MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Gregory Sager]

OS, are you sure the conversation here surrounding Scott Trost leaving (the "Why would he leave for Lewis?" sentiment) and then all of the talk about the coaching search that you are referring to has been from Illinois Wesleyan backers?  Can you point to some posts in particular that you are referring to?

If I am missing something I apologize, but since the day it was announced Scott Trost was leaving for Lewis, I don't think I have read more than a couple posts from IWU people about Trost leaving or the search.   I haven't followed the board everyday, so again, if I have missed posts that is my fault.  But on the surface, it seems to me you've taken a lot of comments from people not affiliated with IWU and attributed them to "Titan Nation."  Am I off?

The last 30 days I have been somewhat amused by the interest level the rest of the CCIW has in IWU's coaching situation, and all of the assumptions about the search process, the candidates, etc.  For the most part, it's been fun to read all of the speculation and commentary.  I'd just ask that everyone hold the appropriate people or groups accountable for their commentary.

Let's keep this in perspective. First of all, it's May. There aren't any D3 basketball games being played right now. The board is in off-season mode, which means that the vacuum would otherwise be filled by conversation about major league baseball, summer vacations, religion, food, American Indians, the respective number of chins of Joe Hakes and Dennis Prikkel, etc. The discussion about the Illinois Wesleyan coaching vacancy is filling that vacuum instead. It's obviously a lot more germane to the room's purpose than are those other off-season topics, but don't mistake the volume of posts for a full-throttle obsession with the Illinois Wesleyan coaching situation and the Illinois Wesleyan men's basketball program in general by those of us who are not of the green persuasion.

As I've said before, my interest lies in North Park and in the NPU basketball program. Illinois Wesleyan, as a member of the conference to which North Park belongs, plays a subsidiary role within that interest. I'm sure that Cardinalpride and Hiker Jim would say the same things with respect to their own alma maters. I highly doubt that Illinois Wesleyan looms large in each of our consciousnesses, whether it be the coaching situation of the Titans or anything else regarding that school. Heck, NPU's basketball situation has needs that're so pressing that I barely even have room in my thoughts to summon up some random ill will towards Wheaton nowadays. 

Also with regard to current CCIW Chat conversation, recruiting news has been somewhat light to date. The CCIW program that has heretofore announced the most new recruits (Millikin) is also the one program whose representation on CCIW Chat is close to nil. Now that more high school seniors are starting to make their declarations, the recruiting discussion will undoubtedly begin to pick up some of the slack as well.

Lastly, while there has been across-the-board participation (myself included) in the discussions of Trost leaving and then of the search for his successor, the idea that Illinois Wesleyan fans have stayed aloof from the fray is just plain wrong. At least three Titans fans (Chuck, Lanny, and maddog) have been active participants from the get-go, and for a lot more than just "a couple posts". Chuck in particular has played a prominent role in both discussions -- which to my mind is nothing more than an indication that he is both an active CCIW Chat regular and a dedicated Titans fan. But, as I said in my response to Titanfan, the main catalyst of both the Trost-leaving and the Trost's-successor discussions -- Augiedad -- is someone who, if not in fact a card-carrying member of the Greenie Lodge, has posted almost exclusively about the Titans since he first appeared on CCIW Chat last year. Not that there's anything wrong with that; he's welcome to post about anything and everything he wants, just like everyone else. But let's not put him in the same camp as people like myself, Hiker Jim, Cardinalpride, Mark Erickson, Dansand, etc., who support other CCIW programs besides Wesleyan's and are merely adding here and there to the discussion about the Titans' coaching situation. The posting evidence shows that Augiefan's interest is in the Titans first and foremost, and it has been that way from the very beginning.

[wheatonc]

Congrats to Paul Ferguson for landing the head coaching job at Wheaton Academy.  A huge loss for the Thunder but a big plus for the Academy!  A nice article appears on the back page of today's sport's section in the Daily Herald.

[commonsense]

Augiedad - please let us know who is accepting the IWU job. We know you know by now. Last you communicated, which has been a few days ago you hinted at Rose. Is it a done deal?

BTW, non-Titan Fan posters......the IWU FANS are not arrogant regarding this position. You'll have to look elsewhere to hang the arrogant label.

[cardinalpride]

Congrats to Paul Ferguson for landing the head coaching job at Wheaton Academy.  A huge loss for the Thunder but a big plus for the Academy!  A nice article appears on the back page of today's sport's section in the Daily Herald.

