News Conference: Did you see....

[AmesPanther]

Gonzo one point you are failing to notice is that coach isn't guaranteed to make anything the rest of his life. Yeah $300k is more than comfortable, but what happens if players get hurt or recruits don't pan out and his teams started losing and UNI ended up having to fire him. He would be in trouble. And no matter how loyal UNI would be to him at some point with enough lossing (which is possible) they'd have to can him. We have already seen times this year where fans turned on him and this was a Big Dance team. You can say you wouldn't leave your job for 2-3 times the salary, but at the same time you don't have "fans" judging your performance and possibly forcing changes to your career, it's not the same. Going to ISU he can make the kind of money that means he can survive the worst kind of storm.

I don't think it comes down to just money anyway. The Big 12 might not be better conference this year, but like it or not it gets more attention. Recruiting is different. These kids might want a chance to play Kansas, OU, OSU and Texas on a regular basis. It doesn't matter the WSU and BU are better than Big 12 teams this year; KU has a real history with bb and competitive kids want to see how they stack up.

Mac now has more weight with scheduling teams. Like it or not a Big 12 teams with Hilton attendance levels means he gets more scheduling muscle.

Some people like to leave thier comfort zone and see how they stack up in other venues. He is now going to be coaching against guys with more coaching experience and gets to see how he can do.

A lot of people keep saying ISU is in a sad state and sanctions are coming. Thus far all indications are no sanctions and it looks like the team is staying in tact. Even Blalock's recent interviews have made it clear if he isn't ready for the NBA he will be back and that's very possible. Even Carr is saying now he might be back. To count out what Mac could do with these kids is crazy, the big men under Mac could be a force and if this team only loses Stinson, but adds another good big, the leading scorer from Nevada high school and the leading scorer in high school for the entire country they will be a good team.

It doesn't mean his is right for leaving or these are great reasons. I'm just throwing some things out there.

I don't like the Hawks, but I stuck up for Mac when the talk was of him going there. I'd support him no matter where he went. At the end of the day he is a good guy and I don't know how anyone can not like him.

[wonkadog]

jeg doesn't like Iowa (if I remember correctly) He's just a passionate UNI guy...can you fault him for that? I can't. We need more like him. GO PANTHERS!!!

If that's the case, I totally agree that you need more fans as passionate as him. Still doesn't back up his reasoning about not being as mad if GM went to Iowa though...

[Hime_Peterson]

Spot-on post Ames. The fact that some people are expressing animosity towards Coach McDermott is silly and inappropriate. This is a good career move for him.

[SteinPizza]

Spot-on post Ames. The fact that some people are expressing animosity towards Coach McDermott is silly and inappropriate. This is a good career move for him.

Good God...I'm with EJacobson, in that I'm shocked I'm agreeing with Hime and Wonka. This is a good move for Mac, and to deny it is to deny the facts.

Another reason I didn't state above is that I'm a peer of Mac's from a UNI standpoint. I think Cincy and some others would agree that it's good to see a former classmate do well for himself. I can't claim to have known Mac well, but it's good to see nonetheless. That said, it's ISU, and I hope we beat his ass every year.

[panther2317]

I am with ejac, Heim and Wonka...this is a good career move for Mac. In 6 years at ISU, ($650,000 x 6 = $3,900,000). What if he doesn't coach beyond that point? Coaches have to take the money when it's presented to them...or they may never see it again.

When I say "set his kids" I don't mean give them money all of the time. But he can invest for them and help them get a good start. I believe in a person making his own way and not giving a life to your kids too...but that's probably because I'm poor. If I had money...I would hope that I would become generous with it and not horde it all to myself. That reminds me...I need to buy a Power Ball ticket

[BCPanther]

I think its a good move for UNI too. Mac showed us 3 times how far he could take us. While I don't think losing to GT was inexcusable, the last 2 left me shaking my head. There comes a point in a game where you just have to let players play and not try to call 12 set plays to score at crunch time. Part of the reason I think Benny struggled at the end of games is because he was too worried about running the play right, rather than taking a shot in rhythm and knocking it down.

Mac always seemed to get tight in big games and you could tell that by the way that his teams played. Was Mac the most successful coach in UNI history?? Yes; but that doesn't mean he is the be all and end all for all UNI coaches in the future. I would think that Coach Jake has seen that in the past and can use Mac's mistakes to make himself a better coach. The formula is there to make another big run next year. Stout and Coleman should be absolute beasts next year (assuming Jake actually lets Coleman play in crunch time, but thats another complaint from an old regime) McKowen has done nothing but win, and Brown has the makings of a dynamic scorer. Next year is every bit as promising as the past few, but this time we have the coach to get us to the 2nd weekend!!


GO CATS!!

[iracefords]

Something to think about.............

24 hours later we're still in a state of shock, so to speak. Coach Jacobsen sounded upbeat and is ready to move the program forward! He was out working last night trying to hang on to the 4 big recruits and that should say something about his character! GO PANTHERS!

However.............consider this.

1.Your working at your alma-mater
2.The fans for the most part love you
3.Your wife is sick
4.You have 3 kids in school
5.A NEW ARENA
6.A potential job offer comes from a school who may or may not be in trouble.
7.Your team just lost a game in the NCAA tournament
8.You have tremendous talent returning AND coming in next year

And 24 hours later it's easy to accept a new job?
Sounds like maybe there's something we don't know!!

[Newsbreaker]

I don't think it was that simple. I'm just guessing here, but I think Mac decided at some point in the past year or so that he'd done 'enough' at UNI, and it was time to take a shot at a 'higher' level.

Personally, I don't think the job was done here, but that's not my call. I would also venture a guess that Mac made it know to both Pollard and Bowlsby that if/when they had a job open, whenever that may have been, he was interested. ISU happened first, and more quickly then most thought.

He was 'quoted' through Jordan in the Dubuque TH today saying that the only two jobs he'd leave UNI for were Iowa and ISU. That doesn't explain the 'weeks' of converstation with KSU, but it paints a clearer picture of this situation.