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OT: Tod Kowalcyk

BigEastPhil

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Nov 25, 2007
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Just read that Tod Kowalcyk tested positive for COVID. He says he’s fine but he had a fever and other symptoms on Saturday. Will self isolate for 10 days.

Tod is currently the HC at Toledo and used to be an assistant under Bannon at Rutgers.
 
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To sum up his time at rutgers, he was a guy that saw the sinking ship before everyone else and headed for a life raft.
 
In Bob Mulcahy's book, he mentions encouraging one of Bannon's assistants to bail before the ship sunk completely which was a pretty shocking admission. Would assume this advice was to Kowalcyk. I thought there was a rumor of a Bannon affair with a secretary or something. Maybe it was another coach's wife. Don't know. What a mess.
 
In Bob Mulcahy's book, he mentions encouraging one of Bannon's assistants to bail before the ship sunk completely which was a pretty shocking admission. Would assume this advice was to Kowalcyk. I thought there was a rumor of a Bannon affair with a secretary or something. Maybe it was another coach's wife. Don't know. What a mess.
That seems odd about mulcahy. Why didn’t he just fire bannon then?
 
No one gets outright fired at Rutgers. There are steps to take so coaches can collect their money. When you get fired from Rutgers, it's messy.
 
No one gets outright fired at Rutgers. There are steps to take so coaches can collect their money. When you get fired from Rutgers, it's messy.
That's what I was thinking. We would need to know the timing of of the BM-TK conversation. He may have put the wheels in motion already (but couldn't say anything for legal reasons) and he wanted the guy to land safely somewhere.
 
Just read that Tod Kowalcyk tested positive for COVID. He says he’s fine but he had a fever and other symptoms on Saturday. Will self isolate for 10 days.

Tod is currently the HC at Toledo and used to be an assistant under Bannon at Rutgers.
Toledo has now paused basketball activities for two weeks because six players tested positive for covid.
 
Toledo has now paused basketball activities for two weeks because six players tested positive for covid.
Hoops outside an NBA bubble will have bumps in the road like football - it’s just the nature of these sports. Not a lot of social distancing when you’re posting up or guarding a guy.
 
That's what I was thinking. We would need to know the timing of of the BM-TK conversation. He may have put the wheels in motion already (but couldn't say anything for legal reasons) and he wanted the guy to land safely somewhere.
Think was after Bannon's 3rd year. 2000, the Spring that Dahntay Jones transferred despite Mulcahy intervening and trying to convince him to stay. That intervention by the AD right there was the writing on the wall that Bannon's days were numbered. The strip free throw thing had been known for a year by then but that might have been before the lawsuits and transferred players making NCAAs, etc., Golden Rail guest bartender thing and probably other controversies that have faded from my memory, thankfully. Think Kowalcyk was replaced by Rod Baker. The next year, Bannon was canned. Rob Lanier had lasted only Bannon's first year of 1997-9, I think, was disgusted, bailed, and then fed Woj a bunch of dirt on the program.

Good times.
 
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Think was after Bannon's 3rd year. 2000, the Spring that Dahntay Jones transferred despite Mulcahy intervening and trying to convince him to stay. That intervention by the AD right there was the writing on the wall that Bannon's days were numbered. The strip free throw thing had been known for a year by then but that might have been before the lawsuits and transferred players making NCAAs, etc., Golden Rail guest bartender thing and probably other controversies that have faded from my memory, thankfully. Think Kowalcyk was replaced by Rod Baker. The next year, Bannon was canned. Rob Lanier had lasted only Bannon's first year of 1997-9, I think, was disgusted, bailed, and then fed Woj a bunch of dirt on the program.

Good times.
Haha and just think he was so close to getting Jay Williams here. Maybe if the rutgers community was more friendly - like the whole brian DAvis- laettner relationship at duke . Williams could have had a coming out party here .
 
I remember rumors of an affair between Bannon and Kowalcyk’s wife?
The rumor I remember was it was TK’s fiancée. Also, heard the story about an affair with a secretary at Rutgers. That was a separate thing. Kevin was a man about town - too much so for a head coach. It was his downfall, IMO. Too bad because he had the program moving in the right direction.
 
Think was after Bannon's 3rd year. 2000, the Spring that Dahntay Jones transferred despite Mulcahy intervening and trying to convince him to stay. That intervention by the AD right there was the writing on the wall that Bannon's days were numbered. The strip free throw thing had been known for a year by then but that might have been before the lawsuits and transferred players making NCAAs, etc., Golden Rail guest bartender thing and probably other controversies that have faded from my memory, thankfully. Think Kowalcyk was replaced by Rod Baker. The next year, Bannon was canned. Rob Lanier had lasted only Bannon's first year of 1997-9, I think, was disgusted, bailed, and then fed Woj a bunch of dirt on the program.

Good times.
The crazy thing is we collapsed at the end of 1999 and were on the bubble . That was the closest we came to the tournament until last season. Sorry Bannon had the best team in 21 years !
 
The rumor I remember was it was TK’s fiancée. Also, heard the story about an affair with a secretary at Rutgers. That was a separate thing. Kevin was a man about town - too much so for a head coach. It was his downfall, IMO. Too bad because he had the program moving in the right direction.
People thought that the primary cause of his demise was the free-throw contest – – not so.
 
The crazy thing is we collapsed at the end of 1999 and were on the bubble . That was the closest we came to the tournament until last season. Sorry Bannon had the best team in 21 years !
So close with Troy Murphy and Jason Williams. And I doubt if Jones would have left if they had come on board. He really got close to turning the corner.
 
Despite all of the bad, there was something I really liked about Bannon. When he came here, he was all in for RU as a whole, not just his team. You could find him at just about any sporting event as a sincere and enthusiastic RU fan. I don’t think anybody topped him in that respect until we got Pike.
 
So close with Troy Murphy and Jason Williams. And I doubt if Jones would have left if they had come on board. He really got close to turning the corner.
Yes and both those guys had reasons for not coming here . Jones eventually joined Williams at duke. Jones had nice nba career
 
Despite all of the bad, there was something I really liked about Bannon. When he came here, he was all in for RU as a whole, not just his team. You could find him at just about any sporting event as a sincere and enthusiastic RU fan. I don’t think anybody topped him in that respect until we got Pike.
True . Seemed like it was a dream job for him . And a young guy , what was he 40?
If just one of many things break right like Williams , Murphy, any 1 of 3 games down the stretch or some other outcomes in other 1999 conference he is an ru legend . Instead he’s a joke . But his 1999 team was the best rutgers team from 1992 to 2020. On the wrong side of the bubble sadly . That is why we discuss him.
Hey if grunniger gets into the hall of fame...maybe the guy that coached the best rutgers men’s basketball team in a 28 year stretch gets in too. You don’t got to be too worthy to get in
 
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