Well, things Groce could have done to prevent his current situation:
Win 1 recruiting battle amongst his efforts for Jackson, Ratan-Mayes, Alexander, Bragg, Brunson, Evans, Thomas, etc.
Prioritize 50-150 recruits over top 20 recruits at positions of need (i.e. 1 and 5 spots)
Keep Mo Watson's visit on the books instead of cancelling it to go visit Bragg.
Not give Darius Paul a second chance at the expense of Colbert.
Make a change with his assistant coaches.
FULL COURT TRAP late in games when down double digits (or close to double digit deficits).
Improved conditioning to sustain athlete endurance in the second half.
And I am not even calling for Groce's job here. I hope he does survive another year, but I am growing more and more pessimistic he will, as I no longer expect the Illini to surpass 4 conference wins this season. I honestly believe if he can even get this team to 6 conference wins he will keep his job, but at some point there is enough evidence to support the idea that he simply is not a strong coach. His biggest supposed strength is in recruiting and that is certainly not strong enough to compensate for being a below average B1G coach.
The most damning indictment for Groce is the attitudes on this board. You don't even hear the posters calling for his job outright slamming him. The average post calling for his job falls along the lines of "boy, I wish it wasn't true, but it's pretty clear Groce is not a very good coach." Weber's last year, the posts fell more along the lines of calling him, his family, his team, his dog out with vulgar, creative language. It isn't that the neysayers WANT him gone, but holy smokes... this is not okay under any circumstances.
On the bright side, danielb CRUSHED it with the National anthem, kudos!