Ted Kissell can’t be sleeping well right now. He’s putting on a good show — currently saying that he is in a much better situation than he was nine years ago — but there seems to be just as much, if not more, riding on who our next coach will be. Remember, he has two decisions to make, just like he did when he hired Purnell. Not only does he have to worry about the men’s head coaching position but also the women’s.

On the women’s side, things are better than they were just five years ago when Jaci Clark took over. However, the program is still weak even when it is compared to the rest of the A-10. On the positive side, the new coach won’t have to dig out of the same hole that Clark found when she got here. Kissell is down to two candidates, one man and one woman. He made it very clear early on that the best candidate would win no matter what their gender may be.

The problem with the women’s program is that the level of support in the community is fairy weak. Yes, attendance is up and among the best in the conference, but there still is no groundswell backing the program. The good thing is that the administration is firmly behind the program. Clark made the comment more than once that she had everything she needed to succeed. There were no restrictions on who and where she could play and there was plenty of money set aside for recruiting. Unlike the Donoher years, there is not only plenty of money set aside for the men — but also the women — to get the players they need to succeed.

What is needed now is a coach that can upgrade the level of player brought into the program. It doesn’t take a great deal of watching of the women’s Sweet 16 to see that UD sorely lacks the type of athlete to compete at this level. The same problem that has anchored down the men’s program is even worse for the women. The new coach will need to sign the talented local players and get stronger, quicker athletes from other areas to come to the city of Dayton. Clark could coach, she just couldn’t recruit.

Certainly, the selection of the women’s coach is important for the long-term stability of the program, but the selection of the men’s coach could make or break several programs at UD. It’s no secret that the men’s basketball program is the straw that stirs the drink at UD much like Reggie Jackson was with the Yankees in the 1980’s. Without a successful basketball program, football, baseball, volleyball, and possibly even soccer would be in trouble. Kissell cannot afford to make the same mistake that Tom Frericks made in 1989 when he hired Jim O’Brien.

There have been several names that have been thrown around by the Flyer Faithful, but none by Kissell himself. The only name that we know for sure is Ron Jirsa. Jirsa is an interesting candidate. He has coached at a “higher level”, a level that most UD fans would like to see their team reach. He has been listed as one of the top recruiters when he was at Georgia. He was named two years ago as one of the top assistant coaches in the country.

Probably the biggest negative that he may have against him is his association with Purnell. Yes, that sounds crazy, but think about what that means. In Purnell’s last five years when he had his own people in place, UD made it to two NCAA Tournaments and one of those was almost an NIT year. In 2000, Dayton was one of the last teams in the Tournament. If they hadn’t made it that year, Purnell might not have had the opportunity to coach the team this year. In the two Tournaments that they were in, they were gone quicker that you could say Waleskowski.

The head coach gets all of the acclaim when the team wins and all of the grief when they lose. Yet the assistants are thought of as being an extension of the head coach. When was the last time that an assistant from a program in the dumps got hired as a head coach somewhere else? When Donoher was fired, they spoke to Dan Hipsher, but was he really considered?

Ron Jirsa is not Oliver Purnell and for all I know has a completely different style of coaching than Purnell. He has been the main recruiter for Purnell during his stay at UD. Purnell has never been acclaimed as a great recruiter. My interactions with him never convinced me that he could be a real closer. Sincere, yes. Closer, no. UD was in on a number of top players over the last several years, but aside from Brooks Hall, never were able to hit the home run. Can Jirsa do what Purnell was not able to do?

My fear, because I do like Ron Jirsa, is that lack of success on the recruiting front will be held against him. My feeling is that Jirsa would be able to improve the level of recruit, but may not be given the opportunity. The selection of Ron Jirsa is not sexy. Bringing in a top assistant from a Michigan State like Brian Gregory or from a Duke like Johnny Dawkins is sexy. Bringing in a name like Steve Lavin is sexy. It’s not just about winning and losing. Perception is important. Will the hiring of Ron Jirsa get us more TV time? Does CBS even know who Ron Jirsa is? I know they know who Steve Lavin is. I know they know who MSU and Duke are.

Let me be the first to say that everything that I am throwing out here is purely speculation. I do not have the privilege of being a fly on the wall at the hotel where all of the interviews are taking place. I cannot possibly operate from the same level of knowledge that Ted Kissell and Company will operate from. One thing that I do feel confident about is that Kissell will find a candidate that can truly take us to that next level. It is my gut feeling that the next coach of the Dayton Flyers will be Brian Gregory. Then again, Gregory might not even be on Kissell’s short list.