staff

Coach Mitch will be a great addition to the staff, after all hes an O'Dea man! And the new post players are lucky to have an experienced player/coach in Kramer to show them the ropes.

Learned today that long time Pilot, Buzz Stroud, will be retiring at the end of June....

Buzz, the UP Associate Athletic Director/Operations, has been at UP since 1984 and has always been the behind the scenes guy who has kept the Athletic Department going while officially and unofficially performing every duty imaginable.

I doubt many of us will appreciate just how much Buzz has done for us as fans until after he retires, but it is safe to say his shoes will be hard to fill.  Amongst his varied duties, Buzz has been responsible for oversight of game management for all intercollegiate athletic events at UP....and although we may not see how much work he puts into each event, he is most often spotted on the court, diamond, or field when something needs fixing!

Whether it's a shot clock problem, a piece of sod that's come loose, an inebriated student, a railing that has fallen, or the PA announcer that has gone missing, Buzz has always been there to make sure the game or match could continue.

In many ways, Buzz is the last of the "old guard" of UP athletics that included Joe Etzel, Pat Sweeny, Clive Charles, Bill Irwin, and Jim Sollars. Hard to say what Buzz will do in retirement, but I hope he comes back as the PA announcer at Pilots Men's Basketball games....his deep, no nonsense voice would be a welcome addition in the Chiles Center.

Nice tribute to Buzz on Portside with the Pilots tonight.....

And yes, included in the profile were words from Etzel, Sweeny, Irwin, and Sollars.....and video of Buzz with Clive.

Confirming what DD's already reported:

@PortlandPilots wrote:MBB: Terry Porter announces the promotion of Kramer Knutson to assistant coach #GoPilots

up7587 wrote:

@PortlandPilots wrote:MBB: Terry Porter announces the promotion of Kramer Knutson to assistant coach #GoPilots

Here's the "official" story:
http://portlandpilots.com/news/2016/6/16/kramer-knutson-promoted-to-mens-basketball-assistant-coach.aspx

At a meeting at PSU this morning had a PSU staffer tell me Bob Cantu was a prime candidate for the head coaching job there after Coach Geving was fired.

Probably seeing my jaw drop, she went on to say "there are others in the running too."

With a number of head coaching jobs opening up around the country, PSU is probably not the only school giving Bob a call.

On another note, I've been closely following Georgia Tech on the TV this season, and addition to Rev's boss, Josh Pastner, being selected ACC Coach of the Year by his peers,  GT is now heading to Madison Square Garden for the NIT final four.

I think we had better get used to Cantu speculation. He's been consistently regarded by at least one source as one of the top assistant coaches in the country. Just as SMC followers see the "Randy Bennett to [insert Pac-12 team here]" rumors this time of year, we'll see the "Cantu to wherever" rumors floating around this time of year while he's still at UP.

Maybe the more surprising revelation is that DoubleDipper was at a meeting at Portland State, what's going on there?!

Dean Murdoch wrote:Maybe the more surprising revelation is that DoubleDipper was at a meeting at Portland State, what's going on there?!

I hear he's looking to transfer. He needs more leg room for his bum knee, and he was checking out the plans for PSU's Stott Center renovation.

up7587 wrote:

Dean Murdoch wrote:Maybe the more surprising revelation is that DoubleDipper was at a meeting at Portland State, what's going on there?!

I hear he's looking to transfer.  He needs more leg room for his bum knee, and he was checking out the plans for PSU's Stott Center renovation.

I assumed he just didn't know the difference between Portland State and Portland.

You're making me bummed about people like Tim Douglas leaving. I have to wonder if that new Stott Center will actually help them recruit. Fact of the matter is, they don't regularly fill the current gym they have.

up7587 wrote:

Dean Murdoch wrote:Maybe the more surprising revelation is that DoubleDipper was at a meeting at Portland State, what's going on there?!

I hear he's looking to transfer.  He needs more leg room for his bum knee, and he was checking out the plans for PSU's Stott Center renovation.

"I was always kind of thinking about  it (transferring) during our little losing streak, it was in the back of my head and it would be in the back of any (fan's) mind when you lose 14 games in a row. But my decision really came this past week when I was thinking about it and when I was thinking about other schools that could use a person like me."

But then reality hit me square in the face!  I don't know how long this rule has existed at UP, but they will not release me, or even any player, to any D1 school in Oregon or in the WCC (guess I won't move to Spokane either).  Once a UP fan, always a UP fan, I guess.  

DoubleDipper wrote:

up7587 wrote:

Dean Murdoch wrote:Maybe the more surprising revelation is that DoubleDipper was at a meeting at Portland State, what's going on there?!

