Tubby to Arkansas?

Link here.

Gillispie has also had informal contact about the jobs at Arkansas and just-opened Oklahoma. The source said, however, that Arkansas has already had face-to-face contact with and is close to hiring Minnesota coach Tubby Smith.

Other Tubby links:

Katz says Tubby could return to the SE.

Tubby staying at Minnesota.

ACC & Other Coaching Carousel

94 Responses to Tubby to Arkansas?

  1. triadwolf 03/14/2011 at 4:56 PM #

    Hopefully this is less Tubby choosing Ark over NCSU and more about the fact that we removed him from our list. Surely he was/is on our list somewhere, I just hope we drew a line through his name because we KNOW we’ll get a better option. But it’s also quite possible he was never a candidate to begin with…

  2. ringo 03/14/2011 at 5:01 PM #

    I have mixed feelings on the whole “NCSU job is not what State fans think it is”. In some regards I think this is a top 15 job or could be in short order at least. But then you have to take into consideration the media and political antagonism we have had to put up with forever. Those things makes me think a place like Arkansas, where they are the main show and will get the local respect, is much easier. They have just as high a ceiling as we would too.

    Still, I do believe we are in a special place in the country as a fouding member of “tobacco road”, etc… The place could reach a fever pitch again if we can somehow knock this one out of the park.

  3. Howler 03/14/2011 at 5:04 PM #

    No upside to Tubby. Aside from a couple of young big-time D-1 coaches whom we should pursue, we should then turn immediately to a short list of mid major coaches who squeeze more out of their programs than expected. I have faith in Deb.

  4. john of sparta 03/14/2011 at 5:13 PM #

    as mentioned…Oklahoma pulled the trigger.
    other programs are making moves NOW.
    let’s get on with it.

  5. Lunatic Fringe 03/14/2011 at 5:17 PM #

    Once again…I don’t know if he was part of our list nor am I too concerned about it. I think he would have been a good backup option, but question if he is worth the price tag.

    I am just glad that we don’t know if Tubby was on our list or if we were on Tubby’s.

  6. ringo 03/14/2011 at 5:22 PM #

    john, we are…chill

  7. bradleyb123 03/14/2011 at 5:33 PM #

    Is it possible that Sidney might actually survive for another year?

    I’ve heard a rumor (just hearsay at this point), that Sid already met with Debbie. Rumor has it that Debbie tried to get Rick Barnes and he said no, and that she’s not excited about Sean Miller. So she’s requiring a shake-up among the assistant coaches instead of with Sidney. Supposedly, a high-profile assistant coach is going to be replaced with some other assistant that we’ll supposedly be happy with.

    But it’s all a rumor. Just wondering if anyone is hearing anything good.

    I think there can’t be much to it, because we’d surely have already called a press conference and announced it by now if it were true.

  8. MISTA WOLF 03/14/2011 at 5:34 PM #

    The administration already knows who will be the next head coach and they’re waiting till the season is over. Our coach is in the tournament. Just saying.

  9. jbpackfan 03/14/2011 at 5:39 PM #

    Bradley- I am confident Lowe is out. This decision was made a while ago. Even if Barnes did get offered the job and rejected, Yow had more than 1 coach on her list. I still think Miller takes the job.

  10. baxter 03/14/2011 at 5:40 PM #

    ^Great, we’re down to 68 candidates then.

  11. baxter 03/14/2011 at 5:43 PM #

    Also, pretty sure the staff here stated the papers have already been drawn up for Sid. If he was going to be the coach, DY would have announced it and Sid wouldn’t sound like a puppy dog whose been punched.

  12. leewolf 03/14/2011 at 5:50 PM #

    If Sidney were still going to be here, Debbie would have already said so and been done with it. Why string him along?

    Bottom line is this is BRILLIANT by Ms. Yow. She keeps the media frenzy away from potential candidates. She buys time. Announce on Thurs/Fri when the local media is too fixated on Duke/UNC to start hunting around for leaks in our AD/the WPC. Hope the guy we are going to get (and have already been talking to) loses in the first or second round. Make a new hire by next Thurs/Fri.

    Neat. Simple. Done.