Congrats to coach Ferguson as well.  I wonder if he will send any players to NCC? 

[diehardfan]

Congrats to Paul Ferguson for landing the head coaching job at Wheaton Academy. A huge loss for the Thunder but a big plus for the Academy! A nice article appears on the back page of today's sport's section in the Daily Herald.

Aww, that's about as sweet as it can get. Fans and former players who love their assistant coach so much they want the best for them, at the same time as desperately wanting him to stay. 

I would definitely feel the same way about Ferguson leaving, but I hope I am never put in that situation! 

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!! 

Coach Ferguson was the first coach of any school who asked me if I was diehardfan, I still remember the whole thing. It was after an Augie or IWU game (okay, so I don't totally remember the whole thing, lol), and I was standing outside of the bus chatting with the bus driver (who is, incidentally, about the neatest guy ever, everyone should meet him!) while the guys loaded up.

Since then, Coach Ferguston has repeatedly impressed me with what a genuinely nice, thoughtful guy he is. As much as I love Coach Harris to death, and really appreciate his methods of coaching, I know there have been guys who thought about leaving the Wheaton program, but stayed because of Ferguson. I've never heard anyone, whether it was a player, player parents, or a fan that had anything but extremely positive things about him, and my own interactions with him have proved this to be the case as well. As someone who has seen from the inside, the positive impact that Wheaton coaches have on the growth of an individual, and then time they take for them, the world owes a lot to guys like him for helping shape these young guys into men of God.

I'm not as cool as Dave, and have never gotten to see practice, but from his in-game coaching, and ever since that time he was given the head coaching reigns when Harris crushed his fingers in the garage door, I've always thought Ferguson was excellent in the coaching realm. I have always hoped, that some day, when Coach Harris retired after winning those 27 Consecutive National Championships,  that Ferguson would be around to take the helm. I knew that it extremely unrealistic for a young talented coach to wait around in the wings,  but as someone who loves this program, and wants the best for it, I couldn't help but want Ferguson to stay.  Ferguson has been with the program for seven years! And I know that he has been a huge part of our successes.

Nevertheless, this is certainly an honor for him that is more than well deserved! I wish him, and Michelle, nothing but the best, and certainly hope he stops by to catch some games when his team isn't playing!

And on the off chance that you happen to read this, Thank you, Ferg... thank you A LOT!

Hm... and now I'm really interested to see what happen at IWU. Maybe Rose will get it and set some great prescedence for the ability of high school coaches to move to a high profile coaching job!  8)

On another note, based on the article, http://www.dailyherald.com/search/searchstory.asp?id=188360, did the old Wheaton Academy coach go to the college where Jon Nielson's dad is the President? It's a small world after all...

[edit]

Just answered my own question... http://www.covenant.edu/welcome/leadership.php

It's a world of laughter, a world of tears, it's a world of something something something...
[end edit]

I've never been under the impression that Owen was going to be around forever.... he obviously loves the team, but I'm not even sure he's gets paid anything... what exactly is the Assistant Coaching situation at Wheaton for next season?     

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Wow, there was a lot to that post.  It kinda makes me imagine that April was actually saying all of it out loud really fast without taking a breath.  Anyway.  Moving on.

[Jim Matson]

Paul may very well send a few players to North Central!  And to Wesleyan or Augie for that matter.  If he begins to develop a strong program at the Academy, it will be a very effective little spot from which to rectuit for the CCIW and the MWC.

[proudofLU]

Based on my view of the fan base that came to Appleton for IWU's win over LU, I would suspect that any shortfall in economics fo the IWU program could be made up with a sponsorship deal with Geritol or Metamucil.  The IWU fan base is likely a meaningful percentage of the customer base in Illinois for those products.   

[The Roop]

LMAO..........

LU has their share of them as well and they were out in force at the conference tournament.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Based on my view of the fan base that came to Appleton for IWU's win over LU, I would suspect that any shortfall in economics fo the IWU program could be made up with a sponsorship deal with Geritol or Metamucil.  The IWU fan base is likely a meaningful percentage of the customer base in Illinois for those products.   

It would be funnier if that joke weren't made about every other day on this board.  Still, good show.

[Titan Q]

Congratulations and welcome to the new coach of the Illinois Wesleyan Titans, Ron Rose.

http://www2.iwu.edu/menssports/basketball/Rosebio.shtml

IWU just hired a first-class guy that Titan fans can really get behind.

