Post by 01- PirateDave on Feb 14, 2015 9:36:45 GMT -6
CBS Sports, 02/13/2015
Butler, somehow, is again one of college basketball's best stories
Butler Coach Holtman (below)
The wildest thing isn't that Butler, a team picked seventh in the preseason Big East poll, will spend Valentine's Day playing for a share of first place in what the Indianapolis Star has suggested might be the biggest game in the history of 87-year-old Hinkle Fieldhouse. The wildest thing is that Butler is doing this despite unpredictable adversity and with a head coach who was a mostly unknown assistant a little more than four months ago.
"There's no question, it's crazy," Chris Holtmann, Butler's aforementioned head coach, told me Friday. "It's hard to wrap your head around it, to be honest. So much has transpired."
You probably know the gist of the story by now.
Brandon Miller, the man picked to succeed Brad Stevens, took a medical leave of absence in early October after one season of coaching the Bulldogs to a 14-17 record (that included a 4-14 mark in the school's first season in the Big East). Immediately, Holtmann was named Butler's interim coach. But it was unclear whether he'd remain in that chair because Miller could have theoretically returned at any time. And even if Miller didn't return, there was no guarantee Holtmann would be his permanent replacement.
In other words, Chris Holtmann was coaching under an umbrella of uncertainty.
And he was possibly coaching for his career.
And he was still coaching a team picked seventh in the preseason Big East poll.
And this was all thrown on him, basically out of nowhere.
But now look.
Butler is 18-6 overall, 8-3 in the Big East and ranked 18th in the Associated Press poll heading into Saturday night's game with sixth-ranked Villanova. The Bulldogs own wins over North Carolina, Georgetown, Xavier and St. John's (twice), and they only have one loss to a school currently ranked outside of the top 35 of the RPI.
Simply put, Holtmann has done an amazing job.
He should probably be the Big East's Coach of the Year.
Either way, he was rewarded for the way he's handled himself with a multiyear deal last month. Butler athletic director Barry Collier announced the news with a release.
"Chris has provided important leadership and coached successfully in a difficult situation," Collier said. "He has fully embraced the Butler Way, and we are confident in the future of our basketball program with Chris at the helm."
Needless to say, Holtmann was excited about this development.
Mostly, though, he was just relieved.
Often lost in the constant discussion of wins and losses and signed letters of intent is that college basketball coaches are, you know, actual humans with lives not much different than the life you live or the life I live, at least when it comes to guys, like Holtmann, who have spent the majority of their careers as assistants. They make a good living but are not usually financially secure. They have wives and kids and mortgages, just like lots of us. So they can't afford to lose their jobs, just like most of us.
Understand all that.
Now understand that Holtmann was coaching with this pressure.
And understand it was under the most unusual set of circumstances.
Chris Holtmann should probably be coach of the year in the Big East. (USATSI)
Chris Holtmann should be considered for coach of the year in the Big East. (USATSI)
Typically, a man is named a head coach in March, meaning he has six months to get adjusted before the official start of practice. Then he has another three or four or even five years to prove himself, which provides some peace of mind, at least temporarily.
But Holtmann wasn't so lucky.
He inherited the job, basically out of nowhere, and was essentially asked to prove himself on the fly, immediately, or else he and his assistants, come March, would likely be thanked for their contributions just before Butler launched a national search for a replacement.
This was unsaid but true.
And can you imagine?
Holtmann's assistants have families. One assistant has two children and a third on the way. And it was suddenly Holtmann's job to do a good-enough job, almost without any time to prepare, and prove to the administration that he's worthy of a multiyear contract. If he failed, all of these families, these growing families, would likely find their primary provider unemployed, and that's not something that was lost on this 43-year-old with his own family.
"When it was basically a day-to-day interview, during the interim deal, I said [to the assistants], I said, 'Listen, if I'm a little worked-up at times, that's the reason,'" Holtmann said. "I didn't want to screw this up for my family, of course, but certainly for their families as well. I had a few of those moments. It was a significant weight, for sure."
That weight has now been replaced with normal coaching stuff -- like trying to prepare for a Villanova team that's won five straight and is considered a legitimate candidate for the Final Four, and like getting ready for what might be the biggest game in Hinkle history.
"There have been a lot of big games at Hinkle over the years, and we have two more important home games after this," Holtmann said. "To say one is bigger than the other is counterproductive to what we want to be about."
The Butler Way, for sure.
Still, undeniably, this is a huge game.
Hinkle is soldout. A national audience will watch on TV. First place is on the line.
Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.
Butler might win. Or Butler could lose.
We'll see.
But the idea that Butler is even in this position -- that Chris Holtmann even has Butler in this position -- given the lowly expectations and uncertainty surrounding the program just four months ago is arguably the story of this season regardless of Saturday's result.
