I think the only thing that's going to save him is the timing of the new GM hire. If the new AD isn't even named until Feb, I doubt the first thing they are going to do is fire the MBB coach. You won't want to put JJs replacement in the place you put him by firing his predecessor too late in the off-season.
But other than that I agree, yikes.
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If we get a new AD in February, what's to keep him/her from firing JJ in mid-March? They probably already have someone in mind right now, even before accepting the position.
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Well see, running an entire athletic department is a big job and I just have a hard time imagining that within the first month one of the things they do is fire the MBB coach.
Tech has a bad enough reputation in the college coaching world. Hamstringing a guy and then canning him. In two years seems like it would only make that worse. But, perhaps it couldn't get worse...
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Part of running an athletic department is fixing problems where you see them. Anyone who's vying for our AD job has been looking into the state of our athletics department, if for no other reason than to help in their interview process, so they can show they know what they're getting into. They'll know that JJ was a Hail Mary hire 1.5 years ago, and will have been watching him for the last month or two. They'll be able to recognize that the program is in shambles and in need of some sort of restructuring. I also wouldn't be surprised if they already had "their guy" tabbed for it, assuming JJ doesn't pull off some kind of miracle the second half of the season.
I have never gotten the feeling that we have a bad rep among coaches. Can you elaborate on that some? I could see the argument that firing JJ after the situation he was tossed into could negatively affect the perception that coaches have about working for Tech, but I would hope that the new AD would get a pass for trying to clean up a mess that was left by their predecessor, since it seems like JJ really isn't getting much out of this team.
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We're playing completely disjointed, undisciplined basketball. We're a lot of fundamentally unsound players making bad decisions, and the score line reflects such play.
But here we are, clawing our way back into this game. I think that's what I've grown to expect of this season. Let's go Hokies.
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Who is playing guard? Top 2 are hurt. Awfully hard to pin this fiasco on him. Anyone playing a freshman at PG in the ACC or any major conference should be putting them in positions to succeed. These kids are in the deep end from the beginning. They will work hard this summer and be much better next year. Very hard to improve PG play during the season. Their embarrassment will serve to motivate them for the off season workouts.
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I keep trying to ignore this team. It just pisses me off to watch them play. The offense is so jilted and so many no-shit possessions. The defense is atrocious.
Horribly coached team.
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don't ignore them, that's too much, just stop scheduling your life around them like i did...
if i catch them on TV, great! if not, oh well...
i turned it on with ~6:00 to go today, saw what i had to see and got the recap of what i missed from the announcers and this board. way less wear and tear on my psyche...
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The most discouraging thing is while the defense is far, far worse than it ever was in the Greenberg era, the offense is still just as bad as it ever was as well. Not to mention Coach Johnson's set plays in critical situations follow the same pattern of being horribly conceived and executed. I used to love watching our basketball games because we were gritty and competed against any team, even if the games were ugly. This year I can't help but find myself turning the channel after a few minutes, and clearly many other fans are also feeling this way.
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Sometimes the best thing a new AD can do is make an immediate change to show it's boosters and fans that he/she is dedicated to re-energizing the school. I believe JJ will be that change.
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The most comical was Trevor Thompson's at the end. Defenders were going to guard the pass for three, instead he splits them, throws down two handed and it sails back near half court.
If they would have made them, it is easily a closer contest and possibly a win. But they missed them mostly during chances at a run and resulted in Wake getting the ball back. Definitely a game in which the final score is a lot closer than the game ever really was.
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No defense at all..... and when we are on offense we've got 4 players "standing around" watching the guy with the ball.....Its pitiful. Seth is looking pretty good now, huh????
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This game wasn't nearly as sloppy as some of the recent debacle's. They did an ok job keeping possession of the ball, with only six turnovers in the game. They were pretty even rebounding although we need to do better on the defensive end of the floor, as we gave up quite a few second chance opportunities. We even shot a respectable 73% from the free throw line, shooting 24-33.
