Multiple sites say Tubby Smith might be main target

[TitanTiger 20,482]

Phillip Marshall and Dennis Dodd (CBS) are saying that he may be the main one we're after. I know a few have expressed reservations about him but his resume is pretty impressive. He's coached for 19 seasons at Tulsa, Georgia, Kentucky and Minnesota. Sixteen of those teams made the NCAA tourney. If you take away his first two seasons coaching at Tulsa, 16 of 17 made the NCAAs and the one that didn't went to the NIT. He's coached in the SEC. He took UK to a national title. He's got Minnesota in back to back NCAA tourneys for the first time in 15 years. He's won 20 games or more for 17 consecutive years.

I think he'd be a really good get.

[WarTiger 3,901]

Seeing as how the program is bigger (and more important) than one person, I'll support auburn basketball regardless of who is named head coach. BUT, I really don't want tubby. I'd rather get someone younger that won't be considering retirement in 3-4 years and a better coach. The NC he won at kentucky doesn't carry much weight with me since he did it with Pitino's players. There are WAY better coaches and younger coaches out there that we could get that would be better for auburn. I hope this isn't true.

Let's also not forget that when Jacobs commented on the lebo firing that we would hear tons of rumors out there and that they wouldn't be true. He also said that we would respect the coaches and players of the programs involved in the NCAA tournament. Seeing as how Minnesota is playing in the tournament as we speak, I highly doubt auburn has even talked to him, much less close to naming him as head coach. If we are then jacobs lied about what procedure the administration would follow. I hope jacobs wouldn't do that, and I hope tubby isn't even on the radar.

[RunInRed 16,409]

Could Tubby Smith be atop Auburn's wish list?

By Evan Woodbery

As Minnesota coach Tubby Smith prepares to lead his team into the NCAA tournament today, he's fending off rumors about his future. Several schools, including Auburn, could be suitors for Smith.

CBS Sportsline reporter Dennis Dodd wrote today that Auburn was "close" to hiring Smith, according to a trusted source.

Minnesota Athletic Director Joel Maturi said he hadn't been contacted by Auburn, but had heard the rumors.

Being "close" to hiring a coach who is about to participate in the NCAA tournament and whose AD has not yet been contacted would be a major breach of protocol (which isn't to say it doesn't happen frequently). Auburn AD Jay Jacobs has said he will pursue coaches through "the front door" by requesting formal permission and not using back channels.

Smith would cost a lot of money, and he has a buyout at Minnesota. So is this just typical March scuttlebutt, or the real deal? Stay tuned.

http://blog.al.com/auburnbeat/2010/03/could_tubby_smith_be_atop_aubu.html

[RunInRed 16,409]

Dennis Dodd...

Auburn is "close to hiring" Tubby Smith as its new basketball coach, a source that I trust told me Thursday night.

It could be nothing, but it is known that the school might be looking for an African-American coach. And Tubby getting back to the SEC would make sense. It's not the pressure cooker of Kentucky. It's a new building and a lot of rebuilding with the Tigers.

http://dennis-dodd.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6270202/20528708?tag=comBlogEntryListCnt;entry20528708

[RunInRed 16,409]

Jay G. Tate makes the case for Tubby...

Hey everyone. Hope you're having a great second morning of March Madness.®

Let's have a little talk.

Tubby Smith's name is being discussed this morning. Logic tells me it can't happen. My telephone line says something different. To recount: Smith makes approximately $1.8 million at Minnesota right now and he has guaranteed escalators that will push his compensation to $2 million and a little beyond.

Jeff Lebo made approximately $750,000 last year.

Athletic director Jay Jacobs said last week that he was going to pay the next coach a "competitive" salary within a Southeastern Conference context. That's not breaking news.

Here's what the currently employed SEC coaches make:

John Calipari (UK) -- $3.9 million

William "Billy" Donovan (Florida) -- $3.5 million

Bruce Pearl (Tennessee) -- $2.4 million

Anthony Grant (Alabama) -- $1.8 million

Mark Fox (Georgia) -- $1.3 million

Trent Johnson (LSU) -- $1.2 million

Rick Stansbury (MSU) -- $1.2 million

Darrin Horn (S. Carolina) -- $1.1 million

Kevin Stallings (Vanderbilt) -- approximately $1 million

Andy Kennedy (Mississippi) $800,000

John Pelphrey (Arkansas) $795,000

Trent Johnson is the median at $1.2 million. Jacobs, though, believes that Auburn athletics should be a highly competitive enterprise everywhere. He really wants to see the basketball program thrive. There's a temptation at Auburn to supplement the football program to such an extreme degree that other sports seem excised from the whole deal.

