April 17, 200818 yr Sorry, Oklahoma State fans, but Iʼm sure you expected all that T. Boone Pickens money would buy something flashier than a Ford. Throughout the winter, the buzz throughout college basketball was that OK State would move out Sean Sutton and throw so much money onto the table that Kansas coach Bill Self would have to consider heading home to his alma mater. Others suggested a secondary target might be Kentucky's Billy Gillispie, who, after all, hadn't signed a contract so surely that meant something. Well, it didn't mean much in this matter. Oklahoma State will hire Massachusetts coach Travis Ford, who had parlayed an above-average performance into so many high-profile interviews his representation ought to go in the Agent Hall Of Fame along with Leigh Steinberg, Arn Tellem, Jerry McGuire and James Bond. It's hard to tell which elevator was moving faster here: The one dropping OK State from the dream of hiring a championship coach with strong regional ties and a national profile to landing (maybe) the Atlantic 10's sixth-best coach? Or: The one carrying Ford from the disappointment of missing two straight NCAA Tournaments with tournament-level teams to a multi-million-dollar job in a prestige league coaching a team that will be led by an All-America candidate, wing James Anderson, and whose top four scorers last season were underclassmen? http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=400739
April 17, 200818 yr Thats a little harsh towards Ford. But its Oklahoma St. They aren't a powerhouse basketball program. They have been a very solid and consistent program, but not a top 15 program either. I would be willing to bet that Ford sees this as a possible stepping stone to go somewhere even better in his eyes.
April 17, 200818 yr Author Thats a little harsh towards Ford. This isn't a Doyel article. Decourcy hit the nail on the head once again...
April 17, 200818 yr This isn't a Doyel article. Decourcy hit the nail on the head once again... The one part of Lance's show I like.
April 17, 200818 yr This isn't a Doyel article. Decourcy hit the nail on the head once again... I am not a big Ford fan and unlike a lot of UK fans I don't get excited when thinking or hoping that Ford may one day coach at UK. That being said I believe he is a pretty good coach and is up and coming. The 6th best coach in the A-10 is a little harsh. While his regular season goals fell short this year I thought he did a good job of coaching in the NIT. IMO hes not Sean Miller, but he definitly aint John Brady either.
April 17, 200818 yr Author I am not a big Ford fan and unlike a lot of UK fans I don't get excited when thinking or hoping that Ford may one day coach at UK. That being said I believe he is a pretty good coach and is up and coming. The 6th best coach in the A-10 is a little harsh. While his regular season goals fell short this year I thought he did a good job of coaching in the NIT. IMO hes not Sean Miller, but he definitly aint John Brady either. The point is his regular season goals have been mostly a flop in the training grounds. He hasn't won recruiting battles, and he hasn't shown to be a plus in game coach. OK State is a storied program in a storied league. Spin it however you'd like, but that's fact. Ford has had a pretty good career so far. We'll find out pretty quickly if he can answer some serious flaws in his resume...
April 17, 200818 yr Oklahoma State: The program Final Fours: 3 (1951, 1995, 2004) Runner-up (to Kentucky) - 1949 Championship: 2 (Back-to-Back, 1945 over NYU, 1946 over North Carolina).
April 17, 200818 yr I'm not sold on Ford as a coach, but I think he's a decent hire. He's an up-and-coming coach & he's getting a great opportunity - one that EKU & UMass sure wouldn't have been able to match. I think he'll do well.
April 17, 200818 yr The point is his regular season goals have been mostly a flop in the training grounds. He hasn't won recruiting battles, and he hasn't shown to be a plus in game coach. OK State is a storied program in a storied league. Spin it however you'd like, but that's fact. Ford has had a pretty good career so far. We'll find out pretty quickly if he can answer some serious flaws in his resume... I am sure Ford is still learning. Where was UMass at before Ford? I hadn't heard a word about them since Calipari left. One thing he did do was leave the program in much better shape than it was when he got there.
April 17, 200818 yr Does storied program mean their success was so long ago you have to read about it in a story?
April 17, 200818 yr Ford couldnt even win when it mattered in the NAIA. On top of that he got caught breaking the rules with an illegal player at Camp......did anyone know the NAIA had rules?.....
April 17, 200818 yr I don't like Ford. I have seen him interact with people in the community and I didn't like what I saw.
April 17, 200818 yr I don't like Ford. I have seen him interact with people in the community and I didn't like what I saw. A lot of people I know at EKU said he isnt the nicest person they have met either. He talked down to just about everyone in the athletic department and just generally wasnt a nice guy. I do wonder what the progression was for OSU. Self, maybe Gillispie, Ford. Or are there some in there they looked into that we didnt hear about. I'm just curious.
April 17, 200818 yr A lot of people I know at EKU said he isnt the nicest person they have met either. He talked down to just about everyone in the athletic department and just generally wasnt a nice guy. I do wonder what the progression was for OSU. Self, maybe Gillispie, Ford. Or are there some in there they looked into that we didnt hear about. I'm just curious. I'll confirm that. As far as his coaching, I'm still up in the air. We'll see how he does in a real conference.
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