The biggest difference in the game was just plain shooting the ball. We actually shot better from behind the arc at 39% than we did from the floor at 33%. Combine that with allowing Wake Forest to shoot 53% on the game and you aren't going to win many contests. I agree with several of the comments above regarding our lack of an offensive identity, as that has been the one consistent throughout this season. The man with the ball last shoots is not an offense, its like street ball, except people usually shoot better in street ball.
We let Wake jump out to a huge lead and coast, and when we could have been focused on getting some of their starters off the floor by forcing their fifth foul, JJ had no focused effort to make it happen. Three of their starters finished the game with four fouls each. Even in high school, my coaches knew when a guy got to his fourth foul and would focus the offense to drive on that guy, either to get the fifth foul or because the guy would go timid to avoid the foul. I get more and more frustrated with JJ each game as I fail to see much in the way of progress on the offensive side of the ball.
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2nd half was much, much better. We lost by 6.
There is some hope for next year.
1-We played without Emelogu and Adam Smith. They are averaging 11.5 and 11.0 points per game respectively. Emelogu will be a sophomore and Smith a junior next year. Emelogu, already a team captain as a true freshman, has a strong frame, a nice outside shot, and the athleticism to get to the hoop. Smith is a gunner with a scorers mentality.
2-Devin Wilson is improving rapidly. It is alot to ask to throw a true freshman in at PG in the ACC. He is getting to the rim and his outside shot is improving. He is a good athlete and I can see him being a good player down the road.
He is at 9.3 ppg and 4.8 assists. Not bad for an ACC PG, let alone a true freshman. Give him some time and he is going to develop into a good player. He has scored 14, 20, and 26 points over the last 3 games. (hit 3 of 4 from three point range last night) He is playing HEAVY minutes, night after night. He leads the team in minutes per game at 32.4. He is getting big time on the job training in the ACC...this will payoff big down the road. He is really stepping up right now and is improving rapidly.
3-Trevor Thompson showed some nice flashes last night. 10 points and 12 rebounds. Again, a true freshman. He is athletic and has length. Give him some time to bulk up and we have a good big man.
4-Joey Van Zegeren has hands of stone and no touch on his shot but the kid has NBA size and athleticism. He is blocking 2 shots per game and is only a sophomore. He will be one of the best shot blockers in the league within the next two years. If he can develop the ability to make his dunks and hit some layups, we have a guy who can make an impact. (he had 6 blocked shots against Notre Dame and 5 blocks against Boston College)
5-Barksdale will be a senior next year. He is averaging 8.6 ppg and 4.6 rebounds. He should at least be a serviceable power forward next year. He will need to step up his scoring and rebounding next year.
6-Marshall Wood has talent and some skills. He is only a sophomore also. We need him to step up and expand his game next year. Jarrell Eddie will be graduating, so Wood needs to fill some of that void at the small forward spot next year. He is hitting almost 40% from three point range this year. (only 38 attempts) He has good range for a 6'8" player.
7-Next season Malik Mueller will be joining the team. He has some international credentials and is a true point guard with size. 6'3", 210 pounds. Earned MVP honors at the Jordan Brand Classic international game in 2010 Has been a member of the German National Team since 2009. This will lift a big burden off of Devin Wilson, who leads the team in minutes. (since we have no other true point guard on the team) Mueller is allowed to practice with the team all year and will have 4 years of eligibility when he joins the team.
8-Maurice Kirby is redshirting this year but will give us more size up front next season. 6'9", 235 pounds. He has a much bigger frame than JVZ and Trevor Thompson.
9-Incoming freshman-TJ Lang is the 8th ranked player in Alabama. 6'6" forward who has some potential and Duke pedigree.
10-Justin Bibbs, 6'5" wing scorer. I have seen him compared to a "Baby James Harden"....wishful thinking but it would be nice if he was. He is the 14th ranked player in the state of Florida.
11-Jalen Hudson, another 6'5" wing scorer. He is the 4th ranked player in Ohio.
