Jeff Capel's name is the hottest thing in the South Carolina basketball coaching search right now.
I want that job.
USC athletics director Eric Hyman has been tight-lipped about the search, but he is believed to be looking for a young candidate with head coaching experience.
Capel fits that bill. He was 27 when he was promoted to the job at VCU, at the time the youngest coach in Division I basketball. His record with the Rams was 79-41, and 50-22 in the conference, advancing to the NCAA tournament in 2004 and the NIT the following season. ...
Capel's interest in the South Carolina job is uncertain, but it would be closer to home. His hometown is Fayetteville, N.C., his brother played collegiately at North Carolina, and his father is an assistant coach for the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats.
When asked in January about the USC job, Capel told Oklahoma reporters that "I'm not interested in anything except for coaching my team."
In other words, "Call me, Eric. We'll do lunch."
So here's the resume thus far, not counting this year.
Am I the only one who thinks South Carolina might just be getting a younger version of Dave Odom if Capel is indeed the man?
This season, Oklahoma has been "puzzling," as the Dallas Morning News puts it.
Trying to figure out the Sooners this season has been one giant head-scratcher. Capel might say headache is a more appropriate description.
OU started Big 12 play with two losses, followed by three wins, three losses, three wins and, most recently, back-to-back losses. The roller coaster ride has been enough to make any coach queasy.
The Sooners did win Saturday, boosting their hopes for the tourney.
The Sooners set what is thought to be an NCAA record for the longest time holding an opponent scoreless, since the advent of the shot clock in 1986, by blanking Texas A&M for 16 minutes and 12 seconds. ...
It was the third time in coach Jeff Capel's two seasons at Oklahoma that the Sooners have held an opponent below 40 points.
And at least Oklahoma's in the hunt for the NCAA tournament, as opposed to South Carolina, which is in the hunt for ... what, exactly? The 11th seed at the SEC tournament?
So Capel's not the worst the Gamecocks could do. I'd still prefer, say, Anthony Grant, but he's got better jobs to consider, options Capel might or might not have. In other words, Capel wouldn't be a bad fallback choice.
At this point, that might be the best we can hope for.