Sidney Lowe is likely on his way out the door – and Gary Parrish thinks it’s your fault.
Gary Parish, sports columnist from CBS Sports, decided to put his two cents in about State basketball. Parrish shot a snide jab at Pack fans while on 99.9 The Fan last week.
“You’re in a bad spot when you are constantly third in a small group,” Parrish said. “And anybody, except for N.C. State fans, would argue that they are a distant 3rd to Carolina and Duke.”
The comment left me absolutely livid, as I’m sure it did a lot of other State fans. While Parrish may be speaking the truth about our situation as of now, that does not mean that we should be deprived of a good coach.
For some reason, whenever a sports commentator or reporter talks about the head coaching position at N.C. State, they tend to mention the fans as the prevailing reason why top-tier coaches do not want to take over for the Wolfpack.
Every season, especially the current one, Pack fans get excited for basketball to start to see how the team does. They do not expect a national championship every season or even a final four appearance, but State fans do expect a team that can compete consistently in the ACC. Is that too much to ask for?
With all of the futility State has suffered during the Lowe regime, it is understandable that Pack fans are disturbed and disheartened. When the recruiting classes have been highly touted, like the ones that brought the likes of J.J. Hickson, C.J. Leslie, Ryan Harrow and Lorenzo Brown to Raleigh, the expectations of the coach should be raised. After all, he is the main component in bringing the talented players to the team.
Another point that has been accumulating is the discussion about State being the third best basketball team within a 20-mile radius. In 2009, UNC-Chapel Hill won the National Championship and in 2010 Duke won the title. Meanwhile, the last NCAA title for the Pack was back in 1983, while the last ACC regular season title was back in 1989 – the year I was born.
I’ll admit that we screwed up with Herb Sendek – but Lowe is in not Sendek. State fans claimed that they were tired of Sendek not beating UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke, and Lowe has been able to do that. But Sendek did win ACC Coach of the Year, a title that is not given out to bad coaches.
Pack fans are some of the liveliest and most dedicated sports fans. When I say sports, I mean nearly every sport. We love our football, but we want to see our basketball program flourish. While it seems that Lowe is more than likely on his way out the door, why shouldn’t State fans expect more for this program?