This guy is very athletic and can take it to the hoop. Check out this posterizing dunk. His head seems to be almost at rim level. We haven't had a guy that can do that for a few years now. (since Deron Washington)
So, all in all, there is some hope for the future. I do think JJ will get fired, but I think we should be better next year as the young guys develop. We really only lose Jarrell Eddie and Cadarian Raines. Raines is barely playing much anyway. (although he did play last night)
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Only concern I have with all of the above is that unless they can bring in a rock star coach, how much of the above changes once again if JJ is fired? I could see us losing three to five players from your list if JJ is canned, and maybe two regardless of what happens with JJ based on all the rumors floating out of the program (Wood/Barksdale)
Guess we will see how it plays out, hopefully the new AD and President are on board for a great hire along with making some significant changes to the way the Hokie Club and Season tickets/tickets work.
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Right...any coaching change could result in transfer's. I think basketball recruits already signed a LOI.
JJ is not a good coach, but he is apparently a REALLY nice guy. I am sure at least some of these players and recruits like him alot.
I hope we don't lose much, but we do need to make a change, I agree with that.
I don't think we lose Barksdale as he will be a senior next year.
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When Greenberg was fired Tech offered to let Wood and Harrell out of their LOIs, Harrell took it, Wood came to play and seems to be regretting it. This would lead me to believe that Tech would allow any of the signed LOIs to be negated if they fire JJ.
My understanding on Barksdale is that he is close to graduating, so he would be free to transfer and play immediately while working on a graduate degree.
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Ok, I wasn't aware Barksdale was close to graduating. Yep, that would allow him to play immediately elsewhere.
Wood might be regretting it as he hasn't done much this year. I was expecting more from him this season.
Either way, I agree with you...a coaching change needs to be made. JJ is a nice guy but the program is totally floundering. I think Greenberg would have a winning record with this group honestly.
A rockstar coach would be nice...
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But VCU can afford him? Can VT afford not to write the check?
Should Johnson be fired, the whole Greenburg Weaver Johnson fiasco will really stain the program in the sense that it will be difficult to pitch on the recruiting trail for a coach, assistant coaches, and players.
IMHO the only way we can afford a switch right now is if we get a Shaka or other relatively known quantity who can put a "taken care of" stamp on the thing.
Otherwise it may be more prudent to get a tactician on board and try to assist JJ with the revamp and upgrade of the program and his coaching abilities.
Sure the new guy may want a "new guy" or "his/her guy" but there is alot that comes with that. Not sure a sensible AD will make a half hearted move. Alumni base is pretty pi**ed off between football and basketball performance for the last ten ish years. Should we get a half-hearted basketball "upgrade", another soft football performance on offense which might mean losing to UVA, and it might change the narrative to how VT athletics was run into the ground by a bunch of old boys enjoying friends and fishing in the local area. Right now both the Greenberg era and Beamer era reputations are teeter tottering. A JJ firing and marginal hire would make the Greenberg era look far worse than it really was. Combine that with a soft offensive football performance and it might seem like the past 10 years was a big old embarrassment of mismanagement of both football and basketball.
Most bureaucrats are adept at not putting too much on the line. IMHO 2014-2015 there is a lot that can be put on the line.
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I don't think money is a "major" (definitely not the biggest) concern of Shaka Smart's. He's gotten offers for big money in non-midmajor conferences. He likes the program and the Richmond area and isn't he on a lengthy contract right now? Smart isn't going anywhere for a long time.
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VCU is paying him more than 1 million a year. But there is also a big difference in moving from Richmond to Blacksburg versus moving to a mid western state.
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there is also a big difference in moving from Richmond to Blacksburg versus moving to a mid western state.
Sure but why leave VCU for VT? He's built the program there (with a little help from Anthony Grant before him). I think of it to be slightly similar in some aspects to Beamer's decision to stay at VT when UNC and other schools came calling.
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Comments
Painful. I would be shocked to see JJ back next year.
I think the only thing that's going to save him is the timing of the new GM hire. If the new AD isn't even named until Feb, I doubt the first thing they are going to do is fire the MBB coach. You won't want to put JJs replacement in the place you put him by firing his predecessor too late in the off-season.
But other than that I agree, yikes.
If we get a new AD in February, what's to keep him/her from firing JJ in mid-March? They probably already have someone in mind right now, even before accepting the position.
