Mike Anderson vs. the road

[HonestChieffan]

How long will MU put up with Anderson?

[Bootlegged]

Stupid hire to begin with..

[bobbything]

If he doesn't start beating KU every once in a while, they won't put up with him for long.

[Demonpenz]

they are brutal. I would give him 2 more years to show progress. They can't shoot, can't play D without fouling, take dumb shots. Once he has "
his guys in there" they better preform

[Sure-Oz]

He kind've needs talent, he has the guys playing hard...unfortunatly the other team has shot a ton of FT's the last 2 games.

[Eleazar]

You can't build a doghouse without any nails

[duncan_idaho]

Probably more time than Illinois will put up with Bruce Weber's inability to get any talent - 'his guys' or otherwise - into his program.

Anderson is handcuffed so far by the guys he can put out there. Frustrating, but you have to give the guy a chance to build a little bit, and bring in something other than a talented but undisciplined, last-minute JUCO PG (Hannah) his nephew (Carroll) and late, class filler guys (Tiller and Butterfield).

Safford looks like he's going to be a good player, even if he is a bit of a late bloomer.

His first REAL recruiting class brings a speedy, pass-first point guard (Migel Paul), a rebounder/shot blocker at center (Steve Moore), a couple of scoring wings (Marcus Denmon and Kim English) and a couple of versatile, athletic forwards (Lawrence Bowers and Keith Ramsay). Moore and Bowers aren't finished products offensively, but they should be able to contribute defensively and on the glass quickly.

If that class is showing the same type of play in two years that this season's team is, then I'll be worried...

[hawkchief]

One thing working in his favor - Anderson will look like a genius next year compared to Frank "the stare" Martin at KSU after Beasley and Walker finish their 4 month sentence in Manhattan. Talk about the bottom falling out. Frank will be fully exposed as the fraud he is and Anderson won't look all that bad.

[Eleazar]

One thing that really jumped out at me against KU was that if we're going to play this kind of game, we need guys who can shoot. Really shoot. We just don't have them right now. With the turmoil our program was in, nobody like that was going to come play here.

I think they've played some games where they've looked pretty good this year. Not that they are a good team, but that they did a good job of working hard and doing fundamental things right and I thought Anderson was doing the best he could.

[HonestChieffan]

I agree that Illinois will be looking to replace Weber pretty soon if he cant get his act going. But I cant see Mizzou letting this go on too long either. You can only blame Snyder for so long.

[duncan_idaho]

I agree that Illinois will be looking to replace Weber pretty soon if he cant get his act going. But I cant see Mizzou letting this go on too long either. You can only blame Snyder for so long.

You're right in that Snyder can only take the blame for so long. But the 08 class was the first time Anderson had spots open and more than a few months to recruit players.

The 06 class (Butterfield, Tiller, Hannah) was thrown together last minute.

The 07 class (Safford, transfer Zaire Taylor), Anderson started recruiting the summer before the senior year for those players. Tough to get in on guys that late.

The 08 class is all his. It will be his make-or-break class.

[ROYC75]

MU needs to give Anderson some time, he is getting good play from what he has to play with.

[kepp]

MU needs to give Anderson some time, he is getting good play from what he has to play with.
I agree. He came in with little talent in place and declining recruiting power. It would be foolish to expect an immediate turnaround.

[bobbything]

One thing working in his favor - Anderson will look like a genius next year compared to Frank "the stare" Martin at KSU after Beasley and Walker finish their 4 month sentence in Manhattan. Talk about the bottom falling out. Frank will be fully exposed as the fraud he is and Anderson won't look all that bad.
This is true. But, this happens both ways with many coaches. Bruce Weber is a perfect example. He won with Self's recruits. Now, it's becoming painfully obvious that he can't (a) recruit, (b) coach, or (c) all of the above. Talent, in the end, is the trump card.

As a KU fan, I hate to admit this, but I like Mike Anderson. He's a likable guy. And he was (moderately) successful in the CUSA with marginal talent. However, I really think his style of play is harder to run nowadays because players have evolved into better all-around athletes since Arkansas won a NC.

I'm not suggesting he can't do it, I just think it's going to be very difficult.

[gblowfish]

When he starts boffing Paige Laurie....he's toast.

[Swanman]

I agree that Illinois will be looking to replace Weber pretty soon if he cant get his act going. But I cant see Mizzou letting this go on too long either. You can only blame Snyder for so long.

Weber is safe for now for 2 major reasons:

1) His '09 and '10 recruiting classes are incredible, picking up the top 2 players in Illinois in the '10 class (Jereme Richmond and Crandall Head).

2) Illinois' AD does not like to fire coaches that he hired, that's why Ron Turner stuck around as FB coach for 3-4 years too long.

Back to Mizzou, if they put up with Quinny-poo for as long as they did, logic says they will give Anderson at least 20 more years.

[CoMoChief]

Haha, I laughed at this hire from day one.

40 mins of hell? More like 40 mins of fouling and bullshit.

[NewChief]

Haha, I laughed at this hire from day one.

