AWE
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 Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 6:16 pm Post subject: Southern University has fired basketball coach Michael Grant |
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| Quote: | SU Fires Basketball Coach
Apr 28, 2005, 1:05 PM
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - Southern University has fired basketball coach Michael Grant, who riled the school last month while interviewing for another head coaching job. Grant's attorney, Nikki Essix-Manuel, says her client was given a termination letter from Southern chancellor Edward Jackson. He has a year left on a three-year contract and was temporarily appointed assistant athletic director until his termination date on May 15th.
The school gave Grant the choice of resigning or appealing the termination. Essix-Manuel says the appeal is set for May 9th before the school's athletic committee. Jackson has scheduled a 2 p.m. news conference to discuss the matter. Southern can fire Grant and not pay him his base salary for the third year of his contract if it can establish cause for dismissal.
Earlier this month, Grant interviewed for the head coaching job at Youngstown State but did not get the job. Tony Clayton, a member of the Southern board of supervisors, took exception to Grant's remark to the Ohio media that, if hired, he would use Youngstown State's two available scholarships to sign junior college players. Grant says he never told of any of his recruits for Southern that he was involved in the Youngstown State search. Still, he sent letters of apology to board members and others in the Southern administration.
The school has had five straight losing seasons. Grant inherited a program that had back-to-back 20-loss seasons for the first time in school history. He went 26-and-31 in two seasons. The team finished 14-and-15 last year -- its best finish since the 1999-2000 season and reached the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament semifinals for the first time since 2001. |
http://www.wafb.com/Global/story.asp?S=3273767
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AWE
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| Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 6:20 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: | Basketball coach to appeal firing to athletic committee
By JOSEPH SCHIEFELBEIN
Advocate sportswriter
Southern University on Wednesday fired second-year men's basketball coach Michael Grant.
Grant received official notice in a letter at 2 p.m. Wednesday. That letter says he was being temporarily placed in the position of an assistant athletic director.
The letter calls for Grant, who has one year left on a three-year contract, to be let go effective May 15.
Grant said he would not comment, instead referring inquiries to his attorneys.
The school last week gave Grant the choice of resigning or appealing the termination. Grant has chosen to appeal, with the appeal set with the school's athletic committee on May 9.
"He received a formal letter of termination from (SU Chancellor Edward) Jackson," said Nikki Essix-Manuel, one of Grant's attorneys. "However, we respectfully disagree with the conclusion reached by Dr. Jackson and by the Board of Southern University. We have formally requested a hearing regarding his termination. He deserves a hearing."
Jackson declined to comment Wednesday. Instead, he said he would discuss the matter only at a news conference at 2 p.m. today in the Magnolia Room of Mayberry Dining Hall.
The school, which has had five straight losing seasons, will be searching for its fourth head basketball coach in six seasons.
Grant has a base salary of $76,000, along with a $12,000 housing allowance and the use of a courtesy car.
Grant's contract took effect May 16, 2003, and is scheduled to run through May 15, 2006. The contract also offers a fourth-year option for the school.
The school has the right to fire Grant and not pay him his base salary for the third year of his contract if it can establish "cause." The school outlined the cause in the letter. Grant's attorneys will appeal those reasons in the hearing.
Grant, who inherited a program that had back-to-back 20-loss seasons for the first time in school history, went 26-31 in two seasons. The team finished 14-15 last season, its best finish since the 1999-2000 season and reached the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2001.
Grant had interviewed for the head coaching job as one of three finalists at Youngstown State earlier this month. Though he did not get the job, his comments to Ohio media while pursuing that position riled the Southern community.
Grant's comment "I cannot put it any simpler: I want this job," raised eyebrows. But SU Board of Supervisors member Tony Clayton took exception to Grant's remark that, if hired, he would use Youngstown's two available scholarships to sign junior-college players -- "guys that I know that can come in and be competitive in this league."
Those comments upset Clayton. "That's the part that disturbs me more than anything," Clayton said at the time. "We paid for him to recruit for Southern."
Clayton had also said he would pursue asking the board, which meets Friday on campus, to consider looking for another coach.
Earlier this month, Grant said he never told any of his recruits for Southern that he was involved in the Youngstown State search. Moreover, Grant said the two schools would have different recruiting needs. (SU signed four players this week, giving the Jaguars six in the current signing class.)
In the wake of the initial firestorm, Grant sent letters of apology to board members and others in the SU administration.
SU Athletic Director Floyd Kerr said Youngstown State had followed proper channels in asking Kerr for permission to talk to Grant. In turn, Kerr notified SU's administration of the situation in early March, roughly a month before Grant interviewed in Ohio.
"Southern is a great school, but he wanted to look at another opportunity," Wade Shows, another of Grant's attorneys, said. "That's all he was doing. He has not been disloyal. He's done everything to fulfill his contract.
"Southern ought to be proud other schools are looking at their personnel, not punish somebody who's trying to better himself." |
http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/042805/sou_sucoac h001.shtml
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TheDude321
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| Posted: Tue May 03, 2005 3:55 pm Post subject: |
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He really didn't do all that bad as a coach. He inherited a tough situation, but he had the team improving. I think that they should have let him serve out his contract and then evaluate his performance.
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TheDude321
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| Posted: Sun May 08, 2005 12:07 pm Post subject: Re: Southern University has fired basketball coach Michael G |
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Anyone got any thoughts on the new coach?
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Anonymous
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| Posted: Fri Jun 03, 2005 2:32 pm Post subject: your new coach |
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yeah coach Spivery from Alabama State University you guys have fun with him.....................
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TheDude321
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| Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2005 3:22 pm Post subject: Re: your new coach |
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| Hornetfan wrote: | | yeah coach Spivery from Alabama State University you guys have fun with him..................... |
I'll guess we'll just have to see what happens. ASU's record wasn't necessarily outstanding when he was there, but it was still pretty solid. SU has hired him, so we have to give him a fair chance to prove himself now.
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jaguar_fan
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| Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 8:29 am Post subject: |
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I haven't had a chance to look it up. Any idea how much he is making?
By the way...found and interesting search engine home page with a Southern theme...thought is was pretty unique and thought others would appreciate it.
http://southern.enformayshun.com
I set it as my homepage...work well.
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