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Archive for the category “Mount Rushmore”

02 Apr 2015
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Updated with Poll: The College Basketball Active Coaching Mount Rushmore

Update: As you may recall, we are trying to decide the active coaching Mount Rushmore (see below or click here).  So far, we have selected Coach K, Tom Izzo, and Rick Pitino.  We need help deciding the fourth member of the group.  We have had good arguments for Jim Boeheim, John Calipari, Billy Donovan, and Roy Williams.  We will decide via the following poll.  As they say in Chicago, vote early and often… ha ha ha.  Thanks in advance.

Thanks again!

Original article:

In the past, the Confidential had some fun with Mount Rushmores for each ACC school.  We picked three spots and let fans pick the 4th spot.  Today, the focus is on college basketball as a whole–specifically, the active coaches.  It should be pretty easy to guess a few of the names, but rounding out the 4th (and eliminating the others in the process) may be difficult.  In any event, here is the list… you can vote on who gets #4.

The first spot… Coach K.

There is no need to reinvent the wheel here.  This is how we described him over a year ago:

If it needs to be explained, you haven’t been following sports since Jimmy Carter was running the country.  You want longevity?  30+ years at Duke.  You want success?  The most wins of any mens’ basketball coach ever.  You want national titles?  How about four of them for Duke in his tenure.  Throw in some gold medals and the absence of serious controversy, and you’ve got yourself one of the easiest Mount Rushmore spots ever.

This applies to active basketball coaching as well.  More recently, he is now over 1,000 wins and is back in the running for another national title.

The second spot… Tom Izzo. 

Sure, this is a bit knee-jerk.  But Izzo just took a 7-seed to the Final Four.  “Only” one national championship, but how about seven Final Fours in 20 years of coaching.  And 9 Elite Eights and 13 Sweet Sixteens.  Other than Coach K, who else has that kind of resume?

Well, maybe the next guy.  The third spot… Rick Pitino.

Pitino has two championships, one with Kentucky and one with Louisville.  Pitino also has seven Final Fours, including one with Providence.  Like Izzo, there is a sense (well-founded) that Louisville will be a better team in March than December.

The fourth spot?  The Confidential will leave this to you.  Here are some names to consider voting for the 4th spot:

  • Jim Boeheim
  • Roy Williams
  • John Calipari
  • Billy Donovan
  • Bill Self
  • Thad Matta
  • Bob Huggins
  • Anyone else?

Anyway, let us know who deserves the 4th spot and why…

 

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion, Poll and tagged , , , , , , ,
30 Mar 2015
11 Comments

The College Basketball Active Coaching Mount Rushmore

In the past, the Confidential had some fun with Mount Rushmores for each ACC school.  We picked three spots and let fans pick the 4th spot.  Today, the focus is on college basketball as a whole–specifically, the active coaches.  It should be pretty easy to guess a few of the names, but rounding out the 4th (and eliminating the others in the process) may be difficult.  In any event, here is the list… you can vote on who gets #4.

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , ,
19 Feb 2014
6 Comments

ACC School Mount Rushmores: Syracuse’s Most Hated!

Once upon a time, we had some fun with Syracuse’s Mount Rushmore (as we did with all the school Mount Rushmores).  The final Syracuse Mount Rushmore: Jim Boeheim, Jim Brown, Ben Schwartzwalder, and Ernie Davis.  You can go there to read the reasons why those four were chosen.  But if Syracuse was to create a “most-hated” Mount Rushmore, who would be on it?

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Mount Rushmore, Opinion, Poll and tagged , , , , , , ,
10 Nov 2013
1 Comment

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Duke FINAL

Duke’s basketball history is not unlike Notre Dame’s football history–so many names.  Only the names are clustered into the past 30 or so years, reflecting the glory days of Duke hoops.  So picking the 4th is a challenge.

With so many names to choose from, it is hard to choose one.  Johnny Dawkins put up incredible points, all before the 3-point shot.  Shane Battier was the ultimate glue guy and winner.  Grant Hill was a dominant small forward.  JJ Reddick was a scorer deluxe, who turned into a great all-around player.

But the Confidential is going to go with Bobby Hurley.  Here is why:

  • Like Hill, won two National Championships
  • Still the all-time NCAA leader in assists, with 1,076
  • Was M.O.P. of the 1992 Final Four.
  • Was First-Team All-American in 1993.
  • Duke retired his jersey in 1993.

