When a new branch of the Princeton basketball coaching tree grows, it usually results in great celebration around these parts. Tonight however the feeling from this most recent bough is bittersweet.
After four seasons coaching the Tigers, Sydney Johnson is leaving his alma mater for Fairfield.
There has already been plenty of discussion about fair market value, of lateral moves, institutional support, of the role of athletics in an institution of higher learning and comparative admissions requirements across the Ivy League.
While these are all valid questions to discuss, my concern is that with the system that is currently in place the conversation we are presently having in 2011 will repeat itself in 2015 and 2019 and 2023 and...
Since Coach Carril's retirement in 1996 Princeton will have rotated through five coaches in 15 years. Bill Carmody, John Thompson III, Joe Scott and now Sydney Johnson each left for different reasons but the fact remains the same: None of these men were at Princeton for longer than four seasons.
The days of a 29 year lifer like Pete Carril are gone. I acknowledge that. But I worry that Jadwin Gym is now a weigh station where future coaches do not see the importance in staying longer than four campaigns. Has Princeton become a job built for only a certain ceiling of success?
Every time this program appears to have stabilized, upheaval awaits.
As other Ivy schools tinker with their admissions standards, are more aggressive about the acceptance of transfers and put greater focus on their basketball programs than ever before there is justifiable concern that Princeton will be unable to compete up a slanted playing field.
Did Sydney Johnson price himself out of Princeton's range? If so, what does that say about these next four years (or about Fairfield's level of interest)?
It was my hope that Johnson would stay for a few additional seasons, perhaps stealing an Ivy title from Harvard's tightening grip and then heading to a BCS program. It was unrealistic to expect more.
"Princeton will immediately engage in conducting a national search for Sydney's successor," says Athletic Director Gary Walters.
Walters will also have to win back many Tiger fans who currently are shocked and disappointed by today's news if my inbox is a fair pulse of the public. The result may have been inevitable but the perception is that the Athletic Department and the university did not do enough to make Sydney stay.
As I sit on my couch following a thoroughly unfulfilling NCAA Tournament final, I feel bad for the returning members of Princeton's roster - especially the junior class who took a leap of faith on what Coach Johnson was promising could be waiting for them. They achieved their goal but are left with an empty feeling.
I haven't fully worked through my own emotions, which is partially why I wanted to try and write tonight.
Selfishly, I'll miss being able to share time with Coach Johnson and talk as peers. I enjoyed our discussions of movies and off-court pursuits greatly and at the least my Netflix queue is in better shape thanks to some of his recommendations.
My last image of Sydney Johnson as the coach of Princeton comes from 13 days ago. Johnson met me at Jadwin to tape a quick interview before leaving the country on a family vacation to recharge after a long season. Running late, Johnson finished our recording, shook my hand, grabbed a large bag under each arm and raced out to a meeting.
The door shut behind him and he was gone.
