Pelphrey steps up: Hog hat fits fine
Posted on Tuesday, April 10, 2007
FAYETTEVILLE - The University of Arkansas ended two weeks of snubs and one very public jilting when it introduced South Alabama's John Pelphrey as the basketball coach Monday.
Pelphrey, 38, made the Jaguars into a Sun Belt Conference championship program, studied under some of the most highly regarded coaches in college basketball and grew up in basketball-rich Kentucky.
The small-town boy from Paintsville, Ky., who made the big time as a star for the home-state Wildcats said he wouldn't have any trouble pledging allegiance to the Razorbacks. He did his homework, too, invoking the names of Nolan Richardson, Eddie Sutton, the Triplets, May-Day and Barnhill Arena in a brief admiration tour of the program's history.
"My whole life my blood has bled blue, and I love my alma mater,"said Pelphrey, who lettered at Kentucky from 1989-92. "But today my blood bleeds Arkansas red. This is a dream job for me."
Arkansas will pay Pelphrey $ 750, 000 per year, according to a compensation letter he signed Monday. He can earn up to $ 1. 2 million more if he maximizes all of his incentives, including winning a national title and graduating players. A contract will be drawn up and executed later.
The only one of the three assistant coaching positions immediately filled went to South Alabama's Tom Ostrom.
Athletic Director Frank Broyles conducted the search primarily by himself after firing Stan Heath on March 26 but said "10 of the best coaches in America"declined the job. He hired less flashy but proven Dana Altman on April 2. Altman quit next day to return to Creighton, saying he and his family were emotionally tied to the Nebraska school.
Arkansas turned the search over to an Atlanta firm, Parker Executive Search, the second time around and agreed to pay $ 90, 000 plus expenses for what turned out to be five days of work. UA Chancellor John White said the cost was worthwhile because the school could not come close to tapping the information and resources on its own that Parker provided.
White, Broyles and sports information director Kevin Trainor met with Dan Parker, the firm's president, Thursday and Friday in Dallas to narrow candidates from a starting list of about 30. They flew in Pelphrey, Clemson's Oliver Purnell and Nevada's Mark Fox for interviews on Saturday and hired Pelphrey on Sunday.
It was a trying two weeks for all involved at Arkansas.
"We didn't think anybody wanted to coach us,"junior forward Sonny Weems said.
As distressing as it was to lose Altman, it could turn out to be a blessing because of the qualities that Pelphrey brings, White said. White said he likes Pelphrey's winning record, uptempo playing style and the fact that he spent much of his interview Saturday trumpeting the Arkansas program instead of himself.
"I think our guardian angel was looking over us,"White said.
Pelphrey followed local protocol in embracing the Razorbacks at his news conference in Walton Arena. He did the Hog call and put on an Arkansas cap to rousing cheers from fans who were bewildered when Altman set his aside during his introduction.
Finding out that two players had tested positive for marijuana use and that one is suspended from team activities because of academic problems was not a deterrent, Pelphrey said.
"I wasn't overly concerned,"Pelphrey said. "I think those are obviously all issues that can be dealt with, especially the academic side. I fully anticipate all those guys being there in the fall."
Pelphrey doesn't fit the exact profile that Arkansas officials originally said they wanted in a coach.
Broyles had said Heath's replacement should be an established coach with a winning background whose system is up-tempo. Pelphrey uses a high-revving style that features full-court defensive pressure, fast-paced offense and three-point shooting.
But Arkansas hired someone with one less year of head coaching experience and two less NCAA Tournament appearances than it had in Heath (six years, three NCAA trips ).
South Alabama was in shambles when Pelphrey took over.
The Jaguars went 36-48 his first three seasons. His 2006 team went 24-7 overall and lost in the NCAA's first round to eventual national champion Florida. The 2007 team went 20-12 and won the Sun Belt regular-season title but lost its last five games, including to Syracuse in the NIT.
Broyles originally tried to hire Billy Gillispie from Texas A&M but Gillispie wouldn't return his calls and ended up taking the Kentucky job last week. Broyles offered the job to Kansas' Bill Self and others at elite programs with no takers and said he had to scale back his expectations.
Pelphrey was on Arkansas'radar "from the very beginning"but did not make himself available to Arkansas until after the Kentucky job had been filled, Broyles said.
ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale said moving from South Alabama to Arkansas is a "major step up."It's a show of faith on the school's part but one that could be rewarded.
"Sometimes you've got to spot potential,"Vitale said. "John brings potential. He coached for Billy Donovan. He knows the SEC. Sometimes you've got to roll the dice and hope that you hit a home run."
Former Kentucky Coach Rick Pitino, now at Louisville, called Pelphrey "the brightest player I ever coached and the best leader."
"I think he's one of the bright, young stars on the horizon,"Pitino said.
Pelphrey served eight years as an assistant under Billy Donovan, who guided Florida to the last two NCAA titles. Donovan called him "a phenomenal coach."
Making the jump from a midmajor program to a high-major like Arkansas is common and doesn't seem to faze Pelphrey.
"I don't find it daunting or find it a situation where I'm at a place that I can't do the job,"he said.
Having the Kentucky lineage and being considered a rising star thrust Pelphrey's name into several coaching searches the past two years. He interviewed for the Ole Miss job and was linked to the Nebraska opening last year, and he withdrew his name from the South Florida job that eventually went to Heath last week.
As a player, Pelphrey served as the face of one of Kentucky's most beloved teams, nicknamed the Unforgettables for its memorable 1992 comeback season after two years of severe NCAA penalties.
Pelphrey started three seasons as a forward who played the point, earning a reputation as an intelligent player who shot a high percentage. Kentucky retired his No. 34 jersey after the 1992 season, though the number remains active, and made him a member of its inaugural, 88-member hall of fame class in 2005.
Pelphrey inherits a team that has seven seniors and could be favored to win the SEC West. He met with the players and connected with them more quickly than Altman did.
"The person from Creighton didn't know who some of our players were, so I knew he wasn't the right guy for the job,"Weems said. "But [Pelphrey ] came in and knew who everybody was, knew how everybody played, and I think he's the right fit for the job."
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online
