Georgetown Game Thread II

[Trifecta]

The biggest concern I have with Mac leaving for Ohio State (should Holtmann be fired) has less to do with his situation at Creighton and everything to do with the fact Doug is back at the Pacers. I know Mac loves Creighton and Omaha, but his kids have graduated and gone their own paths and Columbus to Indy is a quick drive to watch Doug play.

I have zero insider information, but just my thought process. Get a bag to coach for a few years and watch your son play the end of his NBA career is pretty logical and I could see Mac doing that. The good news is we have a lot of good, young options with Creighton connections. We’ve seen in the Big East that losing a star coach isn’t a death sentence to the bottom of the league.

Regardless, I’m going to enjoy this season and hope for another run in the tourney and worry about off-season speculation once the final buzzer sounds. (Just don’t pull a Cooley if you leave, Mac)

Wrong. It absolutely has to do with his situation at Creighton.

Everyone stating all the good around this job and what we have coming in and our NIL etc, is missing the point. There are issues behind the scenes and have been for 3 years now. Fans pretending otherwise are in denial.

CU should be doing whatever it takes to keep him. My worry is that it's 100% possible for the admin to F it up.

Say what’s going on behind the scenes instead of beating around the bush in every thread on the topic

Don't know if you work at a place with a corporate culture, but hopefully, this analogy lands. Would you want to work for a company where the C-Suite execs actively tried to terminate you, to the point where your direct supervisor (who was also a close friend) retired because he refused to do so? Then, instead of following the succession plan and replacing your old boss with a guy who was groomed for years for the role, was well-liked, respected, and understood your company's culture...the CEO brings in an outsider with no ties or fit. The best fit to run your department was never even given a serious look.

Your new boss thinks it's a mistake to get rid of you, so you stay (though you are vastly underpaid relative to performance and peers in your field). But you see a bunch of other people in your department leave in a mass exodus. Maybe it's because they don't like the new boss' management style, maybe it's because the old boss left and it was time to call it quits, or maybe the new boss wanted to bring in his own people and clean house of the legacy people.

In an instance like this, I don't think it's unreasonable to update your resume and see if a more attractive option exists. Oh,and the CEO is a douchebag.

[Trifecta]

What else is there to be explained? It's been talked about many times over the years. From everything I have ever heard, and I know I'm not the only one, this has been something that has been brewing ever since the "plantation" comments. It's hard to talk about it on this board in particular because more than half of the posters will say it's fake, not true, just wild rumors, etc. So what's the point? But since you asked so nicely, I'll lay it out again.

Hendrickson wanted Mac fired for the plantation comment. Ras said no. Stood up for Mac. Hendrickson wanted something to happen. Ras retired.

Mac was unhappy with how the university seemingly didn't have his back after one mistake, given his track record of being a good guy to everyone who has ever encountered him. Mac was peeved by Hendrickson.

A lot of the old/long timers in the AD wanted Burgers promoted to AD. Heard he didn't even get an interview. Blossom was hand picked by Hendrickson, came in and shook everything up, and multiple associate AD's were basically told their services weren't wanted anymore, and if they wanted to stay, would have to be in a diminished role. That didn't sit right with many, including Mac.

I don't have any reason to think there are a ton of personal issues with Mac and Blossom, but who knows. It's obviously difficult going from someone who you trusted 100% and was one of your best friends, to someone you have no relationship with, and was hand picked by someone who wanted you fired and has disrupted the entire athletic department.

We don't have any public record of what Mac's salary is- but he is severely underpaid. I don't think he's likely in the top 25 in the country, which to me is insane. Mac doesn't strike me as the type of guy who has unrealistic wants and needs, but he should be compensated fairly and I don't think he is, compared to his peers. People mention that it wouldn't make sense for him to leave foe all these different reasons, and many are valid. But when he turned down OSU in 2017, he said you don't "mess with happy", well, when you're not as happy anymore, for all the reasons I stated above, you are more willing to hear and listen to other opportunities.

