4 MAC East Division Titles = 4 More than ANY Ohio Coach

2 Overall MAC Titles = More than our last FOUR coaches - Hahn, Hunter, O’Shea and Groce - COMBINED

2 Conference Tournament Championship = only Groce/Nee

We have no modern six year span that would come close to his RPI average in the MAC

Why would anyone take an unproven assistant when the above is available? 

On paper this is a HUGE get for Ohio!  First time we have hired a proven winner as HC since Hunter DIII and Got Frank!

He wasn't getting an extention either.  This is a very smart move from Jim Christian's perspective.  He is going from the worst job in the Big 12 to the best job in the MAC.  From reading various things it sounds like their basketball facilities are horrible. The AD that hired him is gone so he didn't even have his boss in his corner. I haven't done the research yet to see how his recruiting went at TCU so I don't know what he had coming back and/or coming in but he had his best season the first year he had all his own players.    

Some realistic names in that thread.....Phil Jackson.....Shaka Smart......yeah right.

I'm surprised so many want Bruce Pearl.....maybe we should have gone after Bruce....he always wanted D.J......just kidding of course.

I'm not sure that it will be 600K.  My guess is that it will be around 400K.  The article said the money was "comparable".  Cost of living is pretty high in DallasFW. 

CATman
You mention that the coach suspended his 3 best players and that is the reason why their performance was so bad. WELL...Weren't these his recruits...WHAT does this tell you about his recruiting strength... he loves JUCO's and bad habits are hard to break.
$600K really?






GO BOBCATS

Post Season 5 out of 6 years? I say not bad and OHIO is a lot easier to recruit at then Kent. That place sucks

I like what I see in terms of Christian's non conference schedules while he was at KSU. It looks like it was a good mix of solid mid-majors (Detroit, Illinois State, St. Louis, George Mason, Cleveland State, Southern Illinois, Creighton) and major conference teams. Kent State played Boston College, Rutgers, Temple, Butler, and Xavier at home while Christian was there, and went on the road to play BC, Florida State, Syracuse, Ohio State, Duke, Marquette and UNC. 

The guy won games at Kent State and seems to know how to put together a tough schedule that wont hurt his RPI, too. 

I really like this hire the more I look into it. 

JSF, the one question I'd like to hear an answer to is this:

JC (please call him by just his initials), in the past you've been high on JUCOs.  Recently at Ohio though, we've had success by recruiting high school players who have come from championship calibur programs.  Which philosophy do you see yourself more likely to utilize here at Ohio?

We're "OWED" an explanation my _ss. OHIO employs Schaus to do the hiring, if they didn't feel he was competent I'm sure he would be replaced. What did you expect the guy to do, take an online poll at BobcatAttack to gauge support for this hire?  For all the EXPERTS on this board, I don't think one had mentioned Christian as a candidate. Maybe Schaus was more than a step ahead of the process and didn't take the time to "compare" his notes with the resident experts on this board.

Didn't the players all have their "jocks" in a knot with the Groce hiring? Wasn't there disappoinment that Big John didn't get the job when TOS hit the "Rhode" Island? People normally don't like change, but change it's going to be like it or not. Schaus seems to have a pretty good track record when it comes to finding the right coaching fit, I seriously doubt he went about this with the mindset of I'm going totally off the wall and screw this whole thing up.

Also beware the prodigal son former player - now assistant  - you just know will be an outstanding Head Coach. Re: Matt Dougherty - UNC. Yea, that UNC. It doesn't always work out no matter how good the intentions were.

Let me be clear that I'm not saying I think Jim Christian is a bad hire - far from it. As I said, at worst, he's a safe hire. OHIO will win a lot of games under this guy. I'm just saying I would be very disappointed if any stone went unturned in this search. How could Jim Christian have been "the guy"? Do he and Schaus have a history? Are they old friends? How long have they been talking? Were any other coaches who expressed interest in the job simply turned away?

Let me also note that I'm "all in". I'm not on here to rail against our new coach, even if I had thought it was a terrible selection (and again, I don't). I'm behind the coach and the team and I look forward to many great moments next season.

Was just reading on the TCU board that when he took over they had only four returning players on the roster and one of those was out of the country and they weren't sure if he was returning.  Talk about having to scramble.

Unless you are in a position of power with Ohio athletics your choices are simple:  Support the AD and the new coach and give them a fair shot to prove themselves, or get off the bandwagon.  Complaining about the coaching hire isn't going to get anyone anywhere.  I have my reservations about Jim Christian, but I can't argue with his MAC results and winning percentage.  I will never complain about OUr school's coach if we're consistently in the top 3 teams in our conference and threatening to go to NCAA/NIT games.  I would certainly like to hope that the senior/junior class jumps on board with him and says "let's be even better next year".

Can we all take a deep breath!  Here are some things I am sure of:

1. Jim Schaus did not throw a dart to pick this coach.  I am certain it was a thorough and deliberate process.  While Groce did not officially leave until Thursday, Schaus new what was coming from Sunday and probably was prepped and ready to roll as soon as it was official.  Schaus hasn't just made good coaching hires at Ohio he has made great administrative hires!  That department has improved significantly in his time and we all have recognized it.  I have a great deal of trust in him.

2. I am POSITIVE that despite the reported offer to Groce, that they would have offered him as much as they were possibly able to.  Not to mention, Schaus said in the press conference that he didn't think money was a factor and Groce said in his press conference that the Big Ten was a dream of his.  Whether we offered him $500 or $600k would not have made a difference.  Illinois didn't even give him anywhere near what people thought and he took it.  He wanted Big Ten not just the money!

3. Anytime you go outside a program and bring someone in that players are unfamiliar with, they are going to have reservations and their loyalty will have them upset.  Having a coach come in that has been a head coach before and made a transition like this before will put him in a better situation to know how to come in and win the team right away.  I like that knowledge coming in with the team we have returning.  If you think he isn't going to make sure he establishes trust with DJ right away, you are crazy. 

4.  DJ has good people in his corner.  There are emotions anytime there is change.  Your initial reaction and emotion is always stronger than once you have had time to think and reflect. That is what I think we have from the players now, but once they get past that everything will be fine.  If you think John Groce is not talking to DJ and encouraging him to stay at Ohio, you are crazy.  Dj loves him and he loves DJ.  He will make sure DJ makes the right move and encourage him to stay at OHIO.

5. This is a statement by our University, President and Athletic Director in our commitment to Athletics.  It speaks volumes for the progress we have made and the desire we have to continue to move forward.  Great things are ahead for OHIO Athletics!  I am incredibly excited.

6.  While BobcatBlitz will claim he is a genius for calling DJ's departure if it happens, we all know he has nothing substantive to back up his argument.  He just likes to ruffle people's feathers on this board and exaggerate things.  If DJ tweeted "i'm bout to bounce" in reference to going out on the town, Blitz would start a thread that DJ is officially transferring, going to the NBA or Europe.