Jacobs doesn't want it that way. This will be his first chance to promote that image in a way fans/supporters/donors care about and see.

Does that mean Tubby Smith is going to be the next Auburn coach? I told you all that two names were on that first list -- Chuck Person and Tubby Smith. If Jacobs can find a way to pay Smith something in the neighborhood of $2 million, it could happen.

Alabama is paying its coach $1.8 million. Anthony Grant is a coach I like, but Tubby Smith is a more viable commodity. He's worth $2 million or more.

Logic tells me no. Logic tells me Auburn wouldn't pay that much for someone who doesn't coach in the Iron Bowl.

Still, I've been warned to avoid applying too much logic at this stage.

EXTRA POINT: According to this story that ran in Thursday's editions of the St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer-Press, Minnesota is in the midst of a salary freeze and cannot increase Smith's compensation. If Auburn makes a sugary-sweet offer, Minnesota will be severely limited in its ability to develop a counteroffer.

NOTE: Smith's Golden Gophers play Xavier in the NCAA Tournament beginning at 11:35 a.m. CST.

http://jaygtate.blogspot.com/

[RunInRed 16,409]

Charles Goldberg says AU willing to pay up...

Auburn basketball willing to pay for hot name; Tubby Smith enters coaching buzz

By Charles Goldberg -- The Birmingham News

AUBURN -- Auburn, which has spent $90 million on a basketball arena that will open next season, is prepared to make another sizable investment in the sport when it hires its new basketball coach.

People familiar with the search process say the university is willing to significantly increase what it has paid former coaches in order to attract someone with a proven record to replace Jeff Lebo, who was fired last Friday. A list of candidates includes coaches who could command high salaries, such as Minnesota's Tubby Smith, who has SEC experience at Kentucky and Georgia.

The new coach, depending on his experience, could emerge as the fourth or fifth highest-paid basketball coach in the SEC.

The four highest-paid coaches in the SEC are Kentucky's John Calipari, at $3.9 million; Florida's Billy Donovan, at $3.4 million; Tennessee's Bruce Pearl, at $2.4 million; and Alabama's Anthony Grant, at $1.8 million. Lebo was the lowest-paid coach in the SEC, at $750,000 annually.

Depending on who Auburn hires, the new coach's salary could be close to that of football coach Gene Chizik, who will make $2.1 million this year.

College candidates for the Auburn job include Minnesota's Smith, whose team plays Xavier in the NCAA Tournament today. Smith is appearing in his 16th NCAA Tournament in the past 17 years. Smith's annual compensation at Minnesota is $1.75 million.

FoxSports.com last week mentioned Smith as a candidate at Oregon.

"There's always talk about coaches leaving and players leaving. It's part of the business. We're happy here,'' Smith said in a follow-up story in the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Another possible candidate is Texas-El Paso coach Tony Barbee. UTEP lost to Butler in the tournament Thursday. Another possible candidate is Missouri coach Mike Anderson, whose team plays Clemson today. Anderson is a Birmingham native and former UAB coach.

Other candidates could include former Auburn player Chuck Person, who is a special assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers; and Sam Mitchell, a former NBA coach of the year who is from Columbus, Ga.

The search may still be in its early stages because most candidates have been preparing for the NCAA Tournament. Auburn Athletics Director Jay Jacobs said he won't contact any coach that is still in the tournament.

Auburn's coaching search that ultimately led to Lebo six years ago included interviews during the Final Four in San Antonio. This year's Final Four concludes April 5 in Indianapolis. Auburn signed Lebo in 2004 to an eight-year contract. Auburn is paying him a $1.5 million buyout.

http://blog.al.com/goldmine/2010/03/auburn_prepared_to_pay_up_for.html

[Auburn85 432]

Dennis Dodd...

Auburn is "close to hiring" Tubby Smith as its new basketball coach, a source that I trust told me Thursday night.

It could be nothing, but it is known that the school might be looking for an African-American coach. And Tubby getting back to the SEC would make sense. It's not the pressure cooker of Kentucky. It's a new building and a lot of rebuilding with the Tigers.

http://dennis-dodd.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6270202/20528708?tag=comBlogEntryListCnt;entry20528708

They just cited this article during the Minnesota game.

[insert_car 0]

i like it!

[LegalEagle 22]

I find it difficult to believe that we'd get a better coach than CTS.