Well see, running an entire athletic department is a big job and I just have a hard time imagining that within the first month one of the things they do is fire the MBB coach.
Tech has a bad enough reputation in the college coaching world. Hamstringing a guy and then canning him. In two years seems like it would only make that worse. But, perhaps it couldn't get worse...
Part of running an athletic department is fixing problems where you see them. Anyone who's vying for our AD job has been looking into the state of our athletics department, if for no other reason than to help in their interview process, so they can show they know what they're getting into. They'll know that JJ was a Hail Mary hire 1.5 years ago, and will have been watching him for the last month or two. They'll be able to recognize that the program is in shambles and in need of some sort of restructuring. I also wouldn't be surprised if they already had "their guy" tabbed for it, assuming JJ doesn't pull off some kind of miracle the second half of the season.
I have never gotten the feeling that we have a bad rep among coaches. Can you elaborate on that some? I could see the argument that firing JJ after the situation he was tossed into could negatively affect the perception that coaches have about working for Tech, but I would hope that the new AD would get a pass for trying to clean up a mess that was left by their predecessor, since it seems like JJ really isn't getting much out of this team.
tough to watch.
Yeah, that pretty much sums it up.
2nd half has gone.... slightly better. Still think JJ will be unemployed by March 14th.
We're playing completely disjointed, undisciplined basketball. We're a lot of fundamentally unsound players making bad decisions, and the score line reflects such play.
But here we are, clawing our way back into this game. I think that's what I've grown to expect of this season. Let's go Hokies.
Who is playing guard? Top 2 are hurt. Awfully hard to pin this fiasco on him. Anyone playing a freshman at PG in the ACC or any major conference should be putting them in positions to succeed. These kids are in the deep end from the beginning. They will work hard this summer and be much better next year. Very hard to improve PG play during the season. Their embarrassment will serve to motivate them for the off season workouts.
Wilson isn't the problem the past few games. He has been playing well. Smith and Emelogu were hurt.
I agree, Wilson seems to make progress.
1. Reducing turnovers
2. Improved jumpshot
3. Staying aggressive (once he gets going)
I keep trying to ignore this team. It just pisses me off to watch them play. The offense is so jilted and so many no-shit possessions. The defense is atrocious.
Horribly coached team.
don't ignore them, that's too much, just stop scheduling your life around them like i did...
if i catch them on TV, great! if not, oh well...
i turned it on with ~6:00 to go today, saw what i had to see and got the recap of what i missed from the announcers and this board. way less wear and tear on my psyche...
The most discouraging thing is while the defense is far, far worse than it ever was in the Greenberg era, the offense is still just as bad as it ever was as well. Not to mention Coach Johnson's set plays in critical situations follow the same pattern of being horribly conceived and executed. I used to love watching our basketball games because we were gritty and competed against any team, even if the games were ugly. This year I can't help but find myself turning the channel after a few minutes, and clearly many other fans are also feeling this way.
Sometimes the best thing a new AD can do is make an immediate change to show it's boosters and fans that he/she is dedicated to re-energizing the school. I believe JJ will be that change.
This has a certain ring to it. It will certainly send a message.
I listened to this on the radio. Do I need to get my hearing checked, or did the Hokies really miss like 6-7 dunks last night?
haha i dont think i've ever seen so many missed dunks in one game, let alone from one team in one game.
The most comical was Trevor Thompson's at the end. Defenders were going to guard the pass for three, instead he splits them, throws down two handed and it sails back near half court.
If they would have made them, it is easily a closer contest and possibly a win. But they missed them mostly during chances at a run and resulted in Wake getting the ball back. Definitely a game in which the final score is a lot closer than the game ever really was.
If we didn't get any offensive rebounds on these...Let's see...the last time I checked my math, that is 12 points, We'd win.....
No defense at all..... and when we are on offense we've got 4 players "standing around" watching the guy with the ball.....Its pitiful. Seth is looking pretty good now, huh????
