Note: The following comment from "EngineerScotty" come in yesterday in response to my "Defending the Craig Robinson Hire" post. It deserves front page recognition, and here it is: --JB--

I think that there are some in Beaver fandom who remember the impact that Dennis Erickson had on the OSU football team--and forget the years immediately preceding.  They remember DE getting the Beavs their first winning season in forever in Year 1, and an 11-win season (and I think we would have given Oklahoma a better fight than FSU had we made it to the Orange Bowl).  There is an assumption that what worked for football, would work for basketball.

And Dennis Erickson did benefit the program intensely.  He's one of the best recruiters in the business, he knows the game, and he knows how to motivate.  Of course, DE has lots of flaws as well--he always keeps an eye on the exit, he'll lie through his teeth to your face if it suits him, and he tolerated a lot of nonsense while he was here.

But the rebuilding of the OSU football program from laughingstock to one of the top 30 programs in Division 1 happened way before Erickson was brought in.  Arguably, it happened with the Pettibone hire--a coach who insisted upon hard work, and used an unorthodox system (the wishbone) which made the Beavs a difficult team to prepare for.  Granted, the 'bone isn't gonna get you to the Rose Bowl (or even to any bowl), but OSU football at that time needed to take that first step--from god-awful to mediocre, and Pettibone enabled it.  Unfortunately for Pettibone--mediocre still gets you fired after a while.  Mike Riley was step 2 (and 4) of the rebuilding program, and Dennis Erickson was the capstone--the guy who put OSU football on the map.  Once he left, a less-known guy like Riley could successfully run a program and have a chance at good recruits, whereas before, the Beavs were generally getting players who were considered not good enough to play elsewhere.

Right now, the OSU basketball program is where the OSU football program was in 1991--in the toilet.  We're not ready for a Dennis Erickson; and no coach with those credentials is going to come here--at least not for the terms we can offer.  The Beavs need to take that first step--to mediocre--before we're even on the radar screen of a "big-name" coach.  

Is Craig Robinson the basketball equivalent of Jerry Pettibone?  I don't know.  Some similarities are apparent--Robinson is known for using a Princeton offense; which while not as unorthodox in hoops as the wishbone is in football, is a "use this if your players suck" offensive strategy.  It's a scheme you generally don't run if you have talented scorers who can reliably create their own shots.  As others have indicated, it probably is good for a few wins next year, as opposing teams won't be used to defending against it.  However, it isn't the scheme that will get the Beavers back to the NIT (let alone the NCAAs)--star caliber players often don't like it, as it de-emphasizes guys who can beat a defense by themselves.  In short--it's a good scheme to get us to mediocrity.  Whether Robinson is a "believer" in the Princeton, and intends to employ it everywhere he goes, or would use other offensive sets given the appropriate players, I don't know.

It could be, that Robinson will be the coach that brings us to respectability single-handedly; that the OSU basketball team will not need a series of coaches (and nearly a decade) to do it.  You only need a handful of guys to have a good basketball team, not the dozens that football requires.  It could be that Robinson is indeed a Pettibone--and that his OSU tenure will end with his firing, but his successor will do well with the foundation he has built.  Or, he could be yet another Dave Kragthorpe or Jay John--a guy who succeeds at lower levels of college ball, but doesn't succeed in the Pac-10.  Only time will tell.

But for those who are searching for Dennis Erickson--don't.  The basketball equivalent of Dennis Erickson (that would be Larry Brown) ain't coming to Corvallis.  The Beavers are not ready.

--EngineerScotty

***

Again, I'm interested to hear your comments.

--JB--

It's been just over twelve hours since Criag Robinson has been named as head coach of our Men's Basketball  program, and already some members of Beaver Nation are voicing out in opposition.

First off, I'll start out by saying there are some things I like about this hire, and some that I don't. The one thing I'm uncertain about is the whole political influence. When I heard Robinson say that "If I can use that (my family celebrity) to win games, I'll do it", it made me question which direction we're headed. It just makes it sounds like we're using a particular political party to help get recruits, etc. I don't know where you draw the line on this conflict, but it just seems weird right now. Maybe it will grow on me, but I don't know.

Political issues aside, I think Robinson has some great potential. If you've heard him talk today at all, you'll know that he is a great public speaker, and has a great story. Bottom line, is things are going to get done the right way in Gill Coliseum from this point forward.

First, lets discuss the money factor and get that out of the way. The contract hasn't been finalized, but at the end of the day Robinson will still be one of the worst paid coaches in the Pac-10. Tell him that, and I'm sure he wont care. He knows that this is going to take work, and he cherishes that fact.

Dave over at Addicted to Quack had this to say on the OSU hire:

You have to understand that Oregon State went 0-18 in the Pac-10 this year. We haven't won a game in 2008. After 21 straight losses, it's often a good idea to clean up the mess and put your best foot forward. And I think we're doing that. Robinson is a firm believer in working hard for things, something that's stuck with him all the way from his upbringings in Chicago. I don't think that throwing a big wad of money at this situation and hoping something prospers is the best route at this point. The season ticket holders currently aren't present, the attendances are at rock bottom, Gill needs improvements, and that's not going to chance until this basketball team changes.

