Update: Stanford University has confirmed that Johnny Dawkins will not return as the head coach of the Stanford men's basketball team. You can read the full statement on GoStanford.com, but here is an excerpt:
""This decision was not easy and it was a very difficult discussion for both Johnny and me, but like everything else during his tenure at Stanford, he handled it with class, respect and the utmost concern for his student-athletes," said Muir. "There are so many great things that Johnny was able to accomplish on The Farm, including improving the graduation rate, achieving an Academic Progress Rate of 1000, an NCAA Sweet 16 appearance and two NIT championships. The student-athletes Johnny coached during his tenure at Stanford represented the University with class and humility."
"I want to thank the Stanford community for playing such an important part in the lives of Tracy and I and in the lives of our four children," said Dawkins, who compiled a 156-115 record in eight seasons at the helm. "While I am disappointed that we could not achieve the desired high level results, I leave proud of the tremendous young men who have given their all to the program and I know the future is bright for Stanford basketball.""
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After struggling with mediocrity and failing to make the NIT this season reports are rolling in that Stanford University has parted ways with head basketball coach Johnny Dawkins. Jeff Goodman of ESPN and Jon Rothstein CBS both announced on twitter that Dawkins is out.
Dawkins' firing comes on the heels of a disappointing 15-15 season and failing to make postseason play. Dawkins-led Stanford Cardinal teams went 156-115 (.576) overall and 66-78 (.458) in Pac-12 conference play.
Under Dawkins, Stanford qualified for 5 post season tournaments in his 8 season tenure. Making one trip to the CBI in Dawkins first season, three visits to the NIT, and one trip to the NCAA tournament. The Cardinal did advance to the Sweet 16 in Dawkins lone big dance appearance. Dawkins was great in the National Invitational Tournament -- winning the NIT twice.
Stanford likely let Dawkins go due to his inability to maintain the tradition of winning basketball at Maples Pavilion. Dawkins' teams never won more than 10 Pac-12 games, never finished higher than tied for 3rd in conference (4 games back), never made a run to the finals of the Pac-12 conference tournament.
Dawkins' team finished .500 or worse 3 times in 8 seasons. Before Dawkins, Stanford had 3 .500 or worse seasons in the previous 24 years. Before Dawkins, Stanford had made the NCAA tournament 13-of-14 seasons.
Having inherited a stable, top program, Dawkins went 1-for-8 on NCAA tournament seasons. At an institution that is committed to excellence in every corner of its campus, Dawkins work, and the accompanying atrophy of fan enthusiasm, was unacceptable to Stanford University.
Comments
About freaking time.
@oracle gif me relief
By Keith Shirts on 03.14.16 12:40pm
Any idea on who to hire?
Archie Miller, Tommy Amaker, and Randy Bennet are all names that i’ve heard circulating. Or do we promote an assistant coach?
By andrewelkadi00 on 03.14.16 1:37pm
Everyone is still kicking around names
The School has not set a time table to find his replacement. I doubt they will hire a replacement . . . or maybe I just don’t want them too.
By nickdempsey on 03.14.16 1:39pm
Russell Turner is another name
Doesn’t really make sense to promote a current assistant. They were all around as the program has slid into mediocrity. Bennet might actually be pretty realistic. He must see that he’ll have a much better chance of going to the tournament at Stanford than he does at St. Mary’s.
By JYTLM on 03.14.16 1:56pm
It’s questionable whether we were a "stable" program as of the time Montgomery bailed out for his pro gig. The last high quality commitment was Childress in 2000 (the two-and-done Lopez twins having pretty much committed by the 5th grade). And Johnson left things worse (a pattern repeated at both LSU and TCU now).
And to be precise, the goal is more to bring back the tradition of winning basketball AWAY from Maples. We were 12-5 at home this year, including wins over teams that are seeded 1, 3, 4, and 8 in the tournament. The 5 losses were to 4 tournament teams + ineligible top-15 SMU.
By OCTaxMan on 03.14.16 1:46pm
The cupboard isn't bare...............
Just looking at the current Stanford roster. there are quite a few four star recruits to go along with one McDonald’s All-American (Travis Reid). There are two four-star prep recuits who have committed to the Cardinal. Thus, recruiting hasn’t been a problem for Dawkins.
By jcpardell on 03.14.16 2:44pm
About time
I think the right hire immediately takes us to the tournament next year and could give him cushion to establish their identity. I hope we get somebody with a good offensive style since that also brings out the fans. Also the lesson is never block RoT and supporters
By layman on 03.14.16 3:22pm
Dawkins was a wizard at the NIT, but couldn’t take the program to the next level. The big dance (March Madness) is what boosters wearing the Cardinal-red clad sweaters wanted.
Like the economy, the coaching leadership at a top-flight program like Stanford is built on momentum and confidence. Mostly confidence. It’s a fragile balance that holds it all together. There has to be the drive toward something greater year by year. That story ended in about season four and the .500 record this year sealed his fate. Stanford needed a few Eastern European bruisers, Chinese and Indian players to reflect the diversity and depth the game is moving toward.
