      

kuhl84

K
Orlando, FL
kuhl84
I wonder if there is some flexibility in the salary pools between the Assistant positions and the Staff positions.

If Walker and Evans were paid in the $300,000 range (big raise for both), it might make sense to get Heirman as the third assistant at $175,000 and use the savings to bump up DOBO position to get a guy like Pastrana to come for the money instead of the title.

Maybe that buys us Bowen, and gets us enough guys to teach the the Underwood system.
 
#527      

combes

C
combes
Second and Chalmers said:
We've gotta get Evans. Have to.

I want as much of the OSU and SFA staffs as we can possibly fit. Walker complicates that. Mike Boynton getting the OSU job complicates that. Stephen Gentry was an assistant along with Boynton at SFA and is now the Director of Player Development or some such at OSU. You'd have figured we could have brought him along in the same role, but now Boynton may very well make him a full time assistant, something Underwood can't do because he needs a Chicago Whisperer in addition to Walker.

Danny Henderson is the 3rd assistant at OSU, he's a longtime Texas high school coach, you figure he'll stay.

The 3rd assistant from SFA is Erik Pastrana, who is an assistant at FIU. Anthony Evans is a dead man walking in that job, so maybe we could get him in a non-assistant role?
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You really don't like the Walker hire for some reason. It doesn't complicate anything. He is a valuable part of the new staff.

It will be Walker, Evans, and someone not mentioned yet, IMO.
 
#528      

FatGreg

F
FatGreg
kuhl84 said:
I wonder if there is some flexibility in the salary pools between the Assistant positions and the Staff positions.

If Walker and Evans were paid in the $300,000 range (big raise for both), it might make sense to get Heirman as the third assistant at $175,000 and use the savings to bump up DOBO position to get a guy like Pastrana to come for the money instead of the title.

Maybe that buys us Bowen, and gets us enough guys to teach the the Underwood system.
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This would be an outstanding resolution. I'm sure it won't happen, but bringing in Heirman, getting Bowen, and convincing Pastrana to take a support role would be over the top great.

I think I'd ultimately rather end up with Gates or Antigua rather than Heirman, but I'd be ecstatic with any of the three (esp. if Heirman somehow delivered Tugs).
 
#529      

kuhl84

K
Orlando, FL
kuhl84
FatGreg said:
This would be an outstanding resolution. I'm sure it won't happen, but bringing in Heirman, getting Bowen, and convincing Pastrana to take a support role would be over the top great.

I think I'd ultimately rather end up with Gates or Antigua rather than Heirman, but I'd be ecstatic with any of the three (esp. if Heirman somehow delivered Tugs).
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Yea, I just don't think Gates or Antigua are realistic. They would be great, but I don't see how it happens.
 
#535      

combes

C
combes
MrOizo said:
Good call, that would be a nice stealth move. Not sure if the midwest makes sense for him but you never know.
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I don't think we would want to have to explain his past. Ever since the Jamar Smith incident, our rivals call us the dUI. Unfair but not a good look. Too many other options to go that route, IMO.
 
#541      

FiveStar

F
FiveStar
combes said:
I don't think we would want to have to explain his past. Ever since the Jamar Smith incident, our rivals call us the dUI. Unfair but not a good look. Too many other options to go that route, IMO.
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What rivals do we have that are clever enough to come up with this?
 
#542      

Burt Toast

B
Burt Toast
Whatever happened to the Nebraska asst coach with all of the Chicago aau and CPL ties? Looked him up on Nebraska website and he's no longer there? Any recent Chicago players that recently graduated from college and are coaching right now? I like Deon but it's been awhile and probably not connected to recent Chicagoland scene. Why not consider nick Irvin himself? Coached at DePaul so he should be used to operating within NCAA compliance? Gates would be best candidate IMO.


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#544      

Burt Toast

B
Burt Toast
Found it. Ron "Chin" Coleman. Used to coach for mac Irvin. Responsible for bringing 2-3 mac Irvin kids to Nebraska for Miles in only 6 months when he was offered a full asst coach job at Bradley under geno. When geno was fired he joined UICs program where he still is I believe. I wouldn't be surprised if he has already tossed his hat in the ring. Apparently is well connected.


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#546      

Second and Chalmers

S
Second and Chalmers
combes said:
You really don't like the Walker hire for some reason. It doesn't complicate anything. He is a valuable part of the new staff.
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It's not that I don't like it. I understand it fully. I trust that if Underwood didn't think Tilmon and a chance at Smith and a risk of losing Damonte or whoever were worth the squeeze, he would go in a different direction.

But the issue is that you have to have a Chicago Whisperer and Walker isn't it. That's two designated recruiter slots. Obviously Underwood is the brains of the operation, which is not always something the head coach can be totally relied upon, but my prime concern is making sure this system is installed and run and maintained as well as possible in practice and film study and the like. It's not that I think Walker is incapable of that, but he's new to Underwood and what he does.
 
#547      

Tevo

Tevo
Wilmette, IL
Tevo
Second and Chalmers said:
It's not that I don't like it. I understand it fully. I trust that if Underwood didn't think Tilmon and a chance at Smith and a risk of losing Damonte or whoever were worth the squeeze, he would go in a different direction.

But the issue is that you have to have a Chicago Whisperer and Walker isn't it. That's two designated recruiter slots. Obviously Underwood is the brains of the operation, which is not always something the head coach can be totally relied upon, but my prime concern is making sure this system is installed and run and maintained as well as possible in practice and film study and the like. It's not that I think Walker is incapable of that, but he's new to Underwood and what he does.
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To this point, I assume Walker is going to have a VERY busy summer, not only continuing to recruit, but also taking a crash course in Underwood's offense and defense, and going through a LOT of film with Brad to learn the in's and out's. Same with whomever else Brad hires to round out the staff.

With regards to the "Chicago Whisperer", surely there must be someone out there who is very familiar with Chicago and has the "cred" to recruit there, but also has experience recruiting nationally. Or do we think the Chicago guy will be so busy there that he won't also be able to track down and attract players from other areas? It seems like with a staff of only 3 assistants, everyone needs to be able to be multi-skilled -- coach the system, develop skills, recruit succesfully (at least in one region, if not nationally), and/or scout opponents. I guess the trick is identifying those guys and convincing them to join the staff.
 
#548      

OneTime3

O
OneTime3
Don't really buy into the whole Chicago thing too much, elite Chicago kids don't come here because we haven't won anything in like a decade.
 
#549      

Combo

C
Combo
OneTime3 said:
Don't really buy into the whole Chicago thing too much, elite Chicago kids don't come here because we haven't won anything in like a decade.
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Exactly. If we get back to Sweet 16s and Elite 8s, the top kids from Chicago will start showing interest. You're never going to get all of them or even most of them. That's not the way big cities work. No one locks down NYC, Chicago, LA, or Miami.
 
#550      

whitesxfan2012

whitesxfan2012
Orange & Blue tweety bird
Louisville, KY
whitesxfan2012
Seth Davis is now pro-Illini. :thumb:


CBS Sports analyst Seth Davis was asked, the best coaching hire this off-season: Without a doubt not even close Brad Underwood @ IL #Illini.