yagsy
12-19-2004, 11:44 AM
http://msn.foxsports.com/story/3259492
Mike DeCourcy /
Posted: 11 hours ago
ESPN will not be losing its biggest announcer after all.
Rick Majerus, who accepted the head coaching job of the Southern California basketball program Wednesday, has decided he will not join the Trojans for the 2005-06 season and instead will remain with the all-sports television network.
"Rick expressed to us that he had a change of heart, and asked if the possibility still existed to come back to work for ESPN," said Josh Krulewitz, ESPN's director of media relations. "We told him that he could."
http://msn.foxsports.com/id/3259420
Rick Majerus coached Utah to the national championship game in 1998. (Jed Jacobsohn / GettyImages)
In the days following Majerus' press conference, he cancelled two scheduled meetings with Trojans staff and one with players, according to a source close to USC. He appeared disappointed to learn there were scheduled to be only six returning players in the program, nearly all of them perimeter players.
ESPN heard from Majerus on Saturday. USC was caught off guard by Majerus' decision. Under interim coach Jim Saia, the Trojans earned a 81-74 victory Saturday over Western Michigan, which reached the NCAA Tournament last season. Majerus was hired to replace Henry Bibby, who was fired earlier this month after compiling a 2-2 record in the first four games. Majerus was to begin recruiting work immediately but was not to coach the team until next season.
According to friends, Majerus was energized by the challenge as it approached. He joked with the media at the news conference, laughing about his weight and heart problems.
"My health is good or I wouldn't do this," he said. "Both my doctors encouraged me to do it. I wouldn't put anyone, least of all myself, in harm's way."
But not long after he began to wonder why he was recommitting himself to the hours and demands of coaching a major-college basketball team.
UCLA coach Ben Howland was stunned when informed of Majerus' reversal after the Bruins beat Michigan.
"You're kidding me, right?" Howland said. "I hope and will pray it's not over health issues because that was always the biggest concern. That's surprising to me because I know from listening to him how excited he was to come back."
Majerus is a mercurial personality who does not rush eagerly into change. Technically, this is the third job he has quit in the past year — first Utah, reportedly for health reasons, then the ESPN announcing job so he could accept the Trojans job, and now this. But while he was coaching Utah, he went through an extended flirtation with the Golden State Warriors in May 1997, and the following year did the same with Texas and Arizona State.
According to basketball sources in the Los Angeles area, the No. 1 candidate to take over the Southern California program now will be Paul Westphal, a USC alumnus who is unlikely to embarrass the program and turn down a lucrative, promising job. However, former NBA coach George Karl, who was a candidate for the UNLV job last spring, is known to be interested in USC.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Mike DeCourcy /
Posted: 11 hours ago
ESPN will not be losing its biggest announcer after all.
Rick Majerus, who accepted the head coaching job of the Southern California basketball program Wednesday, has decided he will not join the Trojans for the 2005-06 season and instead will remain with the all-sports television network.
"Rick expressed to us that he had a change of heart, and asked if the possibility still existed to come back to work for ESPN," said Josh Krulewitz, ESPN's director of media relations. "We told him that he could."
http://msn.foxsports.com/id/3259420
Rick Majerus coached Utah to the national championship game in 1998. (Jed Jacobsohn / GettyImages)
In the days following Majerus' press conference, he cancelled two scheduled meetings with Trojans staff and one with players, according to a source close to USC. He appeared disappointed to learn there were scheduled to be only six returning players in the program, nearly all of them perimeter players.
ESPN heard from Majerus on Saturday. USC was caught off guard by Majerus' decision. Under interim coach Jim Saia, the Trojans earned a 81-74 victory Saturday over Western Michigan, which reached the NCAA Tournament last season. Majerus was hired to replace Henry Bibby, who was fired earlier this month after compiling a 2-2 record in the first four games. Majerus was to begin recruiting work immediately but was not to coach the team until next season.
According to friends, Majerus was energized by the challenge as it approached. He joked with the media at the news conference, laughing about his weight and heart problems.
"My health is good or I wouldn't do this," he said. "Both my doctors encouraged me to do it. I wouldn't put anyone, least of all myself, in harm's way."
But not long after he began to wonder why he was recommitting himself to the hours and demands of coaching a major-college basketball team.
UCLA coach Ben Howland was stunned when informed of Majerus' reversal after the Bruins beat Michigan.
"You're kidding me, right?" Howland said. "I hope and will pray it's not over health issues because that was always the biggest concern. That's surprising to me because I know from listening to him how excited he was to come back."
Majerus is a mercurial personality who does not rush eagerly into change. Technically, this is the third job he has quit in the past year — first Utah, reportedly for health reasons, then the ESPN announcing job so he could accept the Trojans job, and now this. But while he was coaching Utah, he went through an extended flirtation with the Golden State Warriors in May 1997, and the following year did the same with Texas and Arizona State.
According to basketball sources in the Los Angeles area, the No. 1 candidate to take over the Southern California program now will be Paul Westphal, a USC alumnus who is unlikely to embarrass the program and turn down a lucrative, promising job. However, former NBA coach George Karl, who was a candidate for the UNLV job last spring, is known to be interested in USC.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.