Skerry time to go?

[mat1992 2,236]

1 hour ago, BoogerJ said:

I've been watching this thread for 3 days and it's pretty sad.  Pat Skerry has been at Towson for 7 years and has 5 winning seasons.  Before Skerry Towson had 16 straight losing seasons.  That being said, I would say his staff now is not what the first staff was with guys like Johnson, Simpkins, and Murray - all had major recruiting chops and reputations with AAU coaches up and down the East Coast.  It all comes down to recruiting, you get the right guys, you win games, you don't and you don't.  May be time to shake up the staff and get some Dudes who can bring in the talent.

As for the other Tiger head coaches who have been fired of late, all were consistent losers.  Erricker, major underachiever and as was mentioned earlier, is successor came in and immediately won big.  Gottlieb, had one good season out of his last 10 = a fluke.  Paynter had 10 consecutive losing seasons. Ambrose has 4 straight losing seasons and would appear to be the most likely of the current coaches to be on the chopping block, but he has another 4 years left on his current deal so that's not happening.

Skerry contract extension this past December was a bit odd in that who really gets a contract extension in December? That being said, Skerry has a 100-percent graduation rate, and Towson had a perfect four-year score in the latest Academic Progress Rate numbers released last summer. The Tigers also earned recognition from the NCAA for scores in the top 10 percent of their sport. Coming off the Pat Kennedy years where he had 7 straight losing seasons and so poor an academic performing program that we were banned from the CAA Tournament in 2013, I'd say we are in a much better place now that at any time since Truax was the head coach and we were going to the NCAA Tournament.

Skerry probably wouldn't have taken this job in the first place if he knew that we'd be on academic probation in 2012-13, when we actually could have had a chance a winning the CAA Trny or at least going somewhere in postseason. So not everything went his way when he took over. To get us out of the doldrums and the stench that PK left us, earned at least five extra years.

But sure, this season was mind-boggling. Perplexing as hell. Definitely an underachieving team in a lot of ways but kind of achieved at the end. They just weren't very good. They didn't believe in themselves, in their teammates or in the staff. That's what it looked like to me That's not a good sign and we can blame that all on the seniors but they aren't all at fault. What they really need is a leader on the floor and I have no clue who that might be next season.

I think it started with the loss to Elon at home. Or you could go back to Pittsburgh. Or UNCW on the road in OT. But after that Elon game on Jan. 27, I don't think we played a quality game afterwards. We had to grind out wins over Drexel and Delaware twice. That was it. It's cool that we're discussing this a few days after. Not the job per say but that we actually care. Even if it's a small group of 10 or so, at least want the program to win and play that game on Tuesday night. Play in a Finals for the first time in 26 years.

[Bay Area Tiger 347]

I’ll say it again...  I was at the Elon game and waited in line with my buddies kids to get the chance to thank Morsell & Keith...  after a loss but they just seemed like two players who were burnt out and ready for the season to end.  Hey I took Richard Vatz’s communication class...   he was at the game by the way...  loved that guy. 

The old saying goes...  sometimes the grass isn’t always greener...  18 wins right.  

Lavin had 21 his last season and was dumped for Mullin.  How’s that working out??  15-16!

And now talk of Tubby being let go for Penny after back to back 19 win seasons.

I know it’s tge current trend to hire ex players.  Terry Porter with University of Portland not any better than Eric Reveno a byproduct of Mike Montgomery.

Eric Musselman has made Nevada a great program.  Not an ex player but dad coached and of course his stint with the Warriors.

My point is...  who is out there that we’d want better than Skerry!?  What ex player could come in and bring the recruits if it’s truly all about “getting the players!”  

No set formula that works except for cheating and we aren’t gonna pull a New Mexico State where we sign criminals to come play for us.

2 more season for PS like others have mentioned.   Leaders are made...  We have two really good sophomores who could become that guy.

Last thing..  mark Few with Gonzaga..  18 straight seasons of making the Dance..  

Small school..   crap gym until 2004...  never has cheated that we know of...  

We are on the right path for success...  I truly believe it!!!

 

[Chris Datres 423]

11 hours ago, TuTigers2012 said:

Elsewhere in the caa, Keatts with Uncw and grant with c of c have won And their programs aren’t clean..

