In 2004 Billy Gillispie got the perfect job. He was hired as the head basketball coach at Texas A&M. The year before, the Aggies finished 7-21 and didn’t win a single conference game. Now the Aggies haven’t always been that bad at basketball, but they certainly have never been anywhere near a basketball powerhouse. Until Gillispie came, of course. He turned that whole show around in 3 short years. In their freshman year, they improved their win total by 8 games in conference games, finishing 8-8. His overall record improved to 21-10. The following year, despite losing their best player Antoine Wright, Gillispie managed to lead the Aggies to a conference record of 10-6 and a fourth place in the Big 12. They even received a general offer for the NCAA Tournament. , a place he hadn’t been since 1987. In the first round, the Aggies defeated Big East champion Syracuse.
If at this point you’re reading this and saying to yourself “wow, the Aggies were rolling” then you wouldn’t be alone. I am thinking the same for myself. For sustained success, a coach must be able to recruit. And that’s exactly what Gillispie was doing. In 2004 he signed both Joseph Jones and Dominique Kirk, as well as Josh Carter in 2005. Those 3 guys along with Acie Law who were in the place before Gillispie came along really put A&M basketball on the mind. Then came Donald Sloan, Bryan Davis and Derrick Roland in 2006. In that 2006-2007 season, the Aggies won 13 conference games and finished second only to Kansas, whom they defeated at Allen Fieldhouse. At one point they had a 21-game winning streak at home and finished the regular season ranked No. 7 in the Associated Press poll. A&M came to Sweet Sixteen for only the third time in the school’s history. Everything was PERFECT for Billy Gillispie. What has happened in the last 5 years can perhaps best be described as an epic collapse on his behalf.
Gillispie was offered and accepted the head coaching job at Kentucky. In 2006-2007, Kentucky was just a # 8 seed (as it was the year before) in the NCAA Tournament compared to the # 3 seed in A.M. At that juncture in time, it seemed like the Aggies were ascending to the top of college basketball in a dizzying fashion, while Kentucky was, by their standards, a sub-par team. But instead of riding the hot horse, Gillispie chose to go where she thought the grass was greener. Two years is all Gillispie had before Kentucky lost patience with him. But in hindsight, that’s not what strikes me after a coach has such a short and unsuccessful tenure at a particular school. It’s looking back at the press conference where he was hired by that school that gives me so much to laugh about. A huge crowd gathered on campus to rejoice and celebrate the man who would save Kentucky basketball. I really don’t need to say anything else. Just watch the video and enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eezDrCtXlnI