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Funny How Different Fans View Things

You are right. I have always noticed this, and sometimes it is comical.

There is nobody in college basketball who would not think the MVC is a step up in quality over the Ivy League. But to someone in the East, Princeton and the Ivy League is an elite job. But the biggest determining factor for a coach IMO is the salary, benefits, and effects on one's career aspirations. In that case again, most MVC jobs are probably superior.

But recall that in 2002 James Jones (head coach at Yale) was a candidate for the Bradley job. So at one time he must have thought it was a big step up from the Ivy League. And at that time, the salary Bradley was offering was far less than it is now. Eventually, Jones pulled out when Yale renegotiated his contract and he got a big raise. But how is that working for him now?
 
Good points, DC. I actually just posted the following note on the Princeton Board, under the name of "BradleyBrave".

-----------------------

Princeton fans:

First, congrats on a great game yesterday. As a former resident of the Princeton area and an admirer of your teams for many years, I was pulling for you. Really thought you had them there.

I??™ve been reading quite a bit about Coach Johnson of late and would love to see him take the job at Bradley, my team. And it is a move that I would think is a distinct possibility for a number of reasons.

First, it??™s no surprise why Bradley ??“ or anyone else - would want Coach Johnson and I know I??™m preaching to the choir here so I won??™t even go into detail. Let me lay out the other reasons why I think it could happen if Coach Johnson has any inclination at all to leave Princeton.

2. Like Princeton, Bradley has a great basketball tradition. Both schools are among the top 30 winningest programs in college basketball history. Bradley has been to Final Fours (though admittedly it hasn??™t been in my lifetime), has recently been to the Sweet 16 (2006) and has had the NCAA Player of the Year, most recently in 1988 (Hersey Hawkins). The school regularly sells out a 10,000-seat arena and, unlike the NYC-Princeton-Philly area, Bradley is truly the only game in town. Illinois is a basketball mad state and Peoria is smack dab in the middle of it.

3. The Missouri Valley Conference is a huge basketball step up from the Ivy League. A huge step up. Just five years ago, the MVC had four teams invited to the NCAA in the same year and multiple bids are not uncommon. On an RPI basis, the MVC has been ranked as high as sixth in the past decade. I was an athlete in the Patriot League (Lehigh) and know firsthand that there is a huge difference between our (Patriot and Ivy) conferences and leagues such as the MVC.

4. Bradley??™s athletic director is Michael Cross, who came to BU last year from ??“ you guessed it ??“ Princeton. I can only imagine that Dr. Cross is an admirer of Coach Johnson, as he should be, and also assume that he would reach out to him at some point.

5. The Bradley job is considered to be a plum position and would be a significant step up for Coach Johnson. Please don??™t take this comment as a shot at Princeton, because it isn??™t. You guys have a great program and are always fun to watch, especially for folks like me who love fundamentally sound teams. But Bradley is in a much better league with better resources, has a larger fan base and recently built brand new, high end facilities. Coach Johnson would be able to recruit better athletes and, playing his fundamentally sound style of ball, it??™d be a heck of a lot of fun to watch him on the Hilltop.

All of this, of course, is pure speculation on my part and, with a long list of candidates for the position, I suppose it??™s very possible that Coach Johnson isn??™t even considered for the Bradley job. And it doesn??™t take long to see how much he loves Princeton, as he should. Looks like you guys have a great bunch of kids. That said, I??™d love to see him in Peoria. All the best to you and your team, either way. God bless.
 
I perceive he could be a good fit for Bradley. I am not sure about his ability to recruit Chicago and I doubt if Bradley could afford his salary.
 
molar50 said:
I perceive he could be a good fit for Bradley. I am not sure about his ability to recruit Chicago and I doubt if Bradley could afford his salary.
Click to expand...

?- I would be very surprised if the salary Bradley will pay isn't a lot higher than Johnson is now earning.
 
Missouri Brave said:
Good points, DC. I actually just posted the following note on the Princeton Board, under the name of "BradleyBrave".

-----------------------

Princeton fans:

First, congrats on a great game yesterday. As a former resident of the Princeton area and an admirer of your teams for many years, I was pulling for you. Really thought you had them there.