Come on down!

[LegalEagle 22]

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news;_ylt=Apao7rmyptTYpkKQpY4RjKbevbYF?slug=ga-tubby031910&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Smith says he’ll return to Minnesota

Gerry Ahern

By Gerry Ahern, Yahoo! Sports 44 minutes ago

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Buzz up! 0

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MILWAUKEE – Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said Friday he intends to be back with the Gophers next season, refuting a CBSSports.com report that claimed he was headed to fill the head coaching vacancy at Auburn.

“That’s just talk,” Smith said after Minnesota’s 65-54 loss to Xavier in a first-round West Regional game. “I’m very pleased with what we’ve accomplished here. I’m very pleased with where we are in the program. I’m looking forward to coming back to Minnesota.”

More From Gerry Ahern

Smith has compiled a 63-39 record in three seasons in Minneapolis with two consecutive NCAA tournament appearances.

[arnaldoabru 11]

Seeing as how the program is bigger (and more important) than one person, I'll support auburn basketball regardless of who is named head coach. BUT, I really don't want tubby. I'd rather get someone younger that won't be considering retirement in 3-4 years and a better coach. The NC he won at kentucky doesn't carry much weight with me since he did it with Pitino's players. There are WAY better coaches and younger coaches out there that we could get that would be better for auburn. I hope this isn't true.

Let's also not forget that when Jacobs commented on the lebo firing that we would hear tons of rumors out there and that they wouldn't be true. He also said that we would respect the coaches and players of the programs involved in the NCAA tournament. Seeing as how Minnesota is playing in the tournament as we speak, I highly doubt auburn has even talked to him, much less close to naming him as head coach. If we are then jacobs lied about what procedure the administration would follow. I hope jacobs wouldn't do that, and I hope tubby isn't even on the radar.

Like Saben did with Shula's players.

[TitanTiger 20,482]

Seeing as how the program is bigger (and more important) than one person, I'll support auburn basketball regardless of who is named head coach. BUT, I really don't want tubby. I'd rather get someone younger that won't be considering retirement in 3-4 years and a better coach. The NC he won at kentucky doesn't carry much weight with me since he did it with Pitino's players. There are WAY better coaches and younger coaches out there that we could get that would be better for auburn. I hope this isn't true.

Let's also not forget that when Jacobs commented on the lebo firing that we would hear tons of rumors out there and that they wouldn't be true. He also said that we would respect the coaches and players of the programs involved in the NCAA tournament. Seeing as how Minnesota is playing in the tournament as we speak, I highly doubt auburn has even talked to him, much less close to naming him as head coach. If we are then jacobs lied about what procedure the administration would follow. I hope jacobs wouldn't do that, and I hope tubby isn't even on the radar.

I don't think there are "WAY" better coaches that we could get. The ones we have a real shot at are more about great potential than actually having more accomplishments than Tubby Smith if you just look at the real stats. People forget that the national title year wasn't his only good year at UK. He won the SEC five times and got UK back to the Elite Eight three times and the Sweet Sixteen twice. He got Tulsa to the Sweet Sixteen twice and Georgia there once. To act like he's not a good coach just doesn't compute.

[AUdmd07 2]

Don't tell WarTiger that Tubby is a good coach. In his mind he is a hack despite the numbers in Coach Smith's career.

I've said before and I'll say it again - if Auburn were to get Tubby it would be a home run hire. Sounds like he's happy at Minnesota (or maybe he's just pulling a Saban) so we may miss out.

[TitanTiger 20,482]

That was a non-denial. You can't read anything into it yet.

[rtftiger 40]

That was a non-denial. You can't read anything into it yet.

I agree totally. My hope is that contact has already been made to Tom Condon, Tubby's agent.

I wonder how the leak happened. It could be mutual smoke screen. We get the press for going after a big-name, proven, African-American coach. He and Condon get negotiating leverage with Minnesota.

[Nay4AU 2]

That was a non-denial. You can't read anything into it yet.

I agree totally. My hope is that contact has already been made to Tom Condon, Tubby's agent.

I wonder how the leak happened. It could be mutual smoke screen. We get the press for going after a big-name, proven, African-American coach. He and Condon get negotiating leverage with Minnesota.

Smith is appearing in his 16th NCAA Tournament in the past 17 years, but Minnesota AD Joel Maturi says there's little chance for a raise.

