Posted by Doug Gottlieb
Most of us inside college basketball knew that Jay John was done at Oregon State at the end of this year.
Despite some solid references with stops at Butler and Arizona as an assistant, John was never able to crack the code at Oregon State. What makes no sense to me is that he was relieved of his duties Sunday night. What point did Oregon State make other than waving the white flag on this season and a suit case full of money for a mid-major coach looking to move up? To be blunt and fair, Oregon State is absolutely within its rights to fire John, but why now? Unless there is something off the floor I am unware of, the timing makes zero sense.
I watched OSU lose to Washington by nine points in Seattle Saturday night. The game was incredibly close and entertaining the entire way. There were 30 lead changes, and the Beavers fought hard. With the kids fighting for their coach, why then did the school give up on their kids. Oregon State used to own the Pacific Northwest and the Pac-10 for that matter. They have never been able to find a successor to the great Ralph Miller, nor have they changed the court or arena he coached in. While Oregon State will pursue the talents of St. Mary's coach Randy Bennett and alike, maybe some soul searching will make OSU commit to being great again. Otherwise it will constantly run coaches in and out of Corvallis.
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