Jay Wright to retire. Kyle Neptune from Fordham likely to takeover

Just think about how history could have been different. If Jarvis gets the Wizards NBA job in 2000 (instead it goes to Leonard Hamilton) SJU hires Jay then at Hofstra.

A year later the Rutgers job opens and Jay is set to take that job. Lappas is in limbo and eventually pushed by Rollie Nova decides to act and basically push Lappas out in favor of hiring Jay before he takes the Rutgers job.
 
Clearly one of the all-time greats who, at times, single handily kept the conference in high regard. He will be missed and we should all hope the Big East can mitigate his departure by consistently fielding multiple ranked teams. The caliber of coaches the conference has recently added in encouraging. Let's hope it pans out.
 
Top 5 BE coaches of all time:
Calhoun
Thompson
Wright
Boeheim
PJ

I give more value to guys who built something from nothing so Calhoun at the top, JT over Wright, and PJ over Rollie, Louie.
 
Here is an email from \\// President Father Donohue
——————


Dear Members of the Villanova Community,

We would like to start by expressing our immense gratitude to Jay Wright, who today announced his retirement from coaching, for his incredible leadership of Villanova Men’s Basketball for the past 21 years. He has led our storied program with class, humility and grace, leaving an indelible impact on this community.

Jay’s legacy at Villanova extends well beyond the numerous awards, accolades and championships. He will be forever known to our community as Villanova’s winningest coach, who did things the “Wright” way, guiding, developing and empowering the student-athletes who played for him to not only be better on the basketball court but also in their personal lives. Jay taught us all the true meaning of “ATTITUDE,” so, on behalf of everyone associated with Villanova Basketball, we would like to express our overwhelming “GRATITUDE” for everything he has done for Villanova.

Jay and his wife, Patty, have always been tremendous ambassadors for the University and our Augustinian mission by embodying what it means to be a Villanovan: selfless, humble and caring while being driven, determined and competitive. Villanova is a better University for Jay being a part of it, which is why we are delighted that he has agreed to stay on at Villanova as Special Assistant to the President. In this role, Jay will be involved in fundraising, advising, education and more for the University.

NEXT CHAPTER
Over the past two decades, Jay and his staff have built an enviable, world-class basketball program at Villanova. When looking for a successor, we wanted a candidate who could provide continuity for what Jay has built, and who could navigate the changing landscape of collegiate athletics keeping Villanova in a position of strength—now and in the future. After meeting with several exceptional candidates, we found all those attributes and more in Villanova’s new William B. Finneran Endowed Head Coach, Kyle Neptune.

Kyle quickly stood out for his basketball knowledge, recruiting savvy and natural ability to connect with student-athletes and coaches. He most recently served as the head coach of Fordham University. Prior to Fordham, Kyle served two stints on Jay’s staff over the course of a decade. While an assistant coach at Villanova, the team averaged 30.7 wins per season and captured five BIG EAST regular-season tournament titles and a pair of NCAA national championships. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Kyle played four seasons of college basketball at Lehigh University.

Please join us in congratulating Kyle and welcoming him back to Villanova. He is eager to get started and return to the Villanova community. Also, in the months ahead, we will come together to honor Jay and Patty and recognize his more than two decades as the Head Coach of Villanova Men’s Basketball. More to come on that, but as we say, it’s a great day to be a Wildcat!

Sincerely,

Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA
President

Mark Jackson
Vice President and Director of Athletics
 
I was shocked when I saw this. I have no love for Villanova as a school or it’s fans but a ton of respect for Jay Wright and the coaching career he had at Villanova and the positive impact that he had on his players. He will be missed by the Big East. I hope Neptune can keep the program at a high level as they have been extremely important to the conference since it has been reformed.
 
JohnnyFan said:
Personally, I put Jay Wright at the top of that list and say it isn't even close.
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Calhoun - and it is not even close. What he did at Uconn under the circumstances of the Big East at that time.

Wright is #2 for me for how he's elevated Nova post-realignment. No knock on Wright, who is fantastic. But I think Calhoun, as much as I dislike him, did the best program building job in the history of college basketball.
 
Unsubstantiated, but rumors are his wife may be ill. Sad if true. Wish them the best. He is a class act and represented the conference and school well.
 
As a Jets fan this is like Brady leaving the Pats. Hope SJU seizes the opportunity and improves the program quickly all around. Get that practice facility built.
 
Surprising news to wake up to. I didn’t realise he was 60. We are used to guys like Boheim and Coach K coaching into their 70s, but I can understand why a guy that has had a high stress profession for the last 30+ years would want to wind it down.
 
How long before Sexton starts a CMA to Nova rumor? lol
 
gman said:
Surprising news to wake up to. I didn’t realise he was 60. We are used to guys like Boheim and Coach K coaching into their 70s, but I can understand why a guy that has had a high stress profession for the last 30+ years would want to wind it down.
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I don’t think we will see too many hanging on into their 70’s anymore. Just my opinion.
 
hardytime said:
Calhoun - and it is not even close. What he did at Uconn under the circumstances of the Big East at that time.

Wright is #2 for me for how he's elevated Nova post-realignment. No knock on Wright, who is fantastic. But I think Calhoun, as much as I dislike him, did the best program building job in the history of college basketball.
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Rick Pitino always said the 3 greatest coaching jobs in terms of taking programs with no history or no recent success and elevating them to no. 1 was Tark at Vegas, Calipari at UMASS and Calhoun at UCONN.
 
In hindsight it was great for the Big East to bring in Matta and Miller to help off set this. Not that you can really replace a Jay Wright but those names carry legit weight nationally especially compared to the two they replaced. Still a great group of coaches.
 
Amaseinyourface said:
In hindsight it was great for the Big East to bring in Matta and Miller to help off set this. Not that you can really replace a Jay Wright but those names carry legit weight nationally especially compared to the two they replaced. Still a great group of coaches.
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True. But a Lexus is a nice car, but it isn’t a Ferrari.
 
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