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Chris Holtmann (ex-tOSU Bball coach, HC at DePaul)

Tonight makes 7 losses in 8 games with road trips to TTUN, Iowa, Sparty, and Purdue coming - almost assuredly all losses. This team looks headed for a losing season.

I still think Holtmann gets a chance to bounce back next season, given they just extended him 6 years in August. It doesn't matter if fans like it, it's a business decision.
 
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Tonight makes 7 losses in 8 games with road trips to TTUN, Iowa, Sparty, and Purdue coming - almost assuredly all losses. This team looks headed for a losing season.

I still think Holtmann gets a chance to bounce back next season, given they just extended him 6 years in August. It doesn't matter if fans like it, it's a business decision.
I have zero doubt we're stuck with him for at least one more season, but I have zero expectations that he can do anything significant to improve the team. We've already seen his ceiling (20 wins, first weekend tourney exit) and it isn't all that good.
 
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Unless he jumps for Notre Dame. He's been great fur the University even if this team stinks

He's been rumored for multiple openings, even Texas. If the ship is sinking and doesn't have a bright future, this may be the perfect situation for him to jump elsewhere while his reputation is still in-tact to another big opening and buy more than just another year.

If the cupboard looks bare for next year, he'd have to head back to mid-major land most likely. He can still land a high level P5 gig even after this year if he decides to.

There could be openings for Notre Dame, Texas, Louisville, etc. and he's been linked to all of them at one point or another.
 
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So, a lot of this fan base wants him gone but yet he is linked to several job openings that are pretty solid gigs? Doesn’t add up.

I’ve been a CH defender and I have been excited about his teams and the recruiting, etc but he needs to start answering his critics.

Not going to bash on players or blame them,
but if your veteran guys are JS and ZK then it doesn’t give me a ton of confidence. I’ve never been very high on either guy honestly.

And with his extension and the class coming in next year I knew he would almost certainly return from Gene’s perspective.

What I want to see is some fire and some identity. This team isn’t making the tourney barring some miracle.

What they can play for is pride at this point. I see an awful lot of softness and lack of leadership.

What coach can hope for is a future beyond next season.

The near term future of this team is riding on this freshman class. They need to show what they are made of. And CH needs to show what he envisioned when he recruited them.
 
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So, a lot of this fan base wants him gone but yet he is linked to several job openings that are pretty solid gigs? Doesn’t add up.

Not really - happens in every sport. Just saw it happen with Scott Satterfield, going from the hot seat in Louisville into an upgrade to Cincinnati. CCH isn't a bad coach and coaches run their course eventually. Sometimes they, and the new school, need a fresh start.
 
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Not really - happens in every sport. Just saw it happen with Scott Satterfield, going from the hot seat in Louisville into an upgrade to Cincinnati. CCH isn't a bad coach and coaches run their course eventually. Sometimes they, and the new school, need a fresh start.
This.

I'm not going to sit here and say CH is a bad coach; I don't think he is. I just don't think it works here for whatever reason. Six years and never making it out of the tournament's first weekend and zero championships of any kind is enough for me to say he doesn't work in Columbus. I recognize tOSU basketball isn't a blue blood and I don't expect peak Matta to be the baseline, but I certainly expect more than what we've received under Holtmann.

That said, I'm 100% sure he's back next year. The question is what's good enough for the shotcallers? If he bounces back to his standard 20 wins and out in the round of 32, is that good enough? I'd say absolutely not, but what I think doesn't mean shit. If Gene Smith is happy with the status quo, that's what we're gonna get.

It looked so promising after his first year. Unfortunately, he never built on, or even approached that success again.
 
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A fitting end to January unfolded last night in Assembly Hall as Chris Holtmann's basketball Buckeyes collapsed at the end of the first half en route to a 16-point loss.

The defeat dropped Ohio State to 2-7 for the month, marking the program's second-worst January since Holtmann took over ahead of the 2017-18 season. While the January Swoon talk has surrounded Holtmann for years now, the fact is his previous two squads went a combined 11-5 in January. The angst actually comes from years two and three of his stewardship when the Buckeyes went a combined 3-11 in the dreaded month.

That said, while Holtmann's current group mercifully turns the page on its January slate, Ohio State finds itself sitting with an 11-10 overall record and a 3-7 mark in conference play - results which are significantly worse than any of Holtmann's previous OSU teams. In fact, even the two previous teams with disastrous Januarys - the 2019-20 and 2020-21 squads - still stood at 13-7 overall entering February. The 2019-20 group was also just 3-6 in B1G play and still make the Dance so maybe that's a silver lining.

The cold reality is the Buckeyes are staring down the barrel of failing to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in Holtmann's tenure if things don't pivot quickly. Up until now, fans could count on his program to at least make the field even if making the second weekend proved elusive. Now, Ohio State has a ton of work to do to make the field.

So how did Ohio State find itself in this position after starting the season with a 9-3 record including 1-0 in league action heading into another January tailspin?

