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CPAW29 said:
he didn't just replace bob, he also replaced andy and people til this day hates that.
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I do hear that from people and the fact that Cronin was present when it all went down, but I hear more about his Louisville defection. Imagine if Savino took off to Xavier to be their assistant coach and took Lawrence and Strickland with him. How would everyone feel towards Savino then? Then imagine him coming back 3 years later as our head coach. Do you think he would be well received?
 
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Amberlycolonel said:
I do hear that from people and the fact that Cronin was present when it all went down, but I hear more about his Louisville defection. Imagine if Savino took off to Xavier to be their assistant coach and took Lawrence and Strickland with him. How would everyone feel towards Savino then? Then imagine him coming back 3 years later as our head coach. Do you think he would be well received?
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So you would abandon a program because a coach leaves to better his chance to get a head coaching job and then takes over the head job when no one in their right mind would want it? 90% of this fan base hasn't thought about Mick Cronin leaving UC for UL as an assistant since he got the Murray State HC job. Obviously Bobby Huggins doesn't hold it against Mick since they are still friends so maybe you should get over it too.
 
JasonS said:
So you would abandon a program because a coach leaves to better his chance to get a head coaching job and then takes over the head job when no one in their right mind would want it? 90% of this fan base hasn't thought about Mick Cronin leaving UC for UL as an assistant since he got the Murray State HC job. Obviously Bobby Huggins doesn't hold it against Mick since they are still friends so maybe you should get over it too.
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It was not the fact he took a different job, Jason. It was the fact that he took 2 recruits from our program while doing it. And going to a hated rival did not help. I wish you could see that, but you obviously do not.
 
when zimpher didn't retain andy, she said she wanted no parts of huggins or his staff. then comes mick. fans been confused and mad ever since
 
CPAW29 said:
when zimpher didn't retain andy, she said she wanted no parts of huggins or his staff. then comes mick. fans been confused and mad ever since
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What % of the fan base do you think feels that way? I always thought most people have moved on or never took Conin to Louisville stuff or replacing Andy that seriously as it was made out to be.
 
CPAW29 said:
when zimpher didn't retain andy, she said she wanted no parts of huggins or his staff. then comes mick. fans been confused and mad ever since
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I talked with Jeff Wyler for about 30 minutes about a year removed from the mess with Kennedy. He mentioned that they wanted a clean break from all of the drama and felt Andy would continue with the same issues that plagued Huggs. The fact that Cronin had some success, valued running a clean program, and was a local guy made sense to them at the time. They also felt it would take the sting out of Huggs being fired. But the decision was made by a group and not by Zimpher alone. They just hid behind her skirt and let her take all of the heat.
 
Amberlycolonel said:
I talked with Jeff Wyler for about 30 minutes about a year removed from the mess with Kennedy. He mentioned that they wanted a clean break from all of the drama and felt Andy would continue with the same issues that plagued Huggs. The fact that Cronin had some success, valued running a clean program, and was a local guy made sense to them at the time. They also felt it would take the sting out of Huggs being fired. But the decision was made by a group and not by Zimpher alone. They just hid behind her skirt and let her take all of the heat.
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bingo!!!
 
Bearcat22 said:
What % of the fan base do you think feels that way? I always thought most people have moved on or never took Conin to Louisville stuff or replacing Andy that seriously as it was made out to be.
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More than anyone on here will care to admit. That is a given. But people have short memories and eventually they will forgive and forget. I hear it less often than I use to. But it still comes up a lot.
 
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JackBauer151 said:
That people are still upset over it. What relevance does that have to UC basketball or Mick Cronin now?
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In some people's minds, a lot because the thief is now our head coach. I will be the first to admit that I made sure I attended the first game he came back to FTA as a Card just to boo him for what he did. When I found out he was our new head coach, I just shook my head. Now, I just want a winning program but I will never be one to support him. The program, definitely.
 
Amberlycolonel said:
In some people's minds, a lot because the thief is now our head coach. I will be the first to admit that I made sure I attended the first game he came back to FTA as a Card just to boo him for what he did. When I found out he was our new head coach, I just shook my head. Now, I just want a winning program but I will never be one to support him. The program, definitely.
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Do you at least appreciate what he has done for the program since he got the job? I would say that is far greater than the hurt he caused by taking two recruits.
 
JackBauer151 said:
Do you at least appreciate what he has done for the program since he got the job? I would say that is far greater than the hurt he caused by taking two recruits.
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I do appreciate the job he did at rebuilding the program. Do I think he was the only one who could have done it like some think on here? No. But he did do a good job with the rebuilding effort. I will give you that.
 
Amberlycolonel said:
In some people's minds, a lot because the thief is now our head coach. I will be the first to admit that I made sure I attended the first game he came back to FTA as a Card just to boo him for what he did. When I found out he was our new head coach, I just shook my head. Now, I just want a winning program but I will never be one to support him. The program, definitely.
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The four freshman on Louisville's 2001-02 were Larry O'bannon, Carlos Hurt, Brandon Bender, and Otis George. Which 2 had committed to UC that Cronin stole and took to Louisville. Carlos Hurt was a McD AA that Huggins recruited, but he committed to Louisville when Crum was still head coach. I don't recall any of the others as having a strong interest in UC. Both Hurt and Bender were gone after their freshman year. Taquan Dean and Francisco Garcia were the freshman the following year at UL. I don't recall these two being mentioned with UC, but Cronin may have been recruiting these guys when he was still a Huggins assistant. If they followed him rather than stay with Huggins, it speaks volumes for his recruiting ability. It used to be said that it was easy for Cronin to recruit when he was recruiting for Huggins or Pitino. Are you saying that these players chose to play for the assistant coach, and not the head coach?
 
bearcat1 said:
The four freshman on Louisville's 2001-02 were Larry O'bannon, Carlos Hurt, Brandon Bender, and Otis George. Which 2 had committed to UC that Cronin stole and took to Louisville. Carlos Hurt was a McD AA that Huggins recruited, but he committed to Louisville when Crum was still head coach. I don't recall any of the others as having a strong interest in UC. Both Hurt and Bender were gone after their freshman year. Taquan Dean and Francisco Garcia were the freshman the following year at UL. I don't recall these two being mentioned with UC, but Cronin may have been recruiting these guys when he was still a Huggins assistant. If they followed him rather than stay with Huggins, it speaks volumes for his recruiting ability. It used to be said that it was easy for Cronin to recruit when he was recruiting for Huggins or Pitino. Are you saying that these players chose to play for the assistant coach, and not the head coach?
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Oh come on. We all know that Cronin can't recruit for himself and Huggins and Pitino were the only reasons he could recruit before. Obviously, he couldn't land and still can't land any talent. :rolleyes: (Obviously this is sarcasm and you make very good points. Excellent post.)
 
Okay, honest poll here -- how many of you would have taken Andy Kennedy over Mick Cronin when the hire was made? And how many of you would still take Andy Kennedy over Mick Cronin now?

I was 100% behind hiring Andy Kennedy and was pretty distraught that we didn't retain him. I will admit that between Huggins' firing and Kennedy being brushed aside, I lost most of my interest in the program for about 2 years. But, would I trade Cronin for Kennedy now? Absolutely not. Cronin is a better recruiter and a better face for the program. Is he a better basketball coach than Kennedy? Debatable.
 
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