1/14 @ Miami

[Mackus]

What other big coach would consider coming here? What about a guy like Pitino? Would he like to go head-to-head with Coach K and Roy Williams year in and out?

That would be an instant boost to recruiting.

If Gary leaves, this will be an incredibly attractive job.

I think we'd go with a younger more up-and-coming coach than a more established coach from a different program.

[BaltBird 24]

What other big coach would consider coming here? What about a guy like Pitino? Would he like to go head-to-head with Coach K and Roy Williams year in and out?

That would be an instant boost to recruiting.

I was thinking someone young like an Anthony Grant from VCU, Sean Miller from Xavier, or maybe even a Mike Brey if he'd consider leaving ND.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I was thinking someone young like an Anthony Grant from VCU, Sean Miller from Xavier, or maybe even a Mike Brey if he'd consider leaving ND.

They would all likely be great choices...though hopefully it doesn't come to that point, of course

[Sports Guy]

Sorry, but you are totally biased by your dislike of the Terps. The Terps have always been a top 25-type of program and it used to be making the tournament each year was a given. Now it's not. I find it amusing that most of the people that are supporting Gary are people who like other schools and ex-students of Maryland who are blinded by Williams' deity-like persona on campus. That speaks volumes to me.

You are like a Steelers fan telling us we'll be sorry we let Billick go because after all, he coached us to our Super Bowl. I respect your opinion in other matters but not in Maryland basketball. When you tell me the program should be no better than a 20-40 program, I'll have to disagree.

There is no reason with the right coach that this program can't be an elite program year in and year out. We have every right to expect a top 25 team each year. It takes a coach that can recruit and one that is flexible enough to adjust his style to his players.

Which of these programs should MD be better than?:

Duke

UNC

Kentucky

UCLA

Florida

Mich St

Michigan

Georgetown

Syracuse

Texas

Oklahoma

Kansas

Pittsburgh

Ohio St

Tennessee

Memphis

Indiana

St Johns

Georgia Tech

Wake Forest

Wisconsin

Arkansas

NC State

Arizona

Louisville

UCONN

I am sure I missed some as well..That is 26 teams...How many of those teams should MD fans realistically look at and say, we should definitely have a better program than that team?

[Pedro Cerrano]

Which of these programs should MD be better than?:

Duke

UNC

Kentucky

UCLA

Florida

Mich St

Michigan

Georgetown

Syracuse

Texas

Oklahoma

Kansas

Pittsburgh

Ohio St

Tennessee

Memphis

Indiana

St Johns

Georgia Tech

Wake Forest

Wisconsin

Arkansas

NC State

Arizona

Louisville

I am sure I missed some as well..That is 25 teams...How many of those teams should MD fans realistically look at and say, we should definitely have a better program than that team?

I bolded my answers.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I bolded my answers.

In total appearences on the AP list (used simply because I looked it up for my earlier response) we are ahead of NC State and Michigan, but not by much...and behind schools like Illinois and Cincinnati.

[Sports Guy]

I bolded my answers.

Not sure why the should be better than Michigan.

St Johns is a program that has fallen on some hard times but they play at MSG, have all of NY to recruit from and are, of course, the University in that city. St Johns should be an incredible program.

NC State and GT? Again, both in good cities where basketball is huge and they have had similar success to the MD program over the years. I am not sure you can say that MD SHOULD be better than these guys but I do think they should be on the same level.

Wisconsin is a solid program but MD should be able to put out better athletes than Wisconsin.

You just named 5 programs out of 25..I disagree with all but one of them but acknowledge MD should be close to or the same as the others.

That being said, to say they should be one of the top 10-15 programs in the country isn't a statement that is based on reality IMO...It is based on hope.

There are lots of programs that i didn't mention that are similar to MD in terms of year in and year out expectations as well...Marquette, Oklahoma St, Illinois, Cincinatti and Xavier...Schools like that.

[Pedro Cerrano]

I mean you have to realize you're asking an extremely subjective question. BTerp came the closest to objectifying the question by offering all-time appearances in the AP poll but there are obviously several other metrics to use.

Here is a better question, SG. Pretend it's April of 2002. How many of those schools would be bold-faced? Right after two Final Four appearances I'd argue that AT LEAST the ones I bolded we should be better than and probably a bunch more that have enjoyed recent revivals (like Georgetown who now recruits our pants off in the area).

That just shows how much the program has fallen.

[Sports Guy]

I think one thing people overlook is just how many colleges are in the Baltimore/Washington/Virginia area.

