The Perfect Coach For The Gamecocks
posted by Scott Hood on Monday, February 18, 2008
As we usual do in those types of discussions, we batted around some names - some realistic, some not so. Believe me, fantasy isn’t just reserved for Hollywood.
But then one name came up.
My initial thought was it was intriguing, maybe even captivating. But the more I thought about it, I came to a different conclusion.
It was perfect.
So, that’s why I’m here today to make the argument that USC should make every effort to hire Andy Kennedy of Ole Miss as its next men’s basketball coach.
Kennedy has everything athletic director Eric Hyman is looking for in a new head coach. He’s young (he turns 40 on March 13), energetic, a great recruiter, a good person and, by all accounts, a good basketball strategist.
But he also one important advantage over every other candidate for the job – he’s coached USC point guard Devan Downey before.
As you recall, Kennedy recruited Downey to Cincinnati when he was an assistant coach with the Bearcats under Bob Huggins. However, not long after Downey stepped foot on the Cincinnati campus, Huggins was fired.
Kennedy became the interim head coach of Cincinnati. Along with Downey and the rest of the Bearcat players, he endured a difficult 2005-2006 season. Their season ended, ironically, with a loss to USC in the NIT quarterfinals.
Within hours after that loss, Kennedy was named the head coach at Ole Miss.
In my opinion, Kennedy has done a fantastic job at a school that has very limited resources when it comes to basketball. I’ve been to Oxford within the last calendar year, so I can tell you with confidence that the arena there is, to put it nicely, dreadful. Most league followers consider it the worst arena in the league.
Yet, Kennedy has coached the Rebels to a 38-20 record in his first two seasons in the Magnolia State. Ole Miss has lost a few games recently, including a home contest to Auburn Saturday, but that doesn’t detract from the excellent he’s done in Oxford.
Hey, he wasn’t named the 2007 SEC Coach of the Year by the Associated Press for nothing.
Kennedy and Downey enjoyed a father-son relationship when they were together at Cincinnati. Hiring Downey would thrill Downey to no ends.
The respect and admiration Kennedy has for Downey was evident when we spoke with him prior to the USC-Ole Miss game a couple of weeks ago.
In case you haven’t been paying attention. Downey has been USC’s best player by a wide margin this season. He paces the team in scoring and assists and is the nation’s leader in steals.
His game-winning shot against Alabama Saturday night showed his importance to the Gamecocks. The fact the final play was initially drawn up for the ball to go to someone else is comical, in my opinion.
Based on the way the game had gone, only one player deserved to take the last shot and it’s Downey.
Without Downey, USC’s mediocre season would, quite frankly, be a complete train wreck.
Unquestionably, Downey will be USC’s best and most important player the next two seasons. Keeping him happy, content and motivated is Job No. 1 of whomever the new coach turns out to be.
With Kennedy, that task should be a lot easier than it would be for most other coaches who don’t know Downey.
But Kennedy won’t be just a two-year hire to placate Downey. If he can succeed at Ole Miss, I believe he’ll be a spectacular success at USC.
He’s one of a handful of potential hires out there I’m confident can go toe-to-toe with Billy Donovan (Florida), Bruce Pearl (Tennessee), Billy Gillispie (Kentucky), Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) and Oliver Purnell (Clemson) on the recruiting trail and more than hold his own when it comes to signing Top 50 or Top 100 caliber players.
Besides his relationship with Downey, Kennedy is coaching in the SEC right now and is very familiar with the dynamics of the league, including rival coaches and players.
In short, the break-in time for him will be minimal compared to another head coach that comes to Columbia from outside the league.
So, while Anthony Grant, Jeff Capel or a few others would be a fine choice if they're hired, Kennedy would be better.
As I said, it’s perfect.
Go get him, Eric.
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I had a conversation with a fellow sports journalist Saturday night following Saturday’s exciting win by South Carolina over Alabama at the Colonial Center and, not surprisingly, the topic of who should be the next head coach of the Gamecocks came up.