"Right now there's a salary freeze at Minnesota, so from a raise standpoint it would be very challenging for me to do that immediately," Maturi told the St. Paul Pioneer-Press. "I think Tubby understands that because, frankly, if it were about money, then he will be offered more money by other institutions. That's a fact. Somebody will offer him $3 million. We can't pay him $3 million."

Smith also reportedly was upset that a $100,000 bonus he earned last season was paid about two months late. His Minnesota salary is $1.75 million.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2010/03/tubby-smith-expected-to-get-job-offers/1

[rtftiger 40]

Will we offer $3 million? If we were able to get him for $2 million, it would be quite a deal. That's only $200k more than UA is paying Grant.

[eibua12 81]

Ummmm Oregon just built a $200 million dollar area: Really?

Arean Link

[TigerTaz 109]

Seeing as how the program is bigger (and more important) than one person, I'll support auburn basketball regardless of who is named head coach. BUT, I really don't want tubby. I'd rather get someone younger that won't be considering retirement in 3-4 years and a better coach. The NC he won at kentucky doesn't carry much weight with me since he did it with Pitino's players. There are WAY better coaches and younger coaches out there that we could get that would be better for auburn. I hope this isn't true.

Let's also not forget that when Jacobs commented on the lebo firing that we would hear tons of rumors out there and that they wouldn't be true. He also said that we would respect the coaches and players of the programs involved in the NCAA tournament. Seeing as how Minnesota is playing in the tournament as we speak, I highly doubt auburn has even talked to him, much less close to naming him as head coach. If we are then jacobs lied about what procedure the administration would follow. I hope jacobs wouldn't do that, and I hope tubby isn't even on the radar.

He will NOT retire in 3-4 years! He is only 4 months older than Sahbear for gosh sakes. He could coach at Auburn for 10 or more years for gosh sakes!

[dyehardaufan 0]

I heard on The Roundtable today that the new arena was going to come in pretty significant under budget. I could not find a link(maybe one of our insiders knows the specifics) but if this is true this could lead Jacobs to throw more money at a coach than originally planned.

[sandyclawedtiger 206]

$1.9 going once....

[TitanTiger 20,482]

The arena was originally budgeted for $92 million but is going to come in somewhere around $85 million.

Also, Smith is 58 yrs old...one year younger than Roy Williams at UNC. Neither will be retiring in 3-4 years.

[Mikey 16,601]

Ok, friends and neighbors, tell me why Tubby Smith will leave Minnesota and come to Auburn. Please don't mention the money. When somebody is already making close to $2 million a year, a couple hundred k doesn't make much difference. Check out Anderson turning down UGA's offer of 2.1 mill to stay at Mizzou, where he gets a paltry 1.6.

Is there some compelling factor or set of factors that makes Auburn a more desirable situation than Minnesota? Sure, we love Auburn but that doesn't mean Tubby Smith does.

So why is Tubby going to come here?

[au2004ece 30]

Ok, friends and neighbors, tell me why Tubby Smith will leave Minnesota and come to Auburn. Please don't mention the money. When somebody is already making close to $2 million a year, a couple hundred k doesn't make much difference. Check out Anderson turning down UGA's offer of 2.1 mill to stay at Mizzou, where he gets a paltry 1.6.

Is there some compelling factor or set of factors that makes Auburn a more desirable situation than Minnesota? Sure, we love Auburn but that doesn't mean Tubby Smith does.

So why is Tubby going to come here?

Weather would be a good reason. I don't know how people live in that crap up there. It's been too cold here for the past 4 months and it is much much colder there.

[insert_car 0]

Ok, friends and neighbors, tell me why Tubby Smith will leave Minnesota and come to Auburn. Please don't mention the money. When somebody is already making close to $2 million a year, a couple hundred k doesn't make much difference. Check out Anderson turning down UGA's offer of 2.1 mill to stay at Mizzou, where he gets a paltry 1.6.

Is there some compelling factor or set of factors that makes Auburn a more desirable situation than Minnesota? Sure, we love Auburn but that doesn't mean Tubby Smith does.

So why is Tubby going to come here?

in now way am i saying he would come because he does have a good thing going at sota. but here are a few reasons that could or could not affect his choice.

1. weather - you can't tell me that people that move TO a place like that loves the weather lol. its a mess.

2. he does love the sec. he likes the style and likes coach in this conference. he has been quoted as saying this before.

3. if he wants the challenge. now is the time to come to auburn and be a hero to turn the program around with a new direction.

4. to coach in the new arena and use it as a recruiting tool.

5. i know you said don't mention money but if we offer him more that will play a small factor.

just some things to think about