Is hiring Gottlieb a risky move? Yes, but his potential is off the charts. He is absolutely the best communicator in the history of Oklahoma State coaches. He also has one of the highest basketball IQ's of any coach, radio personality, or TV personality. He is also one of the most famous alumni (nationally) to ever play basketball at Oklahoma State (which will help recruiting, and so will his connections).
Additionally, a big part of the decision for Holder will be money. If Holder were to hire Gottlieb, the athletic department would not lose the momentum of season ticket holders from this season. Instead, there would be renewed interest from the Sutton loyalists who did not buy season tickets this past year because Underwood wasn't an oSu guy or a Sutton, so most of them were in a wait-and-see mode. Sutton loyalists do not trust outsiders, but this would not be an issue if Gottlieb were hired. If the excitement of the oSu students is any indication, then the older adults/alumni will buy season tickets to support one of their favorite sons too. Plus there is no buyout if they hire Gottlieb. In addition, Holder could hedge his bet by signing Gottlieb to a three-year deal with many incentives and a base salary around 500K (which is around the pay of a successful up-and-coming mid-major coach). The money saved could then be used to help Gottlieb attract the best assistant coaches and some data analysts (to help with recruiting, in game strategy, team scouting, etc).
On a side note, our athletic department really needs to become a leader in college athletics by injecting our athletic department with Moneyball metrics across all sports. This data could help all sports in the athletic department and they would only need 2-3 people and pay them $50,000 - $100,000. This amount is cheaper than 1 assistant football coach, but their impact on the entire athletic department would be profound. If you've never seen the movie Moneyball, click here to watch the trailer.
Additionally, a big part of the decision for Holder will be money. If Holder were to hire Gottlieb, the athletic department would not lose the momentum of season ticket holders from this season. Instead, there would be renewed interest from the Sutton loyalists who did not buy season tickets this past year because Underwood wasn't an oSu guy or a Sutton, so most of them were in a wait-and-see mode. Sutton loyalists do not trust outsiders, but this would not be an issue if Gottlieb were hired. If the excitement of the oSu students is any indication, then the older adults/alumni will buy season tickets to support one of their favorite sons too. Plus there is no buyout if they hire Gottlieb. In addition, Holder could hedge his bet by signing Gottlieb to a three-year deal with many incentives and a base salary around 500K (which is around the pay of a successful up-and-coming mid-major coach). The money saved could then be used to help Gottlieb attract the best assistant coaches and some data analysts (to help with recruiting, in game strategy, team scouting, etc).
On a side note, our athletic department really needs to become a leader in college athletics by injecting our athletic department with Moneyball metrics across all sports. This data could help all sports in the athletic department and they would only need 2-3 people and pay them $50,000 - $100,000. This amount is cheaper than 1 assistant football coach, but their impact on the entire athletic department would be profound. If you've never seen the movie Moneyball, click here to watch the trailer.
Last edited: