Dave Odum

[GRASSHOPPER]

I Keep Reading More And More About People Requesting The Firing Of Dave Odum. I Personally Am Not One Of Them. I Think Building A Program At A School With Basically No Basketball History Will Take More Than Four Years. So Lets See What Everybody Is Thinking. Give Me Your Top Pick(s) With Who You Would Consider A True Candidate To Replace Him.

[GRASSHOPPER]

Thats What I Thought! Can We Quit Calling For His Firing Now!

[Jay_Lupo]

That's surprising. I think Dave Odom is a fabulous coach and USC better hang onto him. I can still remember Odom's Wake Forrest team coming into Bud Walton in 1997 and handing the Hogs their first loss in three years at home. I was impressed with him then and remain so to this day. He's a good coach.

[GRASSHOPPER]

That's surprising. I think Dave Odom is a fabulous coach and USC better hang onto him. I can still remember Odom's Wake Forrest team coming into Bud Walton in 1997 and handing the Hogs their first loss in three years at home. I was impressed with him then and remain so to this day. He's a good coach.I AGREE! HE A VERY INTELLIGENT COACH- WINS BY X'S AND O'S. HE KNOWS THE GAME.

[Jay_Lupo]

Exactly man, well said. He knows the game extrememly well. He's a great defensive coach, and whether people like to admit it or not, you simply cannot make a run deep into the dance without great defense. Odom's teams always play good D. I love all the SEC teams, I really do, but lately I've really started to jump on the SC bandwagon. I like their b-ball program. Their football program is on the up, although I'm still a little peeved about last years Ark/USC (inadvertant whistle???), and their baseball success speaks for itself. You SC fans have a lot to look forward to in the future I think.

[GRASSHOPPER]

The More Negativity I Hear About Odum The More I Look Into His Bio. The Man Has Got It Together. Yea That Whistle Was A Bear For Ya'll But Ya'll Had Other Opps. To Put That Game Away And You Could'nt. Cocks Def. On The Way Up.thanks For Props For My Team. Later Lupo!

[OmahaBound]

Yeah, the people who are complaining about his recruiting abilities are simply ignoring the job he did at Wake Forest. The reason he's having trouble bringing top talent here is because the kids in the southeast are still obsessed with the ACC and he really doesn't have much to sell the kids here. We have one of the best sects of football fans in the nation, but our basketball fans sit on their hands way too much. The Colonial Center gets dead silent if things aren't going well, we're destroying a team, or it's 'too early in the game' to get excited. As far as the ACC v. SEC comparison is concerned, I read an article yesterday about top 100 recruits that Clemson is bringing in. One of the kids basically said, 'Clemson is a decent school to go to, but most importantly I wanted to play in the ACC.' You're not going to hear kids say that about the SEC. Odom is doing a fine job with what we have. Could he be doing a better job of motivating these guys to give it their all for 40 minutes? Probably so, but that's more the players fault. Plus I really can't think of any coaches out there who could do much better that would give up what they have elsewhere to come here.

On a related note, anybody remember the kid Chadwick Gray? He was the 6'8" WR that committed to FSU for football. Well he's been reclassified as a junior (I have no idea why), and has decided to give up football and commit to play basketball at USC in 2 years.

[BigSpur]

Wake certainly didn't drop off after he left.

[BigSpur]

I don't buy the arguement all the kids want to play in the acc. What about the kids Florida recruits, what about Kentucky, Alabama, Miss st which has nothing to offer to anyone, I mean who wants to play in Starkville. Stansbury and Tubby and the rest of them get it done recruiting. That is where my problem with Odom lies. I think he's a great x and o guy and an excellent game manager, but if your managing worse players than the other team you probably will lose.

[OmahaBound]

I'm not going to waste my time doing research, but tell me how they were doing before Odom came to town. If they were successful the 5 years or so before Odom came in, then you will make a fair point against Odom. Saying they were successful after he left means nothing. He left the program in solid shape and with the players to continue a successful run at Wake? That's your argument against him?

[rabidcock]

Read all my old posts on Dave Odum. I was a big fan when he built Wake into a power.

Wake was not always a formidable team: they have only been to a post-season tournament 23 times, and 11 of those were under Dave Odum. He was ACC Coach of the Year 3 times and National Coach of the Year once.

C'mon, we've won 22+ games two out of his three years here and that without a dominant center/forward; just wait until he gets some serious muscle up-front to coach and then you will see something. Second to Frank McGuire, he is without a doubt, the best basketball coach we have ever had, and we should keep him. And, as has been said previously, no one else is going to be able to recruit better than he.

[And have you noted those MARVELOUS defenses?! They are truly fun to watch.]

I say, give him the time he needs!!!

[Beebop]

Don't let him go......He has a lot more obstacles to overcome when it comes to recruiting and even playing in this part of the country....Look at what he's been able to accomplish to this point....post season play in 2 out of 4 yrs.......The caliber of player we have now is so much better than that of the past......We lack a big man and a pure shooter, but we do not lack atheletic players. Everyone of our starters have tremendous atheletic ability....when's the last time we had a player who can go the length of the court and make block like Balkman did. Or better yet, when is the last time we had a player who could follow up a missed shot with a dunk with authority the way that Tisby did. It takes time to build a b-ball program with the limited number of schollys that they have to offer. Same was true with the baseball team.....Tanner didn't create the powerhouse that we have become in four years.....and we've only been this strong in baseball the past five years and only just being recognized as being an elite program the past three......Give Dave time....he's on the right track!