There is a lot of talent in this area but there are also a lot of schools scarfing up that talent. Yea, MD could do better here and there but its tough and sometimes you have to settle for less.

[Mackus]

Which of these programs should MD be better than?:

Duke

UNC

Kentucky

UCLA

Florida

Mich St

Michigan

Georgetown

Syracuse

Texas

Oklahoma

Kansas

Pittsburgh

Ohio St

Tennessee

Memphis

Indiana

St Johns

Georgia Tech

Wake Forest

Wisconsin

Arkansas

NC State

Arizona

Louisville

I am sure I missed some as well..That is 25 teams...How many of those teams should MD fans realistically look at and say, we should definitely have a better program than that team?

Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Ohio St, Memphis, St Johns (why are they on this list?), Wisconsin, Arkansas.

I left out the ACC teams, but I feel MD should be at least as strong as every ACC team on that list with the exception of Duke and UNC. I think Maryland should be the best program that isn't Duke and UNC in the ACC.

To me, Maryland should look up only to the uber-elite programs. I'd say UCLA, UNC, Duke, Kansas, and Kentucky are the only ones that are out of the reach of how good of a program Maryland should be.

I think we should be right in there with the second tier, with the likes of UConn, Syracuse, Michigan State, and Arizona. We should be a team that is always in the tournament, and are Final 4 contenders every few years if not more often.

Right now we've certainly slipped well below that. Gary's gotta get us back up to where we belong.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I think one thing people overlook is just how many colleges are in the Baltimore/Washington/Virginia area.

There is a lot of talent in this area but there are also a lot of schools scarfing up that talent. Yea, MD could do better here and there but its tough and sometimes you have to settle for less.

Plus, a lot of it has been going out of state for decades, even before Gary Williams.

[Sports Guy]

I mean you have to realize you're asking an extremely subjective question. BTerp came the closest to objectifying the question by offering all-time appearances in the AP poll but there are obviously several other metrics to use.

Here is a better question, SG. Pretend it's April of 2002. How many of those schools would be bold-faced? Right after two Final Four appearances I'd argue that AT LEAST the ones I bolded we should be better than and probably a bunch more that have enjoyed recent revivals (like Georgetown who now recruits our pants off in the area).

That just shows how much the program has fallen.

But the problem is you can't look at this based on an off 5 years or something like that.

You have to look at everything to determine the answer...The area they are in, facilities, program history, etc....

Now, MD has the best arena in the sport IMO and they have a decent history and are in a good hot bed of talent.

All reasons why they should be a good program...But guess what, they are. As I said, they are a program in that 20-40 range. It just matters on what given year you are talking about.

There are what, 350ish D1 schools now and MD is in the top 8-12% of those schools? Considering where they were in the late 80's/early 90s, they have come a far way and that is because of Gary.

[Sports Guy]

Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Ohio St, Memphis, St Johns (why are they on this list?), Wisconsin, Arkansas.

I left out the ACC teams, but I feel MD should be at least as strong as every ACC team on that list with the exception of Duke and UNC. I think Maryland should be the best program that isn't Duke and UNC in the ACC.

To me, Maryland should look up only to the uber-elite programs. I'd say UCLA, UNC, Duke, Kansas, and Kentucky are the only ones that are out of the reach of how good of a program Maryland should be.

I think we should be right in there with the second tier, with the likes of UConn, Syracuse, Michigan State, and Arizona. We should be a team that is always in the tournament, and are Final 4 contenders every few years if not more often.

Right now we've certainly slipped well below that. Gary's gotta get us back up to where we belong.

UCONN was one I missed...Thanks for pointing them out.

I don't see MD can lay claim to being on their level right now.

[Mackus]

UCONN was one I missed...Thanks for pointing them out.

I don't see MD can lay claim to being on their level right now.

Of course they aren't that good right now, they are well below that. My argument is that is the type of program we should have. I wouldn't put UConn up there with the historic powerhouses, but very few teams get that distinction. I think Maryland should be able to be right on the same level as UConn and Michigan State, those are the two programs I most want to emulate.

[BaltimoreTerp]

Of course they aren't that good right now, they are well below that. My argument is that is the type of program we should have. I wouldn't put UConn up there with the historic powerhouses, but very few teams get that distinction. I think Maryland should be able to be right on the same level as UConn and Michigan State, those are the two programs I most want to emulate.

Well, the question is, are we on the same level HISTORICALLY but just in a down-period? Just like those schools have had and will have down periods.