This game wasn't nearly as sloppy as some of the recent debacle's. They did an ok job keeping possession of the ball, with only six turnovers in the game. They were pretty even rebounding although we need to do better on the defensive end of the floor, as we gave up quite a few second chance opportunities. We even shot a respectable 73% from the free throw line, shooting 24-33.
The biggest difference in the game was just plain shooting the ball. We actually shot better from behind the arc at 39% than we did from the floor at 33%. Combine that with allowing Wake Forest to shoot 53% on the game and you aren't going to win many contests. I agree with several of the comments above regarding our lack of an offensive identity, as that has been the one consistent throughout this season. The man with the ball last shoots is not an offense, its like street ball, except people usually shoot better in street ball.
We let Wake jump out to a huge lead and coast, and when we could have been focused on getting some of their starters off the floor by forcing their fifth foul, JJ had no focused effort to make it happen. Three of their starters finished the game with four fouls each. Even in high school, my coaches knew when a guy got to his fourth foul and would focus the offense to drive on that guy, either to get the fifth foul or because the guy would go timid to avoid the foul. I get more and more frustrated with JJ each game as I fail to see much in the way of progress on the offensive side of the ball.
2nd half was much, much better. We lost by 6.
There is some hope for next year.
1-We played without Emelogu and Adam Smith. They are averaging 11.5 and 11.0 points per game respectively. Emelogu will be a sophomore and Smith a junior next year. Emelogu, already a team captain as a true freshman, has a strong frame, a nice outside shot, and the athleticism to get to the hoop. Smith is a gunner with a scorers mentality.
2-Devin Wilson is improving rapidly. It is alot to ask to throw a true freshman in at PG in the ACC. He is getting to the rim and his outside shot is improving. He is a good athlete and I can see him being a good player down the road.
He is at 9.3 ppg and 4.8 assists. Not bad for an ACC PG, let alone a true freshman. Give him some time and he is going to develop into a good player. He has scored 14, 20, and 26 points over the last 3 games. (hit 3 of 4 from three point range last night) He is playing HEAVY minutes, night after night. He leads the team in minutes per game at 32.4. He is getting big time on the job training in the ACC...this will payoff big down the road. He is really stepping up right now and is improving rapidly.
3-Trevor Thompson showed some nice flashes last night. 10 points and 12 rebounds. Again, a true freshman. He is athletic and has length. Give him some time to bulk up and we have a good big man.
4-Joey Van Zegeren has hands of stone and no touch on his shot but the kid has NBA size and athleticism. He is blocking 2 shots per game and is only a sophomore. He will be one of the best shot blockers in the league within the next two years. If he can develop the ability to make his dunks and hit some layups, we have a guy who can make an impact. (he had 6 blocked shots against Notre Dame and 5 blocks against Boston College)
5-Barksdale will be a senior next year. He is averaging 8.6 ppg and 4.6 rebounds. He should at least be a serviceable power forward next year. He will need to step up his scoring and rebounding next year.
6-Marshall Wood has talent and some skills. He is only a sophomore also. We need him to step up and expand his game next year. Jarrell Eddie will be graduating, so Wood needs to fill some of that void at the small forward spot next year. He is hitting almost 40% from three point range this year. (only 38 attempts) He has good range for a 6'8" player.
7-Next season Malik Mueller will be joining the team. He has some international credentials and is a true point guard with size. 6'3", 210 pounds. Earned MVP honors at the Jordan Brand Classic international game in 2010 Has been a member of the German National Team since 2009. This will lift a big burden off of Devin Wilson, who leads the team in minutes. (since we have no other true point guard on the team) Mueller is allowed to practice with the team all year and will have 4 years of eligibility when he joins the team.
8-Maurice Kirby is redshirting this year but will give us more size up front next season. 6'9", 235 pounds. He has a much bigger frame than JVZ and Trevor Thompson.
9-Incoming freshman-TJ Lang is the 8th ranked player in Alabama. 6'6" forward who has some potential and Duke pedigree.
10-Justin Bibbs, 6'5" wing scorer. I have seen him compared to a "Baby James Harden"....wishful thinking but it would be nice if he was. He is the 14th ranked player in the state of Florida.
