As much grief as Lee Fowler justly deserves, I have to give the man credit for this: He made one hell of a ballsy hire in Kellie Harper. There were many that would've preferred Stephanie Glance be given the job following the passing of Kay Yow last year, per Kay's wishes. Lee, however, went against the grain and decided to give the keys to the program to a hot up-and-comer from Western Carolina.
And today, as State prepares to take on Duke in the Women's ACC Championship, that decision appears to be paying big dividends.
I think there's something to be said for "resetting" a program from time to time. State's women's basketball program needed a reset, and Kay's passing, while tragic and somber, provided the athletics program them that opportunity. Following through on that opportunity was a difficult choice to make, but Lee did it, and for that, he gets credit.
Now, for the other 98% of his decisions...nevermind. We'll keep it positive in this post. In hiring Harper, he earned it.
Don't do it! Don't give Fowlup credit for this hire! I like the hire, too, but he took entirely too long to get it done.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, Fowler gets credit for TOB (assuming that one even works out for us), but TOB wanted us. And Fowler almost botched that one, too. At one point, TOB has to call US to see if the deal was on. Fowler should have been the one calling him.
Just because this blind pig found an acorn in Harper, does not mean he's magically made up for the other 99% of his work that has been a decidedly BAD job.
In keeping with the positive vibes of the post I too would like to congratulate the Wolfpack women on their success in Coach Harper's first year. Keep it going into the NCAAs.
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