Potential New Coach Names

[LVfanLasVegas]

...and Fortier made $632,000 for the 24 season at Gonzaga.

 

[Butch s]

The Lady Vols have been irrelevant in the Regional Finals since Coach Summitt left the program. I don't think Coach Caldwell is the answer, but she deserves a chance to see her offense click with players who want to play in it and not just paid mercenaries from other schools. I feel she deserves at least 1-2 more years. She took a team to the Sweet 16 last year with a big win over the eventual national champion.

Coach admitted she overestimated her ability to coach P4 players. In the portal age we live in now, the scare tactics and public embarrassing don't always get the expected result.

Unfortunately the system now makes them all paid mercenaries

 

[maple]

Some comments first: I'm out on Walz and Brenda. They have it made at their current schools and I see no reason they'd leave. Also I feel like they're riding on reputations that haven't quite stacked up in the last decade. Kara Lawson would be the obvious choice, but I think she's enjoying what she's building at Duke and wants to have a legacy beyond the LVs (just like Shea at Vandy). Johnston at SDSU seems to be the kind of coach who can do more with less, but not sure if he has the chops to build a team to compete in the SEC.

So my pick for this thought experiment ... Vic Schaefer at Texas, formerly of Mississippi State. $2.3 million salary from a quick Google search.

- Proven success at multiple schools, including building up programs.
- Ability to recruit.
- Abundance of experience coaching in the SEC.

On paper it makes a lot of sense to me. That said, I don't think TN could lure him away or if he'd even want to move on.

 

[37620VOL]

Some comments first: I'm out on Walz and Brenda. They have it made at their current schools and I see no reason they'd leave. Also I feel like they're riding on reputations that haven't quite stacked up in the last decade. Kara Lawson would be the obvious choice, but I think she's enjoying what she's building at Duke and wants to have a legacy beyond the LVs (just like Shea at Vandy). Johnston at SDSU seems to be the kind of coach who can do more with less, but not sure if he has the chops to build a team to compete in the SEC.

So my pick for this thought experiment ... Vic Schaefer at Texas, formerly of Mississippi State. $2.3 million salary from a quick Google search.

- Proven success at multiple schools, including building up programs.
- Ability to recruit.
- Abundance of experience coaching in the SEC.

On paper it makes a lot of sense to me. That said, I don't think TN could lure him away or if he'd even want to move on.

Vic's got that Texas money, has it made a Texas much moreso that Frese or Walz, and he's 10 years older than Frese and Walz.

Vic leaving Texas is 0%
Kim leaving LSU is 0%
Dawn leaving SC is 0%
Geno leaving UConn is 0%

 

[chuckiepoo]

Vic's got that Texas money, has it made a Texas much moreso that Frese or Walz, and he's 10 years older than Frese and Walz.

Vic leaving Texas is 0%
Kim leaving LSU is 0%
Dawn leaving SC is 0%
Geno leaving UConn is 0%

Clarity. Thank you.

…wanna bet they continue to show up on every “potential coach” search list?

 

[Baba_Yaga78]

Thanks. The corrections are appreciated.

The Google AI, despite many iterations, kept adding and subtracting names almost at random. The point of posting the list was just to try to set a baseline: If proposing a coach who has not made it to the Sweet Sixteen, give good reasons.

We all know the real reason you posted the list

 

[chuckiepoo]

We all know the real reason you posted the list

 

[lilesrt]

Anyone think of Mickie DeMoss? Strike up the ole band?

 

[Volstylexx]

My short list

Fortier
Kara
Walz
Brooks
Ralph
Frese

I wouldn't be mad with any of those.

 

[Volstylexx]

Anyone think of Mickie DeMoss? Strike up the ole band?

Tyler available while we're at it?

 

[chuckiepoo]

Anyone think of Mickie DeMoss? Strike up the ole band?

She’s been retired four years. Don’t think that’s happening. Poking her head in toward the end of Kellie’s tenure may have helped but that horse is out the Barn.

 

[knoxvol52]

Tyler available while we're at it?

Tyler's mad because Danny White fired Kellie Harper...

 

[Special Ed]

If Kim has to go, and I'm not sure she does, I'd be happy with Walz.
With UT's women's basketball resources and tradition, I believe he'd do even better here than he's done at Louisville.

 

[AllVols3]

I wouldn't be mad with any of those.

Kara might come for enough $$. There's not enough $$ to get Ralph here. I'm not high on the UK coach, he's just weird. Maryland coach, would definitely be an upgrade. Idk who Fortier is . Idx as long as we WIN!!