  13. PoppaJohn 03/14/2011 at 5:51 PM #

    No question. Sid is gone. He knows, you can see it all over him. Plus DY would have made a ‘committed to Sid’ statement by now.

    There’s things afoot, we just don’t know what they are. I’m in the contingent that has a hard time imagining SM leaving so early just after he’s getting things going in AZ. Why start a ‘rebuild’ and not reap the rewards?

    But it’s fun to dream.

  14. swamppack 03/14/2011 at 6:11 PM #

    Arkansas sounds like the perfect job for Mr. Smith. N.C. State does not. Hope they have already hired him. One less chance at a screw-up for us.

  15. john of sparta 03/14/2011 at 6:19 PM #

    so…our next head coach’s team
    is in the NCAA tournament? well,
    that’s a start, anyway.
    what if that team advances like
    George Mason/Butler/etc.?
    will he still jump?

  16. 61Packer 03/14/2011 at 6:44 PM #

    leewolf: “Neat. Simple. Done.”

    Everything related to NC State basketball in the past 20 years has been anything BUT neat, simple, done.

  17. Fenrir 03/14/2011 at 6:45 PM #

    as stated above… we already have a new head coach hired. he and his current team are in the big dance. yow and company have handled the situation perfectly!!! relax and be prepared for a big surprise! we will instantly become relevant and assume our place as a contender once again!!

  18. Wulfpack 03/14/2011 at 6:50 PM #

    Arkansas is a nice fit for Tubby. Moderate expectations. A terrible SEC West. Knows the recruiting territory from his time in Kentucky. I can see that happening. Hell, it beats the frozen tundra in Minnesota.

  19. BJD95 03/14/2011 at 7:31 PM #

    We made the strategic decision to wait on an A lister because (i) we like our chances with the A List; and (ii) we feel good about our fallback options.

    That strategic decision means we are out of the running for a guy like Tubby! I understand the reasoning, so I am patient.

    There’s absolutely no chance of Lowe coming back. NONE.

  20. LRM 03/14/2011 at 7:55 PM #

    “Supposedly, a high-profile assistant coach is going to be replaced with some other assistant that we’ll supposedly be happy with.”

    We have a high-profile assistant coach?

  21. TOBtime 03/14/2011 at 7:55 PM #

    I keep hearing Debbie get mentioned but don’t forget who her boss is. Randy Woodson saw the spectacle last time it happened. I MORE than believe that was discussed before Debbie ever set foot on campus. My money is with Fenrir. I think the deed is done and the only thing we are waiting on is his team to get knocked out of the tourney. Hope it takes a while.

    Thanks Sid. For both your stints at NC State.

  22. Pack1998 03/14/2011 at 8:01 PM #

    Good conversation above . . . BJD, Fenrir, leewolf. nice!

  23. Wufpacker 03/14/2011 at 8:25 PM #

    It’s amusing to read some of the responses. A couple of weeks ago, most everyone agreed that as long as the “process” was quiet then that was probably in our best collective interest. Now that the dominoes are beginning to fall elsewhere, a lot of folks are beginning to panic and convince yourselves that we are three moves behind everyone else. I presume those folks are not poker players.

    FWIW, the same still applies….the quieter the better. The reason you aren’t hearing anything tied to us (vs. Arkansas, Oklahoma, etc.) is more likely because we were three moves ahead. Hard to swallow, this being NC State and all…but that does make more sense. If we were scrambling to get the process started now (a la Fowler), then you WOULD be hearing a lot of chatter I think.

  24. NCSU84 03/14/2011 at 8:27 PM #

    I hope Fenrir is right. I am a little cynical though. The last 20+ years has worn me down and I just expect the worst. Maybe this time will be different – one can only hope.

  25. ADVENTUROO 03/14/2011 at 8:31 PM #

    Fenrir,

    I, too, heard this weekend that Ms. Yow approached a perennial NCAA participant’s admin and asked permission to talk to their Coach. I read his resume and he is definitely impressive. It was a bit of an eyeopener, and I was not sure he would jump and leave “his neck of the woods”. If we are talking about the same guy, there are a few similarites to Coach Lowe….

    Twill be interesting to see if your info is on the mark with mine….

    Only time will tell…..Keep us posted…..

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