40 mins of hell? More like 40 mins of fouling and bullshit.

That's how a lot of people felt about Nolan's style of ball as well, but he did win a national championship with it. I had mixed emotions about the style. It's definitely not as professional and pretty as the more traditional styles. It also can lead to losing games that you shouldn't lose because you're not relying on a pure clockwork machine to win, you're relying on some element of wildness and frenzy in order to spark victory. The upshot is that you also often win games you probably shouldn't win. If it all comes together, you can even win a national championship.

[WilliamTheIrish]

You have to love the phogtards. Frank Martin's doing a fine job. 3-0 in conference with a roster of freshmen. He put on a half court trap D at about 10:00 mark in the first that turned the game from 12-13 deficit to a 27-13 lead. The key however, will be getting through the first half of conference play at 6-2 or 7-1. Which is entirely possible.

The second half of conference play is where it's going to be a b*tch. 5 roadies that include trips to Lubbock, Lawrence and Columbia.

Also, Martin has beaten in order, the SLTH's (that's Solid Long Term Hire) of Jeff Capel, Turd, and Bzdilidsilsidcxyzswqaz at CU.

And the funniest thing: Last April, it was "Martin won't win with Beaz. Now after a long backpedal, it's "Martin won't win next year" after Beaz is gone. Nobody cares about next year. Beaz and Walker are here now. I'm enjoying the hell out of that.

[Eleazar]

You have to love the phogtards. Frank Martin's doing a fine job. 3-0 in conference with a roster of freshmen. He put on a half court trap D at about 10:00 mark in the first that turned the game from 12-13 deficit to a 27-13 lead. The key however, will be getting through the first half of conference play at 6-2 or 7-1. Which is entirely possible.

The second half of conference play is where it's going to be a b*tch. 5 roadies that include trips to Lubbock, Lawrence and Columbia.

Also, Martin has beaten in order, the SLTH's (that's Solid Long Term Hire) of Jeff Capel, Turd, and Bzdilidsilsidcxyzswqaz at CU.

And the funniest thing: Last April, it was "Martin won't win with Beaz. Now after a long backpedal, it's "Martin won't win next year" after Beaz is gone. Nobody cares about next year. Beaz and Walker are here now. I'm enjoying the hell out of that.

I don't know where they are coming from, KSU is probably the story of the conference so far this year.

[Spicy McHaggis]

I think Anderson needs some time to fulfill the cliche of getting "his guys" in the program. As far as I've heard, those are athletic but perhaps undersized play hard guys that show some versatility. I'm a KU fan though so it's not like I have got my ear too close to the ground regarding Mizzou B-ball.

However, I can see Mizzou being a team that under Anderson's philosophy, will win some games against superior talent that it probably shouldn't. On the other hand I don't think that they'll sustain a level of consistently doing so.

[DeezNutz]

Ultimately, Anderson might not be the answer, but I don't think most people realize what a disaster Q. Snyder created. Obviously the team is still struggling, but at least a person can watch Mizzou play and say that there is a definite plan/philosophy. It might be a flawed plan, but Snyder didn't even have this.

[HonestChieffan]

Weber is safe for now for 2 major reasons:

1) His '09 and '10 recruiting classes are incredible, picking up the top 2 players in Illinois in the '10 class (Jereme Richmond and Crandall Head).

2) Illinois' AD does not like to fire coaches that he hired, that's why Ron Turner stuck around as FB coach for 3-4 years too long.

Back to Mizzou, if they put up with Quinny-poo for as long as they did, logic says they will give Anderson at least 20 more years.


Thats good news about the Illini. Thanks.

[Hammock Parties]

the guy also complains too much about the refs calling fouls on his team, but he doesn't realize that it's his team, no the refs. god i really can't stand hearing the guy on 810.

[bobbything]

However, I can see Mizzou being a team that under Anderson's philosophy, will win some games against superior talent that it probably shouldn't.
See: Kentucky, 2004.

I don't know anything about Frank Martin. I don't think anyone does. Other than he likes to yell. It would be hard not to win with a very solid Bill Walker and (arguably) the best player in the country. Unless, of course, your guards can't get him the ball...

[eazyb81]

This is true. But, this happens both ways with many coaches. Bruce Weber is a perfect example. He won with Self's recruits. Now, it's becoming painfully obvious that he can't (a) recruit, (b) coach, or (c) all of the above. Talent, in the end, is the trump card.

As a KU fan, I hate to admit this, but I like Mike Anderson. He's a likable guy. And he was (moderately) successful in the CUSA with marginal talent. However, I really think his style of play is harder to run nowadays because players have evolved into better all-around athletes since Arkansas won a NC.

I'm not suggesting he can't do it, I just think it's going to be very difficult.

Totally agree with this. Anderson can win with his style, but he needs much better talent, and I'm not convinced he will be able to recruit elite players on a consistent basis.

Next year's recruiting class looks okay, but is hardly going to push us to the top of the league in terms of talent. Hell, Baylor has outrecruited Mizzou over the last couple years. Anderson needs to step it up a notch and bring in a guy like Cousins to jumpstart the program.