Got some dirt on them there, Columbo?  Are you a better investigator than the NCAA?  Let’s hear what you got. 

[TSU88 1,073]

I can’t wait to see how Skerry fills the 2 open scholarships. Also can’t wait for the schedule release later this year, as well as the tournament in the Bahamas 🇧🇸, which I will definitely be attending. 

As I’ve stated before, I’m cautiously optimistic about next season. I believe it’s entirely possible we’ll have the best front court in the CAA. Skerry just needs to infuse some talent into the backcourt 

[El Tigre Oro 86]

Watched UMBC beat Hartford last night. Both teams had PG that were 100 times better than Starr? Why are we losing recruits to America East schools or is it a flaw in how we evaluate and recruit? Also, Byron Hawkins will continue on the legacy of former Towson players making the NCAA Tourney. Mike Green, Isiah Philmore, etc.

[TSU88 1,073]

I hear ya, & I am far from a Skerry apologist, but I have to wonder if a PG like Maura (UMBC) would be as productive in the CAA as he is in America East. He’s what, 5’8? He played 2X against us, & I don’t recall him being particularly productive. He was a JUCO like Starr.

As for Hawkins, I was underwhelmed with him when he was here. Not a great shooting percentage, not many assists & I didn’t think he was anything special on D either. At Murray State, he’s a bench guy. He averaged 7ppg. If you factor out the 28 point game he had against an NAIA team, he actually averaged 6ppg.

[Chris Datres 423]

I've always looked at recruiting at the mid-major level to be a maddening, inexact science.  At our level, going the JUCO route and getting someone with experience at the point guard position is probably a better idea as long as you also have an underclassman at the same position that you can bring along and develop.  We all hoped that this is what would happen with Prophete this year and it obviously didn't.  That's a whiff.  If Prophete couldn't even see the floor for 7-10 mins in CAA action, then he's not going to get any better over the summer and thus, we're back in the same vicious cycle next year.  Perhaps Pat knew something early on and that's why he elected to redshirt Drayton.  Maybe he can *eventually* be the answer given that he still has 4 years on his clock.  But now that we're back to square one, Pat has to go the JUCO route to find someone with experience that could start right away.  He knows that finding that PG is potentially the missing piece.  Unfortunately, he found that out too late and is no doubt kicking himself for the whiff on the recruiting trail.

TSU88 brings up Maura from UMBC -- 6 points, 5 assists, 2 TO this year vs. us, 9 points, 5 assists, 1 TO last year vs. us.  I'm like everyone else on this thread in this respect -- I look at UMBC getting to the championship game of their league and wondering how a team in a similar location to us can be in this position more often than we can.  Yes, CAA is stronger than the AEC and we've whacked UMBC 5 straight years but at some point, the maturity of the players as a single and the team as a whole has to improve so we can get there too.

[TSU88 1,073]

Your reference to Prophete brings up an interesting question in my mind-what, if anything, does Skerry do with him? Assuming, as I am, Prophete is not going to be a contributor going forward (not a difficult conclusion to come to, IMHO, given what we saw of him this past season, albeit in a small sample size) does Skerry sit him down and have the “come to Jesus” talk with him, where he tells him that the only significant playing time he’ll get in the next 3 years is in practice (in hopes that he’ll see the writing on the wall & transfer, thus freeing his scholarship) or does Skerry do nothing, knowing that the young man will be an albatross the next 3 years?

[mat1992 2,236]

When you have 13 scholarship players, not everybody is going to play. Or your 13th man is going to be a transfer sitting out (like Sander was this year). Or you might hold on to that ship for next season. In Prophete's case, he can give it one more year, try to compete for the starting job and if it doesn't work out, he can transfer with two years left back closer to home. Or if he likes it in school, he can stay. 

[TuTigers2012 1,071]

5 hours ago, Chris Datres said:

Got some dirt on them there, Columbo?  Are you a better investigator than the NCAA?  Let’s hear what you got. 

We know where Keatts came from.. and was heavily involved in recruiting. 

Grant has had some 50-50 players come into the program.. search Sam miller.