This is a step by step process. As the team improves, Robinson's stock will rise, his contract will improve, and we'll continue to "Rally the Legend." If Robinson doesn't work out for Oregon State, we can only hope that he leaves his footprint on this program, wins a few games, and lets us step to the next stone of bringing in a new, bigger-name head coach.

Dave goes on to say:

I'm not going to get into the nitty gritty here, but bottom line is Oregon and Oregon State are different universities. You guys have donors who have seen Oregon State's success on the diamond and are eager to get that at your university. I don't blame you. But OSU is used to losing in basketball. We just are. There's not spirit there, there's no desire to lay down the dough to get this program back where it belongs. We need to see improvement before we can get excited. That's where "Rally the Legend" comes from. It's just a different approach to the same issue.

You've got to understand that this isn't going to happen overnight, and I think Bob de Carolis realized this first hand as he facilitated his coaching search. He realized what was really important to this team.

At the start of this search, we were looking for a guy who had roots on the west coast, had head coaching experience, a proven track record, and on and on and on. But as guys like Billy Grier and Randy Bennett pulled their names out, we realized that we're not going to be able to get those qualities in a head coach.

Instead, we started looking for a coach who would do things the right way. A coach who has an academic mission, and is a teacher on and off the court. We needed a coach devoted to making the players better each and every day, and a coach with attention to detail. And I believe we found that in Craig Robinson.

He also has head coaching experience (More than Grier, in fact), he's turned around a program, and he has personal connections and recruiting connections all around the country.

Now, Craig Robinson is not the best coach out there. He's not the best coach we could have landed in Corvallis. But he is a good guy, who, if nothing else, will have a lasting impact on these young men. Many fans out there would like to see a different coach in Corvallis, be it Larry Eustachy or someone else. Bobby D should at least pony up a list of names and details on how the search was conducted and tell us what he was thinking, but it probably isn't going to happen. That's hindsight now, and as we know, hindsight is always 20-20.

The message coming from Oregon State's athletic office is clear: Open your minds to change, understand that everyone involved in the program is working hard to get Oregon State basketball back where it belongs, and buy tickets. It's going take fans to give Oregon State the competitive advantage it needs to win.

That's us.

I'm eager to hear your comments, agreements, disagreements, criticisms, etc. Let's talk this out.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

It's now official. Craig Robinson will be the head Men's Basketball Coach at Oregon State University.

Bobby D is taking a lot of criticism and a lot of praise for this hire. Before we get into all of that, let's just get some background info on Robinson:

Robinson was a Two-Time Ivy League Player of the Year for Princeton from 1982-1983, and graduated with a degree in sociology. He is fourth on the Princeston all-time scoring list.

Robinson began his coaching career as an assistant coach at the Illinois Institute of Technology from 1988-90. He was responsible for offense implementation, game strategy, recruiting and advance scouting. He was also the head coach at the University of Chicago High School in 1999-2000. Robinson, who also has an MBA in Finance from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business (1992), took a hiatus from coaching and went into private business in 1990. He was a Vice President for Continental Bank from 1990-92, Vice President for Morgan Stanley Dean Witter from 1992-99, and then Managing Director for Loop Capital Markets before he made his move to Northwestern.

At Northwestern, Criag coached for six years under head coach Bill Carmody, a former Princeston head coach. There he was responsible for the team's recruiting, before moving on to take the head coaching position at Brown.

In his first season at Brown, he led the Bears to a 11-18 overall record, and 6-8 in the Ivy League. In this past season, Robinson led Brown to a 19-10 record, the best in Brown Basketball history.

Here's some of what Robinson has to say about himself:

Here's a taste for a Ivy League Game. Coach Robinson and Brown came up short in this game against NCAA-tourney bound Cornell, but it's still worth a watch:

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

You've gotta be kidding, right?

Well, I'm not.

After all the twists and turns this coaching search has taken over the last few months, it looks like Bobby D has finally settled on Craig Robinson, head coach at Brown University. Both Fox Sports and  CBS Sports have confirmed the hire, although nothing has been said out of the OSU Athletic office.

And it just so happens that Craig Robinson's sister is married to Presidential Candidate Barack Obama, making Robinson Obama's brother-in-law.

Robinson led Brown University to an 19-10 mark and an 11-3 Ivy League record this past season, his second with the school.

Again, it's not official yet, but it looks like we may have a new head coach coming to Corvallis.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

Aww, Schucks.

The more we learned about Grier, the more he sounded like the right fit for Oregon State. But today we learned that he's chosen to remain head coach at San Diego. It's hard to blame him for his decision, having had success in the only season he's coached at San Diego. After all, there were no seniors on his roster, and choosing Corvallis over San Diego? That's tough, especially for the wife and kids.

