Front Office Football Central - View Single Post - Coach Graham Sims: A Pennsylvania Story (FBCB)

MoonlightGraham · 04-04-2023, 08:54 PM

May 1, 2016

The first Head Coach round sees nine job offers land in the mailbox of the talented young Lafayette coach. Among them are offers from Michigan, Indiana, and Wake Forest.

The only one I could have Graham accept is the Penn State job. Their coach, Charles Beesley, retired after posting five consecutive losing seasons. Penn State's basketball budget is considerably higher than Lafayette's, but the three assistant coaches suck in about $350,000 of it...and they're not worth it. The Nittany Lions are also the more prestigious program, and they play in the Big Ten.

Right now, however, I like the direction of Lafayette's program much better. Perhaps Graham will one day take on the challenge of building a weak program in a power conference, but I sense this is not the time.

The next round brings a more enticing offer. Saint Joseph's is looking for a new head man, because Indiana hired Douglass McGlynn away from them when they couldn't get Graham Sims.

The Hawks went 26-8 last season, and lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament. They return one of the nation's top freshmen from last season, guard Neville Black, and their strong recruiting class is headlined by four-star playmaker Carl McGough. With a budget of over $500,000 and no assistant coaches on the payroll, I could bring Graham's staff with him and replicate the Lafayette culture at Saint Joseph's.

The lure of coaching in the Big Five is so, so strong. This time I literally toss a coin. If it's heads, Graham stays at Lafayette. If it's tails, he takes the Saint Joseph's offer.

I flip tails. Leopard Nation leaps for joy.

The coaching carousel spins in funny ways in the next two rounds, too. St. Joseph's, determined to poach their coach from the Patriot League, lures Emile Richards from Holy Cross. The Crusaders promptly offer Graham their job. Yeah, no.

Holy Cross continues to antagonize its conference rivals by trying to steal their head basketball coaches. Their next target is Colgate's Brian Smith, the reigning conference Coach of the Year. Brian moves up to Worcester, so Colgate looks Graham's way. No, thank you.

In the Assistant Coach Round, I secure the services of Graham's three assistants at the salaries they request. We still have $18,852 left in our monthly recruiting budget.

04-04-2023, 08:54 PM	#141
MoonlightGraham High School Varsity Join Date: Sep 2022	May 1, 2016 The first Head Coach round sees nine job offers land in the mailbox of the talented young Lafayette coach. Among them are offers from Michigan, Indiana, and Wake Forest. The only one I could have Graham accept is the Penn State job. Their coach, Charles Beesley, retired after posting five consecutive losing seasons. Penn State's basketball budget is considerably higher than Lafayette's, but the three assistant coaches suck in about $350,000 of it...and they're not worth it. The Nittany Lions are also the more prestigious program, and they play in the Big Ten. Right now, however, I like the direction of Lafayette's program much better. Perhaps Graham will one day take on the challenge of building a weak program in a power conference, but I sense this is not the time. The next round brings a more enticing offer. Saint Joseph's is looking for a new head man, because Indiana hired Douglass McGlynn away from them when they couldn't get Graham Sims. The Hawks went 26-8 last season, and lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament. They return one of the nation's top freshmen from last season, guard Neville Black, and their strong recruiting class is headlined by four-star playmaker Carl McGough. With a budget of over $500,000 and no assistant coaches on the payroll, I could bring Graham's staff with him and replicate the Lafayette culture at Saint Joseph's. The lure of coaching in the Big Five is so, so strong. This time I literally toss a coin. If it's heads, Graham stays at Lafayette. If it's tails, he takes the Saint Joseph's offer. I flip tails. Leopard Nation leaps for joy. The coaching carousel spins in funny ways in the next two rounds, too. St. Joseph's, determined to poach their coach from the Patriot League, lures Emile Richards from Holy Cross. The Crusaders promptly offer Graham their job. Yeah, no. Holy Cross continues to antagonize its conference rivals by trying to steal their head basketball coaches. Their next target is Colgate's Brian Smith, the reigning conference Coach of the Year. Brian moves up to Worcester, so Colgate looks Graham's way. No, thank you. In the Assistant Coach Round, I secure the services of Graham's three assistants at the salaries they request. We still have $18,852 left in our monthly recruiting budget.