Coaches Walk The Plank Quicker

Coaching changes have become an expected part of the college basketball off-season and this past one was no different, with almost 50 schools having a change on the sideline.

But since Nov. 6, nine days before the season began, there have been another four coaching changes and each had its own distinct reason.

Jim Harrick was fired by UCLA on Nov. 6, 1-1/2 years after he led the Bruins to the national championship. The school said Harrick was fired because he lied during an internal investigation into the expense account of a meal involving recruits.

On Nov. 15, the day of the season opener, Ralph Underhill was fired by Wright State after 16 seasons there. The school said Underhill refused to respond to or meet with university officials after he was charged with shoplifting vitamins from a store near the campus.

On Dec. 13, former NBA player Craig Hodges was fired by Chicago State. Hodges has been embroiled in a lawsuit against the NBA over what he says was a blacklisting of him after he was released by the Chicago Bulls after their first title in 1991. The school, which had granted Hodges an indefinite leave of absence for personal reasons earlier in the month, cited the team’s 2-27 record last season and its 16-game losing streak when it announced the firing.

This week, Roger Reid was fired by Brigham Young after seven successful seasons there. The school cited declining attendance when it announced the firing without ever mentioning the Cougars’ 1-6 start or the incident when Reid chastised a recruit for letting down the Mormon Church when he decided to attend Duke.

College football is wrapping up a season with a surprising number of coaching changes and it looks like college basketball won’t even wait for the season to end to start to catch up.

Winning Webb

Webb Institute, an 84-student school considered one of the nation’s top centers for naval and marine engineering, beat Connecticut-Stamford 79-57 this week. The victory ended a 97-game losing streak that stretched back to 1987.

Webb finished the season with a 1-9 record. Students at Webb must partake in a seven-week, off-campus program after final exams so the season is squeezed into the first semester.

“After we won the game the kids cut down the nets,” first-year coach Ed Primeggia said. “It was like we won the Final Four.”

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