Haith Gets His Extension

Kirby Hocutt has made an impact on UM athletics and he hasn't even officially taken over the AD position yet. It was pretty much a no-brainer, but we have to be happy that Hocutt and President Donna Shalala recognized the need to lock down Frank Haith. Without him, this program would slip back into obscurity. Haith needed a couple of years to bring in his own kids and produce the results we were looking for when we hired him from Texas, but it finally paid off with a nice run in the NCAA Tournament.

The extension runs through the 2012-2013 season, though the contract numbers weren't released. Hopefully they are paying him well, because if Miami continues its rise to the top of the ACC standings, other teams will come looking for Haith to rejuvenate their own programs. It's imperative that we keep him here. With the heralded young kids coming in to replace King and Hicks, this team should be even better next season than they were this year.

That being said, Round of 32 is what we should expect from this team. Until we sign several McDonald's All-Americans, it would be hasty to expect Sweet 16 or above. Sure, there are Cinderella stories, but we can't bank on being a surprise team in the tournament. Haith needs to get Kenny Boynton on this team and establish a trend where the top players will seriously recognize this program. Miami has a lot to offer that other schools don't. The only thing we lack is basketball tradition. A lot of kids couldn't care less about history, they just want to play where they can win. I think we can do that here in Coral Gables.