Grier's gone. Saint Mary's Randy Bennett is gone. Will Portland's Ken Bone be the guy? Or will another name like Larry Eustachy of Southern Miss get a call?

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

It's still not being made clear what exactly has happened over the last 48 hours regarding OSU Athletic Director Bob de Carolis and current San Diego head basketball coach Billy Grier. It's likely that Grier will be offered the job at Oregon State, but will he accept?

While we're waiting for that call to be made, let's take a look at some things he's done.

Grier left Cottage Grove to be the head coach at Creswell High School during the 1990-91 season. He played two years in junior college (Central Oregon and Southwestern Oregon), then transferred to Oregon where he received a B.S. degree in Leisure Studies and Services in 1990.

From Creswell High School he moved to the University of Gonzaga, where he was an assistant coach for 16 years. His career at Gonzaga started in 1992 under head coach Dan Fitzgerald where he served as the restricted-earnings assistant for six years. He was elevated to a full-time assistant for the 1997-98 season when Dan Monson took over the head coaching reigns. During his two seasons under Monson, the Bulldogs went 52-17, won back-to-back WCC titles, went to the 1998 NIT Sweet Sixteen and made it to the 1999 NCAA Elite Eight.

In the summer of 1999, Monson accepted the job at Minnesota, moving Mark Few to head coach and Grier to top assistant. The coaching staff stayed that way for eight years, and accumulated an overall record of 211-52. During this time, Gonzaga won the WCC regular-season title seven times; the WCC Tournament title seven times; advanced to the NCAA Tournament eight times, including three trips to the Sweet Sixteen; and finished ranked in the top-10 of the final AP poll three times (2004-2006).

Although Grier spent this time as an assistant coach, he had many responsibilities. He served as the team's "defensive coordinator" for ten years, and was also responsible for ten recruiting classes.

He also successfully developed both post players (1997-2003) and perimeter players (2003-2007). Post players Bakari Hendrix (1998) and Casey Calvary (2001) were both WCC Players of the Year. Perimeter players he worked with included Derek Raivio (2007), the WCC Player of the Year; Adam Morrison (2006), a 1st team All-American and WCC Player of the Year; and Blake Stepp (2004), a 2nd team All-American and two-time WCC Player of the Year.

So, when the University of San Diego fired their head coach Ben Holland at the end of last season, they snatched Grier from conference rival Gonzaga. Upon his hiring, Grier told the press the following:

"The thing about Gonzaga, and some people think that there is a magic recipe, but that program took a lot of time and hard work, and didn't evolve overnight," said Grier, who was on Gonzaga's staff for 16 years. "I see a lot of potential in this program here [San Diego's], with the things that you have to sell, including the city, the campus and the arena."

In his one year at San Diego, Grier accumulated a 22-14 record against one of the toughest schedules San Deigo has seen in years. The Toreros went 11-3 in WCC play, including a win over Gonzaga that sent them to the NCAA tournament as a No. 13 seed. In the tournament, Grier led San Diego to a 70-69 upset of No. 4 seed UConn, but would eventually lose to Western Kentucky in the second round. Here's the game winning shot by De'Jon Jackson:

What a nice job by Grier to put the Toreros on the map in only one year. Just a year ago, the Toreros finished 6-8 in the WCC.

Even though Grier doesn't have as much head coaching experience as Oregon State was wanting, he seems like a great program. He's a skilled recruiter who watched the emergence of the Gonzaga program unfold, and knows that it takes hard work to reach success.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

Another day has come and past, and the OSU Men's basketball program is still without a head coach. Billy Grier remains the favorite, and will likely be offered the job sometime soon. From reading various sources around the San Diego area, it sounds like it's all but a done deal. But who knows.

More tomorrow.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

I've got a crazy day ahead of me on the non-Beaver front, which will make it nearly impossible to post if and when something happens on the OSU Basketball coaching front.

It sounds like Billy Grier will be the guy and that it's almost all but official. The San Diego Union-Tribune says that the Beavers have talked to Grier and there's been no offer yet, but it sounds like he will be offered a six year, 4.2 million dollar deal. Buker says that the job is Grier's if he wants it, but has he taken it? Sounds like it, but we're still waiting for confirmation. While we're waiting, here is 49 precious seconds of Grier's offense:

If anything new develops today, here's the place to post it. I'll be back in the P.M.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

Sounds like he's been offered the job, but we haven't heard official word yet.

Buker's take....

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

We're in for some intriguing basketball today, or at least I hope. It's been blowout city lately in the Sweet 16 and Elite 8, so hopefully we get some down to the wire games today. I could easily be 2/2 or 0/2 today on my bracket, as Davidson could spoil my bracket with a win over Kansas, and Memphis and Texas could go either way.

Just like yesterday, Baseball will be on at the same time, so if any of you will be channel switching between CBS and ESPN, here's the place for your Elite 8 comments.

Click above for a larger bracket.

--JB--