Poll Results: 65 Percent Who Voted Want Gottlieb As OSU Coach

The results are in. Nearly seven in 10 of you want Oklahoma State athletic director Mike Holder to hire Doug Gottlieb as the next men’s basketball head coach in Stillwater.

The numbers here were not really that surprising to me, and they confirm what Mike Holder cannot do: Hire another Underwood. If he does that, so many folks are going to be so bitter that it could take years (even with a lot of wins) to get the fans back.

I’m curious about how Holder interprets the OSU fan base right now. Does he think winning cures everything? Does he think GIA will be full again if he brings in the Central Arkansas coach and he goes 22-9? That might be true, but I’m not as convinced of it now as I was a year ago.

Who do you want Mike Holder to hire as the next #okstate basketball coach?

— Pistols Firing (@pistolsguys) March 21, 2017

A year ago, this program needed hope. Brad Underwood provided it in barrels. Now? Not the program needs trust. It needs either a big name with a big contract it knows it can trust into the foreseeable future. Or it needs Doug. This poll confirmed that for me.

Here were the best comments.

• “Who do you want Mike Holder to hire as the next #okstate basketball coach?” I don’t want Mike Holder hiring our next basketball coach. -Nicholas D.

• In order:

Self then Miller – out of our price-range league.
Kemit Davis – Best Mid-major coach available
Gottlieb

Not real interested in many of the retreads mentioned. -Justin

• Gottlieb…I don’t know whether he can coach or not – but nobody else does either. I think he might be able to recruit, though, and that means about as much as x’s and o’s these days… -Jason S.

• Pay Gundy, then tell me how much we have left and i can more effectively vote. -Darth

• I love Doug. He used to check my ID at Willie’s. He’s smart, funny, and as loyal to oSu as can be. Great family, and potentially a great coach.

For me, it’s this. Hiring Doug is like playing blackjack. Dealer is showing a 2. You’re sitting on 14. Do you hit? It could only go one of two ways. Huge success, or huge failure. The safe play isn’t Doug, that’s for sure. but sometimes you have to play with emotion. I’m totally torn on this one. Head vs. Heart. -Towski

• I go back on forth on hiring Doug, but I think the experience thing is a little misleading. There is experience in the actual position but there is also knowledge. Sure, none of us of actual experience coaching but we also don’t have the vast knowledge of the game that Doug has. I guess you could even take his current position as a radio personality…he had no experience going into that job, but was inherently skilled to do it and do it well.

Though it is a roll of the dice in some aspects, it isn’t like he is completely without the skills to do this job. IMHO, it comes down to getting the right athletes into the program and DEVELOPING THEM…something Ford didn’t have a clue how to do. Underwood was a master. Let’s hope if Doug is hired he’s at least somewhere in between. -OSUJones

• I do hope Holder treats it more than just a “courtesy” interview to appease the fans. I don’t want Holder talking to him if he already has his mind up that he’s saying no. Would love to be a fly on the wall when that interview happens. -DDubya

• If Doug can recruit, we win. Coaching has very little to do with being good. It has more to do with getting talented guys to come to Stillwater. Look at Steve Kerr. First time coach. Got sick, Luke Walton stepped in, first time coach. Both did fine because they had tremendous talent. Calipari can only get talent and almost always is in contention. If Doug can get talent, we’ll be good. If Doug can coach and recruit, we’ll be great. -Snappy