As we usual do in those types of discussions, we batted around some names - some realistic, some not so. Believe me, fantasy isn’t just reserved for Hollywood.
But then one name came up.
My initial thought was it was intriguing, maybe even captivating. But the more I thought about it, I came to a different conclusion.
It was perfect.
So, that’s why I’m here today to make the argument that USC should make every effort to hire Andy Kennedy of Ole Miss as its next men’s basketball coach.
Kennedy has everything athletic director Eric Hyman is looking for in a new head coach. He’s young (he turns 40 on March 13), energetic, a great recruiter, a good person and, by all accounts, a good basketball strategist.
But he also one important advantage over every other candidate for the job – he’s coached USC point guard Devan Downey before.
As you recall, Kennedy recruited Downey to Cincinnati when he was an assistant coach with the Bearcats under Bob Huggins. However, not long after Downey stepped foot on the Cincinnati campus, Huggins was fired.
Kennedy became the interim head coach of Cincinnati. Along with Downey and the rest of the Bearcat players, he endured a difficult 2005-2006 season. Their season ended, ironically, with a loss to USC in the NIT quarterfinals.
Within hours after that loss, Kennedy was named the head coach at Ole Miss.
In my opinion, Kennedy has done a fantastic job at a school that has very limited resources when it comes to basketball. I’ve been to Oxford within the last calendar year, so I can tell you with confidence that the arena there is, to put it nicely, dreadful. Most league followers consider it the worst arena in the league.
Yet, Kennedy has coached the Rebels to a 38-20 record in his first two seasons in the Magnolia State. Ole Miss has lost a few games recently, including a home contest to Auburn Saturday, but that doesn’t detract from the excellent he’s done in Oxford.
Hey, he wasn’t named the 2007 SEC Coach of the Year by the Associated Press for nothing.
Kennedy and Downey enjoyed a father-son relationship when they were together at Cincinnati. Hiring Downey would thrill Downey to no ends.
The respect and admiration Kennedy has for Downey was evident when we spoke with him prior to the USC-Ole Miss game a couple of weeks ago.
In case you haven’t been paying attention. Downey has been USC’s best player by a wide margin this season. He paces the team in scoring and assists and is the nation’s leader in steals.
His game-winning shot against Alabama Saturday night showed his importance to the Gamecocks. The fact the final play was initially drawn up for the ball to go to someone else is comical, in my opinion.
Based on the way the game had gone, only one player deserved to take the last shot and it’s Downey.
Without Downey, USC’s mediocre season would, quite frankly, be a complete train wreck.
Unquestionably, Downey will be USC’s best and most important player the next two seasons. Keeping him happy, content and motivated is Job No. 1 of whomever the new coach turns out to be.
With Kennedy, that task should be a lot easier than it would be for most other coaches who don’t know Downey.
But Kennedy won’t be just a two-year hire to placate Downey. If he can succeed at Ole Miss, I believe he’ll be a spectacular success at USC.
He’s one of a handful of potential hires out there I’m confident can go toe-to-toe with Billy Donovan (Florida), Bruce Pearl (Tennessee), Billy Gillispie (Kentucky), Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) and Oliver Purnell (Clemson) on the recruiting trail and more than hold his own when it comes to signing Top 50 or Top 100 caliber players.
Besides his relationship with Downey, Kennedy is coaching in the SEC right now and is very familiar with the dynamics of the league, including rival coaches and players.
In short, the break-in time for him will be minimal compared to another head coach that comes to Columbia from outside the league.
So, while Anthony Grant, Jeff Capel or a few others would be a fine choice if they're hired, Kennedy would be better.
As I said, it’s perfect.
Go get him, Eric.
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Scott Hood. Since February of 2005, Scott has covered the South Carolina football, men's basketball and baseball programs for GamecockCentral. He may be reached by email at scottblog(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.