Wiedmer: UTC might best replace Wade from inside

We're about to find out how much University of Tennessee at Chattanooga athletic director David Blackburn really believes in former basketball coach Will Wade's "Chaos" style of basketball.

Does he still believe, as he did 695 days ago when Wade was hired, that the coach's relentless full-court pressure defense and 3-point-focused offense was the best strategy to put fans in the stands and banners in the rafters?

Does he believe it enough to encourage the rest of Wade's staff to remain on the job now that the 32-year-old shooting star has taken flight to Virginia Commonwealth, which is where Blackburn found him working under Shaka Smart?

Will Blackburn hand the keys to the Mocs' kingdom to current assistant Wes Long, then strongly encourage Long to keep former UTC point guard Casey Long on staff?

Or will UTC again start from scratch -- risking all the positive momentum gained from Wade's first two seasons, his 40-25 overall record and impressive 27-7 Southern Conference mark -- to hire someone who might prove equally successful down the road but might also need a year or two to incorporate a different system requiring a different player skill set than Chaos?

Wes Long

Will Wade

And Blackburn thought dropping men's track was stressful.

It isn't easy, this decision. Wade was clearly upgrading the program, even if his two first-round Southern Conference tournament losses screamed of a coach still finding his footing.

But regardless of those dual disappointments, no one should fault Wade for leaving. He's departing a low mid-major for a low high-major with infinitely superior resources, beginning with what's expected to be a salary increase of close to five times his current $187,000 a year.

Anyone dumb enough to turn down that kind of increase isn't smart enough to return the Mocs to greatness.

But that doesn't mean Blackburn has to start over for the second time in three years. The foundation is in place. The returning players are poised to make a serious SoCon tourney run next spring, a chaotic charge that could return the Mocs to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009.

Wade's exit doesn't have to alter that. Not if Blackburn hires the non-brothers Long, assuming they aren't determined to follow Wade to Richmond, Va.

Certainly Blackburn already has his own list. All good athletic directors do, and Blackburn has quickly proven to be one of the best. Everyone from Florida assistant Matt McCall to LSU aide and Chattanooga native Tom Kelsey to former Alabama coach Anthony Grant to Dalton State coach Tony Ingle -- he of a just-won NAIA national championship -- are already eager to interview, and all of those candidates have notable strengths.

But because starting over philosophically as well as physically might derail next season's SoCon title dreams, reaching out to Long and Long might make the most sense.

The players appear to like and respect both coaches. It also can't be overstated how much Wade often appeared to lean on Wes Long for strategy advice during a games, the two huddling at almost every timeout before addressing the team.

While the system came from VCU with Wade, Long had been a head coach for five seasons at Queens University in Charlotte before coming to UTC. The last three of those seasons ended in a 55-30 mark, which would certainly be similar to Wade's 40-25 record for his two seasons in the Scenic City.

And because Casey Long is a former Moc, retaining both could pave the way for an ex-player taking over the program somewhere down the road if Wes Long wins enough to move up the coaching food chain.

It might also soothe the hurt feelings that are sure to exist among some of the players, especially SoCon defensive player of the year Justin Tuoyo.

You may recall that Tuoyo began his career at VCU after being recruited by Wade out of Lovejoy High School in Fayetteville, Ga. While Wade could coach immediately, Tuoyo had to sit out his coach's first year with the Mocs due to that transfer. Now he'll have to spend his final two years of eligibility under a different coach.

No one should begrudge Wade fattening his bank account and polishing his resume for a Fat-Cat Five conference job somewhere down the road, but what about Tuoyo? Having already sat out one season due to transfer, shouldn't he have a waiver to follow Wade back to VCU if the UTC program, Tuoyo and Wade all sign off on the deal?

If the NCAA really is all about the welfare of the student-athlete, shouldn't there at least be an independent committee to rule on these unusual situations?

Yes, Moc Maniacs could correctly argue that losing Tuoyo might severely hinder UTC's ability to win the league next season. But without Wade, Tuoyo would never have transferred here. If he now wishes to follow his coach out the door, who could blame him?

What matters most, what hurts most, is that UTC again is forced to start over before an NCAA tournament bid arrives. Just like it did with Jeff Lebo 11 years ago. Some might argue that promoting John Shulman back then didn't end well. But it did produce two NCAA tournament appearances in five seasons from a one-bid league. Were Long and Long able to do the same, most would call that a success.

So while no one expects a rising coaching star to stay here for long, most programs at UTC's level have a reasonable right to expect at least one run to March Madness before that coach moves along.

Maybe next time.

Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.