LSU’s focus to shift to hiring men’s coach

• Print
• Email
• Save
• Reprints
• Twitter
• Share

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Facebook
• Reddit
• 

In the letter, Ford writes “I look forward to next season and seeing all of you pack the Mullins Center to support what is sure to be, once again, a high-energy up-tempo team.”

He closed the letter by writing “I look forward to seeing that energy and enthusiasm at Mullins next season.”

Ford was the only potential LSU candidate who was still busy coaching a team this week.

Several others have been available for a while.

Reached on his cell phone Friday, Virginia Commonwealth coach Anthony Grant deflected questions about his interest in the LSU job.

“I prefer not to make any comment on it,” Grant said.

Baylor coach Scott Drew also declined comment.

Several phone calls to Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy went to his voice mail and he did not return the calls.

With Alleva hired, it’s conceivable that the list of potential candidates could grow because of his long association with Duke and its powerhouse basketball program.

Included in the list of coaches with ties to Duke and Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski are Notre Dame coach Mike Brey, Oklahoma coach Jeff Capel, Harvard coach Tommy Amaker and current Blue Devils associate head coach Johnny Dawkins. Former Missouri coach Quin Snyder is another former Duke player and assistant. Of that group, Brey might be the most intriguing.

The 49-year-old Brey has been successful at Notre Dame and Delaware and has a strong connection to Louisiana. He was a standout guard from 1977-80 at Northwestern State, leading the Demons in assists and steals all three seasons. Brey still ranks fifth in career assists with 311, and his 180 assists in 1978-79 ranks as the fourth best single-season total in program history.