Butler, somehow, is again one of college basketball's best stories
Butler Coach Holtman (below)
The wildest thing isn't that Butler, a team picked seventh in the preseason Big East poll, will spend Valentine's Day playing for a share of first place in what the Indianapolis Star has suggested might be the biggest game in the history of 87-year-old Hinkle Fieldhouse. The wildest thing is that Butler is doing this despite unpredictable adversity and with a head coach who was a mostly unknown assistant a little more than four months ago.
"There's no question, it's crazy," Chris Holtmann, Butler's aforementioned head coach, told me Friday. "It's hard to wrap your head around it, to be honest. So much has transpired."
You probably know the gist of the story by now.
Brandon Miller, the man picked to succeed Brad Stevens, took a medical leave of absence in early October after one season of coaching the Bulldogs to a 14-17 record (that included a 4-14 mark in the school's first season in the Big East). Immediately, Holtmann was named Butler's interim coach. But it was unclear whether he'd remain in that chair because Miller could have theoretically returned at any time. And even if Miller didn't return, there was no guarantee Holtmann would be his permanent replacement.
In other words, Chris Holtmann was coaching under an umbrella of uncertainty.
And he was possibly coaching for his career.
And he was still coaching a team picked seventh in the preseason Big East poll.
And this was all thrown on him, basically out of nowhere.
But now look.
Butler is 18-6 overall, 8-3 in the Big East and ranked 18th in the Associated Press poll heading into Saturday night's game with sixth-ranked Villanova. The Bulldogs own wins over North Carolina, Georgetown, Xavier and St. John's (twice), and they only have one loss to a school currently ranked outside of the top 35 of the RPI.
Simply put, Holtmann has done an amazing job.
He should probably be the Big East's Coach of the Year.
Either way, he was rewarded for the way he's handled himself with a multiyear deal last month. Butler athletic director Barry Collier announced the news with a release.
"Chris has provided important leadership and coached successfully in a difficult situation," Collier said. "He has fully embraced the Butler Way, and we are confident in the future of our basketball program with Chris at the helm."
Needless to say, Holtmann was excited about this development.
Mostly, though, he was just relieved.
Often lost in the constant discussion of wins and losses and signed letters of intent is that college basketball coaches are, you know, actual humans with lives not much different than the life you live or the life I live, at least when it comes to guys, like Holtmann, who have spent the majority of their careers as assistants. They make a good living but are not usually financially secure. They have wives and kids and mortgages, just like lots of us. So they can't afford to lose their jobs, just like most of us.
Understand all that.
Now understand that Holtmann was coaching with this pressure.
And understand it was under the most unusual set of circumstances.
Chris Holtmann should probably be coach of the year in the Big East. (USATSI)
Chris Holtmann should be considered for coach of the year in the Big East. (USATSI)
Typically, a man is named a head coach in March, meaning he has six months to get adjusted before the official start of practice. Then he has another three or four or even five years to prove himself, which provides some peace of mind, at least temporarily.
But Holtmann wasn't so lucky.
He inherited the job, basically out of nowhere, and was essentially asked to prove himself on the fly, immediately, or else he and his assistants, come March, would likely be thanked for their contributions just before Butler launched a national search for a replacement.
This was unsaid but true.
And can you imagine?
Holtmann's assistants have families. One assistant has two children and a third on the way. And it was suddenly Holtmann's job to do a good-enough job, almost without any time to prepare, and prove to the administration that he's worthy of a multiyear contract. If he failed, all of these families, these growing families, would likely find their primary provider unemployed, and that's not something that was lost on this 43-year-old with his own family.
"When it was basically a day-to-day interview, during the interim deal, I said [to the assistants], I said, 'Listen, if I'm a little worked-up at times, that's the reason,'" Holtmann said. "I didn't want to screw this up for my family, of course, but certainly for their families as well. I had a few of those moments. It was a significant weight, for sure."
That weight has now been replaced with normal coaching stuff -- like trying to prepare for a Villanova team that's won five straight and is considered a legitimate candidate for the Final Four, and like getting ready for what might be the biggest game in Hinkle history.
"There have been a lot of big games at Hinkle over the years, and we have two more important home games after this," Holtmann said. "To say one is bigger than the other is counterproductive to what we want to be about."
The Butler Way, for sure.
Still, undeniably, this is a huge game.
Hinkle is soldout. A national audience will watch on TV. First place is on the line.
Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.
Butler might win. Or Butler could lose.
We'll see.
But the idea that Butler is even in this position -- that Chris Holtmann even has Butler in this position -- given the lowly expectations and uncertainty surrounding the program just four months ago is arguably the story of this season regardless of Saturday's result.
good luck to all!