I??™ve been reading quite a bit about Coach Johnson of late and would love to see him take the job at Bradley, my team. And it is a move that I would think is a distinct possibility for a number of reasons.

First, it??™s no surprise why Bradley ??“ or anyone else - would want Coach Johnson and I know I??™m preaching to the choir here so I won??™t even go into detail. Let me lay out the other reasons why I think it could happen if Coach Johnson has any inclination at all to leave Princeton.

2. Like Princeton, Bradley has a great basketball tradition. Both schools are among the top 30 winningest programs in college basketball history. Bradley has been to Final Fours (though admittedly it hasn??™t been in my lifetime), has recently been to the Sweet 16 (2006) and has had the NCAA Player of the Year, most recently in 1988 (Hersey Hawkins). The school regularly sells out a 10,000-seat arena and, unlike the NYC-Princeton-Philly area, Bradley is truly the only game in town. Illinois is a basketball mad state and Peoria is smack dab in the middle of it.

3. The Missouri Valley Conference is a huge basketball step up from the Ivy League. A huge step up. Just five years ago, the MVC had four teams invited to the NCAA in the same year and multiple bids are not uncommon. On an RPI basis, the MVC has been ranked as high as sixth in the past decade. I was an athlete in the Patriot League (Lehigh) and know firsthand that there is a huge difference between our (Patriot and Ivy) conferences and leagues such as the MVC.

4. Bradley??™s athletic director is Michael Cross, who came to BU last year from ??“ you guessed it ??“ Princeton. I can only imagine that Dr. Cross is an admirer of Coach Johnson, as he should be, and also assume that he would reach out to him at some point.

5. The Bradley job is considered to be a plum position and would be a significant step up for Coach Johnson. Please don??™t take this comment as a shot at Princeton, because it isn??™t. You guys have a great program and are always fun to watch, especially for folks like me who love fundamentally sound teams. But Bradley is in a much better league with better resources, has a larger fan base and recently built brand new, high end facilities. Coach Johnson would be able to recruit better athletes and, playing his fundamentally sound style of ball, it??™d be a heck of a lot of fun to watch him on the Hilltop.

All of this, of course, is pure speculation on my part and, with a long list of candidates for the position, I suppose it??™s very possible that Coach Johnson isn??™t even considered for the Bradley job. And it doesn??™t take long to see how much he loves Princeton, as he should. Looks like you guys have a great bunch of kids. That said, I??™d love to see him in Peoria. All the best to you and your team, either way. God bless.
Click to expand...

Lol, evidently you need to "know your place." (Which, maybe, you should, what with stealing BradleyBrave's name :lol:) I think he has a bit of a point, though, in that Sydney Johnson is on a road to a BCS school at this point. Thing is, his team is full of seniors so if he can't swing the BCS job right now (which he MAY be able to do) then a move to a place like Bradley could really improve his resume.
 
Missouri Brave said:
Good points, DC. I actually just posted the following note on the Princeton Board, under the name of "BradleyBrave".

-----------------------

Princeton fans:

First, congrats on a great game yesterday. As a former resident of the Princeton area and an admirer of your teams for many years, I was pulling for you. Really thought you had them there.

I??™ve been reading quite a bit about Coach Johnson of late and would love to see him take the job at Bradley, my team. And it is a move that I would think is a distinct possibility for a number of reasons.

First, it??™s no surprise why Bradley ??“ or anyone else - would want Coach Johnson and I know I??™m preaching to the choir here so I won??™t even go into detail. Let me lay out the other reasons why I think it could happen if Coach Johnson has any inclination at all to leave Princeton.

2. Like Princeton, Bradley has a great basketball tradition. Both schools are among the top 30 winningest programs in college basketball history. Bradley has been to Final Fours (though admittedly it hasn??™t been in my lifetime), has recently been to the Sweet 16 (2006) and has had the NCAA Player of the Year, most recently in 1988 (Hersey Hawkins). The school regularly sells out a 10,000-seat arena and, unlike the NYC-Princeton-Philly area, Bradley is truly the only game in town. Illinois is a basketball mad state and Peoria is smack dab in the middle of it.

