By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com Publisher
Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisMWilliams
It’s mail time! Thanks for the questions this week fanatics. You came up with some good ones. Enjoy!
ISUser writes: The opinion piece about how Paul Rhoads should be a candidate for the Ohio State job got me to thinking….If you had to pick one, what head coach could ISU least afford to lose right now? CPR or Hoiberg?
CW: That’s a doozie.
I think that circumstances would have a lot to do with how I would answer this. Hear me out.
If either coach left in Gene Chizik fashion, aka, out of the blue (you know what I mean), that would sting. Iowa State fans view both Rhoads and Hoiberg as one of their own. If either one up and left out of nowhere for a job that wasn’t clearly better than the situation they are in in Ames, our website would explode. However, could anybody really blame Paul Rhoads for listening to one of the best jobs in America, like Ohio State?
That’s not your question though. Your question is which coach could Iowa State least afford to lose?
Football is king.
As much as I believe in what Hoiberg is doing right now, football pays the bills. Paul Rhoads has a lot of momentum heading into year three. The very fact that he’s even being mentioned in the same sentence as Ohio State should tell you something about how people view Rhoads nationally. With all of the money being spent on facility upgrades in Ames, the recruiting momentum and more, losing Rhoads right now would be a colossal hit for this athletic department.
Competitively, it is easier to win with less in basketball than football. In hoops, you are always a Michael Beasley away from at the very least being competitive.
I’ll take Rhoads, with no disrespect at all to the Mayor.
00clone writes: I was impressed with the Royce White interview on cyclones.com a few weeks back, especially when he said he hates the other guys are called misfits. He said he is the misfit. Thought it was mature of him to admit his mistakes. Have you heard if he’s been a leader of the transfers, and will he be a leader next year? Also, is that attitude why we haven’t heard trouble from the ‘troubled transfers’?
CW: I imagine that you’ll hear a lot more from these guys in the months leading up to basketball season. Last year, there really wasn’t much of a reason for them to be talking to the media, as they weren’t actually playing. I don’t think that Iowa State is scared to let them talk or anything like that. It just hasn’t been their turn.
Royce is an intriguing young man. His past is his past. I’ve heard nothing but glowing remarks about his behavior since coming to Ames. In fact, I’ve heard that he’s one of the most trustworthy members of the team. Royce always has a smile on his face and appears to be grateful for his second chance.
As far as who the "leader" is, I’m not sure. Just knowing Royce’s personality, I imagine that he is. That will be an interesting storyline to watch develop over the next few months leading up to tip. Who grabs this team and calls it their own?
Sawyer writes: Seeing how I personally HATE Nebraska, if Bo Pelini went to OSU, I would be very happy.
CW: You know why I’d like to see this? Just imagine what would go through some of those old school Husker fans’ minds if a coach up and left Lincoln under his own terms.
"That’s not possible right? Why would anybody on the planet want to coach somewhere more than in the football capital of the universe, NEBRASKA!"
Greatest program in the nation….Just ask them.
If Pelini were to leave, do you think that Tom Osborne would pick up the phone and call his old buddy Frank "the Tank" Solich for a reunion?
Jay moe writes: How has Jake Knott progressed since his surgery?
CW: I haven’t directly spoken to Jake but I assume since I haven’t heard anything negative regarding your question that all is well. I know that Jake was already working out and lifting just a week after his surgery. If that bad luck is going to go down with one of your marquee players, it might as well happen to a guy with an impeccable work ethic like Knott.
ItsCYence writes: Remember last June? We were talking Big East, MAC, MWC. It’s a lot better feeling this June right?
CW: You couldn’t be more correct. I actually wrote about this topic earlier this week. CLICK HERE to read Tuesday’s roundup. The difference 365 days makes in a situation like this is nothing short of crazy.
DrewCo writes: What does Coach Hoiberg anticipate with the coming season? McGee making a transition to point guard and starting? Allen making the transition to point guard and starting? Or Sledge coming in and starting? I know we will see multiple people bring the ball up, but who do Fred and company anticipate bringing the ball up for the first possession of the 2011-2012 season?
CW: Fred hasn’t told me this but my early guess would be that Tyrus McGee will start Iowa State’s first game of 2011 at point guard. I feel like I have written this a million times though. As long as Fred is the coach, don’t get too hung up on the term "point guard" going forward. Like you mentioned, a handful of guys will handle the basketball for Iowa State going forward. I remember what Diante Garrett told me at the end of last season. DG said that next year, Chris Allen will be him (DG), if that makes any sense. Allen will handle the basketball more than most people are thinking right now. I believe that Sledge will provide some quality minutes, but I’ll be surprised if he comes right in and starts as a true freshman.
cyclone13 writes: In an ideal world, you can get a winning team with a model citizen players. However, it’s very rare (especially for a football team when you have 90 players).
If you have to choose, which one do you prefer: winning team (NCAA appearances for BB or good bowl games for CFB) with problematic players or mediocre team (losing or .500 record or minor bowl appearances) with model citizen players ?
CW: Wow. This is one of those damned if you do, damned if you don’t situations. I’m going to irritate somebody, regardless of the direction I go with my answer.
What exactly do you mean by "model citizen" players? Does that mean that they have no history at all of getting into trouble? Can they get into a little trouble?
Even for a sub-500 team, I don’t believe that to be realistic in the Big 12 or any other BCS conference.
If I had to choose, I’d go with the NCAA appearances and bowl games, as long as we’re not talking about really nasty stuff. I like winning. Winning makes the university money. I have a feeling that most honest fans would agree with me on this one too.
Brett108 writes: Have you heard anything about the departure of Adrian Bennett? I was wondering if there was ever a reason given for his departure from the team.
CW: I’ve heard that Adrian wanted to be closer to home. That’s about it. Hopefully he lands on his feet somewhere.