By akloak on 03.14.16 3:56pm
MercNews is floating Jarron Collins, Asst Coach - Warriors
Talent wise, should be ok if we get a real 3pt shooter (40%+)… what is so difficult about snagging a sniper?!
MercNews says Warriors Asst Coach and big alum Jarron Collins will get a phone call. If that pans out, the change would only HELP recruiting.
http://www.mercurynews.com/warriors/ci_29637097/stanford-fires-basketball-coach-johnny-dawkins
By ADPATERSON on 03.14.16 4:49pm
Really?
The Warriors have a great culture, but Stanford shouldn’t hire a coach with zero college coaching experience. Collins has never worked with a college coaching staff and has no head coaching experience. I’d be really worried about his recruiting ability. Stanford’s a major program and should aim for a successful mid-major head coach.
By JYTLM on 03.14.16 5:46pm
Had to happen
Like people have said, Dawkins is a nice guy. Very different in personality from Johnson (and even Monty). Since personality doesn’t mean wins, he had to go, unfortunately.
Lots of people compare this situation to when Harbaugh was hired, but I don’t think anyone realistically (in the AD) thought he would do to the football program what actually transpired. At best, being competitive in the conference and making the California rivalries fun to play again. That’s the kind of thinking the Muir needs now. We don’t need to have a coach that repeats Monty’s success — we need a coach who can get us back in a position where we can one day have the opportunity to repeat that kind of success.
For a multitude of reasons, Stanford right now won’t be able to make a hire that will take the program from rags to riches overnight. I think tempered expectations heading into this should be reasonable, and yes, that potentially includes looking at candidates with zero head coaching experience.
By RedOscar on 03.14.16 7:05pm
That's pretty defeatist
Stanford should be able to lure at least a head coach from a low major program and can probably do better. It’s still a major conference job. Dawkins has shown that you can still recruit well at Stanford. The team is loaded for a coach to come in and succeed right away. And as Dawkins has shown, the administration is willing to be patient with coaches. It should be a very attractive job.
By JYTLM on 03.14.16 8:39pm
Counterarguments
Stanford may not be bottom of the barrel, but its admission and academic requirements concurrent with the athletic goals and benchmarks may make any coach, even low major (and yes, that’s also defeatist thinking in and of itself), to be apprehensive about going to Palo Alto.
Recruiting seems to have been assistant coach Mike Schrage’s forte and not necessarily Dawkins. You don’t have to be a recruiting guru to bring in talent as a head coach, and it certainly helps, but those assistants (just like in football) are a recruit’s first point of contact on everyday questions and issues. Several recruits and their parents say they were (and continue to be) extremely impressed by Schrage.
I also don’t think the administration was willingly playing the waiting game inasmuch as they couldn’t afford to jump straight to the end quickly. Remember Dawkins is a coach who somehow managed to get long term extensions with presumably hefty buyout clauses that coupled with the rumored organizational financial losses were a net pain the AD wouldn’t want to endure. Especially after all the layoffs 2007-2010.
By RedOscar on 03.15.16 12:04am
Great "inside" info.
Also, your take seems more realistic than what you hear from most fans. Every coaching job comes with unique challenges, and Stanford’s seemingly more than most. To state what should be obvious, it may be among the most attractive schools in the world for students, but it’s a very different matter for coaches. Those of us who’ve been around long enough recall that when Trent Johnson bolted for a school where he thought he could more easily get better athletes, none of the obvious choices (Doug Wojcik was supposedly one of them) were willing. Dawkins was a surprise candidate, but at least had a resume that spoke to his potential; more importantly, he actually wanted the job.
By Cardinal&Orange on 03.15.16 6:24am
Holy shit, it's been 8 years?
Time flies when you completely ignore an irrelevant program, I guess.
By Tim Eckert-Fong on 03.14.16 9:08pm
Just get a coach who can get this team to play smart, disciplined basketball consistently…and beat Arizona once in a while.
Someone who has a clear philosophy or system that is suited to Stanford and the kind of players that can realistically get admitted year in and year out, and who want the 4-year (or more) academic experience. Chasing one-and-dones is a waste of time — they’ll just end up at Duke where they know they’ll have a shot at a national title.
And forget about Randy Bennett: His personality is a much better fit at St. Mary’s than at Stanford and he knows it. Plus, he’d probably have to give up the Aussie pipeline that’s kept his program afloat most of his tenure there.
By Cardinal&Orange on 03.14.16 9:54pm
Better late than never
Should have happened 3 years ago before REAL damage was done to the program & fan base. Now the pressure is really on Muir to make a great hire because the program is on life support – another bad HC hire and the damage could be irreperable.
I really hope that Muir focuses first and foremost on successful head coaches. We should not take the risk hiring another assistant (sorry Jarron Collins & Luke Walton). We should also hire someone who has been a successful college basketball head coach (sorry Mark Madsen) – NBA/D-league is a different animal.
First call should be to Russell Turner because he knows/gets Stanford. Beyond that, there are many successful mid-major head coaches out there.
By winflop on 03.15.16 1:16pm