Bopped on the Beazer
Nobody likes to have their boss doing their job.
It's not comfortable and it certainly doesn't promise longevity.
That's why Ken Beazer seems in a precarious position today as the athletic director at Southern Utah University.
Beazer said all the right things yesterday when Roger Reid was introduced as the new SUU men's basketball coach. He was "excited" about Reid taking the job. Of course, have you ever heard an AD say he was disappointed in the hiring of a new coach?
He also said something interesting.
"We had just a little window to meet with and talk with some coaches because we wanted to move quickly because of recruiting coming up," Beazer said. He said the university had a "short list" of candidates.
Who is this "we?"
It seems to me that Beazer was pretty much out of the loop on this one, that SUU President Michael T. Benson was the decider, not Beazer, who had, last summer, offered former SUU coach Bill Evans an extension on his contract.
I really don't know much about Reid other than the numbers he posted at Brigham Young University and Snow College, where the level of competition is pretty far down the scale.
But, as somebody whose taxes go to the university, I'd like to know a little more about this decision.
How many candidates applied? Who were they? How can you do interviews in such a short time? I know at the newspaper, it takes us a while to hire a new employee. It just doesn't happen in a matter of days.
If I were Beazer, I'd be looking over my shoulder or at the classifieds. This is clearly Benson's show.
And, If I were Wes Meier, the coach of the dismal SUU football program, I'd put my house on the market and be prepared to move quickly after the T-Birds finish their fall season.
He is, as a colleague put it, a "dead coach walking."
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Comments
Ed, you hit it right on the head. Usually an AD's job is judged by who he hires and how they do. If several key coaches do a poor job, it is not only the coaches that go but the AD too. But in this case he is out of the loop, it seems not important at all in these happenings, too bad!
As a tax payer I want to know how much this new coach of "Southern BYU" is going to get paid and any incentives. This should be public knowledge and this so called public insitution. I think it might be one of your duties at the newspaper to ferret this out.
I really don't think there was any process in this hiring at all, the president had his "boy" and that was the end of it.
This new coach might do a good job but I will predict the team will be very white and very dominate relegion from Utah or very close.
I, as a season ticket holder am very disappointed with the latest prceedings. I am sure the football coach is next, it is a terrible program and probably deserves to go but lets open up the hiring proceses, unless of course the president has another "boy" to give a job too.
Posted by: utgopher | March 17, 2007 05:32 PM
Great Hire For SUU!
Ed, since you seem to know little of the fantastic Coach we just hired, check this out:
http://www.suu.edu/athletics/mensball/reidnamed.html
Where else would Cedar City get someone so accomplished, with so many connections. Indeed, Coach Reid will finally put SUU basketball on the map in our own state!
This Thunderbird fan is excited about the direction of our basketball program. We are extremely fortunate. Coach Reid has had more success at every level and is a better basketball coach than whoever the University of Utah hires in the coming days. You can count on that.
I wish Coach Evans the best of luck. But I am well aware of his career 48% winning clip, as well as his 71-100 record over the past six years. That is just not getting it done at the D-I level. Certainly we need to raise our expectations a bit. We can and should be able to compete for league championships. And Coach Reid will do that, especially by winning on the road, something superior coaches do (and something Evans always struggled with).
Finally, since some are worried about tax dollars, Evans earned about 85,000 a year (you can find this online; for example, Dick Hunsaker at UVSC earns close to $100,000). I suspect Coach Reid will earn the same as Evans, or likely a little higher, considering his greater accomplishments and credentials. Obviously a huge bargain when compared with the U., who may be shelling out close to a million dollars for their next coach.
And as for President Benson, I commend him for all he is doing at SUU. His vision and courage will be a great boon to our community. His plans to raise more than $100 million for SUU over the next 5 years will benefit the school in a number of ways and raise our academic profile. If he indeed was instrumental in bringing Coach Reid on campus, I say thank you. And I say thank you to AD Ken Beazer for his role as well.
Posted by: Jeremiah Dixon | March 21, 2007 06:01 PM
This is to Jeremiah--------your attitude is what is WRONG with SUU BB, your eye sight does not go beyond the state line.
examples:
Reid has connections in the state: he can't win at the D-1 level with the left over talent of this state. No one could.
Reid is going to put SUU BB on the map in the state:....here we go again, I believe D-1 basketball is played beyond this state, plus this state is not that good, evidence is over whelming on this subject.
D-1 level:...we will not be successful until we recruit like other D-1 schools, everywhere, except in this "pocket" of the country where some people doubt if the rest of the USA exsists much less "worthy" basketball players. I mean Duke recruits from all over the country. SUU needs to at least go to Las Vegas and California more than they do to compete at the D-1 level. I would imagine that Oral Roberts is recruiting beyond Oklahoma
It is not only good for the BB product of a given school but it is good for the players to be with "other" kids from other places. Like California, the midwest, east coast, or a foreign country. I am aware that thoughts like that, being with "other" people who my be different in some way is very scary to many in Utah
Lastly, Pres. Benson had EVERYTHING to do with Reid's hiring, it was a rush job, not open to anyone else I am guessing and I am also guessing AD Beazer had NOTHING to do with the hiring.
I think the whole short process of hiring Reid, who may be the right man for the job, was really "low rent" and not worthy of a "public" university. I hope it is still "public" and not renamed "BYU South" or "BYU Junior"
Please look for players and coaches beyond "that artifical line." There is a world out there!
Posted by: utgopher | May 4, 2007 06:39 PM