Hurley now continues the Duke tradition as a head coach for Buffalo.  He is one of many Coach K products to elevate to that level, joining Dawkins, Tommy Amaker, Mike Brey, and others.

So, with all due respect to the other great players at Duke, the final Duke Mount Rushmore is: Coach K, Christian Laettner, Art Heyman, and Bobby Hurley.

 

Other Mount Rushmores:

 

 

  1. Maryland Preliminary   Maryland Final
  2. Boston College    Boston College Final
  3. Wake Forest   Wake Forest Final
  4. Miami   Miami Final
  5. Virginia Tech   Virginia Tech Final
  6. Syracuse   Syracuse Final
  7. Virginia   Virginia Final
  8. Pittsburgh  Pittsburgh Final
  9. North Carolina State  North Carolina State Final
  10. Clemson   Clemson Final
  11. Georgia Tech  Georgia Tech Final
  12. Louisville  Lousiville Final
  13. Notre Dame  Notre Dame Final
  14. Duke
  15. North Carolina
  16. Florida State

 

For more on the Duke decisions, see the original discussion…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,
03 Oct 2013

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Notre Dame FINAL

This one was so very hard.  Notre Dame has enough names to fill out several Mount Rushmores.  One for coaches, one for quarterbacks, one for running backs, one for other football players, one for basketball, etc.  And when comparing players to coaches, the players had such fleeting careers.  Guys like Gipper, Montana, and Brown only played for four years maximum.  The coaches get to stay for a lot longer, leaving a deeper mark on programs.  And that is definitely true with Notre Dame.

We left it up to the fans to help and help they did–here and elsewhere.  And for Notre Dame, we are going to add coaches Ara Parseghian and Lou Holtz.  Want to know what a mark Parseghian left on the sporting world?  His first name is often an answer to a crossword puzzle clue.  How many mothers and grandmothers would not know what goalposts are, but know his name.  But in all seriousness… his record was outstanding… 95-17-4.  Two national titles, seven years apart.  In the 10 years before Parseghian, Notre Dame was 51-48.  In the year before he took over, Notre Dame was 2-7.  Parseghian restored Notre Dame football at a time of need.

Lou Holtz?  For all the advantages Notre Dame has, Lou Holtz took over a program that was 30-26-1 in the five preceding years.  He went 100-35-2, including a national championship.  Only Rockne has won more games for the Fighting Irish.  By comparison, in the 5 years before Lou and the 13 years after him, Notre Dame’s record has been 121-94, only slightly above .500.  Holtz’s accomplishments stand apart from his contemporaries.

So, with all due respect to the other great players and coaches, the final Notre Dame Mount Rushmore is: Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy, Ara Parseghian, and Lou Holtz.

Other Mount Rushmores:

  1. Maryland Preliminary   Maryland Final
  2. Boston College    Boston College Final
  3. Wake Forest   Wake Forest Final
  4. Miami   Miami Final
  5. Virginia Tech   Virginia Tech Final
  6. Syracuse   Syracuse Final
  7. Virginia   Virginia Final
  8. Pittsburgh  Pittsburgh Final
  9. North Carolina State  North Carolina State Final
  10. Clemson   Clemson Final
  11. Georgia Tech  Georgia Tech Final
  12. Louisville  Lousiville Final
  13. Notre Dame
  14. Duke
  15. North Carolina
  16. Florida State

For more on the Notre Dame decisions, see the original discussion…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,
01 Oct 2013
3 Comments

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Louisville FINAL

The Louisville Mount Rushmore was a tough one.  The general consensus was that–while Johnny Unitas was a superstar–his star was so NFL-related as to question his inclusion in a Louisville Mount Rushmore.  The Confidential is not too bold as to ignore criticism.  Where, as here, there is a legitimate beef, the Confidential listens.  We removed Unitas from the list.

With two holes to fill, the decision becomes a bit easier.  Darrell Griffith is beloved to Louisville hoops fans.  Unlike Unitas, he did most of his real damage in college–benefiting the program directly.  He left school as the all-time leading scorer.  His jersey has been retired.  He won a national championship.  He even earned the moniker Dr. Dunkenstein–an exciting player coming before Phi Slamma Jamma and Michael Jordan.  He would have been #4, but now he is #3.

