What happened to George Mason basketball?

[Shocker-maniac]

From The Washington Post

Before Butler, Wichita State and Virginia Commonwealth, there was a giant-killer called George Mason. But while the others have maintained a national presence, the Patriots have fallen back into the cluttered well of dreamers.

Wichita State is 52-3 since advancing to the 2013 Final Four . And Butler followed its 2010 joyride with another visit to the national championship game the following year. The Bulldogs stumbled last season (14-17) but appear back on track this winter (14-6).

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports...l?tid=sm_tw_ps

[Bluzrover]

I read that this morning with great interest. The thing I've often thought about the situation at Wichita State is the fact that it is the only show in town. A lot media outlets have picked up on that over the years, especially after HCGM responds to queries as to why he doesn't leave for bigger opportunities.

George Mason sitting in Roanoke or Winchester (neither are any where close to comparison to Wichita in terms of metropolitan area) might get considerably more fan attention, but in metro area that boasts MLB, NBA, NHL, Georetown, GW, American and Maryland NCAA athletics, it's really tough to be the big dawg in town.

Turgeon has started to gain traction here but it's not been an easy road for him. He's been aided by the decline of Georgetown, that's for sure. But the article glosses over the fact that Mason couldn't keep Larranaga in place and puts far more emphasis on the move to the Atlantic 10. That definitely contributed but I think there's much more to the continuity of a coaching staff and we're definitely seeing that at WSU.

[Shocker-maniac]

I read that this morning with great interest. The thing I've often thought about the situation at Wichita State is the fact that it is the only show in town. A lot media outlets have picked up on that over the years, especially after HCGM responds to queries as to why he doesn't leave for bigger opportunities.

George Mason sitting in Roanoke or Winchester (neither are any where close to comparison to Wichita in terms of metropolitan area) might get considerably more fan attention, but in metro area that boasts MLB, NBA, NHL, Georetown, GW, American and Maryland NCAA athletics, it's really tough to be the big dawg in town.

Turgeon has started to gain traction here but it's not been an easy road for him. He's been aided by the decline of Georgetown, that's for sure. But the article glosses over the fact that Mason couldn't keep Larranaga in place and puts far more emphasis on the move to the Atlantic 10. That definitely contributed but I think there's much more to the continuity of a coaching staff and we're definitely seeing that at WSU.

I agree. It is very tough to compete in a large metro market with NFL, NHL, and NBA teams. A big difference between George Mason and WSU and VCU is retaining their coaches. Butler stumbled when they had their coaching changes.

[small tyme baller]

Being in the DC metro area should actually help recruiting, Larranega leaving was pretty telling IMO, that winning consistently was proving to be a very difficult task. Needing to compete with local pro sports and a plethora of other colleges, etc., also did not help.

[Shocker-maniac]

Being in the DC metro area should actually help recruiting, Larranega leaving was pretty telling IMO, that winning consistently was proving to be a very difficult task. Needing to compete with local pro sports and a plethora of other colleges, etc., also did not help.

It looks like from the article they have a smaller budget. Although they have a large enrollment around 30K, I didn't realize that they are a relatively newer school that was founded in the late 50's or early 60's I think.

[Bluzrover]

Yeah, $700k a year is great money but not that great in NCAA BB land. But I think Sexton understands what a coach like 3G means to the program and 3G enjoys being the king of Wichita.

[shock]

The key difference that the article alludes to but doesn't hit is coach loyalty. Smart= continued VCU success, Marshall=WSU success, Larrenega left, Stevens left, and the programs sputtered and died back down.

[_kai_]

Mason just did it too early. Social media and the internet has amplified things 10 fold. Much easier for young players to get info on these programs with recent success. Much easier for fans of sports in general to jump on the bandwagon of the underdog / niche fanbases.

[shocka khan]

Shock, I totally agree. It's not what you accomplished when you had Coach X, it's who you hired when Coach X left. It took Oklahoma 10 years to find the right coach after Switzer left.

That's why if HCGM EVER leaves, there will be a lot of pressure on the AD to 'hire the right guy'.

[Rlh04d]

Shock, I totally agree. It's not what you accomplished when you had Coach X, it's who you hired when Coach X left. It took Oklahoma 10 years to find the right coach after Switzer left.

That's why if HCGM EVER leaves, there will be a lot of pressure on the AD to 'hire the right guy'.

Exactly. Most of these schools that have been able to rise in the last few years have done so on the back of phenomenally talented coaches. When those coaches have left, they've failed to make the correct hire to continue their momentum.

Hiring coaches is incredibly difficult. WSU got very lucky to go from a very good coach with Turgeon to an absolutely incredible coach in Marshall. Whenever he does leave, for another job or for retirement down the line, replacing him will be very, very difficult.

Even top tier schools with massive budgets tend to struggle with finding the right coach to maintain a level of success attained under a previous coach. Finding the right coach and doing everything in your power to keep him happy will always be the name of the game in college athletics. There are only a handful of programs that have such strong brands that even average coaches can win at a high level there.

[Kung Wu]

Exactly. Most of these schools that have been able to rise in the last few years have done so on the back of phenomenally talented coaches. When those coaches have left, they've failed to make the correct hire to continue their momentum.

Hiring coaches is incredibly difficult. WSU got very lucky to go from a very good coach with Turgeon to an absolutely incredible coach in Marshall. Whenever he does leave, for another job or for retirement down the line, replacing him will be very, very difficult.

Even top tier schools with massive budgets tend to struggle with finding the right coach to maintain a level of success attained under a previous coach. Finding the right coach and doing everything in your power to keep him happy will always be the name of the game in college athletics. There are only a handful of programs that have such strong brands that even average coaches can win at a high level there.

One good thing about Marshall's propensity for stability is that he has been able to mentor some really good assistant coaches and starting to build a nice little coaching tree that we can hopefully tap into some day.

[Rlh04d]

One good thing about Marshall's propensity for stability is that he has been able to mentor some really good assistant coaches and starting to build a nice little coaching tree that we can hopefully tap into some day.

Definitely. It'll be interesting to see what Coach Jan's resume looks like after four seasons at Bowling Green, especially.