Again, many have shot these things down over the years. I trust MULTIPLE people who have told me a lot of these things and have told them consistently over the years. They'd really have no reason to just make it up, and they'd be in a position to know. I didn't think anything I posted above was a secret, I assumed it was pretty well known. It is on X/Twitter amongst CU fans, and on other board(s).

Bottomline IMO- Hendrickson isn't well liked, by anyone really. Blossom hasn't done much to gain the trust of Mac. IMO, Mac wants a raise and deserves one. I don't think Mac is looking for a way out, at all. He loves Omaha and CU, and wants to be here. But he wants to be compensated fairly and felt appreciated by his bosses. As far as basketball only, I don't know how much sense it makes for him to go elsewhere when he's stated he doesn't want to coach forever. But then again, if everything else behind the scenes is true, and I think a lot of it is, I don't blame him for being open to the possibility.

This came in as I was taking 30 minutes to write a reply while at my own job This is pretty close to the mark.

[DC_JAY]

I believe that only Quad 1 and Quad 2 games remain on the regular season schedule.

God, I remember the days when losing to Evansville on a random Tuesday night in February would nuke our at large chances and severely derail an otherwise good season. Like what happened to Indiana State last night.

Thank God for the Big East.

I also could never have imagined a future in which the Jays were expected to trash Georgetown (and do so).

[ictjay]

What else is there to be explained? It's been talked about many times over the years. From everything I have ever heard, and I know I'm not the only one, this has been something that has been brewing ever since the "plantation" comments. It's hard to talk about it on this board in particular because more than half of the posters will say it's fake, not true, just wild rumors, etc. So what's the point? But since you asked so nicely, I'll lay it out again.

Hendrickson wanted Mac fired for the plantation comment. Ras said no. Stood up for Mac. Hendrickson wanted something to happen. Ras retired.

Mac was unhappy with how the university seemingly didn't have his back after one mistake, given his track record of being a good guy to everyone who has ever encountered him. Mac was peeved by Hendrickson.

A lot of the old/long timers in the AD wanted Burgers promoted to AD. Heard he didn't even get an interview. Blossom was hand picked by Hendrickson, came in and shook everything up, and multiple associate AD's were basically told their services weren't wanted anymore, and if they wanted to stay, would have to be in a diminished role. That didn't sit right with many, including Mac.

I don't have any reason to think there are a ton of personal issues with Mac and Blossom, but who knows. It's obviously difficult going from someone who you trusted 100% and was one of your best friends, to someone you have no relationship with, and was hand picked by someone who wanted you fired and has disrupted the entire athletic department.

We don't have any public record of what Mac's salary is- but he is severely underpaid. I don't think he's likely in the top 25 in the country, which to me is insane. Mac doesn't strike me as the type of guy who has unrealistic wants and needs, but he should be compensated fairly and I don't think he is, compared to his peers. People mention that it wouldn't make sense for him to leave foe all these different reasons, and many are valid. But when he turned down OSU in 2017, he said you don't "mess with happy", well, when you're not as happy anymore, for all the reasons I stated above, you are more willing to hear and listen to other opportunities.

Again, many have shot these things down over the years. I trust MULTIPLE people who have told me a lot of these things and have told them consistently over the years. They'd really have no reason to just make it up, and they'd be in a position to know. I didn't think anything I posted above was a secret, I assumed it was pretty well known. It is on X/Twitter amongst CU fans, and on other board(s).

Bottomline IMO- Hendrickson isn't well liked, by anyone really. Blossom hasn't done much to gain the trust of Mac. IMO, Mac wants a raise and deserves one. I don't think Mac is looking for a way out, at all. He loves Omaha and CU, and wants to be here. But he wants to be compensated fairly and felt appreciated by his bosses. As far as basketball only, I don't know how much sense it makes for him to go elsewhere when he's stated he doesn't want to coach forever. But then again, if everything else behind the scenes is true, and I think a lot of it is, I don't blame him for being open to the possibility.

This came in as I was taking 30 minutes to write a reply while at my own job This is pretty close to the mark.