 

[Volfaninfl2]

Okey dokey, Kara's name comes a lot and, yes, if that move could be made, we have our answer. I really don;t see Kara leaving Duke. I definitely believe she wants to create her own legacy and not be saddled with the CPS legacy in her own coaching career.

I think everyone on that list would be an upgrade (including Kellie) but few seem likely to make a move and some like Freese (are both unlikely and late career stage).

So, I will throw out a pie-in-the-sky name. Candace Parker. The big negative is no formal coaching experience but on every other dimension she is (Kara ++). [I also note that J.J. Reddick has successfully transitioned from broadcasting to NBA coaching].

Would CP3 want to leave her very sweet gigs in broadcasting and being an Adidas exec to enter into the mad of the NIL/portal circus, particularly with young kids to raise? Probably not but why not have a casual conversation about it? Even more than Kara, CP3 really seems to want to keep the CPS memory and legacy alive so I think she would embrace that aspect of the job. She has the leadership skills and knows that great leaders surround themselves with the best so I bet her staff would be killer.

I’m not sure she would embrace the aspect of working for AD White.

 

[VolBall09]

Throw money at Shae Ralph. We’ve already pissed on Pat’s grave anyway. Might as well just hire a Husky and call it a day.

 

[ChelseaVol]

I’m all for it. I’ve grown to like several of the UConn girls in their W endeavors. It seems like it would be even more AD malpractice to not at least put feeler$ out to Shea… of course with a massive buyout clause written into it centered around leaving for UConn.

 

[Volfaninfl2]

Some comments first: I'm out on Walz and Brenda. They have it made at their current schools and I see no reason they'd leave. Also I feel like they're riding on reputations that haven't quite stacked up in the last decade. Kara Lawson would be the obvious choice, but I think she's enjoying what she's building at Duke and wants to have a legacy beyond the LVs (just like Shea at Vandy). Johnston at SDSU seems to be the kind of coach who can do more with less, but not sure if he has the chops to build a team to compete in the SEC.

So my pick for this thought experiment ... Vic Schaefer at Texas, formerly of Mississippi State. $2.3 million salary from a quick Google search.

- Proven success at multiple schools, including building up programs.
- Ability to recruit.
- Abundance of experience coaching in the SEC.

On paper it makes a lot of sense to me. That said, I don't think TN could lure him away or if he'd even want to move on.

Vic is 65 years old, and as red as his face gets during games, well, it doesn’t look too healthy.

 

[VolBall09]

...and Fortier made $632,000 for the 24 season at Gonzaga.

How much did her husband make? Not a fan of the hubby/wife coaching combo.

Still think it’s gross how common it is in the women’s game. You don’t see any wives riding off their husband’s coattails in men’s basketball.

 

[b_gann]

We have had an interesting conversation in the thread for replacement coach qualifications. That thread, in typical fashion, has begun to meander into various
related swamps. topics. So the time has come to stick our collective and individual
necks out and name names.

When proposing a candidate for the AD to hire, please give us the basics:
1. Name
2. Current school, if active. Last school if retired.
3. Last known $ compensation
4. Your three top reasons why the AD should hire this person.

No extra credit will be awarded for references to culinary skills, fine fashion sense, or
ideological stance. Let’s stick to coaching, please.

To kick things off, I offer a list that is supposed to include all the active D1 head coaches who have been at D1 NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen games as a head coach. I used whatever AI comes with Google search. It was not a fun experience.

WARNING! This list probably has some errors and omissions. Nite the wrong school affiliation for Kellie Harper. Complain to Google, not me.


You may propose a coach without SS head coaching experience.


Active DI Women's Basketball Coaches - Sweet Sixteen Appearances

# of SS	Head Coach	Team (2024-25/26)
24	Geno Auriemma	UConn
11	Kim Mulkey	LSU
8	Dawn Staley	South Carolina
8	Brenda Frese	Maryland
7	Wes Moore	NC State
6	Jeff Walz	Louisville
5	Scott Rueck	Oregon State
5	Vic Schaefer	Texas
4	Niele Ivey	Notre Dame
4	Lisa Fortier	Gonzaga
3	Kara Lawson	Duke
3	Yolett McPhee-McCuin	Ole Miss
3	Kellie Harper	Missouri
3	Joni Taylor	Texas A&M
2	Adia Barnes	SMU
2	Tony Bozzella	Seton Hall
2	Aaron Johnston	South Dakota St
1	Dawn Plitzuweit	Minnesota
1	Megan Duffy	Virginia Tech
1	Kenny Brooks	Kentucky

