Let me preface this by saying that for the most part, I have always respected the job Keith Dambrot did at Akron. He was a "love to hate" type of guy who you hated mostly because he was successful. But...

1. Would Duquesne have even finished in the middle of the pack in the MAC East?
2. If he's taking a bunch of Akron guys and recruits with him..what does that say for Duquesne that if they are at a higher level than the MAC he's bringing in MAC players?
3. Dunn-Martin can go to Duquesne. Dude was solid but in the A-10 he will get run.
4. Really Duquesne...Witness brand? Using a Cleveland brand in Pittsburgh is going to go really well.
5. Speaking of Bron..will he now leave Akron ball in the past and start wearing "Dukes" stuff or will he just distance himself from Dambrot? I need a LeBron comment on this move!
6. Antino Jackson is mad. He's got two years left. I think he dated Monique Jenkins. Let's get him to OU!
7. As good as his regular season records were, the fact remains, only 3 NCAA appearances and embarrassing losses in all.
8. He was cranky the last few years. Not gracious in defeat...picking fights with reporters like Arkley...blaming refs...not respecting his opponents...time for a change.
9. If Boals doesn't get this job something is wrong in Akron.

Discuss amongst yourselves! :)

1. Does it matter? They hired Dambrot to get better in the future.
2. Hurley took the cream with him from Buffalo too. It's not uncommon and we should all know by now that players commit to coaches and not programs.
5. LeBron is deeply committed to UA academically through his foundation. No reason to expect that to change. I think the hoops connection was overblown anyway.
6. I'd love to get some of the better Zips too.
7. Very true, but it did not keep him from a payday. We play in a league that has notched FOUR NCAA wins in the last 15 years and three were on improbable runs by this program. Him losing in the tournament was pretty normal for the MAC, sadly.
8. Disagree with all of that.
9. Stony Brook is a better job than Akron right now, and he just got there.

Random Dambroughts?

Like with Josh Williams, I think he'd be worth checking into if he's available.

The MAC sadly and unfairly being a one-team entry to the Big Dance is a hard pill to swallow year and year after year after year, PARTICULARLY when your team ALWAYS has more than 20 wins and USUALLY plays in the MAC title game.

But I put this blame on Dambrot too. I know MAC schools won't get a home and home with power 5 schools, but then you have to schedule at least 3 big boy non-conference aways games to get the committee's attention for an at large bid. Fact is, Dambrot didn't do this at all in his 13 years at Akron. And yes...I realize they did play Gonzaga this year, but there wasn't enough of it that when it came to his schedule making.

Talking more about the notoriety he brings the school simply because he's from Akron and was coached by Dambrot. Pretty sure he's the reason they got the Nike deal they got. Akron had a damn LeBron bobblehead night for God's sake.

Whoa whoa whoa, it's MANDATORY that fun be made of Akron for giving away a bobblehead of Lebron in a Zips uniform.

I don't know much about Akron's Nike deal. Is it any better than our new Adidas deal?

Also, the bobblehead was a joke. And I don't recall it getting much publicity except for people making fun of how desperate it was.

I don't know the details of the deal, but being only one of 4 schools to use LeBron Nike gear is a pretty sweet deal.

http://www.gozips.com/sports/mbkb/nike

KD is 59 and I think it's his final payday before retirement. If he doesn't resurrect the program he walks away secure. Good for him.

is it really just NCAA tournament money that allows Duquesne (Duquesne!) to pay a coach a freaking million/year? They have a high school gym they barely draw flies to. is it the lack of football? Are they supported by student fees? Do they have deep pockets endowing the inflated coach salaries?

Exactly what I told my wife when she asked why he would do that....almost verbatim