Ranking the MAC Coaches
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2006 5:39 pm
I have worked the women's and men's MAC Basketball Tournament every year it has been in Cleveland. My duties include a lot interaction with the coaches.
They are a great group to be around, and you quickly realize how important the game is to them. To us its just sports, but to them it’s their careers on the line.
Here is a ranking (IMO) of the coaches currently in the MAC:
1. Charlie Coles - Miami
A walking quote machine and a great interview. Listening to him tell a story is a pleasure. Charlie has his team competing for the league title every year. The "Dean" of the MAC coaching fraternity. Always seems to recruit the right athletes for his system. I can remember Charlie bringing his Central Michigan teams (with Melvin McLaughlin) to Anderson Arena when I was in school.
2. Tim O’Shea – Ohio
I have to put him at number two based on the incredible recruiting job he has done at OU in such a short time. You don’t hear the name Larry Hunter mentioned much anymore. Having said that, O’Shea has to be the most nervous coach I have ever been around. I think the players have to calm him down at times. I am not sure yet how good of a game day coach he is. If he doesn’t reel of some MAC championships and NCAA appearances, he’ll prove to be a much better recruiter than a coach.
3. Reggie Witherspoon – Buffalo
You have to respect the job Witherspoon has done at Buffalo. Finding players in Canada and Europe have helped him build a solid MAC program. Reggie is a little arrogant and seems to walk with a chip on his shoulder. He also seems to have impressed this attitude on his team. Buffalo was the door mat of the league and got very little respect when they entered the MAC. Witherspoon and Buffalo have seemed to use that as motivation in their drive for respectability. The Buffalo crowd at last year’s MAC Men’s final at the Gund was proof how far this program has come.
4. Steve Hawkins – Western Michigan
Recent success at Western has Hawkins near the top of this coaching list. While he may experience a down year this year by recent standards for the Broncos, his incoming recruiting class for ’06 should have him competing for a league title very soon. I am also impressed with Hawkins game day coaching abilities. He is very good at making adjustments during a game.
5. Keith Dambrot - Akron
Another guy who seems to be winning the recruiting wars. Yes, he got the LeBron Boys (Travis and Joyce) based on proximity, but he has also found complimentary players as well. Dambrot’s teams always are tough ad physical. If not for some bad luck with injuries, Akron might be on the talent level with Ohio. Dambrot’s firing from Central Michigan after he used the “N” word seems a distant memory.
6. Dan Dakich – Bowling Green
Another guy who is a great interview. He is a straight shooter who doesn’t give you any BS. He has had a lot of success in this league, although he has never got to the top of the mountain (NCAA bid). He has the respect of every other coach in the league. Other coaches hate to draw his teams in the MAC tournament because they always play hard, win or lose. His style of play and coaching limits his recruiting ability somewhat. Keeping recruits in his system has also proven to be a alarming problem. One day Dan will get the Falcons to the promised land.
7. Jim Christian – Kent State
The Kent State program has just leveled off under Christian. But, the success of the prior regimes (Elite 8) seems a little unrealistic to match. I believe the real hero of this program was Gary Walters. He did the recruiting and turned the program around. Christian and Stan Heath seemed to be the benefactors of his hard work. Still, Christian has the Golden Flashes competing at a very high level.
8. Stan Joplin - Toledo
Joplin seems to have the Rockets poised for a run every year but comes up short. This may eventually be his undoing at his alma mater. He brings in talented players and seems to have the Rockets in the title mix every year. But until he wins it, he has to be considered a bottom half coach in this league.
9. Tim Buckley – Ball State
Maybe the most snake-bitten coach in the league. It seems like injuries hit this team like no other each year. Stovall down for ’05-’06 is just the latest example. I have seen him take a more talented team into a game and lose. While he had some success, I thought Ray McCollum didn’t leave this program in too good of shape for Buckley to inherit. Tim seems like a nice guy, just not the first person you would pick to be in your foxhole during a war.
10. Ron Judson – Northern Illinois
I don’t have much interaction with Judson to comment on. He Teams haven’t made it to Cleveland very often. And when they did, the game I remember hasn’t much to write home about. Northern has been a non-factor in the MAC for the most part since they came back into the league. You would expect more from a program that counts Chicago as its recruiting base. Joe Novak seems to be able to make their football program work?
11. Jay Smith – Central Michigan
How the mighty have fallen. A couple of years ago, Smith was sitting on top of the world with the Kaman-led team. But his inability to field even a competitive team after that run is what puts him near the bottom of this list. I remember Jay as freshman on the Bowling Green team during my years in school. He didn’t stick around to learn the coaching trade from John Weinart.
