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TU coaches who left: Were the pastures greener?
Published: 1/11/2011 5:36 PM
Last Modified: 1/11/2011 5:38 PM

Todd Graham joined the list of football and basketball coaches who left the University of Tulsa for greener pastures.

But were the pastures really greener? Let’s examine a few of them one-by-one.

Nolan Richardson to Arkansas: Richardson went to three Final Fours and won a national championship while with the Razorbacks. Absolutely greener.

Tubby Smith to Georgia: Smith did well enough at Georgia to land the Kentucky job and won a national championship with the Wildcats. Greener.

Steve Robinson to Florida State: Robinson took TU to two NCAA Tournaments, but was 64-86 in five seasons with the Seminoles. In hindsight, Robinson would have been better served to hold out for a job at a basketball school.

Bill Self to Illinois: See the Tubby example. Self was successful enough at Illinois to put himself in position to get one of the plum jobs (Kansas) in college basketball. Now he’s got a national championship ring.

Buzz Peterson to Tennessee: Tulsa won the NIT in Peterson’s lone season. Peterson was fired after four seasons with the Vols. Blame a 61-59 record and zero NCAA Tournament appearances. It wasn’t a greener pasture for Peterson, but -- go figure -- it was for his successor, Bruce Pearl.

Steve Kragthorpe to Louisville: Kragthorpe was a miracle worker at TU, taking the football program from the depths to three bowls (and a conference championship) in a four-season span. You can’t fault him for taking the Louisville job because the program was achieving at a high level and the athletic director was a buddy, but, because of below-the-surface issues that were inherited, the pasture wasn’t as green as it appeared.

Graham to Pittsburgh: Is Pitt a greener pasture? Wait and see. But Graham has never been accused of a lack of ambition and, if he wants to pursue a national championship, that’s a more realistic goal at Pitt (which is in a guaranteed BCS access conference) than it is at 11th and Harvard.

But the Pitt job also could be like a Primanti Brothers sandwich (meat, slaw, fries between buns at a famous Pittsburgh eatery) in that you don’t want to bite off more than you can chew. Former Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt went 42-31 in six seasons. He was 26-12 from 2008-10 for the school’s best three-season record since 1981-83. And it still wasn’t good enough. Graham wasn't scared by that or he would still be in an office overlooking Chapman Stadium.



Reader Comments 5 Total
Inquisitive (2 years ago)
Let's don't forget John Cooper and Don Morton. Cooper eventually landed at Ohio State with mild success. Morton bombed at Wisconsin.
zaphod (2 years ago)
I'd say Cooper left to greener pastures. He won a Rose Bowl at Arizona State and then earned Rose and Sugar Bowl victories at Ohio State. He was recently inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Tulsabills (2 years ago)
Richardson may have had a greener pasture at Arkansas, but has said on more than one occasion that he wished he never left Tulsa. Tubby Smith has said that Tulsa was the best place he ever lived. After the ending at Kentucky, I would have like to see if he felt similar to Nolan.

Graham better be successful at Pitt. He increased his risk substantially more than his pay increase.
zzx375 (2 years ago)
Jimmie,

The short answer is "yes". They all left for greener pastures, whether that was a fatter pay envelope or what was perceived to be a better conference.

And now a situation I personally do not understand: One year ago Chad Morris was a high school coach. Now he's viewed as some kind of offensive genius, but I have yet to see the list of specifics for that glowing assessment.

Can he recruit? Half of the job is the ability to identify and gain written commitments from 17 or 18 year olds (and their mothers!). Can he close with one of these kids on the bubble?

We don't know.
senor notas (2 years ago)
Graham is gone in three.
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Tulsa World sports writer Jimmie Tramel is a former class president at Locust Grove High School. He graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern State University with a journalism degree and, while attending college, was sports editor of the Pryor Daily Times. He joined the Tulsa World on Oct. 17, 1989, the same day an earthquake struck the World Series. He is the OSU basketball beat writer and a columnist and feature writer during football season. In 2007, he wrote a book about Oklahoma State football with former Cowboy coach Pat Jones.

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