I like Gregg Doyel. I do. He digs up a lot of good information that no one else finds and better, he’s one of the few national sportswriters who’s willing to go after a big name or big program if he thinks it’s warranted.
In this case, he’s off base though. Doyel savaged NC State fans and local media (read “Caulton Tudor”) for running off Herb Sendek. Of course, Doyel has some basis for his argument – Sendek was not an abject failure – but I don’t see the need for the vitriol in his article. It’s not like they didn’t give Sendek ample opportunity to show what he could do. Sendek was in Raleigh for ten years, and remember they were not on any probation when he showed up. Yes, he made it to the NCAAs in five of those ten years, the last five in fact, but he only reached the Sweet Sixteen once. I showed where that rated among ten-year ACC coaches last week.
Sendek had his chance. He showed that he could be fairly successful and that he could reach that level without compromising his principles. Great. That’s commendable, but being only pretty good isn’t acceptable at NC State. What’s so bad about that?
And how does he figure that “Wolfpack basketball will go down the toilet?” That part really baffles me. I understand if Doyel wants that happen – fine – but I don’t get how he could predict it. They haven’t even hired a new coach yet. Maybe State isn’t a first-tier program any more, but there’s no reason why they can’t stay at their current level and start to reach up to that top plateau. I don’t understand how anyone could surmise that they are now doomed to failure.
I wonder if he’ll write a mea culpa if he’s found to be wrong?