12. Charles Ramsey – Eastern Michigan
Incomplete.
They are a great group to be around, and you quickly realize how important the game is to them. To us its just sports, but to them it’s their careers on the line.
Here is a ranking (IMO) of the coaches currently in the MAC:
1. Charlie Coles - Miami
A walking quote machine and a great interview. Listening to him tell a story is a pleasure. Charlie has his team competing for the league title every year. The "Dean" of the MAC coaching fraternity. Always seems to recruit the right athletes for his system. I can remember Charlie bringing his Central Michigan teams (with Melvin McLaughlin) to Anderson Arena when I was in school.
2. Tim O’Shea – Ohio
I have to put him at number two based on the incredible recruiting job he has done at OU in such a short time. You don’t hear the name Larry Hunter mentioned much anymore. Having said that, O’Shea has to be the most nervous coach I have ever been around. I think the players have to calm him down at times. I am not sure yet how good of a game day coach he is. If he doesn’t reel of some MAC championships and NCAA appearances, he’ll prove to be a much better recruiter than a coach.
3. Reggie Witherspoon – Buffalo
You have to respect the job Witherspoon has done at Buffalo. Finding players in Canada and Europe have helped him build a solid MAC program. Reggie is a little arrogant and seems to walk with a chip on his shoulder. He also seems to have impressed this attitude on his team. Buffalo was the door mat of the league and got very little respect when they entered the MAC. Witherspoon and Buffalo have seemed to use that as motivation in their drive for respectability. The Buffalo crowd at last year’s MAC Men’s final at the Gund was proof how far this program has come.
4. Steve Hawkins – Western Michigan
Recent success at Western has Hawkins near the top of this coaching list. While he may experience a down year this year by recent standards for the Broncos, his incoming recruiting class for ’06 should have him competing for a league title very soon. I am also impressed with Hawkins game day coaching abilities. He is very good at making adjustments during a game.
5. Keith Dambrot - Akron
Another guy who seems to be winning the recruiting wars. Yes, he got the LeBron Boys (Travis and Joyce) based on proximity, but he has also found complimentary players as well. Dambrot’s teams always are tough ad physical. If not for some bad luck with injuries, Akron might be on the talent level with Ohio. Dambrot’s firing from Central Michigan after he used the “N” word seems a distant memory.
6. Dan Dakich – Bowling Green
Another guy who is a great interview. He is a straight shooter who doesn’t give you any BS. He has had a lot of success in this league, although he has never got to the top of the mountain (NCAA bid). He has the respect of every other coach in the league. Other coaches hate to draw his teams in the MAC tournament because they always play hard, win or lose. His style of play and coaching limits his recruiting ability somewhat. Keeping recruits in his system has also proven to be a alarming problem. One day Dan will get the Falcons to the promised land.
7. Jim Christian – Kent State
The Kent State program has just leveled off under Christian. But, the success of the prior regimes (Elite 8) seems a little unrealistic to match. I believe the real hero of this program was Gary Walters. He did the recruiting and turned the program around. Christian and Stan Heath seemed to be the benefactors of his hard work. Still, Christian has the Golden Flashes competing at a very high level.
8. Stan Joplin - Toledo
Joplin seems to have the Rockets poised for a run every year but comes up short. This may eventually be his undoing at his alma mater. He brings in talented players and seems to have the Rockets in the title mix every year. But until he wins it, he has to be considered a bottom half coach in this league.
9. Tim Buckley – Ball State
Maybe the most snake-bitten coach in the league. It seems like injuries hit this team like no other each year. Stovall down for ’05-’06 is just the latest example. I have seen him take a more talented team into a game and lose. While he had some success, I thought Ray McCollum didn’t leave this program in too good of shape for Buckley to inherit. Tim seems like a nice guy, just not the first person you would pick to be in your foxhole during a war.
10. Ron Judson – Northern Illinois
I don’t have much interaction with Judson to comment on. He Teams haven’t made it to Cleveland very often. And when they did, the game I remember hasn’t much to write home about. Northern has been a non-factor in the MAC for the most part since they came back into the league. You would expect more from a program that counts Chicago as its recruiting base. Joe Novak seems to be able to make their football program work?
11. Jay Smith – Central Michigan
How the mighty have fallen. A couple of years ago, Smith was sitting on top of the world with the Kaman-led team. But his inability to field even a competitive team after that run is what puts him near the bottom of this list. I remember Jay as freshman on the Bowling Green team during my years in school. He didn’t stick around to learn the coaching trade from John Weinart.
12. Charles Ramsey – Eastern Michigan
Incomplete.