(St. Louis, MO) – Twitter was set afire last night when tweets like mine and from others, saying Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall was open to listening to offers concerning other jobs. Some national pundits dismissed it immediately, and others, with more personal rooting interests, ran with it like their hair was on fire.
So what is real here? Does Gregg Marshall really want to leave Wichita State? Will he really listen to overtures from some place like Missouri? He has turned down Mizzou appeals in the past and he has done the same thing with other institutions. That said, he does listen, and he is open about it.
After Alabama came knocking in 2015, he told me they made a very generous offer, but he never felt they were serious enough, saying “if it was serious they would have brought me in for a visit, and I never got on a plane.”
So what explosive things did Coach Marshall actually say on Sunday? Watch and listen for yourself!
He will listen. Earlier in that quote he talked about his long term contract with Wichita State.
“Well, I’m flattered. It’s very humbling to hear that, but — and I don’t know. I really don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know how all that’s going to play out. I could easily retire at Wichita State, if they will have me. My contract says I’ll be there at least another seven years. But we don’t stick our head in the sand either. That’s just the way we’ve always done it.”
Could he leave? Sure. Will he this time? Perhaps. Is Missouri better than the North Carolina State job he didn’t seriously pursue before? The Mizzou situation may be better now than when he rejected it last time, because the Kim Anderson had to labor under the debris left behind by Frank Haith and the deck is now clean. Let’s face it. If he went to Mizzou, he wouldn’t have to change any of his wardrobe.
What other jobs might be of interest and will he listen? As he has repeatedly said, he will listen. And he has listened to numerous offers and has stayed at Wichita State through them all.
As a Valley fan, I hate this idea. As a Missouri fan, I love that notion. As an analyst, I just don’t see it. It is an SEC job, but is it really any better than the one he has? The opportunity at Texas that went to Shaka Smart, was the one position Marshall may have been the most tempted.
Now at the tail end of his tenth season, and seeing that no matter what he does at WSU the Tournament bids will rarely be favorable, perhaps he’s looking for a new frontier with an easier path to higher seeds.
He’ll listen. We’ll watch and wait. It could be an interesting spring coach shopping season.
Do Good
Editor: Feature picture, courtesy of Frank Ladd. Follow Frank at @FrankLaddSTL
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