[BigSpur]

UHHH, Fogler had better players for one, Try Melvin Watson, Larry Davis and BJ Mckie on the same team. Fogler was in postseason play almost every year, but we decided he wasn't good enough and rightfully so, we dont just want to go to postseason play to put up the worst performance of the tourny, we want to do something while we are there. So far thats the biggest similarity of the two. Inconsistent play and embarrassing postseasons. Im fine with giving him one more year, but he needs to prove something fast.

[rabidcock]

UHHH, Fogler had better players for one, Try Melvin Watson, Larry Davis and BJ Mckie on the same team. Fogler was in postseason play almost every year, but we decided he wasn't good enough and rightfully so, we dont just want to go to postseason play to put up the worst performance of the tourny, we want to do something while we are there. So far thats the biggest similarity of the two. Inconsistent play and embarrassing postseasons. Im fine with giving him one more year, but he needs to prove something fast.

Please check your facts. There is NO COMPARISON between the two!

Eddie Fogler DID have that great recruiting class that one year, and the 1997 squad will always be one of my favorites.

However, Fogler only had 3 winning seasons out of eight and only 2 seasons of 20+ wins out of eight (the great class' jr. and sr. seasons).

If Odum gets some muscle, then you will see more than one victory in post-season, just like at Wake.

[OmahaBound]

2000-01 record: 15-15; 6-10 in SEC (5th in East)

That's why Fogler was fired. If Odom doesn't have a significantly better season next year and then follows it up with a .500 record you will get your wish and he will be replaced. We still have two scholarships left for next year, so maybe he can still find a project bigman and get to work finding a solid force for the class of '06. You keep making my arguments easier with your statements though. Fogler had better players, yet when it counts in the tourney they both accomplished the same things....first round knockouts. If you know as much about college basketball as you seem to think you do, then you also know that Memphis was a darn good team last year. They had motivation and discipline problems, which is why their record wasn't that great. But when they really put their all into it Memphis was one of the more talented teams in the nation last year. I'd say that's a little less embarrassing than losing to Coppin st. and Richmond...two teams that were seeded in the teens.

It sounds like you take this way too much to heart. It's sports. It's supposed to be fun. We all get upset when we lose or when we don't do as well as we expect. But be realistic with your expectations. If we can get into the tournament two years in a row with this squad I think that's something to be darn proud of.

[BigSpur]

Im not argueing for Fogler as I said he should of been fired, but as for Odom he has got to find a way to get his teams scoring out of the 60's if he ever wants the sucsess he had at Wake. I agree Memphis was good, but that doesn't excuse the worst offensive output of the whole tournament. I don't take it too much to heart and it is supposed to be fun, but imagine how much more fun it is to win consistantly. The problem is the same with football nobody takes it serious enough making it easy to be mediocre. Hopefully we will take the same steps with basketball as we have with football. I can't handle anymore mediocre basketball, losing to a team with only 5 scholarship players and 4 of them had to play 38 minutes or more, tallest player 6'6, with a week to get ready at home, this is not exceptable. Every coach we've had since we've been in the sec has beaten Kentucky at least once so I don't want to hear that arguement. Ill give him another years support and I will cheer hard for them as I always do, but the standard needs to be higher.

[Galactus]

Big Spur,

I agree completely. Sometimes I think our administration doesn't understand just how seriously the rest of the SEC takes football and basketball. Those two sports are life and death, and Odom better get off his behind and start doing some recruiting if he wants to compete.

Occasionally getting some mediocre players to play above their heads is OK.....but it's not going to get us to the Sweet 16 anytime soon.

We need legitimate talent....and people are sick of me saying that, but it's true.

If you're satisfied with first round NCAA exits and NIT appearances, then Odom is the coach for you. If you want MORE than that, however, I suggest we look elsewhere.

[GRASSHOPPER]

This Thread Was Not Started To Defend Or Promote Dave Odum. It Was Started To Get Opinions From The Peope Who Wanted Odum Fired On Who You Would Replace Him With. Based On Who You Think Would Be Available And Would Want To Come To Usc.

[BigSpur]

Yea I know I answered that in the USC/ Kentucky thread. I still think the first person who jumps on little Stevie Wojo who sits next to Coach K is gonna be pleasantly suprised. He needs a couple more years of tutilege but he was an excellent game manager on the court and he's sitting next to and learning from the best.

[fernandomike]

Replace Odom with Buzz. Then, we can quickly hire Odom. To make this deal a little more enticing, I would suggest that UT also give up two players of Carolina's choosing. Works for me.

[GRASSHOPPER]

Replace Odom with Buzz. Then, we can quickly hire Odom. To make this deal a little more enticing, I would suggest that UT also give up two players of Carolina's choosing. Works for me.I KNEW I COULD COUNT ON YOU FOR A LOGICAL CHOICE. THANKS FOR SHOWING US THE WAY!