• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

Thad Matta (OSU's All Time Winningest Coach & 3x B1G COY, Butler HC)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
Golferdow01

Golferdow01

East-Coast Living
This is the official thread for all discussion pertaining to Thad Matta.























Daytonbuck said:
Musketeers' Matta: No, Bucks

[FONT=arial,helvetica]XU coach says he's not a candidate for OSU job [/FONT]




By Dustin Dow
Enquirer staff writer


Ohio State athletic director Andy Geiger asked for and received permission to contact Thad Matta last week, according to a high-level Xavier source, but the Musketeers coach isn't interested in the Buckeyes' job.

"I'm not a candidate," Matta said Tuesday. "It's that plain and that simple."

Since Geiger fired men's basketball coach Jim O'Brien June 8, rumors have circulated that Matta would be one of the Buckeyes' top targets.

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]OSU RUMOR MILL [FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Jim Cleamons - The Lakers assistant reportedly interviewed with the Buckeyes Tuesday.

Kevin Stallings - The Vanderbilt coach reportedly will interview with OSU today.

Willis Wilson - The Rice coach was to interview Tuesday.

Tom Crean - Would not confirm reported contact with OSU, and in a statement Saturday said he's happy coaching Marquette. Mark Gottfried - The Alabama coach would not confirm contact by OSU.


[/FONT]Xavier athletic director Dawn Rogers would neither confirm nor deny that Geiger had asked for permission to interview Matta, but Matta said Tuesday that he has not been contacted by Ohio State and does not expect any communication to occur.

A Xavier source Tuesday night said Geiger probably has been made aware that Matta wants to remain at XU.

Still, the perception that Matta is a candidate is likely to linger until Ohio State fills its coaching vacancy.

"I'm not a very public person, so nobody's ever going to know how happy I am at Xavier," Matta said. "... Our players have three (Atlantic 10) rings in three years. We've been to the round of 32, round of 32 and Elite Eight (in the NCAA Tournament). I'm sitting here and I probably have one of the longest contracts in the country. I love that."

Matta, 36, is signed through 2013 by Xavier. School officials extended and renegotiated the incentives in his contract after last season, in which Matta led Xavier to the Elite Eight, the furthest it has ever advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

"Thad had an outstanding season," Rogers said. "We feel very committed to him, and it's important to us that he knows that."

Rogers declined to discuss the specifics of the contract, but it is said to be worth more than $800,000 annually, according to a Xavier source.

"It's very fair and very competitive," said Rogers, who added that Xavier has been willing to continually rework Matta's contract since he arrived at Xavier in 2001. His record at the school is 78-23 through three seasons.

O'Brien made $1.2 million per year at Ohio State before Geiger fired him after the coach admitted to paying recruit Aleksandar Radojevic $6,000 in 1999.

One of Xavier's primary recruiting pursuits in the class of 2005, Chaminade-Julienne's Derrick Brown, said he is watching the Ohio State situation closely.

Xavier is high on Brown's list of finalists, and he said he has asked Matta more than once about Ohio State.

"I obviously want to know who the (Xavier) coach is going to be before I commit anywhere," said Brown, who added that Matta told him last week he "would probably not" be involved in the Ohio State coaching search. Brown is visiting North Carolina State today and said he wants to decide among North Carolina State, Xavier and Michigan State within two to three weeks.

http://www.enquirer.com/xavier/2004/06/30/xu1a.html[/FONT]
Click to expand...
http://www.enquirer.com/xavier/2004/06/30/xu1a.html
 
Last edited:
I'm not surprised - I said when Matta's name was first mentioned that he'd be a great get, but I doubted he'd want to leave X. Ohio State has more tradition and all, but right now, X is headed in the right direction, and fast. From Guillen to Prosser to Matta, X has built a pretty solid program and seems to be outgrowing their mid-major status. I can't blame him for wanting to stay.
 
Upvote 0
I'm not surprised either jlb...seems like your analysis is right on. The OSU job is also a risk, given the investigation, so I think he just wanted to stay where he has proven himself.
 
Upvote 0
I cannot say that I necessarily blame Matta. He has gotten the Xavier squad to the level of competing on a national basis yearly. If he took over OSU's program, he would be dealing with a NCAA investigation and possible probation. In all honesty, our coaching postion is a big one, but some may see it as a risk.
 
Upvote 0
Alot of people were speculating who the mystery guy Andy Geiger was waiting around for was, but it looks like its Matta. The question I have is, how did he go from saying he was not interested in the job to interviewing with Geiger tomorrow morning? I know im looking ahead, but if Matta got the job he might also bring BJ Raymond with him.
 
Upvote 0
How did he go from saying he was not interested in the job to interviewing with Geiger tomorrow morning
Click to expand...

I don't recall Matta's exact quote, but read these guys carefully and they are all "non-denial denial's". Even Crean did not firmly remove himself from consideration.

"I am happy at Dipshit U" (that doesn't mean I wouldn't be happy elsewhere as well)
"I am not seeking the job" (it is seeking me)
"I have no plans to go anywhere else" (not until I get an offer)
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top