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Offline The more I think about it, the harder I lean into the idea that NOW is the time for Duquesne to shoot for the moon & try to get a truly outstanding coaching staff on the Bluff. Last edited by phil95 (2/01/2024 9:02 pm)
New Coach
The program's reputation & facilities are so much more attractive now than they were 7 years ago. After 5 decades in the wilderness, this may be a now or never solution.
In order to pull this off the starting salary will have to be in the $1.8-1.9 million range with a guaranteed staff salary pool of at least $750K & serious annual raises. A bunch of this can be incentive based, but a base salary of less than $1.5 million isn't likely to draw interest from great candidates with very established recruiting staffs in tow.
The board will also have to be willing to pony up to help offset in buyout money from the school the new coach leaves, some sexy upgrades to the Coop fan experience, a general increase in the athletic department budget, & a fat increase to the basketball budget specifically. A great coaching candidate isn't coming to DU & the A-10 without a very obvious demonstration of intent from the university. Making the right hire will require somewhere near a $25 million investment over the the course of 6-7 years.
The coaches at URI, Dayton, Richmond, & St. Louis already make more money than this. Even the Bonnies have found the cash to pay their coach close to $2 million/year. If Duquesne is serious about being a consistent winner at this level, this is what it will take. If done correctly, the program's success will pay for itself & then some.
I don't have even one negative thing to write about Coach Dru. In fact, I have a high, (if mostly uninformed), opinion of him. I just feel very strongly that an easy succession plan has a fairly low probability of producing a great & sustainable leap forward. There is some momentum & the current coach can be disengaged without having to waste money buying him out. The time is NOW!