KANSAS CITY, Mo.
The dean of Big 12 Conference women’s basketball coaches senses big changes coming into his profession.
“There’s a lot of money involved; there’s a lot of pressure involved,” Iowa State’s Bill Fennelly said Tuesday during Big 12 media day.
“It used to be women’s coaches were immune to that, and we’re not anymore. I think we live in a `what have you done for me lately’ world, and you win, you’re successful, or they’re going to find somebody else who they feel can do it. You see a lot of administrators change, and when (athletic directors) change, the coaches change a lot of times after that.”
This year’s most headline-grabbing coaching change, in the nation as well as the Big 12, occurred when Jody Conradt, a pioneer in the sport who won 900 games, retired at Texas.
When the Longhorns began casting about for a replacement, they didn’t have to go slumming. Taking her place is Gail Goestenkors, who went to four Final Fours and was 396-99 in 15 years at Duke, one of the nation’s most prestigious basketball powers.
For a much-in-demand coach to gravitate to the Big 12 was only the continuation of a trend in recent years, however.