Just sayin': This year's team really just isn't all that good. The only player meeting and/or exceeding expectations is Brice Sensabaugh. I actually expected more from from the transfer portal guys:

Sean McNeil: 9.8 ppg (averaged 12.2 ppg at WVU last season)
Tanner Holden: 4.2 ppg (averaged 20.1 ppg at Wright State last season)
Isaac: likekele: 3.8 ppg (averaged 7.1 at Okie St last season)

When you lose your 2 best players to the NBA draft (2021-2022 season) this just became a rebuilding year.
 
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My perspective on this is that Holtmann's job is coaching basketball, not "answering his critics." At the end of the day, he is judged by wins, losses, league championships and NCAA Tournament record. Period.

Whether any of us wants him fired or extended, these are the metrics that matter.

His contract is also a factor. He'll get time because of the extension 6 months ago. He's owed a lot of money and the guy who gave him the extension would look foolish.
 
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My perspective on this is that Holtmann's job is coaching basketball, not "answering his critics." At the end of the day, he is judged by wins, losses, league championships and NCAA Tournament record. Period.

Whether any of us wants him fired or extended, these are the metrics that matter.
To an extent, yes.

I think it's also judged on the APR and not being under NCAA sanctions too. That's why I think him winning 20-ish, being somewhat competitive in the B1G and making the tournament may be enough for GS and the powers that be. I think if he gets back to that and maintains it, you'll see him sticking around after next season as well as long as the APR/NCAA remains true.
 
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A fitting end to January unfolded last night in Assembly Hall as Chris Holtmann's basketball Buckeyes collapsed at the end of the first half en route to a 16-point loss.

The defeat dropped Ohio State to 2-7 for the month, marking the program's second-worst January since Holtmann took over ahead of the 2017-18 season. While the January Swoon talk has surrounded Holtmann for years now, the fact is his previous two squads went a combined 11-5 in January. The angst actually comes from years two and three of his stewardship when the Buckeyes went a combined 3-11 in the dreaded month.

That said, while Holtmann's current group mercifully turns the page on its January slate, Ohio State finds itself sitting with an 11-10 overall record and a 3-7 mark in conference play - results which are significantly worse than any of Holtmann's previous OSU teams. In fact, even the two previous teams with disastrous Januarys - the 2019-20 and 2020-21 squads - still stood at 13-7 overall entering February. The 2019-20 group was also just 3-6 in B1G play and still make the Dance so maybe that's a silver lining.

The cold reality is the Buckeyes are staring down the barrel of failing to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in Holtmann's tenure if things don't pivot quickly. Up until now, fans could count on his program to at least make the field even if making the second weekend proved elusive. Now, Ohio State has a ton of work to do to make the field.

So how did Ohio State find itself in this position after starting the season with a 9-3 record including 1-0 in league action heading into another January tailspin?

Just sayin': This year's team really just isn't all that good. The only player meeting and/or exceeding expectations is Brice Sensabaugh. I actually expected more from from the transfer portal guys:

Sean McNeil: 9.8 ppg (averaged 12.2 ppg at WVU last season)
Tanner Holden: 4.2 ppg (averaged 20.1 ppg at Wright State last season)
Isaac: likekele: 3.8 ppg (averaged 7.1 at Okie St last season)

When you lose your 2 best players to the NBA draft (2021-2022 season) this just became a rebuilding year.

I thought Holden would have a bigger role on this team. Does he avg 15mins per game at tOSU?
 
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CHRIS HOLTMANN SAYS IT'S "HARD NOT TO BE DISAPPOINTED" IN OHIO STATE'S RECENT RESULTS, WANTS TO FINISH REGULAR SEASON "IN A WAY WE FEEL GOOD ABOUT"​




"But right now, as I mentioned, it’s hard not to be disappointed with the first 10 games of league play. So our challenge is let’s finish this obviously in a way we feel good about. What specifically that looks like, I’m not really interested in getting into. What I do want to focus on is just improving in those specific areas we need to improve in.”







 
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Not really - happens in every sport. Just saw it happen with Scott Satterfield, going from the hot seat in Louisville into an upgrade to Cincinnati. CCH isn't a bad coach and coaches run their course eventually. Sometimes they, and the new school, need a fresh start.

That's a bingo. What doesn't add up by now is the losses that shouldn't be happening under the CH era, whether that is a loss to Oral Roberts at the Tourney in the first round in a year where you thought we would be on a Final 4 run, or skip to this year where we fans understand it is a rebuilding year but can't be losing to bad-mediocre teams over and over.

It has just gone on too long and he is not working here....CH might be a good coach, but he doesn't fit here. That happens and I don't see why people can't admit both things are true (to your point)....sometimes you might be good at your job or just parts of it, but the fit isn't right. I think that is exactly what we have here...love CH to death but the honest truth is he's gotta do better than this and its that time to part ways at the end of the season.
 
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