MrAlien

Give Tech some credit, they appreciate athletics, they pack their gym in for every game, and looks like they are willing to wait a few weeks into the transfer window to name a coach.

The Big12 is going to be hard conference just to play in let alone qualify for the Big Dance out of. I do think the AAC will be a 2-3 bid conference, and thats probably going to come at the expense of one of the High Major conferences like the Big12.

absolutely it matters to players, but we are talking about coaches, and I would wager most coaches would prefer total control of their program to a fancy looking practice gym.

I dont think facilities play that big of a role when it comes to attracting coaches. certainly salary plays a role, but I think control, and abilities can be an important part too.

how long do they have to conduct a national search? The semester is almost over, and the transfer portal is already open. These players really love this coach, if he goes then I would expect a couple players to test the transfer portal. I think the best way to keep the program going is to hand it over to Hodge right away. Otherwise we risk the program collapsing, and having to start a rebuild.

I think it would almost have to be Hodge, waiting until April to start the search is going to effect recruits and re-recruits, and how many quality available coaches will be left by then. With Hodge he would be able to continue some of Mac's recruiting strategy.

Turning the Texas tech program around will not be easy, the Big12 is stacked and just about every program in that conference will out recruit Tech from high schools and in the transfer window. there is a major recruiting gap in the Big12 between the top schools and the bottom schools in that conference. Nothing against Mac, but what Tech really needs is a big name coach that can instantly recruit top ranked players.

Houston is another example of what is possible... basketball recruiting has changed a lot recently, the very best players are expecting to turn pro with in a year, and everyone else is constantly looking to transfer, the mid majors might actually have an advantage when it comes to keeping players.

sure there are a lot of rumors floating around twitter, however there has been nothing official, just media, boosters, and alumni speculating, not unlike last year with SMU. they just see a power conference school in need of a coach, and assume the best mid major coach with in 500 miles is the obvious answer. These same speculators still seem to think the Texas job is up for grabs.

CUSA was obviously a stronger conference then the selection committee or anyone thought. Problem was, the OOC schedules made it hard to gauge, and the bottom end of the conference being so weak didnt help either.

I think the AAC will be a lot tighter, they will be gaining 5 programs that could all potentially be Quad-1 programs, and current schools like SMU and Wichita that will more then likely turn it around.

I prefer ESPN+ way easier to navigate, never have to worry about missing the start of a game because the previous game went to overtime, plus I watch a lot of hockey and its great for that.

Thats why I said UNT could offer more... Hopefully the university realizes his importance.

Salary-wise I think UNT could offer more then WS... However there are perks to coaching in a small town as appose to a suburb, more attention in the local media, could be a better launching point to a top program.

Wichita Basketball is the only game in town, big fish in a small pond, that is appealing for some people. Plus the university knows how important their basketball program is, I would expect them to offer a very decent salary and perks. Houston is a big loss, but adding UNT, UAB and FAU more then make up for the losses of Cincy and UCF. Tulane, SMU, and Wichita all have the potential to turn their programs back into Quad-1 teams. I think the AAC will become a very competitive basketball conference, similar to the Mountain West, with 5-6 quad-1 teams.

No doubt its a good job, with a solid fan base. However I think they have struggled the last couple years, some of that is coaching, some of that is recruiting, and some of that might be the NIL. My point is they needed to do something, the AAC is going to be a tougher conference next season.

Probably the closest match up in the first round, 8 or 9 seed does not matter because they play each other, Memphis probably deserved the higher seed after beating Houston yesterday. I'll be pulling for FAU, but I think its going to be a tight game.

Does the conference really deserve respect? Outside of FAU, UAB, and UNT the rest of the conference was terrible. Those 3 schools fought it out during the regular season, and the conference tournament, and the best team is going to the dance. FAU as a 9 seed, I am good with that, 8 seed plays 9 seed on a neutral court so there is really no difference. I do think it is interesting that FAU will play Memphis, the only 8/9 match up involving two schools from mid majors.

The AAC might be loosing Houston, however they are gaining 3 schools that have all been in the top 50 in NET. Not to long ago Wichita had one of the better programs in the AAC, heading into next season they could be even further behind, Tulane is on the way up, and SMU will also likely improve.

I dont see it that way... CUSA was a 3 team conference, the rest of the conference was bad, and I think they took the best of the 3 top teams, FAU. I think the losses to Rice and Charlotte probably hurt us more in the NET then it did with the committee. In the end UNT had 1 Q1 win (UAB had 2), and loosing to them in the CUSA tournament pretty much meant that UNT would not be dancing.

Personally I have always preferred UNT Basketball to UNT Football... I think the program is in a good place, recruiting is good, players are developing and constantly improving. Looking ahead to joining the AAC, its going to be a good basketball conference, and I think we will see a lot of close games. I think the AAC could end up being a solid 3 bid conference, maybe 4. I would like to see a better OOC schedule next season.

should FAU not win the tournament, will they really get an at large? who would they bump? Memphis, a Big10 school?

Every college senior is being asked about their future plans this time of year, athletes are no exception. If he is graduating then I sure he probably has some job offers, grad school is an option (though he probably would have applied by now).

We are not going to play Tulane every year... we will play them away in 2023, home in 2025 and away in 2026

no, however a win should move UNT up into serious bubble consideration (though alot of projections have UNT already in the bubble)