Good read. Glad we got our guy.
Curious to know who the other two teams were that wanted him the same time we did.
When I went to the Final Four in Indianapolis I was stopped and spoke with an Indiana alum. He said the worst mistake IU ever made was to fire Coach Sampson. I agreed and thanked him for allowing him to come coach the Houston Cougars.
It’s interesting to think that when kids go through the process of transitioning from high school to college in Sampson’s program, they all go through the same humbling process that he can point to having experienced himself.
He was an accomplished and highly-regarded college coach before IU ran him off. But when he went into the NBA, he was just another guy trying to figure it out, basically starting over as a coach.
He’s said it before, but our history was a big part of why he took the job here. I’ve gotten the sense that he had some regrets about leaving OU, which kind of helped him realize that “you don’t mess with happy.”
It’s an amazing confluence of circumstances that led UH basketball and Sampson to where we are now and turned both into something much greater than they were before.
I was in college during Phi Slama Jama, my son graduated from U of H with Sampson. My wife and I caught a few games with him at the largely empty Hoff with he was in elementary. What a cool ride. I love the fact that we have shared so many U of H memories while attending U of H games both football and basketball. We are blessed to have CKS and his family in the U of H family.
I want to win a Natty with coach so bad. My heart would burst. Instant statue. Instant renaming of streets and buildings. Keys to the city!!!
Remember seeing this graphic a few years back on Reddit. These are all the vacancies that were filled the same year as CKS was hired.
High Majors: Auburn, Oregon St, Marquette, Virginia Tech, Butler, Wake Forest, Boston College, Cal-Berkely, Washington St, Missouri, Tennessee.
Notable Mid Majors: Tulsa, South Florida
I knew CKS would be good, but did anyone think he’d be this good? I sure didn’t. Man, what a great hire he was!
Remember when we had multiple posters calling for him to be fired after his 3rd season of no NCAA Tourney bids?