The battle for #4 becomes tougher.  On the one hand, Rick Pitino just won a national championship.  On the other hand, Rick Pitino is at Louisville because of athletic director Tom Jurich.  Although the Confidential’s initial thought was to defer Jurich for a later edition, the fan outcry was significant.  Jurich hired Pitino.  He hired Charlie Strong. Both of those programs are top 10 and headed to our beloved ACC.  He has been in charge of Louisville’s rapid climb in revenue–despite the paltry sums generated by the TV revenue from Big East (and lesser conference) membership.  Louisville sports is as powerful as it has ever been–and most of that is due to the efforts of Tom Jurich.  Someday he will have a field, arena, or stadium named after him.  For now, he will have to settle for a spot on the Confidential’s Louisville Mount Rushmore.

The Final Louisville Mount Rushmore: Denny Crum, Howard Schnellenberger, Darrell Griffith, and Tom Jurich.

Other Mount Rushmores:

  1. Maryland Preliminary   Maryland Final
  2. Boston College    Boston College Final
  3. Wake Forest   Wake Forest Final
  4. Miami   Miami Final
  5. Virginia Tech   Virginia Tech Final
  6. Syracuse   Syracuse Final
  7. Virginia   Virginia Final
  8. Pittsburgh  Pittsburgh Final
  9. North Carolina State  North Carolina State Final
  10. Clemson   Clemson Final
  11. Georgia Tech  Georgia Tech Final
  12. Louisville
  13. Notre Dame
  14. Duke
  15. North Carolina
  16. Florida State

For more on the Louisville decisions, see the original discussion…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , ,
30 Sep 2013
3 Comments

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Georgia Tech FINAL

We left it up to the fans to decide the final two spots.  And we are not ready to announce the final Georgia Tech Mount Rushmore.

There was a clamoring of support for John Heisman, of Heisman Trophy fame.  Fair enough.  The trophy alone is a reason to give him some consideration.  Although he spread out his work over several schools, he did win 100 games for Georgia Tech–in an era of 9 game seasons.  And he spent most of his time with the Yellow Jackets.  That’s good enough for the Confidential to land the third spot.

The fourth spot is tougher.  But Bobby Cremins really put Georgia Tech on the hoops map–especially during the glory days of the 1980s.  Moreover, he took over a struggling program–and yet made it nationally relevant.   Nine straight Big Dance appearances during one particular span.

So that gives us a Georgia Tech Mount Rushmore of: Dodd, Price, Heisman, and Cremins.

Other Mount Rushmores:

 

 

  1. Maryland Preliminary   Maryland Final
  2. Boston College    Boston College Final
  3. Wake Forest   Wake Forest Final
  4. Miami   Miami Final
  5. Virginia Tech   Virginia Tech Final
  6. Syracuse   Syracuse Final
  7. Virginia   Virginia Final
  8. Pittsburgh  Pittsburgh Final
  9. North Carolina State  North Carolina State Final
  10. Clemson   Clemson Final
  11. Georgia Tech
  12. Louisville
  13. Notre Dame
  14. Duke
  15. North Carolina
  16. Florida State

For more on the Georgia Tech decisions, see the original discussion…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , ,
04 Sep 2013
2 Comments

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Florida State

Continuing with our Mount Rushmores… the last school left… Florida State.  Look, we all watched the game Monday.  Obviously, we are going to have Jameis Winston on the Florida State Mount Rushmore.  See who joins him…

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
02 Sep 2013
2 Comments

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: North Carolina

Continuing with our Mount Rushmores… only two schools left.  Today, we will go with North Carolina.

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Posted by acaffrey in ACC only, Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , ,
29 Aug 2013
3 Comments

The ACC School Mount Rushmores: Virginia Tech FINAL

This was a tough one to finalize.  On the one hand, Michael Vick was an outstanding player–and an outstanding athlete.  On the other hand, has any player brought more negative attention to himself, criminally, short of murdering someone?  On yet one other hand, however, Michael Vick did his time, as they say.  And nobody has ever suffered a more severe punishment for animal abuse issues.  And then you have to factor in an absence of a true candidate for the fourth spot.  There are some decent athletes, but nobody with much real oomph.  So… despite his issues, the Confidential has to pick Michael Vick for the fourth spot.

The Final Virginia Tech Mount Rushmore:  Frank Beamer, Bruce Smith, Dell Curry, and Michael Vick.

The original article…

Read more…

Posted by acaffrey in Mount Rushmore, Opinion and tagged , , , , , , ,

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