A couple weeks ago, if I were to tell you the Missouri Valley Conference champion would be playing in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA basketball tournament, you would laugh in my face. Now, everyone is in shock of the No. 9 seed University of Northern Iowa after it beat the overall No. 1 seed Kansas University. You probably couldn't even name another team out of the MVC. UNI guard Ali Farokhmanesh is even on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week. Ten higher seeds won in the first round, with six higher seeds moving onto the Sweet 16. Teams like Cornell University and Saint Mary's University are also making Cinderella-like runs. All the excitement leads us to one question. Where is Auburn in all this madness?
The athletic department's decision to part ways with head coach Jeff Lebo leaves the door open for a new coach to take Auburn back to the tournament. On a side note, I did not like how Lebo was fired. When the Birmingham News first reported the firing, the team hadn't returned from the SEC tournament yet. That shows poor form by the University and Athletic Director Jay Jacobs. There was no official announcement until the team returned, but nobody waited that long to break the story.
The new arena and a recruiting class headlined by 6-foot-9 center Shawn Kemp should be nice lures for a coach willing to get his hands dirty. I've read of Jacobs reaching out to the University of Minnesota's head coach Tubby Smith, although Smith said he will remain with the Golden Gophers. I've also read that former Auburn great Chuck Person is on the radar. Person is very familiar with the Auburn basketball program and could fill the Auburn Arena with alumni who watched him play in the 1970s. The only problem with Person is he has no head coaching experience. He has coached as an assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings, however. A fresh coach could be what the team needs, even though Person wouldn't be a new face on The Plains.
Former Auburn forward Charles Barkley hasn't come out to support a candidate yet like he did with Kansas head football coach Turner Gill replacing Tommy Tuberville. The same Barkley wasn't even in attendance for the last basketball game in Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum history because he was at the University of Georgia vs. the University of Kentucky game. The Tigers are graduating five seniors. The seniors played with immense heart while at home, but lacked the confidence without the home crowd's support. This cannot happen next year. Next year's team will fall on the shoulders of the juniors, since Larry Williams Jr. will be the only senior. Sophomore Frankie Sullivan should step up and lead the team, especially if he hustles as much next year as he did this year. Sullivan was the only one on the court for the Tigers who seemed to care in the SEC tournament.
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