Saturday, January 28, 2012

Cremins Leave of Absence: A Cougars Response

Bobby Cremins has taken a leave of absence from Charleston, as reported earlier. I thought that sending some questions to a Cougars blogger would be a good way to get some insight into the situation there.
 
Hopefully, this answers some of the questions and provides some insight into the situation. Hope you enjoy it.
 
Here's a link to his blog- KingKresse.
 
What is your best memory of the Cremins era at College of Charleston?
 
There are a lot of memories that come to mind when reminiscing about Coach Cremins. He was truly ingrained into the CofC community. The guy lived just off campus and it was not uncommon to run into him walking his dogs or doing some shopping downtown. But when it comes to the most salient of memories there was one that stood out above the others for me personally. In December of 2008 (the first season that Carolina First/TD Arena was open), Cremins was going for his 500th career victory against Coastal Carolina. With the Cougars up at halftime, a couple friends and I knew we had to do something to commemorate the occasion. We ducked out of the arena, ran to CVS and bought some poster board and magic markers. We made a large digit on each poster, 5-0-0. When the final buzzer sounded we proudly displayed our work for Cremins and the TV cameras. While walking to the locker room with the team, Bobby came up to each of us and shook our hands. He thanked us for coming to the game and spending 10 bucks on supplies. No mention of his milestone. Just a moment that really gave me a glimpse into his character and one I still remember vividly.
 
Do you think that the recent struggles had anything to do with Cremins taking his leave of absence now? Did Cremins health problems lead to some of the recent struggles?
 
I think the recent struggles of the team are at least partially attributable to Bobby's exhaustion. Last year he had a senior-laden squad that could effectively coach themselves. Bobby never even had to stand up from the bench. This year he had to rebuild with a largely inexperienced roster. Add to that the drama with Baru's eligibility earlier this year and the key injuries to Willis Hall and Anthony Stitt and you can imagine the undo stress on a 64 year old. Looking back at his last few post-game press conferences, you can see that Bobby looks just beaten down.
Mark Byington has been named the interim head coach. Most people around the SoCon don't know much about Byington, except that he was on Tom Herrion's staff. What is your initial reaction to Byington being in this position?
 
I believe I speak for many Cougar fans when I say we want all remnants of the Herrion era to be forgotten and pushed as far from CofC as possible. Byington is still here and has been Cremins' right hand man since 06-07. For the most part he has quietly remained under the radar. He's active on the recruiting front (showing kids campus, facilities etc) and is in charge of developing the guards and wing players. I don't know what to expect from him as the leader of this team. Byington's coaching style is much different than Cremins. Very much an X's and O's kind of guy while Bobby mostly lets his players do their thing. Does he have what it takes to command the respect and attention that a 30-year vet like Cremins does? Will he hold players accountable? We shall see.
 
If this is the end of the Cremins era in Charleston, do you think Mark Byington will be named the permanent head coach?
 
The remainder of the season is going to be an extended tryout for Mark Byington. Based just on the endorsements he has received from John Kresse and Coach Cremins, it seems to be his job to lose. I think we as a program need to explore all of our options before we name him the heir apparent. If the team responds well to Coach B and turns things around, he'll have a leg up as the incumbent. Should things stay the way they are, there are probably a few other coaches who would make their case for the job.
If Cremins leaves, how do you see that impacting the program on the whole? Recruiting, scheduling, talent development, etc.
 
No doubt there will be at least some impact on all of those activities. Scheduling UNC, Louisville, Clemson; that doesn't happen without Cremins and his connections. Off the top of my head I can think of 3-4 players on the roster right now who wouldn't be here without Bobby. Andrew Lawrence and James Carlton are both sons of players Bobby recruited at Appalachian State. Trent Wiedeman's mom was a star on the Georgia Tech women's team and Trent grew up idolizing and rooting for Bobby. Adjehi can be added to the mix simply because he instantly fell in love with Coach's demeanor and personality. Coach Cremins was a fantastic recruiter and his coaching legacy afforded the Cougars a lot of scheduling benefits. But he also helped restore the entire program from a very moribund state. Hopefully that still bears some weight when it comes to exposure and recruiting.
 
Assuming Cremins leaves, and Byington is not the answer, are there any names that jump out at you as potential replacements?
 
The NCAA coaching landscape is so vast that it's hard to think of a handful of names that could be considered candidates should our coaching search come to that. Athletic Director Joe Hull needs to earn his keep this spring because this should be one position in the mid-majors that draws considerable attention. Brand new arena and training facilities, no football so basketball is the main priority, access to nearby recruits in Atlanta and Charlotte and best of all: a young, talented squad that can be molded into a contender. I'd like to see us go after a Greg Marshall-type of guy (who previously coached the Cougars for a few hours). Someone with a history of developing teams and one who is still young enough to take a hands-on approach with players. Anyone resembling the antithesis of Tom Herrion would also be a reasonable candidate.
The Cougars have been struggling lately (not as much as some SoCon teams, but in a surprising way given where they were less than a month ago). With this coaching change, do you think this team can rebound and make a run at a bye out of the South and go far in the SoCon Tournament? 
 
There's this phenomenon that seems to happen in sports when a coach is removed. Players seem to rally and play with a rejuvenated energy. Sometimes the feeling lasts, often times it does not. Bobby Cremins left such a large footprint on this program that I would expect the players, at home in TD Arena, to really come out inspired against Wofford. Win or lose we'll probably see more energy from the Cougs Saturday night. The trick for Byington and his job security will be to keep the momentum going into March.

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