I get all that. My point is and answer this. 1) Did Mac re up his contract In March of 2022? 1 year after the fact. Could have walked. 2) I know Fr. H is a DB. He is smart enough to know that he can wave alot of $$$$ bye bye if he was to pull that stunt. $$$ firmly behind Mac.
Every year I see this stuff written here repeating the same old logic over and over.

[Chicagojayfan]

One thing that's baffled me a bit this year is that media fawning over Jayden Epps on Georgetown. I get that they don't have many offensive options on that team, but he's a black hole on that team's offense both for time with the ball and the shots he's taking (Usage up over 30%) and a 4.1 to 2.8 assist/turnover ratio (and that's an improvement over the non-conference part of the season)

And beyond not facilitating well and takig up so many shots, he's not efficient at all - TS% of .452 in conference / eFG% of .394, and while I excuse some of that because of the team around him needing him to shoot, that's not all that different from where he was last year for Illinois, and I doesn't really play defense either

He's big enough to play the off guard. If I'm Cooley, I'm pulling out all the stops to find a PG for next year so I can make him a combo-SG guard or 6th man

[Wizard of Westroads]

One thing that's baffled me a bit this year is that media fawning over Jayden Epps on Georgetown. I get that they don't have many offensive options on that team, but he's a black hole on that team's offense both for time with the ball and the shots he's taking (Usage up over 30%) and a 4.1 to 2.8 assist/turnover ratio (and that's an improvement over the non-conference part of the season)

And beyond not facilitating well and takig up so many shots, he's not efficient at all - TS% of .452 in conference / eFG% of .394, and while I excuse some of that because of the team around him needing him to shoot, that's not all that different from where he was last year for Illinois, and I doesn't really play defense either

He's big enough to play the off guard. If I'm Cooley, I'm pulling out all the stops to find a PG for next year so I can make him a combo-SG guard or 6th man

The thing that's surprised me the most is that Cooley has not installed his culture: physical, mentally tough, chip on their shoulder, etc.
These guys are just like Patrick's teams, hunting shots and lazy on defense.

That starting lineup ought to be able to win some games. Styles, Epps, Cook were high-level transfers, and Heath and Bristol started last year. Not good enough to win the league, but good enough to sniff .500. It's strange that the school that once epitomized the Big East now is lost when it comes to culture.

[Chicagojayfan]

One thing that's baffled me a bit this year is that media fawning over Jayden Epps on Georgetown. I get that they don't have many offensive options on that team, but he's a black hole on that team's offense both for time with the ball and the shots he's taking (Usage up over 30%) and a 4.1 to 2.8 assist/turnover ratio (and that's an improvement over the non-conference part of the season)

And beyond not facilitating well and takig up so many shots, he's not efficient at all - TS% of .452 in conference / eFG% of .394, and while I excuse some of that because of the team around him needing him to shoot, that's not all that different from where he was last year for Illinois, and I doesn't really play defense either

He's big enough to play the off guard. If I'm Cooley, I'm pulling out all the stops to find a PG for next year so I can make him a combo-SG guard or 6th man

The thing that's surprised me the most is that Cooley has not installed his culture: physical, mentally tough, chip on their shoulder, etc.
These guys are just like Patrick's teams, hunting shots and lazy on defense.

That starting lineup ought to be able to win some games. Styles, Epps, Cook were high-level transfers, and Heath and Bristol started last year. Not good enough to win the league, but good enough to sniff .500. It's strange that the school that once epitomized the Big East now is lost when it comes to culture.

That has to drive Coach Cooley crazy. They have defensive holes where people won't be great defensive players, but too often people don't hustle that often, and even when they do hustle they aren't locked in and communicating on D. Even when those Providence teams didn't have great talent, the played super hard and you knew you were in for a game

They've had a couple of games where they were like that this year (ND? tough losses to Rutgers and Providence?), but that defense is awful and far worse than the talent says it should be. I have faith Cooley will turn it around over time, but that lack of hustle and communication on D is a big problem