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Time for Tommy to Go

After another disappointing loss last night I believe its got to be coming to the end of the line for Tommy Amaker, head coach of Michigan. The Wolverines inability to win games against quality opponents and their perennial collapse in Big 10 conference play over the course of his 6 year tenure are enough proof that he just isn't cutting it.

Conference Records

The biggest issue with the Wolverines under Amaker has been their miserable play in conference. Amaker during his 6 year tenure has only a single season where he lead the Wolverines to above .500 in conference play. Which was negligible because this was the season the Wolverines were on probation, banned from postseason play. The 10-6 was also less impressive given their out of conference record was 7-7.

2002 5-11
2003 10-6
2004 8-8
2005 4-12
2006 8-8
2007 4-5

Overall 39-50

NIT Success

Hey the NIT is a nice tournament, helps young teams improve going into the next season and could be a real momentum builder heading into the next season. And with the Wolverines success at the NIT, two Finals appearances plus one championship, one could easily build up hope for the following season. Instead he followed up the 2004 title with a 13-8 season and is following up their finals appearance last year with nada.

Recruiting Woes

Amaker's problems could easily be traced to the recruiting levels where he on several occasions has had McDonald's American's bail on the program after verbal commitments. An Example of this is Al Horford from Florida, who is from Michigan and is currently project as a top 10 draft pick (He made the right choice). This contributes to the fact that the Wolverines have been lacking impact NBA talent during his tenure, without such talent it becomes very difficult to beat upper echelon squads which the Maize & Blue fail to do every year. When you look at the success he had at Seton Hall in recruiting, Andre Barrett, Eddie Griffin, etc. its easy to come to the conclusion that he did better work with his previous employers.

I know why I'm a fan of Michigan, the Fab Five, some of these kids in the past had to be fans of Michigan for the same reason, yet the recruiting classes were never elite.

Louis Orr

His replacement at Seton Hall was canned this offseason. Perhaps it was harsh to fire him but run a comparison between Orr and Amaker since their hires in 2001 and Orr had more success. 2 NCAA Tournament Bids including 1 upset win over Arizona and one NIT bid in comparison to 0 NCAA bids and 2 NIT bids. If Orr was unceremoniously dumped after a tournament appearance why not Amaker after 6 years without one?

It's Time for a Change

I like Amaker, he seems like a nice guy, he assembled one of my favorite teams of all time (Seton Hall team with Barrett and Griffin as freshman, his final year at the Hall), and I think he will do well in the future. But after 6 years at Michigan, which has the potential to be an elite Big 10 school, without a single NCAA Tournament bid its time for a change of scenery for both himself and the University.
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