Fascinating read on Tom Crean ...

[MU/Panther]

I wish Tom Crean was still here to get the students to the games.

[kneelb4zerg]

I wish Tom Crean was still here to get the students to the games.

We need to get good again to get students to the game.

[IrwinFletcher]

I don't dislike Crean and am very thankful for him getting Marquette Basketball back on the map.

I don't, however, respect him.

[Cooby Snacks]

So what changed?

Was kind of wondering the same thing. Was it something on Marquette's end or was it simply he felt ready for the big time?[/QUOTE]

Seemed like the Shumpert recruitment was a blow, plus not getting over the 1st weekend hump 3 straight years.

Thing is, if he'd stayed and had managed to hold onto Tyshawn and Mbakwe, still replacing Christopherson with Jimmy Butler thanks to Buzz...holy sh1t. Would've been a lot better for him than those first 3 seasons at Indiana for sure.

[Gato78]

If Crean had stayed, we would be talking about his legacy and we would build a bronze statue of him in the future. Pun intended. Instead, he tried to grab a better brass ring and has nothing but derision to show for it. It was in the cards, though. Mike Davis was treated like absolute crap 2 years after taking Indiana to the Final Four. What is happening to TC is no different than Davis. All that being said, he should be in MU's HOF.

[BLT]

All that being said, he should be in MU's HOF.

Him and his Final 4 year are already in. Personally? I would take Rick first for his total coaching contributions. Heck, one could make the case of Buzz before Crean based on results (won the Big East, 3 Sweet 16's, 1 Elite 8, players in the NBA, fastest coach to 100 wins, winning %, etc.), although that would never happen for other reasons.

For whatever reasons, and I think it is wrong, Crean has a tarnished record at MU. I think it is also wrong that he has been erased from the timeline video, but the booing is a downer. He left a lot of bad blood.

[TheSultan]

Him and his Final 4 year are already in. Personally? I would take Rick first for his total coaching contributions. Heck, one could make the case of Buzz before Crean based on results (won the Big East, 3 Sweet 16's, 1 Elite 8, players in the NBA, fastest coach to 100 wins, winning %, etc.), although that would never happen for other reasons.

For whatever reasons, and I think it is wrong, Crean has a tarnished record at MU. I think it is also wrong that he has been erased from the timeline video, but the booing is a downer. He left a lot of bad blood.

I'm sorry but Crean's record at MU is way better than Rick's. Rick is a great guy and all, represented MU well, and his "failures" were not really his fault, but standing side by side, Crean simply accomplished more.

Crean seems like an easy guy to dislike. I never met him, but from others I know who have say he comes off a bit like a used car salesman. His recruiting was up and down. For instance, MU gets to the Final Four but never builds off of it. He can't seem to take that next step. And he looks a bit like a pretty boy.

And the way he departed left some people with a bad taste. But many of those same people think O'Neil was a great yet his departure was completely classless.

But I think Gato is right. If he would have turned down IU and still at MU, he would still have been successful.

[Nukem2]

I'm sorry but Crean's record at MU is way better than Rick's. Rick is a great guy and all, represented MU well, and his "failures" were not really his fault, but standing side by side, Crean simply accomplished more.

Crean seems like an easy guy to dislike. I never met him, but from others I know who have say he comes off a bit like a used car salesman. His recruiting was up and down. For instance, MU gets to the Final Four but never builds off of it. He can't seem to take that next step. And he looks a bit like a pretty boy.

And the way he departed left some people with a bad taste. But many of those same people think O'Neil was a great yet his departure was completely classless.

But I think Gato is right. If he would have turned down IU and still at MU, he would still have been successful.

Totally agree on all counts. I get that some folks (including me) do not like how his departure went down and that he can be an abrasive personality, but he was successful. A Final Four coming out of the CUSA and immediate success in the old BE are hallmarks of his success. As Gato says, he should be in the MU HOF some day (after he retires probably).

[MUWhistler]

O'Neil was a great yet his departure was completely classless.

After O'Neil had his press conference in Tennessee, he showed up in Heggarty's that same day, still wearing the orange tie that he had on at the press conference. Everyone was going up to him and thanking him for beating Kentucky and getting us to the Final Four. I kept yelling from the back to get out of an MU bar! Especially while wearing the other team's colors!

[WearGold]

After O'Neil had his press conference in Tennessee, he showed up in Heggarty's that same day, still wearing the orange tie that he had on at the press conference. Everyone was going up to him and thanking him for beating Kentucky and getting us to the Final Four. I kept yelling from the back to get out of an MU bar! Especially while wearing the other team's colors!

A Final Four in the O'Neil era would have been great, but the Kentucky win in 1994 got us to the Sweet 16; although it was the farthest MU got in the tourney since, I believe, the title run in 1977.