I hear he's looking to transfer.  He needs more leg room for his bum knee, and he was checking out the plans for PSU's Stott Center renovation.

"I was always kind of thinking about  it (transferring) during our little losing streak, it was in the back of my head and it would be in the back of any (fan's) mind when you lose 14 games in a row. But my decision really came this past week when I was thinking about it and when I was thinking about other schools that could use a person like me."

But then reality hit me square in the face!  I don't know how long this rule has existed at UP, but they will not release me, or even any player, to any D1 school in Oregon or in the WCC (guess I won't move to Spokane either).  Once a UP fan, always a UP fan, I guess.  

It's an NCAA rule...once a booster...no transferring. Unlike athletes though there is a rumor that your contract is not exclusive.

I think he'd be a good fit at BYU. Would probably bring down their average age a bit, too!

So...to be serious now. I think its a good sign that our assistants are now being considered for head coaching positions at other D1 schools. It's a sign we made some good hires and have stepped up the $ commitment to get them as compared to previous coaching staffs. This is one of those good problem to have scenarios.

dholcombe wrote:So...to be serious now. I think its a good sign that our assistants are now being considered for head coaching positions at other D1 schools. It's a sign we made some good hires and have stepped up the $ commitment to get them as compared to previous coaching staffs. This is one of those good problem to have scenarios.

Agreed. A growing pain. I'm a big fan of Coach Cantu, so I am glad he is getting recognition, but I really hope we can keep him around for a loooong time...

It would be a lot more gratifying if they contributed to a proven track record of winning at UP before they leave.


So far, we don't have that track record from coach Cantú. What we have is a losing streak worse than the Holton years, and the players he brought in are leaving.

Geezaldinho wrote:So far, we don't have that track record from coach Cantú. What we have is a losing streak worse than the Holton years, and the players he brought in are leaving.

Yes, the only player the current staff brought in, Andre Ferguson, is leaving.  But to be fair to both Andre and the staff, Andre knew it was likely just an "emergency" one year deal in case Alec was hurt.

Andre has said he had no substantial offers from other schools and was planning to head to a JUCO before the UP offer popped-up. He wanted the chance to start for a D1 school and he did, but after just a couple of games it was obvious he'd need a great deal more experience before he'd be able to play at the D1 level again.

He told me he's now a much better point guard than he was when he arrived at UP, and will probably head to a JUCO in California and then look for a good D1/D2 landing spot.

Geezaldinho wrote:It would be a lot more gratifying if they contributed to a proven track record of winning at UP before they leave.


So far, we don't have that track record from coach Cantú. What we have is a losing streak worse than the Holton years, and the players he brought in are leaving.

Obviously we would all like more wins. The non-conference season went much better than I expected...and the conference season went much worse than I expected. If Alec doesn't get injured we very likely go .500 which is better than I expected at the beginning of the year. Not too bad, but it is worrying we couldn't pull out any of the close games after losing Alec.

Mark Orr, the SMC Athletic Director for the last 10 years has left Moraga to take the same job at Sacramento State.

Hearing lots of buzz about UP AD Scott Leykam being a strong candidate for the job, not just because he's a SMC grad, but because of his good work at Stanford, on the WCC staff, and at Portland.

UP athletics have been on an upswing since Scott came to UP.....I would hate to see him go anywhere.....hopefully he and his family feel the same.

PilotNut wrote:Agreed.  A growing pain.  I'm a big fan of Coach Cantu, so I am glad he is getting recognition, but I really hope we can keep him around for a loooong time...

Apparently Portland State is moving ahead to fill its vacant basketball head coaching job, but one guy who says he really want the job is Northwest Christian Coach, and former Duck and NBA player, Luke Jackson, who's been lobbying for the job:

"I've been coveting the Portland State job for a few years. "I really want that job. It could turn into something really special pretty quick. I think I could get the school and the community pretty excited about it."

Mark Orr was the BMOC when I was a freshman at Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento. Good to see him heading home and to a school with football.

PSU welcomes their new head coach, Barret Peery.  Peery was most recently the Associate Head Coach at Santa Clara....

http://www.goviks.com/news/2017/4/10/portland-state-names-barret-peery-as-new-mens-basketball-coach.aspx

I'm shocked that it wasn't Luke Jackson. I want to know why they didn't hire him. He apparently really wanted the job.

Probably fond memories of the 2002-2003 season under Heath Shroyer when the Viks went 5-22.

12 schools in 22 years. That guy moves around more than a bunny on Cuban coffee