How about Coach Bo Ryan stepping down at Wisconsin?

He is almost 68 and he is retiring.

Wants to let the guy he picked to replace him prove himself. The AD is not on board yet.

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Wants to let the guy he picked to replace him prove himself. The AD is not on board yet.

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I hate when coaches do this.

Jim Wells pulled the same shite at Alabama. Retired, but realized his guy Gaspard wasn't going to get the position. Comes out of retirement a week later, retires the next off season and here we sit six years later stuck with a coach who hasn't had near the success that Wells did.

I don't see it. Kirby was the only one on the staff that Saban would have pushed for.

Gaspard used no stadium for years. After he falls flat this year, Alabama will wake up and hire a coach.

Outside of Greg Gard, there are three popular names that you will likely hear with the Wisconsin opening...

(1) Tony Bennett (Virginia) - obvious name with strong ties to Wisconsin, but this won't happen (according to builtbadgers, who you can easily Google).
(2) Ben Jacobsen (UNI)
(3) Archie Miller (Dayton)

Some might be inclined to say Shaka Smart given his ties to the Madison area, but the fit isn't right for Smart or the school.

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Maybe. But he also gives Wisconsin a better opportunity to find his successor.

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The way I interpreted this: Bo Ryan chose to retire to provide Barry Alvarez a "better opportunity" to find his successor (i.e. conducting a nationwide search).

From the initial announcement of his retirement in June, Bo has been as been about as public as one can be that he would like his Associate Head Coach, Greg Gard, to succeed him as the head man for the Wisconsin basketball program.

This makes sense.

As I mentioned on the MSB, not only has Gard been endorsed by two Hall of Fame coaches (Ryan and Tom Izzo), but has also been placed in favorable light by many former players. One in particular, who many Wisconsin fans know as one of the most experienced/longest tenured players, said that Gard has that "head coach mentality" and "moxie" about him. These characteristics fit Gard as Bo has given him more responsibility over the years, including on-floor coaching duties. He has been an "extension" of a head coach.

Given Wisconsin's basketball profile, it only makes sense (and the job must be posted per state law) that Barry Alvarez would want to conduct a nationwide search and see who bites. However, Bo stepping down and handing the "reins" off to Gard provides him a better opportunity to be the man that indefinitely replaces Bo.

Alvarez isn't narrow enough to look back on this season, with Gard as interim head coach, and strictly look at his W/L total.

If you want to label Ryan as a "quitter," I can't convince you to think otherwise, but given the conversations Bo and Alvarez have had, and Ryan's desire for Gard to eventually become head coach, this immediate retirement makes some sense.

- Was there sentiment among the South Carolina fan base that Shawn Elliot was the man for the job? Was there any realistic opportunity for him to retain the permanent head coaching role? I'm no insider to the South Carolina program, but all indications (on here and the media) seemed to point in the direction of hiring from the outside. Was anyone, except Spurrier, lobbying for Elliot to get the job?

- There is a whole lot of empathy among the Wisconsin fan base for Greg Gard to get the head coaching position. Gard was handed a number of coaching duties over the past few years normally reserved for the head coach, former players have explicitly mentioned Gard being like a "second" head coach, and Hall of Fame coaches (i.e. Tom Izzo) have endorsed him.

- Additionally, and something I completely overlooked when posting on the MSB, was that this job was likely Greg Gard's in October had it not been for his father's health.

I do understand what you're saying, though. Public perception ought to be consistent.

It is also worthwhile to note that this really was not the first time with Spurrier (i.e., the Redskins).

Imo I think 2,3 are better choices.