I'm not making claims either way because I wasn't really old enough during the Morgan years to really evaluate him, but the reason is because people think that McDermott is a good coach his style just doesn't translate to the Big 12. McDermott I think requires a lot of hard work from his players. This isn't what the players good enough to play here want from their coach so he had problems getting the most out of them and keeping them here.
The Forgotten Years: The History of Wayne Morgan
- Thread starter Nuts4Cy
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When we played against UNI when McD was the coach, I thought his teams always gave us all we could handle. When ISU hired him he was also being pursued by Kansas State (and others). I, for one, was very surprised how things turned out at ISU for McD. Fortunately, things have worked out for both ISU and McD.
As for Morgan, the fact that he has never gotten a sniff of another coaching job of any type speaks volumes as to his coaching ability. I think he spent more time napping on the bench than anything else.
As for Morgan, the fact that he has never gotten a sniff of another coaching job of any type speaks volumes as to his coaching ability. I think he spent more time napping on the bench than anything else.
Um, any good to great program in the country requires a lot of hard work from their players. That wasn't his problem. I personally never thought his heart was in Ames, and players could see this too. He didn't want to be here and he never had the respect of the team. Without that he was doomed.
No clear reason that time, but I suspect he was content at Creighton. Remember that he almost went to Arkansas and after being introduced, he had a cold feet and returned to CU?
I can. Many at the time thought it was a good hire. He was successful at UNI and wanted to stay in the area. He also still brought in talent. Too bad none of us knew his ceiling was a mid-major coach unable to handle good talent (outside of his son.)
There's really no need to turn this into a GMac vs Morgan thing as far as who was a better coach. First off, it doesn't matter. Second, it should be pretty obvious based on their employment when not at Iowa State.
The coaching search in 2003 was an embarrassment. BVD was turned down by everyone and as it turned out most of his targets faltered over their next few seasons anyhow.
Morgan was a last ditch hire, but that wasn't his fault. His first team was actually loaded with talent...he just relied on freshmen guards. People forget too that Blalock really struggled through stretches that season. Had he and Stinson been a little more seasoned that should've been an NCAA team, by talent.
I'm assuming this series will get into it eventually, but his firing was ultimately necessary. And it is in no way comparable to the job status of McDermott and how Pollard handled that situation.
The coaching search in 2003 was an embarrassment. BVD was turned down by everyone and as it turned out most of his targets faltered over their next few seasons anyhow.
Morgan was a last ditch hire, but that wasn't his fault. His first team was actually loaded with talent...he just relied on freshmen guards. People forget too that Blalock really struggled through stretches that season. Had he and Stinson been a little more seasoned that should've been an NCAA team, by talent.
I'm assuming this series will get into it eventually, but his firing was ultimately necessary. And it is in no way comparable to the job status of McDermott and how Pollard handled that situation.
I always got the impression that McDermott coached like a drill sargeant or a boot camp. That works at a mid-major with mid-major talent...tear them down and build them back up to your team. It doesn't work in a high conference team with star players. I thought that was the reason for the talent leaving ISU.
Do you ever think how this would be different in today's era? No way LE is able to hide his demons. With twitter, the first time someone saw him at a party it'd be all over the place. Back then, it literally took an actual photo printed off and shared to get some rumors going.
Interesting to look back at things like this with hindsight.
Interesting to look back at things like this with hindsight.
A lot has been said in this thread already. Just want to pile on:
Wayne Morgan wasn't the best coach, but he was a heck of a recruiter. He was way better than that ****head McDoormat. Man, I HATE McDoormat for destroying our program... f - him and thank you Creighton. (Idiots.)
Wayne Morgan wasn't the best coach, but he was a heck of a recruiter. He was way better than that ****head McDoormat. Man, I HATE McDoormat for destroying our program... f - him and thank you Creighton. (Idiots.)
Would have been fun to see what Fred could do with some mixture of McD and/or Morgan players. They had talent. One was just too strict and the other not disciplined enough
Stinson
Blalock
Homan
Sullivan
Hubalek
Taggart
Taylor
Johnson
Brackins
Gilstrap
Hamilton
Stainger
We saw what Fred did with the "also-ran" players from that era (DG, SC, JVB, and McD recruit Ejim). Fun to see what he would have done with all the major conference and NBA talent we had at points above.
Stinson
Blalock
Homan
Sullivan
Hubalek
Taggart
Taylor
Johnson
Brackins
Gilstrap
Hamilton
Stainger
We saw what Fred did with the "also-ran" players from that era (DG, SC, JVB, and McD recruit Ejim). Fun to see what he would have done with all the major conference and NBA talent we had at points above.
Sometimes I wonder if we contributed to McDermott's style. Once we got rid of WM (his supposed lack of control over the team did not impress many), we may have made clear that we were looking for a coach who was a strict disciplinarian. McD may simply have been trying to fit that requirement.
McD seems to have a much warmer relationship with his players at UNI and Creighton. Of course a large part of that has to do with a very different type of player that would be on a UNI/Creighton roster than on a B12 roster. Nonetheless....
McD seems to have a much warmer relationship with his players at UNI and Creighton. Of course a large part of that has to do with a very different type of player that would be on a UNI/Creighton roster than on a B12 roster. Nonetheless....
What that assistant coach did was worse than what WM and LE did. But there is no way we received more negative publicity from the assistant coach incident than from head coach LE and head coach WM incidents (I did not want either LE or WM fired).
Anyone else remember the game in Hilton (I think it was the year after the NCAA tourney) against Nebraska, and they had the big foreign guy (Maric, or something like that). They just kept feeding him the ball and he kept scoring, something like 40+ points that game. Ross Marsden was completely overmatched. That was a low point in the Morgan era.
I try to not hate anyone over something like sports, but I'm pretty much on the same page as you. We had 2 NBA players going to high school right there in Ames and couldn't get either to ISU? Can you picture Fred missing out on two Ames high kids at once?
I was so close to getting rid of my season tickets back then. Thank God I kept them.
I'm assuming this is Barnes and McDermott. Barnes was bad that we missed on him, but McDermott was not an NBA talent out of high school. I questioned why we wouldn't have him come at all, but I don't think anyone would have questioned it had he not been his son.
This was my point. Big 12 teams require hard work but it is a different kind of hard work.
I won floor seat tickets to that game. Closest I've ever been to the players. And I got to watch that **** show.
McD would have been BLASTED for offering his son. Hindsight is great and all, but out of high school he wasn't considered any better than a mid-major talent. CF would have hung Greg from a tree if he "wasted a roster spot on his son". I remember the conversations about it.
Barnes was pretty much completely on him though.
