In defense of Mark Fox: program stability

When thinking about Mark Fox's job performance, program stability isn't a bad place to start.  Is it the most important thing about being a head coach at a Division 1 basketball school?  No.  Winning is.  However, it's fair to step back and ask yourself:  has my basketball program embarrassed itself lately?

10 years ago, for Georgia fans the answer was yes.  You may or not like how the administration handled the whole Jim Harrick situation, but the result was a pile of smoldering wreckage.  It wasn't even much of a scandal, and it wouldn't have phased a school like Kentucky, Duke, or North Carolina, but for a Georgia program that was slowly pulling itself up by its bootstraps, it was devastating.


That led to a very safe hire - Dennis Felton - who was tasked as much with restoring order in the program as he was with winning games.  He did a lot of the first and very little of the second.  Fortunately, Mark Fox was able to come on board without rocking the boat.  Consider the following:

APR

These are the available 4-year average rates for Mark Fox's tenure:

• 2009-10 - 946
• 2010-11 - 960
• 2011-12 - 990
• 2012-13 - 986

Not a bad trend line.

Cheating Scandals

None that I'm aware of.

General Embarrassment

12 years ago we were embarrassed about this.  Now it's things like this and this.  I'm down with that.

Has it been perfect?  It never is.  The Brandon Morris incident was a bit of a blight, but not Fox's handling of it, and that's the point.  Fox has given us no reason to believe he's doing anything other than running the program with integrity and class - as much as that's possible in the sometimes nefarious world of college sports, anyway.

You don't keep your job as a college basketball coach just by running a stable program, but it's a great foundation if your goal is to build something meaningful, and Fox has laid that foundation nicely over the last 6 years.

Michigan pipeline

Everyone around the Georgia basketball program always says that if Mark Fox could just build a wall around Michigan he'd have plenty of talent to win.  They do say that, right?

Either way, we woke up to some good news this morning:

For the second straight year, the Georgia men's basketball team has reached into Michigan to get a fast-rising big man.

Michael Edwards, a 6-foot-9 forward from Westland, Mich., committed to Georgia on Monday night.

This is no unknown "diamond in the rough," either.  Edwards star has been on the rise for quite some time and he had interest and offers from places like Auburn, Kansas State, Arkansas, Pitt, SMU, Michigan, and Notre Dame.

That eats up the last scholarship, but it doesn't necessarily mean the Dawgs are done:

Edwards' signature later this month would for at least the moment fill up Georgia's 13 scholarships for next year's team. But sources have said that the Bulldogs would continue to look into other possibilities, such as graduate transfers who could play right away. They would also be interested in Tevin Mack, the four-star guard who signed with VCU but has asked out of his letter-of-intent because of the coaching change.

And if mega-recruit Jaylen Brown, the star from Wheeler High School, surprises everyone and selects Georgia, the Bulldogs would find a way to fit him on the roster.

Silly season isn't over quite yet.

For now, though, let's welcome Michael to the DawgNation.   He's a stud who fills a need, and we should be glad to have him.

[Ledger-Enquirer]

What did I miss?

I'm back in the pilot's chair this morning, so let's see what happened while I was gone:

• Phillip Pearson didn't take a job.  [Ledger-Enquirer]
• Cameron Forte got set to graduate.  [Georgia Basketball Blog]
• Georgia made the 2016 NCAA tournament field as an 11 seed.  [ESPN]

So really...not a whole lot.  The real drama starts Wednesday when the spring signing period kicks off.  How that will go for Georgia remains a big mystery, but it should make for great sport, so buckle up.

One last thing

I know I'm supposed to be on vacation, but this breaking news is too important:

Hall of Fame basketball coach Bob Knight, who has worked as an analyst for ESPN since 2008, is leaving the company.

Thursday night's NIT final between Stanford and Miami was his last appearance for the network.

Hallelujah.

[ESPN]

R & R

I'll be headed out of town for a little R & R, so posting will cease around these parts.  Now's a good time to catch our collective breath as the season winds to a close and the offseason ramps up.

I'll be back in a week and a half with my promised defense of Mark Fox, as well as anything else that may have happened when I was gone.  In the mean time, keep tabs on the new and excellent Georgia Basketball Blog to scratch that itch.

Those wandering eyes

With several new, high-profile coaches joining the SEC ranks lately, is it possible one of the best may be on the way out?  It's possible:

Sources told ESPN.com that Donovan is poised to draw interest from multiple NBA teams this offseason and is increasingly prepared to listen to those pitches after the Gators endured a 16-17 season in which they failed to qualify for postseason play for just the second time in Donovan's nearly two decades in Gainesville.

[ESPN]

Mark Richt has lost control of Jaylen Brown

Quoth Jaylen Brown:

I will definitely be going to an Adidas school.

To save you the trouble, no, Georgia is not Adidas.  The only Adidas schools remaining on his list are Kansas, UCLA, and Michigan.  At least Georgia Tech and Kentucky need not apply.

So when Brown ends up in Kansas, take a breath before you blame Mark Fox.  Then blame him anyway, because that's what we do!

Update:

Or maybe not?

[ESPN]