11-Jalen Hudson, another 6'5" wing scorer. He is the 4th ranked player in Ohio.
This guy is very athletic and can take it to the hoop. Check out this posterizing dunk. His head seems to be almost at rim level. We haven't had a guy that can do that for a few years now. (since Deron Washington)
http://youtu.be/2dnKa3gF5wM
So, all in all, there is some hope for the future. I do think JJ will get fired, but I think we should be better next year as the young guys develop. We really only lose Jarrell Eddie and Cadarian Raines. Raines is barely playing much anyway. (although he did play last night)
Only concern I have with all of the above is that unless they can bring in a rock star coach, how much of the above changes once again if JJ is fired? I could see us losing three to five players from your list if JJ is canned, and maybe two regardless of what happens with JJ based on all the rumors floating out of the program (Wood/Barksdale)
Guess we will see how it plays out, hopefully the new AD and President are on board for a great hire along with making some significant changes to the way the Hokie Club and Season tickets/tickets work.
Right...any coaching change could result in transfer's. I think basketball recruits already signed a LOI.
JJ is not a good coach, but he is apparently a REALLY nice guy. I am sure at least some of these players and recruits like him alot.
I hope we don't lose much, but we do need to make a change, I agree with that.
I don't think we lose Barksdale as he will be a senior next year.
When Greenberg was fired Tech offered to let Wood and Harrell out of their LOIs, Harrell took it, Wood came to play and seems to be regretting it. This would lead me to believe that Tech would allow any of the signed LOIs to be negated if they fire JJ.
My understanding on Barksdale is that he is close to graduating, so he would be free to transfer and play immediately while working on a graduate degree.
Ok, I wasn't aware Barksdale was close to graduating. Yep, that would allow him to play immediately elsewhere.
Wood might be regretting it as he hasn't done much this year. I was expecting more from him this season.
Either way, I agree with you...a coaching change needs to be made. JJ is a nice guy but the program is totally floundering. I think Greenberg would have a winning record with this group honestly.
A rockstar coach would be nice...
I wish we could get Shaka from VCU. But I am pretty sure that would a bigger check than the Athletic department wants to write for basketball.
But VCU can afford him? Can VT afford not to write the check?
Should Johnson be fired, the whole Greenburg Weaver Johnson fiasco will really stain the program in the sense that it will be difficult to pitch on the recruiting trail for a coach, assistant coaches, and players.
IMHO the only way we can afford a switch right now is if we get a Shaka or other relatively known quantity who can put a "taken care of" stamp on the thing.
Otherwise it may be more prudent to get a tactician on board and try to assist JJ with the revamp and upgrade of the program and his coaching abilities.
Sure the new guy may want a "new guy" or "his/her guy" but there is alot that comes with that. Not sure a sensible AD will make a half hearted move. Alumni base is pretty pi**ed off between football and basketball performance for the last ten ish years. Should we get a half-hearted basketball "upgrade", another soft football performance on offense which might mean losing to UVA, and it might change the narrative to how VT athletics was run into the ground by a bunch of old boys enjoying friends and fishing in the local area. Right now both the Greenberg era and Beamer era reputations are teeter tottering. A JJ firing and marginal hire would make the Greenberg era look far worse than it really was. Combine that with a soft offensive football performance and it might seem like the past 10 years was a big old embarrassment of mismanagement of both football and basketball.
Most bureaucrats are adept at not putting too much on the line. IMHO 2014-2015 there is a lot that can be put on the line.
I don't think money is a "major" (definitely not the biggest) concern of Shaka Smart's. He's gotten offers for big money in non-midmajor conferences. He likes the program and the Richmond area and isn't he on a lengthy contract right now? Smart isn't going anywhere for a long time.
VCU is paying him more than 1 million a year. But there is also a big difference in moving from Richmond to Blacksburg versus moving to a mid western state.
Sure but why leave VCU for VT? He's built the program there (with a little help from Anthony Grant before him). I think of it to be slightly similar in some aspects to Beamer's decision to stay at VT when UNC and other schools came calling.