3. The Missouri Valley Conference is a huge basketball step up from the Ivy League. A huge step up. Just five years ago, the MVC had four teams invited to the NCAA in the same year and multiple bids are not uncommon. On an RPI basis, the MVC has been ranked as high as sixth in the past decade. I was an athlete in the Patriot League (Lehigh) and know firsthand that there is a huge difference between our (Patriot and Ivy) conferences and leagues such as the MVC.

4. Bradley??™s athletic director is Michael Cross, who came to BU last year from ??“ you guessed it ??“ Princeton. I can only imagine that Dr. Cross is an admirer of Coach Johnson, as he should be, and also assume that he would reach out to him at some point.

5. The Bradley job is considered to be a plum position and would be a significant step up for Coach Johnson. Please don??™t take this comment as a shot at Princeton, because it isn??™t. You guys have a great program and are always fun to watch, especially for folks like me who love fundamentally sound teams. But Bradley is in a much better league with better resources, has a larger fan base and recently built brand new, high end facilities. Coach Johnson would be able to recruit better athletes and, playing his fundamentally sound style of ball, it??™d be a heck of a lot of fun to watch him on the Hilltop.

All of this, of course, is pure speculation on my part and, with a long list of candidates for the position, I suppose it??™s very possible that Coach Johnson isn??™t even considered for the Bradley job. And it doesn??™t take long to see how much he loves Princeton, as he should. Looks like you guys have a great bunch of kids. That said, I??™d love to see him in Peoria. All the best to you and your team, either way. God bless.
Click to expand...

Excellent write-up MB. I am really impressed, really well done.
 
Funny how----

Funny how----

MB---A great post to Princeton fans---Well done! IMO Coach Johnson would be an outstanding candidate for the BU job and I hope he is on the short list if he is interested.
 
Missouri Brave said:
Go check out their board and see their response to my post. Most folks seem to think it's crazy that Johnson would even consider BU...
Click to expand...

I think they're wrong to think it's crazy that he would consider BU, but I don't necessarily disagree with them about the potential benefit of a move.

He is in a prime position to make the jump to a BCS school and, while I don't think BU is a lateral move, it seems as though it isn't necessary for his career.

The other point in this thread is well taken.

Fan perceive their job to be "better" than it really is.

Recall last summer when Oregon was targeting every big name they could think of and were rejected.

Heck, even Kentucky fans found out that it was tougher to find a replacement for Tubby Smith than they thought it would be and ended up with Billy Gillespie.

They thought they could just make a call to any candidate and it would be done.
 
Johnson is coaching right now at his alma mater. He may or may not leave it for a BCS job, but a move to a MVC school is not high enough for him. If it wasn't his alma mater, there would be more of a chance IMO.

I could be wrong, it could definitely happen, but it's not something I'm banking on.
 
An interesting reply to the Princeton fans. I would point out, however, that Princeton has been to the NCAAs nine times since 1990, much more than the two Bradley has. They have done it with different coaches and different playing styles, so they must recruit some pretty good athletes of their own.

Let's not thump our chests too loudly...
 
RaiderOfBradley said:
An interesting reply to the Princeton fans. I would point out, however, that Princeton has been to the NCAAs nine times since 1990, much more than the two Bradley has. They have done it with different coaches and different playing styles, so they must recruit some pretty good athletes of their own.

Let's not thump our chests too loudly...
Click to expand...

+1

Also, moving from the 15th ranked RPI conference to the 12th ranked RPI conference is not that big of a step. Things are a lot different now than in 2006.
 
Andy Katz has spoken. I'll take his word about if it's sensible for him to leave Princeton for Bradley over most anyone on this board:

Princeton has received inquiries if it would allow Sydney Johnson to talk to Bradley and Towson. Huh? Johnson has done a sensational job at resurrecting the Tigers program. But Bradley and Towson? Sure, there are connections with Bradley's AD Mike Cross, who was at Princeton, and Johnson has Maryland ties in the Towson-area. But leaving his alma mater, Princeton, a place where he has great emotional investment, for these two schools would only be a money grab.
Click to expand...

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/blog/_/name/katz_andy/id/6243738/blame-officials
 
I don't know -- but the strange vibes are there....BU has Princeton connections thru Cross and Towson/Maryland connections thru JG...would it be a done deal...

although I just got yet another PM saying BU's is close to a done deal with another midwestern coach/candidate....and if true it's gonna be a shock...
 
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