Ditto. Groce and wife have rural mid-west roots. Can't think they are happy in the Akron - Canton metro area. They were a good fit in the Athens community before, would be again.

You can be pretty rural within 15 minutes from the Akron campus. I imagine the happiness meter for Groce is tied directly to his success on the Bball floor.

He makes more than Saul this year.

Not sure Akron fans would be terribly sad to lose him. His first recruiting class was a disaster and there are a lot of questions about his in-game decisions, not to mention the way he has handled the assault case currently pending in the courts. There's no feeling that the Zips are "on the rise" at this point.

One argument I can see being made for Boals/Ford ....

This program has dipped significantly in terms of excitement around it. It needs some sort of jolt after what's happened last five years.

This isn't a dig on Saul ... it's just fact. Look around the Convo. The atmosphere is pretty depressing. There isn't a lot of buzz around the program.

Hiring someone like Boals, assuming Stony Brook makes the NCAAs and can get past Vermont in the AEC, would spark some excitement. Not only would you be getting a guy who just took a team to the NCAA tournament and beat GW, South Carolina and Rhode Island on the road (better than any Ohio win in the last few years) ... you'd be getting an Ohio alum.

Similar argument for Ford. While he hasn't been head coach in a while, he'd be coming in with a pedigree of success in the MAC and is sort of local (Cambridge) and he's a former Bobcat. And Geno's personality would resonate with the fan base.

If you're trying to rekindle some of sort of enthusiasm for the program ... and start putting people back into the Convo, you might want to look this direction.

Those two guys would tug at the core of those who attend games at the Convo. The long-timers that live in the Athens area that have been around the program for a long time. I think they might be more willing to roll in on a Tuesday night to watch a Boals/Ford coached team than a Pat Kelsey coached team? Nothing against Kelsey ... but unless Winthrop makes a run ... this is a guy who has one NCAA appearance in seven years in the Big South. I think he's a good coach ... but not sure he's a guy who would light a fire under this fan base, which is needed, in my opinion.

As far as the students showing .... that will come with wins. Win games .. they will come. It's a tough sell no matter what in today's climate ... but it's even harder when you're selling a 17-15 program that finishes in the bottom half of the MAC.

I'm not 100% saying Schaus should only look at Boals or Ford ... and history probably proves he won't .... but Ohio Basketball is in a much different climate than when he made the Christian hire or the Saul hire. They're in trouble ... and that wasn't the case with his last two coaching searches. I think he might take a different approach considering.

This ain't the hire I'm more worried about.

(shivers)

That sounds as bad as seeing these two.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2hkPVY5gjg

Agree that Boals could be slippery slope. Is he pissed that he's been passed over already (twice?)

Would he take a "lateral" move after he's built a foundation at Stony Brook? He will have to clear the Vermont hurdle, but a few good years at SB and he could land a low-P6 job? Maybe?

I'm not sure where you're dislike for Geno stems from .... but I respect your position.

My thought is that he might be a guy that is willing to set-up shop and stay a while. Boals seems to be a on trajectory for something bigger than Ohio? Maybe I'm wrong. Ford has already tried that path and it didn't work out ... and he'd be close to home in Cambridge?

Just seems like a good fit. I always liked him as a player ... and thought he did a good job in his short time at Kent.

Then again, I've been pretty vocal about my desire for a guy to come in and build something long term and not just do a touch-and-go in Athens and use Ohio as a springboard ... so maybe that taints my view.

Seriously?!?! You didn't just use the forbidden five letter word on Bobcatattack.com?!?!

You're not wrong about some talent deficiencies, but the coaching staff sort of has to be in place before the recruiting pipeline can be established, doesn't it?

I don't dislike Geno as a player, or a person. As a person, I don't know enough about him to even really offer an opinion. What I know about him as a coach makes me say "no thanks" because I don't really feel like he would be a tremendous upgrade. And great players don't often seem to make great coaches.

Your statements above on Boals are exactly the questions I ask - unless it's for love of Alma mater, I'm not sure why he'd come here right now. Assuming his goal is to move up the coaching ranks anyway.

In terms of the next coach staying long term, obviously that's the ideal situation. However, for me, you just hire the right guy, who will build a really good staff of future potential head coaches, and keep some continuity by hiring the top assistant if the head coach leaves for greener pastures. It worked pretty good at places like Xavier and Butler so far.

And if we want to talk about alumnus coaches, there are a few more recent grads from the Groce/Christian teams that might fit into the picture that are on several different coaching staffs right now, and one former coach that recently left as well. Not sure they're ready for this but it's worth message board conversation anyway.

For those big on brining in an alum, Dino Gaudio???

Kirk Lehman would be my choice. He has a great track record at Defiance HS and recently won a state title.

If you look at somebody like Steve Kerr, who went from the television booth to being a head coach and our current president who had no prior experience(okay, not a good comparison), why not Kirk Lehman? He was a great player and has coached his entire post playing days. I do get a kick out of a few that think Boals is a shoe-in if we would just pick up the phone and ask.