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Pac-10 Coach Raking: Big Ben
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November 25th, 2008
by Jeff Fox
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Ben Howland - UCLA
Take a wild guess who is ranked as the top coach in the Pac 10? You got it, that guy.
1) Ben Howland – UCLA
Ben Howland is truly the king of the Pac 10. He has the Bruins on course for a fourth-straight Final Four.
2) Mike Montgomery – California
A great hire for Cal – Mike Montgomery has the coaching pedigree to lead the Golden Bears back to their 1990s Jason Kidd-led level.
3) Tim Floyd – USC
There’s a new player in L.A. hoops. Tim Floyd seems to have the recruiting touch and the Trojans are ready to fight back against neighborhood bully UCLA.
4) Herb Sendek – Arizona State
Herb Sendek has the Sun Devils headed towards the upper echelon of the Pac 10 and is now the top coach in the Land of McCain.
5) Tony Bennett – Washington State
There is no way that Washington State should be a player in the Pac 10 every year, yet Tony Bennett has them doing just that.
6) Lorenzo Romar – Washington
The back-to-back Sweet Sixteen appearances in ’05 and ’06 seem ages ago. At least Lorenzo Romar has Jon Brockman around for his senior season.
7) Ernie Kent – Oregon
Ernie Kent’s Ducks appear to have peaked in 2007 with their appearance in the Elite 8. Don’t expect a repeat performance this season.
8) Johnny Dawkins – Stanford
It should be a long season for first year coach Johnny Dawkins. Couldn’t at least one of those Lopez twins have stuck around for another season?
9) Craig Robinson – Oregon State
It’s debatable who has the tougher task ahead of him – Craig Robinson or his brother-in-law Barack Obama.
10) Russ Pennell – Arizona
Its always hard to follow a legend, but being thrown into the head coaching position at the last minute (and thrown into the middle of a soap opera to boot) makes Russ Pennell’s job even harder.
Comments
Agreed
Submitted by Shawn Siegel on Tue, 2008-11-25 21:04.
Lot of debatable choices by Jeff.. I'd go:
1 Howland
2 Sendek
3 Bennett
4 Montgommery
5 Romar
6 Floyd
7 Kent
8 Dawkins
9 Robinson
10 Pennell
Russ Pennell
Submitted by thrumylense on Sun, 2009-02-15 21:59.
Here it is Feb and Arizona is on a 7 game winning streak....count them...7! It is not over either. Pennell walked into a interm head position when things were really bad....look what he has done....amazing!!
really
Submitted by cp (not verified) on Wed, 2008-11-26 15:51.
1. Howland
2. Bennett
3. Sendek
4. Floyd
5. Monty
6. Kent
7. Romar
8. Dawkins
9. Pennell
10. Robinson
Howland and Bennett lead the pac
Floyd? Uh, no.
Submitted by Pac-10 Fan (not verified) on Sun, 2008-12-21 22:08.
I agree with Howland and Montgomery 1-2, but like others have said Bennett and Sendek are both doing better than Floyd... USC is not looking good this year, playing only to the level of their competition, which doesn't bode well in getting ready for conference play. Just skimming by when you return as much as USC did, and got the caliber of recruits that USC has, they should easily be better than they have played.
Here's my rankings
1. Howland
2. Montgomery
3. Bennett
4. Sendek
5. Floyd
6. Romar
7. Kent
8. Robinson
9. Pennell
10. Dawkins
2-3-4 all seem real close. And for how bad Oregon State looked coming into the season, I think Robinson has done a good job so far... they'll still be at the bottom of the league this year, lucky to win more than 1 game, but the future is looking decent
Not So Big Ben
Submitted by thrumylense on Sun, 2009-02-15 22:03.
Arizona "played" with UCLA on Valentines Day......Big Ben stated that Arizona was the hottest team in the PAC-10 now and playing as well as anyone (and much better than most).
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About Jeff Fox
Columnist
NBA Draft & International Hoops
Contact
foxyjj@sympatico.ca
Background
Jeff Fox is a freelance journalist based an hour outside of Toronto, Canada. While attending University of Waterloo (Canada) earning a B.A. in Economics and Management Studies, Jeff managed to walk onto the school’s varsity basketball team, the Warriors, for 2 seasons. His final year riding the pine for the Warriors saw the team make it to the CIS (Canada’s NCAA equivalent) Final 8 tournament. In addition to this site, he is a regular contributor to SLAM magzine (& online) and The Hoops Manifesto. When he isn’t planted in front of his computer he spends the rest of his time with his wife, Lisa, his son, Adam and his dog Jeannie.
Location
Toronto, CA
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some debatable calls
What will you say when Wazzu finishes above USC this year? I think we could challenge ASU for 2nd / 3rd in the Pac 10, and then you'd have to say Bennett outcoached Sendek since ASU had WAY more returning talent. Also, notify me when ASU beats Wazzu - Sendek and Bennett started at the same time, ASU having finished 9th and WSU 10th the year before. Floyd's recruiting has been good (surely helped by location, school reputation, and the Galen center) but he is only 1-4 against Bennett.