TuTigers2012 1,061 Report post Posted March 14, 2020 Iona hires pitino.. will it last?! I’ll see myself out Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TSU88 1,070 Report post Posted March 14, 2020 He’ll use them as a lily pad & try to get back to a P5. A marriage of convenience-Pitino gets a chance to resuscitate his career-Iona hopes they get a season or two of being in the spotlight. I applaud Iona. They know, if he’s successful, he’ll jump ship, but by that time they might be able to bring in a young go-getter to keep the momentum going Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mat1992 2,231 Report post Posted March 14, 2020 11 minutes ago, TSU88 said: He’ll use them as a lily pad & try to get back to a P5. A marriage of convenience-Pitino gets a chance to resuscitate his career-Iona hopes they get a season or two of being in the spotlight. I applaud Iona. They know, if he’s successful, he’ll jump ship, but by that time they might be able to bring in a young go-getter to keep the momentum going Pitino is not going to a P5 at 69 or 70 year old. He's 67 right now. Now with his past that he blamed on his former assistant coach. Maybe a very desperate team, let's say his old school Providence might bring him back at 70. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TSU88 1,070 Report post Posted March 14, 2020 You may be right, but 70 is not what it used to be. I wouldn’t rule out a P5 team desperate to win, rolling the dice 🎲 with him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TigerFan54 102 Report post Posted March 24, 2020 Didn't Pat Kennedy go to Iona as part of his downward trajectory following his Florida State apex? (And we know where he ended up.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TSU88 1,070 Report post Posted March 24, 2020 Actually, Iona was during his upward trajectory. He coached there from 80-81 season, through 85-86 season. FSU was his next stop after Iona Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mat1992 2,231 Report post Posted March 24, 2020 Pat Kennedy went from Iona to take over for Jimmy V., Florida State, DePaul, Montana, Towson and then D2 Pace. Kind of sad that he finished with 499 wins (had 497 losses). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TSU88 1,070 Report post Posted March 25, 2020 And the star player on Iona, who helped catapult Valvano to the NC State job, was...wait for it...Jeff Ruland. Upon Valvano’s departure for Tobacco Road, Kennedy, as mentioned in Mat’s post, succeeded him at Iona. Valvano, Kennedy & now Pitino. Iona has had some big name coaches Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mat1992 2,231 Report post Posted March 25, 2020 Jeff Ruland was also a former Iona head coach from 1998-2007. and admitted to taking money from Valvano as a player back in the late seventies. Also Tim Welsh and Kevin Willard coached thee. As a player, he was a star until his shoulders and knees gave out on him with the Bullets. Had he stayed healthy, he would have been revolutionized the center position on offense. Kind of a nasty, surly guy from Long Island. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TSU88 1,070 Report post Posted March 25, 2020 (edited) He & Rick Mahorn formed the “beef brothers” while with the Bullets. The Celtics radio broadcaster had a different moniker for them ... “McFilthy & McNasty.” Edited March 25, 2020 by TSU88 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
