I feel a little dirty right now because, for all I know, I am the one starting this rumor. I have not read it anywhere else yet, possibly because Kelvin Sampson has yet to be fired (though he is clearly a dead man walking in Bloomington), so I am tempted to just keep it to myself.
Then again, what are the chances that Indiana's AD reads the Scenic City Sportsblog?
Why would Indiana go after Coach Pearl?
1) He is one of, if not THE, hottest coach in the country right now with a team poised to make a run at the Final Four.
2) With only three years in Knoxville under his belt, the roots might not be strong enough yet to keep him loyal to the Vols.
3) He is a Big 10 guy (got his start as an assistant at Iowa) - might want to come back.
4) He won his national championship at Southern Indiana - might want to come back.
5) He won his notoriety at Wisconsin-Milwaukee - might want to come back.
6) The University of Illinois hates him. Still.
7) Post-Sampson - Pearl has a clean record with the NCAA.
Why Would Coach Pearl Go To Indiana?
1) It is Indiana basketball.
2) $$$ - Can Tennessee pay Fulmer, Summitt and Pearl the big bucks that Indiana could throw at Pearl and nobody else?
3) Pearl got divorced this summer - would it be easier to start his new life elsewhere?
4) Even though things are great in Knoxville right now, he will lose Chris Lofton, JaJuan Smith and probably Tyler Smith next year. Strike while the iron is hot - this is the year for Pearl to leave if he has thoughts of doing so.
Why Would Coach Pearl Stay at Tennessee?
1) Why go live in Bobby Knight's shadow? He is already close to becoming the most beloved men's basketball coach in Tennessee history.
2) Illinois hates him. Still. Why should he voluntarily (no pun intended) walk into that tornado?
3) Loyalty to Tennessee? The university was the first to hire him despite the suspected blackballing after the Deon Thomas situation. It has been responsive to his requests, specifically renovating Thompson-Boling Arena. Maybe the roots are strong enough to keep him.
4) Tennessee is becoming a basketball state - look at Memphis, Vanderbilt and even Chattanooga is having a strong year. Indiana is the past; Tennessee is the future.
5) How bad is this probation going to be? If Pearl is limited as far as scholarships and post-season possibilities, he is entering a no-win situation.
After working out all the details and weighing all the options, I feel better about this scenario. If Indiana has any brains at all (after hiring Sampson, I have my doubts), they will inquire about Coach Pearl. The job he is doing in Knoxville is one of the most impressive resurrections this side of Lazarus.
I'm afraid we are going to deal with these types of rumors every season with Pearl. Tennessee has not, historically, been a basketball school, so the lure of going to an Indiana, UCLA, Duke, etc. will always be there. I also wonder if Coach Pearl has the type of Roy Williams/Coach K personality that is content with maintaining a strong program or if he is more comfortable building the program.
I do know this - I never lost sleep wondering if Jerry Green or Buzz Peterson might bolt Knoxville for another job. This is a nice problem to have.
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6 comments:
My Brother-in-law and I were talking about this just last weekend-- not Indiana, specifically, but the idea that Pearl would likely get an offer he would not be able to refuse. He seemed to think there was no reason for Pearl to stay in Knoxville. I was shocked. Call me naive, but I really have bought into Pearl's salesmanship. He has said on numerous occasions now that UT has one of the best, if not *the* best practice facility in the country. The mutual admiration society that those three UT coaches you mentioned have is a little weird, but I genuinely think they really like each other and enjoy rooting for one another. I don't want to think about, and I hope you (and my BIL) are dead wrong.
On a side not, that was a wild one today in Athens. Weird though, I never felt like we were going to lose.
I'm about to type up my thoughts on today's game, but I had the exact same reaction.
I have drunk the Pearl Kool-Aid, but have also seen enough coaches bolt in similar circumstances that it worries me. Heck, I have enjoyed the past couple of years so much that I just might be willing to forgive him for leaving.
A request: Could you explain an "illegal screen" for me? I think they called it a couple of times last night, and even though I was able to "rewind" it in slow-mo, I couldn't grasp the difference.
Whenever Dave Bliss set a screen, it was illegal.
The rule is that you are supposed to be set and that you are supposed to give the defender a foot of space (i.e. you are not allowed to run right up into the defender to screen him).
The way it is called is different - referees HATE it when you blindside a defender who is moving full speed. Two of the illegal screen calls were because of that. For the most part, if everyone knows that a screen is being set (like at the top of the key where Georgia kept setting their double ball screen), the refs will rarely call it illegal.
Indiana is a past nothing....The Big Schools now rule college sports.. Indiana? Basketball(past tense) and nothing else... Look at the total programs. UT=future IU=Past(Mens bb only) Click your heels together. Bruce aint leaving.
User..your a fag, I guess our two All-Americans AKA F**kin badasses don't overlook your whole team. Tennessee is a shit school for basketball and what is happening right now is not the end..We come to play in March. Believe that. Does Tennessee know what its like to get to the championship..No..the Final Four..No..THE ELITE EIGHT..NOOOOO..Indiana is still very much alive douche. I hope we play you so you can see how Big Ten basketball is really played.
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