ALL Other Active DI Coaches Meeting Criteria (1-2 SS Appearances):

The following coaches also meet the criteria and have 1-2 Sweet 16 appearances as a DI Head Coach: Kim Caldwell (Tennessee), Tricia Cullop (Miami), Tina Langley (Washington), Kyra Elzy (formerly Kentucky), Karen Aston (UTSA), Amaka Agugua-Hamilton (Virginia), Natasha Adair
,Katrina Merriweather (Cincinnati), Lynn Norenberg (formerly W&M), C. Vivian Stringer (previously retired), Sharon Fanning (previously retired).

• 2 - Courtney Banghart (North Carolina/Princeton) and Lindsay Gottlieb USC west 2 and Kim Barnes Arico, Michigan should be listed. Add Kevin McGuff at Ohio State, theeee. Add Cori Close. UCLA. Mark Campbell at TCU. Jennie Baranczyk, OK.

First Calls
Kara Lawson
Molly Miller
Brenda Frese

Next Group
Lisa Fortier
Jacie Hoyt
Robyn Fralick
Dawn Plitzuweit
Courtney Banghart
Nicki Collen

Third Group
Rechelle Turner
Carla Berube
Kayla Karius

Given the UT history and legacy - I went all female coaches.

 

[glv98]

Given the UT history and legacy - I went all female coaches.

Given the current disaster of coach hiring, the notion that we could would continue to let identity politics play a role in this is just gobsmacking. We have to stop limiting ourselves in any way.

Also did you know Pat Summit was not against male coaches? She actually wanted to coach long enough to have Tyler as an assistant..

 

[Clad in Big Orange]

Don't flame too much, this is purely a hypothetical. Someone that I think would have the program elite very soon but is probably too polarizing and not very likely......Bruce Pearl.

IF he were interested, he'd do a fantastic job. I think Pat would approve. She and Bruce seemed to have a very good relationship and mutual respect for one another. I could see it as a very short stop-gap (4 seasons max). The man can coach basketball, recruit, inspires maximum effort from his players and is a media darling. Would get the program back in the top 8 very quickly. Yes I'm aware there are many reasons this could/would never happen.

 

[lilesrt]

Feels like we’re jumping the gun here.

 

[Volteacher]

What about Wes Moore?? When he was at UTC they were winning 20-24 games a season every year and going to the tournament and had them ranked a few years. Now at NC State lead them to some really good year, not so much this year. He has a lifetime contract there if he stays and if comes to UT and has fair to middling years out on his behind......I WOULD go after him if we were looking for a coach

 

[ERvolsfan]

Lisa Fortier’s candidacy for an SEC head coaching position is anchored by her status as one of the most efficient winners in the modern era of women’s college basketball. As the fastest active Division I coach to reach 300 career victories, matching the torrid pace of LSU’s Kim Mulkey, Fortier has proven she can build and sustain a Top 25 program outside of the traditional power conferences. Her career winning percentage of nearly .800 and her 10 postseason appearances demonstrate a level of consistency that would immediately stabilize and elevate an SEC program. Crucially, she has proven she can beat the nation's best on the biggest stages, evidenced by her 18-point blowout of #3 Stanford and deep runs into the NCAA Sweet Sixteen.

Tactically, Fortier’s "defense-first" philosophy is a perfect match for the physical, high-intensity environment of the SEC. Her defensive schemes are built on elite scouting and disciplined man-to-man principles that take away an opponent's primary strengths.

Offensively, she runs a highly unselfish, top-10 efficient system that prioritizes ball movement and rebounding, traits that are essential for neutralizing the athletic pressure common in SEC play. Unlike many coaches who rely on a single superstar, Fortier’s "share the load" approach makes her teams incredibly difficult to scout and resilient against injuries.

Furthermore, Fortier has mastered the modern recruiting landscape, which is a prerequisite for SEC success. She has established a premier international pipeline and has shown a savvy ability to use the Transfer Portal to bring in high-major talent from programs like UConn. Her reputation for a "family-first" culture has led to high player retention, a rare asset in the current era of college sports. Combined with her immense personal resilience, highlighted by her inspirational return to the sidelines after a battle with breast cancer, Fortier offers the rare combination of a master tactician, an elite recruiter, and a high-character leader ready for the brightest lights in the country.

*a Google summary of her as an SEC head coach candidate

This was my top choice two years ago!