[stopandpop]

We aren’t firing Kate but
Lisa Fortier Gonzaga.  Went to HS in Auburn
Campbell but would he go from portal is easy to very hard
Lindy would be first choice
Rueck

You know, I totally forgot Fortier and would include her in the mix, should Paye not return.  I have a sense that Campbell has a special knack for recruiting players and would do so even with the restrictions.  Lindy would certainly be a strong candidate, given her Stanford connection and that she has turned UNLV into a powerhouse and probably get Tara's blessing, but I wonder if keeping the program 'in the Stanford family' is the best thing to do if the goal is to return to elite status.  

I don't think Scott Rueck would want to leave Corvallis.  He has it great there, but he's stuck in a current WCC conference that's basically a mid-major and (next year), OSU would be part of the new (watered-down), PAC-12.  Perhaps Rueck might want to once again lead a power-4 conference team.  He is one of the greatest team rebuilders in the country.  He and his staff would turn Eschmeyer into an all-conference post.  Stanford would look totally different.

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We aren’t firing Kate but
Lisa Fortier Gonzaga.  Went to HS in Auburn
Campbell but would he go from portal is easy to very hard
Lindy would be first choice
Rueck

if there ever were a turnaround coach, it would be rueck. iirc he came into the program after 2/3 of the players, including most of the starters, had transferred out. according to google ai, he had 5 scholarship players left and filled out the team the first year with 4 walk-ons, a volleyball player and a soccer player. but he had coached division 3 george fox to an undefeated national title. by 2024 he was espn national coach of the year runner-up.

if not rueck himself, this is the kind of coach many folks seem to be talking about - someone who has been a very successful head coach at a mid-major. maybe rueck's age of 41 when he started at osu rather than his current age of 56.

See my reply to Bob K. re. Rueck.  Agree with all  your points.

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I would add Carla Berube (Princeton) to the list.  She took over a successful program when Courtney Banghart left for UNC and kept it successful 141-27 (.839).  She played at UConn and has been coaching for 17 years at Tufts and is in her 7th year at Princeton.  And she is familiar with working at a high academic institution without the benefit of the transfer portal.

You make a good argument about Berube.  An outsider, but one who coaches at another elite academic institution.

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I love the way Natalie Nakase, HC of the Valkries, has her team play and think she coaches the way Stopandpop quoted Coach Wooden. 

Lindy has turned around and led UNLV to success. I don’t know the other coaches but I have always liked Rueck and the way OSU players carried themselves and played.

You are spot-on about Nakase and how the Valkries play, especially on defense.  She's becoming a new 'rock star' among WNBA coaches.  The question is, would she give up all she currently has to coach in college in a challenging environment?

[stopandpop]

We aren’t firing Kate but
Lisa Fortier Gonzaga.  Went to HS in Auburn
Campbell but would he go from portal is easy to very hard
Lindy would be first choice
Rueck

You know, I totally forgot Fortier and would include her in the mix, should Paye not return.  I have a sense that Campbell has a special knack for recruiting players and would do so even with the restrictions.  Lindy would certainly be a strong candidate, given her Stanford connection and that she has turned UNLV into a powerhouse and probably get Tara's blessing, but I wonder if keeping the program 'in the Stanford family' is the best thing to do if the goal is to return to elite status.  

I don't think Scott Rueck would want to leave Corvallis.  He has it great there, but he's stuck in a current WCC conference that's basically a mid-major and (next year), OSU would be part of the new (watered-down), PAC-12.  Perhaps Rueck might want to once again lead a power-4 conference team.  He is one of the greatest team rebuilders in the country.  He and his staff would turn Eschmeyer into an all-conference post.  Stanford would look totally different.

---

We aren’t firing Kate but
Lisa Fortier Gonzaga.  Went to HS in Auburn
Campbell but would he go from portal is easy to very hard
Lindy would be first choice
Rueck

if there ever were a turnaround coach, it would be rueck. iirc he came into the program after 2/3 of the players, including most of the starters, had transferred out. according to google ai, he had 5 scholarship players left and filled out the team the first year with 4 walk-ons, a volleyball player and a soccer player. but he had coached division 3 george fox to an undefeated national title. by 2024 he was espn national coach of the year runner-up.

if not rueck himself, this is the kind of coach many folks seem to be talking about - someone who has been a very successful head coach at a mid-major. maybe rueck's age of 41 when he started at osu rather than his current age of 56.

See my reply to Bob K. re. Rueck.  Agree with all  your points.

---

I would add Carla Berube (Princeton) to the list.  She took over a successful program when Courtney Banghart left for UNC and kept it successful 141-27 (.839).  She played at UConn and has been coaching for 17 years at Tufts and is in her 7th year at Princeton.  And she is familiar with working at a high academic institution without the benefit of the transfer portal.

You make a good argument about Berube.  An outsider, but one who coaches at another elite academic institution.

---

I love the way Natalie Nakase, HC of the Valkries, has her team play and think she coaches the way Stopandpop quoted Coach Wooden. 

Lindy has turned around and led UNLV to success. I don’t know the other coaches but I have always liked Rueck and the way OSU players carried themselves and played.

You are spot-on about Nakase and how the Valkries play, especially on defense.  She's becoming a new 'rock star' among WNBA coaches.  The question is, would she give up all she currently has to coach in college in a challenging environment?