There will be a press conference tomorrow morning at 11:00am at the Hansen Student Center.
----------
Ron Rose, who played on two conference championship teams and three NCAA Division III tournament teams during his career at Illinois Wesleyan University, was named the 14th men's basketball coach at his alma mater on Fri., May 12.

The 40-year-old Rose, who has been head basketball coach at Bloomington High School for the past five seasons, succeeds Scott Trost, who left IWU in April after five seasons to become head coach at Division II Lewis University in Romeoville.

In nine total seasons as a high school head coach, Rose has amassed a record of 154-93 for a .623 winning percentage and, at BHS, Rose's teams were 103-38 with two Big 12 Conference titles, four straight Intercity tournament championships and regional and sectional championships in 2006. The Raiders' sectional title was the first at the school in 31 years and in 2004-05, BHS won the Pontiac Holiday Tournament for the first time in school history.

A Morton High School graduate, Rose was the "Most Valuable Player" for the Class AA South in the 1984 Illinois Basketball Coaches Association all-star game and attended Valparaiso University, where he started his final two games before transferring to IWU midseason of his freshman year (1984-85).

A four-year letterman at IWU, Rose played on Bridges-coached teams that went a combined 66-33 and was a starting guard in 68 career games, averaging 5.9 points and amassing 356 assists, a total that still ranks No. 6 all-time at IWU. His 137 assists in 1987-88 is seventh best in a Titan single season.

The Titans were 19-10 in 1985-86, 17-10 in 1986-87, and 24-5 in 1987-88, earning NCAA Division III tournament bids all three seasons and winning the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin titles in 1986 and 1988. The 1988 team advanced to the final eight of the Division III tournament before losing at eventual national champion Ohio Wesleyan, and the 1987 team was ousted by North Park, who was also the eventual national champion.

After graduating from Illinois Wesleyan in 1988 with a degree in business administration and mathematics, Rose worked as an actuarial assistant at Bloomington's State Farm Insurance before returning to school at Olivet Nazarene University, where he earned a master's degree in teaching in 1992 and served two seasons as a basketball assistant for Ralph Hodge.
Rose was an assistant basketball coach under Scott Thompson at Wichita State University from 1992-94, where his duties included evaluating and recruiting prospective student-athletes, monitoring academic progress, coordinating scouting and assisting with summer camps and clinics.

Rose returned to the Twin Cities to coach and teach at Normal Community High School, where his teams were 51-55 in four seasons, including a 17-10 mark in 1996-97.
He worked as human resources benefit analyst at State Farm in 1999-2000 before joining the Bloomington High staff.

Rose and his wife, Tina, have four children - Austin, Brady, Ryan, and Aubrey.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Welcome back to IWU, Coach Rose!

Q, do you have any sense one way or the other as to whether the new coach (assuming he is successful) harbors desires beyond IWU, or do we potentially have another Horenberger/Bridges Green-for-life guy?

Also, would this make Raridon and/or Tharp option D (post 6201), or something else?

If you do have impressions (or even actual knowledge) but do not feel free to share them, I fully understand.

[Titan Q]

Welcome back to IWU, Coach Rose!

Q, do you have any sense one way or the other as to whether the new coach (assuming he is successful) harbors desires beyond IWU, or do we potentially have another Horenberger/Bridges Green-for-life guy?

You can never say never, but this is Ron's dream job...I think he will be at Illinois Wesleyan a long, long time.

[John Gleich]

Congrats to Ferg on the Wheaton Academy job.  I've known Ferg since I was in High School, and he's always been a class act.  I think he will do well at Wheaton Academy!

Also, congrats to Coach Rose.  As a former player who is still close to the program he played for, I know how tough it can be when a team doesn't have much notice about who's at the helm.  That said, I think Bob Semling did an admirable job this year at UWSP.  Coach Rose has (arguably) been put in an easier situation, and many would argue that the cupboard isn't quite as bare as it was at SP last year, but...  Good luck to the Titans, nonetheless!  Transitional periods never go quite as smoothly as people would like, and I hope for their sake it goes as smooth as possible.

[Greek Tragedy]

Congrats to Ron Rose.  Unfortunately, the only Ron Rose I know is a prfessional poker player I've seen on TV!  So, I can't comment much on this other than it seems like "the best D3 job" just got filled by a high school coach!