Does anyone know who the brother-in-law of the Oregon State basketball team is? Craig Robinson might have taken over to lead OSU on the basketball floor, but he certainly has a little more national fanfare than your typical Pac 10 coach. Yes, a vote for the new Beavers coach is a vote for change. That’s right; Barack and Michelle Obama are probably the biggest fans of Oregon State basketball in the entire District of Columbia. I’m not an expert on NCAA violations, but this has to be some kind of unfair recruiting advantage. Someone alert Dr. Miles Brand!
In his first season at Corvallis, Robinson is already proving that he was the right choice for one of the worst jobs in college basketball. Taking over for John Jay, he’s helped lead the Beavers to a 13-14 record, while going 7-9 in conference play. That might not sound all that impressive until you take into account that they didn’t win a single conference game ALL of last season. This season, their record could be even better, but they’ve lost 3 games in overtime (2 Pac-10 games). Not too bad when you consider that Robinson and his staff are doing it with largely the same cast that faltered last season. The Beavers might not be great, but they’re definitely on the road to respectability.
For some stranger reason, Craig Robinson is bringing some publicity to Oregon State basketball!
Craig Robinson has the great opportunity of a head coaching job in Division I with zero expectations. Oregon State failed to win a single Pac 10 game last season—so it’s safe to say that the cupboard was pretty bare when Johnson took over before the season. How often does a head coach get the opportunity to build a foundation for his program without any lofty expectations in his first season or two? Since the Beavers have been SO bad in recent years, the alumni base has to have the understanding that it might take a couple of years to turn things around. They aren’t looking for a 20 win season; they’re looking for signs that a 20 win season is a possibility in the future. It’s a huge difference for an incoming coach. In his first year, it looks like he’s taking every advantage of his opportunity.
This is only Robinson’s second Division I head coaching job, but he hasn’t exactly taken the traditional path either. While getting his BA in Sociology at Princeton, he was two-time Ivy League player of the year. More importantly for his current job, he learned how to play the game under legendary coach Pete Carril. He received an Ivy League education while having the chance to learn under the one of the greatest college teachers of all time. If there’s a better way to set the foundation for a potential head coach, I would love to hear it! Last season, he was able to lead Brown University (another Ivy League school) to 18 wins and a 2nd place finish in their league. It sounds like he’s off to a good start!
But instead of heading straight into the basketball profession after graduation, he instead he took his competitive and intellectual skills to the corporate world. College basketball’s loss was Morgan Stanley Dean Whitter’s gain. But millions of dollars and a divorce later he traded in his corner office for a coach’s whistle. This time the tables were turned—the financial world’s loss was the basketball world’s gain. There’s something pure and refreshing that just makes you want to root for his success. I think all of us think about cashing-in our chips and doing something we love.
“He finally listened to his heart,” said Andrew Rankowitz, who has known Robinson since they both worked at Morgan Stanley. “He was doing what everyone on the Street secretly desires to do.” –New York Times
While his brother-in-law is trying to deal with a $1.75 trillion dollar budget deficit, Craig Robinson is trying to deal with a huge talent deficit that he inherited when taking the job at Oregon State. But acquiring talent is where Robinson should have an advantage that OSU basketball has never seen before. Can you imagine if you were a big time recruit and you were trying to decide where you wanted to play your college ball? Imagine if the coach recruiting you casually dropped a line like, “Yeah, the President and I were shooting hoops last weekend… Barack has a nice little turnaround J.” I’d sign right then and there—no questions asked!
Robinson traded-in a successful life in corporate America so he could do something he loves. You know that comes through in the recruiting. Not only does he have a few inherit recruiting advantages by being the First Brother-In-Law, but he KNOWS the importance of utilizing his advantage.
“Every job [involves] sales,” Robinson says. “The biggest part of coaching is recruiting, and that is being able to sell yourself, your school and your program.” –Sports Illustrated
Robinson has shown that his communicating skills translate to the recruiting trail
He’s already locked-up a verbal commitment from 4-star recruit Roberto Nelson out of Santa Barbara for next season. The shooting guard has been described as a program changing recruit that should be able to dominate at the colligate level. Joining him will be another 4-star recruit, Jared Cunningham from northern California. He’s an extremely athletic point guard that is currently leading one of the best high school teams in California. The two of them paired in the backcourt starting next season will start to bridge that talent gap that has existed for far too long in Corvallis.
Aside from Robinson’s effectiveness on the court, his biggest attribute is that he is bringing attention from the national media. When was the last time the New York Times took the time to write about an Oregon State head coach? Over the weekend, even the CBS Morning News did a feature on him. He brings positive publicity for the university as well as the basketball program. The way he is able to connect with individuals, whether it’s in an interview or in front of a crowd, is easily his best quality as an up-and-coming coach. Even some of the victory-starved boosters saw the value in Robinson outside the X’s and O’s of basketball:
“He’s such an unbelievable communicator,” says Sue Poorman, a booster who peppered Robinson with questions about the modified Princeton offense he plans to run at Oregon State. “If he can coach as well as he can talk, we hired the right guy.” –Sports Illustrated
Obviously, Robinson is looking to keep with the theme of his brother-in-law and bring change to Oregon State basketball. Both are unbelievable communicators and have the ability to inspire groups of young people with the words they speak and the passion with which they deliver those words. If the recent good fortune with quality of play and recruits is any predictor of the future, then things are looking up in Beaver Land. Hey, and if things don’t go well—he can always request the President announces that the rest of the Pac-10 schools have violated federal law. Somehow, with the promise Craig Robinson is showing, he can handle the Pac-10 on his own.
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