URI Wants Hurley And The Feeling May Be Mutual
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
The University of Rhode Island wasted little time firing Jim Baron at the end of the season. And it now appears that they are wasting little time in trying to find his successor.
As we reported first here on GoLocalProv.com, Wagner men’s basketball coach Danny Hurley was at the very top of AD Thorr Bjorn’s short list and the desired target for URI. That feeling has not changed and, in fact, may have only intensified over the last week.
Sources tell GoLocalProv.com that URI officials met with Hurley Tuesday and that Hurley has a strong interest in the job.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTHurley just finished his second season at Wagner College on Staten Island where he led the Seahawks to a 25-6 record this season which included a 15-3 mark in the Northeast Conference.
While some have speculated that Hurley may want to stay at Wagner because of his New Jersey roots, that is far from a given. Initially it was thought that he may be able to attract a head coaching job in a high-major conference while at Wagner, but the Seahawks loss in the semifinals of the Northeast Conference tournament may have hurt those chances.
According to a published report on silive.com, Hurley is among the lowest paid coaches in the Northeast Conference. That would likely place his salary in the range of $150,000 to $200,000. While he would certainly be in line for a decent raise at Wagner, the school likely could not afford a package of $450,000-$500,000 like the one URI is said to be offering.
URI’s salary for its men’s basketball coach still ranks in the lower half of the Atlantic Ten where the median salary for men’s basketball coaches is believed to be about $750,000 per year.
Although the Rams have not been to the NCAA Tournament since 1999, they do have a first class facility in the Ryan Center to attract recruits. In addition, competing at the top of the A-10 will become easier starting with the 2013-2014 season when Temple bolts the league for the Big East.
All indications are that Bjorn and URI may hire a new head coach within the next two weeks even before the Final Four where many AD’s meet with prospective coaching candidates.
If Hurley, for some reason, has a change of heart and decides not to come to Kingston, GoLocalProv.com has learned that the other candidates being seriously considered are former Rams coach Al Skinner, Kansas assistant coach Joe Dooley and Drexel’s James “Bruiser” Flint who was at UMass where Bjorn came from before arriving at URI.
Whoever the new head coach is at URI, he will have some good young talent to work with. Freshman Jonathan Holton was named to the Atlantic Ten’s All-Rookie team. Mike Powell, TJ Buchanan and Dominique McKoy also gained significant experience as freshman as well.
Whether or not sophomore transfer Billy Baron remains at URI is still in question. With his father having been fired, Baron could consider another move despite having already transferred once from Virginia to Rhode Island. It is possible that he could receive a hardship waiver from the NCAA if he were to seek a transfer allowing him to play immediately wherever he goes.
