Athletic Director Steve Bilsky and hoops coach Glen Miller had their annual season-in-review meeting the afternoon of March 18. The DP has since confirmed that Miller has not been fired. He is still Penn's head coach, and he will return for the 2009-2010 season.
That is, if he wants to.
The possibility of Miller leaving Penn in the next few weeks isn't as far-out as it might seem. He has a five-year contract, according to my colleague Andrew Todres; if he stays on board, next year will be his fourth with the Quakers. After that season, the Athletic Department will either have to grant him a contract extension or fire him, since I doubt it would want a lame-duck coach running its flagship program.
If the decision was made today, Miller would be out the door, no question. His teams have stunk. Fans are incensed. Players are deserting. So If Miller does return to Penn, he is banking on pulling off a dramatic turnaround to satisfy his bosses.
That is a big gamble, because if the team struggles and Miller gets the axe, his stock as a head coach takes a serious hit.
Obviously, he can avoid that risk by bolting for another job during the offseason. As a career move, it makes a lot of sense. His decision would depend in part on the following questions:
- How confident is he that the team will improve?
- How firmly are Steve Bilsky and Amy Gutmann committed to him?
- Can he mollify the alumni who are calling for his head?
- Will any suitable coaching jobs open up?
- What kind of position (head coach vs. assistant, mid-major vs. power conference) would he be willing to accept? And at what salary?
Ultimately, though, it's a question of how much Miller values his career. Is the mere prospect of being fired enough to scare him away from Penn? Or will he run that risk and try to finish what he started? The more he cares about keeping his resume clean, the likelier he is to skip town and avoid giving it any more black marks.
Obviously, I don't know what's in Miller's head, although I hope to speak with him in the coming days. His decision will have huge ramifications for the program and also for Bilsky, whose job security is closely linked with his own. The situation will remain unclear until well after the NCAA Tournament ends, when teams around the nation shuffle their coaching personnel.
For the sake of stability, I hope Miller stays. But if his one-on-one with Bilsky last week didn't go well, he might have already seen the writing on the wall. If Miller thinks he is history after 2010, he has every incentive to get out of Dodge as soon as possible. If he splits for an assistant-coaching gig in the Big East a few weeks from now, feel free to be bitter -- just don't be surprised.
Tags: basketball, glen miller
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March 27th, 2009 at 7:18 am
This is a very helpful information for those of us who are on the outside looking in. But the reason alumni are calling for his head is not because he has lost games. Alumni understand that success waxes and wanes. Rather, alumni want him out because he is an unpleasant guy who demeans the players. I watched him do it several times and could see the look of disgust on the player's faces. That kind of coach has no business being at Penn. Why this wasn't articulated at Brown says a lot about the lack of interest Brown has in its basketball program. This cannot be said for Penn.
March 27th, 2009 at 9:50 am
Two words jumped out at me while reading your piece, "stability" and "bitter". This program and stability have absolutely nothing to do with each other. If you truly knew the dysfnctional state that this team is in presently you would never speak in such terms. Particularly seeing as where Glen Miller is the number contributor to that lack of stability.
And I think the only thing anyone would possibly be bitter about should he leave is that it took so long. I can guarantee you that I could arrange a moving party within minutes to help him along should he need it. And there would not be one bitter individual in the bunch.
What could two more years of this nonsense possibly achieve other than further destruction of our storied program? It's time to correct a mistake and get a coach in here that we deserve.
March 27th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
[...] « Could Glen Miller leave Penn? [...]
April 16th, 2009 at 4:43 pm
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October 30th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
Good Morning just thought i will let you know that i had a problem with this blog coming up blank also. Must be chimpanzees in the system.