First of all, we've been telling you guys for a while that Sterk wasn't going to stay beyond this contract. I think he had between a year and two years left. There had been talk of an extension a while back, but that didn't materialize. So we always knew he would be out in the next couple of years at some point. He is 65ish and it made sense. In addition, multiple sources told me he had recently become vested (IDK exactly what that means but it has something to do with pension and retirement) since he had been here five years. So that probably has something to do with it.
BUT
If you didn't believe what Dave Matter and me reported about the process to replace Barry Odom, you should believe it now. I have been told by people in a position to know that Missouri had a release prepared to announce Blake Anderson as the head coach. Arkansas State people believed Anderson was leaving for Missouri. It was absolutely going to happen. He was Sterk's choice. Whether you want to believe it was because Sterk thought he was the best guy for the job or because Sterk was limited on what he could spend by the Board of Curators is up to you and depends on who you talk to. Either way, that's the guy Sterk was going to hire. The BOC stepped in and said "That's not good enough" and they got Mun Choi on their side.
I can't tell you for sure who identified Drinkwitz. But it was telling that two Curators were on the flight to interview them. At that point, it was apparent to anybody who understands how these things work that the AD wasn't 100% in charge of the hiring process. He had brought his guy and they didn't like it. And that's not a great spot for the AD to be in. The power was...lessened...after that.
The relationship with Choi and the Curators was less than perfect after that. It was never going to be long term after that. The UCF thing was real. Sterk was absolutely a candidate and honestly I thought he was going to take the job. Obviously, he didn't, but it was telling (to the point that we had our hot board saved in the story drafts for five months since then because we knew this day was coming at some point).
I won't go so far as to say Sterk was forced out. I can't say I know that to be true. I think they just got to a point where it made sense on Sterk's side and both sides were ready to move on. This post probably makes him look bad. That's not my intent. He did some good things here. He guided Missouri through a very difficult time, he hired a basketball coach who has stabilized the program and he hired a football coach who appears to be an incredible hire (regardless of how much of the credit he deserves for that). Today's news surprises me in the timing, but in no way does it surprise me that it happened. As I was making calls (I first heard about this about 3 pm and finally got it confirmed to the point we could report it around 515) the response from virtually every person I called was this: "I haven't heard that, but it doesn't surprise me." That's what I'd say. The timing is a little strange, but it doesn't surprise me at all.
BUT
If you didn't believe what Dave Matter and me reported about the process to replace Barry Odom, you should believe it now. I have been told by people in a position to know that Missouri had a release prepared to announce Blake Anderson as the head coach. Arkansas State people believed Anderson was leaving for Missouri. It was absolutely going to happen. He was Sterk's choice. Whether you want to believe it was because Sterk thought he was the best guy for the job or because Sterk was limited on what he could spend by the Board of Curators is up to you and depends on who you talk to. Either way, that's the guy Sterk was going to hire. The BOC stepped in and said "That's not good enough" and they got Mun Choi on their side.
I can't tell you for sure who identified Drinkwitz. But it was telling that two Curators were on the flight to interview them. At that point, it was apparent to anybody who understands how these things work that the AD wasn't 100% in charge of the hiring process. He had brought his guy and they didn't like it. And that's not a great spot for the AD to be in. The power was...lessened...after that.
The relationship with Choi and the Curators was less than perfect after that. It was never going to be long term after that. The UCF thing was real. Sterk was absolutely a candidate and honestly I thought he was going to take the job. Obviously, he didn't, but it was telling (to the point that we had our hot board saved in the story drafts for five months since then because we knew this day was coming at some point).
I won't go so far as to say Sterk was forced out. I can't say I know that to be true. I think they just got to a point where it made sense on Sterk's side and both sides were ready to move on. This post probably makes him look bad. That's not my intent. He did some good things here. He guided Missouri through a very difficult time, he hired a basketball coach who has stabilized the program and he hired a football coach who appears to be an incredible hire (regardless of how much of the credit he deserves for that). Today's news surprises me in the timing, but in no way does it surprise me that it happened. As I was making calls (I first heard about this about 3 pm and finally got it confirmed to the point we could report it around 515) the response from virtually every person I called was this: "I haven't heard that, but it doesn't surprise me." That's what I'd say. The timing is a little strange, but it doesn't surprise me at all.
